dream1990 asked for this one. Here you go, Amigo! Enjoy! :)
This story is also the sequel to 'Happiness Long Overdue', but will take a bit of a different approach too. :)
Undertale belongs to Toby Fox. I only own my OCs.
Hope For Past And Present
Chapter 1: Nightmares
Sans jerked upright as he woke up from a sound sleep, his breathing coming out in terrified pants as he turned on the light beside the bed and looked around, finding himself in the familiar room of Ida's mansion. Sighing, he moved to the edge of the bed, his feet going into his slippers as he held his head in his hands. "Why?" He asked himself softly.
The monsters were at peace and it had been two years since they had come to the surface and met Frisk's aunt Ida, who had taken them in and kept them safe along with her cousin Michael. They were accepted by almost everyone. And they were all happy as Alphys was pregnant with her and Michael's child, Ida and Grillby had a beautiful daughter named Harmony, and the king and queen had just had Capricorn.
So Sans had to wonder why he was still having nightmares. For the past two weeks, he kept having nightmares about the RESETS. And what was really bad was sometimes one of the others kids was with him and he watched them perish in front of him and he could do nothing to save them.
He now stood up and walked quietly down the hallway to check on the kids.
Julie was sound asleep in her room, as were Sarah, Nathan, Thomas, and David. Carmen was asleep in the library, making the skeleton chuckle as the young girl had a book beside her, indicating she had been reading and fell asleep while reading. He gently picked her up and carried her to her room, tucking her into bed before he went to check on the others.
Capricorn was sound asleep in the bassinet that was beside his parents' bed and the two were sleeping soundly, making the skeleton smile softly. He found Harmony to be in an equally peaceful sleep in her crib in her room while Ida and Grillby were sound asleep in their bed. He found Papyrus, Gaster, Undyne, Muffet, Mettaton, Gerson, and the others who had recently come to the surface all sound asleep.
Except for three kids. He couldn't find Frisk, Chara, or Asriel anywhere. He continued searching before finally using his power, focusing to find three red hearts. He soon found them in his room. Curious, he went up there and found all three children looking not only tired, but also scared. "Hey, baby bones," he said softly.
The three siblings, who were nearly teenagers, looked at him with eyes almost overflowing with tears. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked softly. "What's got you three all rattled?"
Though he would have normally used that as a pun, this time he wasn't joking. The three looked very upset. Frisk spoke up first. "We had nightmares," he admitted, his voice sounding small.
Asriel was shaking. "I dreamed...I was Flowey again," he said.
"And I dreamed I was dead," Chara said, her tears spilling over. "I'm not that evil anymore. I'm not."
"Of course you're not," Sans soothed. When Chara and Asriel had first come back with the other six children, he had checked her stats and found her to be what she was before her death. But it looked like their pasts had come back to haunt them.
The skeleton recalled how he had been messing with the notion of finding a way into the past to undo all the hurt the family had been through prior to two years ago and to spare Asriel and Chara the pain of becoming a soulless flower and a trapped spirit respectively. He knew that the RESET did exist and it had been used back when the other six children had fallen, so going back in time was possible, but he wasn't sure how far back to go.
Until tonight. He looked at the kids, knowing he would have to set his coordinates for the time before Chara got sick and before Asriel was killed by the humans while just trying to grant his little sister her last wish. That would be a ways back as it would be before Gaster fell into the CORE and before Papyrus was born. He had just been a kid when Chara had fallen and become part of the royal family.
There was a lot to consider, like making sure the friendships he established when he was younger would be established, the other six children wouldn't die (he hoped), and there could be the happy ending without a Genocide route ever attempted or a RESET ever pulled. LOADS perhaps could be okay, since Frisk had had to do that a few times when he hadn't been able to make it past some of the monsters the first time by talking.
Thankfully, two centuries in the Underground and two years above on the Surface had given him ample time to consult those theories and devise a plan. He would need to go to the lab in the Underground and find Gaster's time machine, one of the projects the scientist had been earnestly working on before his unfortunate accident that led to him being trapped in the void until Frisk found that breaking the barrier would free him.
Now, those who knew Sans knew that he knew science in and out and was careful to go over equations several times, something he only did when alone as he still had a reputation of a lazybones to keep up, though he certainly hadn't been as tired for the past two years as he had before they were freed.
He now saw the kids looking at him and he smiled. "Hey, come here, baby bones," he said, holding his arms out wide. The three went over to him and hugged him as he hugged them close, knowing that they wanted comfort. Though they were almost teenagers, they were still kids who needed comfort at times, something the skeleton was always willing to give to them and the others.
"Hey, do you three want to sleepover?" He asked.
Chara looked hopeful. "Can we?" She asked, looking a little embarrassed. "I know we're getting kind of old for that...,"
"You're never too old for comfort or love from your favorite dunkle," he said, making her and Frisk giggle while Asriel smiled.
"Even if you're over two hundred years old?" He asked.
Sans chuckled. "I know for a fact that your parents often comfort each other and the other day, Ida was comforting your uncle Grillby when he was trying to get a new recipe right," he said.
The three giggled before snuggling closer into his embrace and he hugged them, stroking their heads soothingly to help them calm down a bit more. "Alright, up on the bed," he said. "The night express is ready to roll out."
Giggling at his joke, which made him smile, the three climbed up on the bed and settled down while he climbed into bed again, taking off his slippers and turning off the light. The moon was shining through the window, so it was a nightlight in a way. "You kids warm enough?" He asked.
They didn't answer as they had fallen asleep, making him chuckle softly as he leaned back against the headboard, gently stroking their heads again in affection. They looked peaceful, to which he hoped they were now having good dreams.
That brought up another thought. If he went back in time to prevent what he was hoping to prevent, it was possible that he could also stop his niece and nephews from having horrible nightmares too. He nodded. Yes, it would not only stop his nightmares (he hoped), but it would stop the terrible nightmares that plagued the kids too. They didn't deserve to be tormented after finally finding peace. They had been tormented enough before being free. They all had.
"It's the only way," Sans said softly to himself.
Determination filled the joke-loving skeleton and he sat up straighter. "It could work," he said to himself. "I'm going to find a way into the past to help them and everyone else."
Nodding, he settled down, blinking his eyes a little as sleepiness came over him. It was all worked out, but he couldn't tell anyone because if he did and something went wrong, it would be devastating.
No, it had to be secret for now, though he hoped that it would all work out. "Well, I'll keep hoping, but right now, I think hoping for some good shut-eye is best," he said to himself as he finally relaxed more to the point that he drifted off, joining the kids into the land of peaceful dreams.
What do you guys think so far? Does Sans have a good plan? Will it work out the way he wants to? Stay tuned! :)
Next chapter: Sans powers up the time machine.
Please leave a review, but no flames!
GoldGuardian2418
