A/N: I have no idea where this one came from. I simply sat down at my computer...and BOOM, it was practically already written. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.
The two of you sit at a table, the resort's restaurant reminding you of some of the fancy cooking shows you'd seen on T.V.
Sans was in the middle of telling you a story, detailing his friendship with a mysterious person you were guessing was actually Toriel.
"Do you get what I'm saying? That promise I made to her...you know what would have happened if she hadn't said anything? ...Buddy."
Sans gaze pierced into you.
"You'd be dead where you stand." He said, all traces of comedy gone. You return his steely gaze with a piercing stare of your own.
"Is that so?"
Challenge accepted.
You walked down the corridor, chalky dust floating behind you, a wake of death. You're unsurprised to find Sans blocking your way.
"Heya. You've been busy, huh?" Sans was talking with you like you hadn't murdered your way through the Underground. You knew it was a facade, and kept silent.
"..."
"So, I've got a question for ya? Do you think even the worst person can change...? That everybody can be a good person, if they just try?"
It tears at your soul to hear him talk like this...but he had brought it upon himself. You took a step forward, trying to goad him into ending his speech. You didn't want to hear it.
"heh heh heh heh...all right. Well, here's a better question. Do you wanna have a bad time? 'cause if you take another step forward...you are REALLY not going to like what happens next." He said.
You grin, hiding your true feelings, realizing the battle was about to start. You take that step forward, and stop, daring him to make the first move.
"welp. Sorry, old lady. This is why I never make promises." Sans said.
Your SOUL left your body, and Sans stood there in front of you. Finally, the battle had begun.
Sans made a speech, but you didn't pay attention to it. You knew it was likely a trap to lull you into a false sense of security. As you expected, a truly massive stream of attacks erupted as soon as he finished. Luckily, through reflexes honed through many battles against the denizens of the Underground, you evaded his attacks.
You admit you were surprised when he dodged your first attack, mocking you for expecting him to stand still. You continued your relentless assault, and through it all, he dodged each of your attacks, as you did for his. As you fought, he talked about spacetime distortions, timelines shifting...all but saying your SAVE file was what was causing it...causing him to give up, until the end of the world was upon him. Your grit your teeth to keep from saying anything and continued to fight.
When he tried to SPARE you...you almost lost the will to continue fighting. Almost...until you remembered.
"You'd be dead where you stand."
You couldn't let that go uncontested. So you attacked, and barely held back a laugh when he dodged yet again. You thought that was just so like him.
You realized that even up until now, he'd been holding back. His attacks came fast and furious now, blinking in and out of reality. Your perfect record of dodging came to an end as Sans scored the first hit. You paused to catch your breath...and took another hit.
He's attacking my menu now!?
With no time to compose yourself, you continued fighting, and constantly missing was starting to grate on your nerves. Luckily, it seemed Sans was tiring of the battle as well, if the threats of a 'Special attack' were anything to go by. You hardened your resolve and continued fighting. Sans gave you one last chance to die before facing his attack. This time you couldn't help it, you gave a short bark of laughter. Sans gave you a look, but didn't comment. When your blade cut through the air, he seemed to sigh.
"Well, here goes nothing. Are you ready? Survive THIS, and I'll show you my 'Special attack'."
He slammed you into the ceiling, floor, and both walls, sent bones flying at you from both above and below, and forced you to navigate a maze of bones before slamming into the wall again, which you jumped off of to avoid the rows of bone blades. Sans starting messing with reality, causing attacks to suddenly rush you out of nowhere. Luckily, you were able to evade even these attacks, which seemed to frustrate him to no end. Almost as if he were throwing a fit, he began throwing you in every direction, giving you no time to orient yourself. You started taking damage from the falls, and eventually, he slowed, allowing you to realign yourself. You were in bad shape, but then again, he seemed pretty worn out as well.
"huff...puff...all right. That's it. It's time for my 'Special attack'. Are you ready? Here goes nothing." Sans said. You braced yourself, ready for the worst. You waited...and waited...and nothing happened. A slow sense of comprehension dawned on you.
"Here goes...'nothing'. You cheeky little..."
"Yep. That's right. It's literally nothing, and it's not going to be anything, either. heh heh heh...ya get it? I know I can't beat you. One of your turns...you're just gonna kill me. So, uh...I've decided...it's not gonna BE your turn. Ever. I'm just gonna keep having MY turn until you give up, even if it means we have to stand here until the end of time. Capitch?"
You struggled to move, but every time you left a small radius in the center of the battlefield, Sans would throw you back. You tired of this quickly and simply sat there.
"Now what..."
Sans seemed to believe you would get bored and quit, even though you knew you wouldn't. You couldn't give up...you were determined to win. He realized this shortly afterwards. The two of you sat there, staring each other down in silence...until San's exhaustion got the better of him. He fell asleep. Quietly, you edged your way down to the FIGHT button. You hovered over it...and chose it.
And missed. Sans dodged out of the way yet again, instantly awake.
"Heh, didja really think you would be able..."
You attacked again. San's eyes widened as the blade came down...
"Huh?"
...and stopped right above his head, an inch from impacting.
"...I've won. There's no need to continue this hellish task." You spoke for the first time.
"What...what are you talking about?"
"Sans...believe it or not...but this was not what I wanted to do...not at all. Killing everyone...it sickens me even now. I hate this coating of dust, I hate knowing I killed everyone...and I hate that you drove me to it."
"I...drove you to this!? What the hell are you talking about!?" Sans shouted.
"You challenged me. For as long as I can remember, I have never been able to refuse a challenge. Whenever someone said I couldn't do something...it became a necessity to prove them wrong. I realized this could lead to me being easily manipulated, so I learned it was best to keep quiet so no one would think to challenge me on anything. But you did."
"I don't recall..."
"Of course you don't. You don't remember the timelines but you're aware of their existence...well...you aren't wrong when you said I'm the cause of the jumps and skips. I can reset, go back to when I first came to the Underground, and even undo my own death should I meet my end. I was dining with you at the MTT resort in a previous timeline, and you were telling me about how you promised you would protect any humans who came through...and then you said it. You told me...'if she hadn't said anything...that I'd be dead where I stood.' A clear challenge. I couldn't let that go...so I asked you to fight me...and you refused. You wouldn't fight me...no matter what I did, what I said, what I threatened to do. You. Refused. It nearly drove me mad, until I realized I could force it, so long as you weren't my friend. So I went back. I figured if I was a big enough threat, you'd eventually step in. And here you are. Had I not halted my strike...YOU would be dead where you stand."
"You really did all this...for a stupid little reason like that!? JUST TO PROVE ME WRONG!?" Sans shouted. You recognized he had valid reasons for being furious...but then so did you.
"I'M NO HAPPIER ABOUT THIS THAN YOU ARE! Sans...it's not my choices that lead me to answer all challenges. It's an obsession, a compulsion I cannot resist...no matter how much I want to. I fought with everything I had, to stop myself when I was fighting Toriel! She was the first person to treat me kindly, the first time I ever felt like I had a mother. She...she loved me, and even fought me to try and keep me safe! Killing her was like stabbing myself in the heart...but I couldn't stop!
Papyrus...he's so kind, I felt so welcome in the Underground because of him, even as he tried to 'capture' me. I honestly feel like he's my best friend. He believed in me right to the end...even when I cut him down, screaming inside my own head, he declared that he believed I could be a good person...even as he crumbled to dust.
Undyne...her passion for her home, for her people...it is honestly quite inspiring. Her inner strength allowed her to resist my attacks, reviving herself from a mortal strike, and even when she was struck down a second time, her determination was near my own. Were she human, I have no doubt my power to SAVE and RESET would rest with her, not me.
And Mettaton...I honestly wish he had chosen to stay away from me, he wasn't a legitimate threat to me, he could have run and I would have let him. All my friends...all of them..." You fall to your knees, bitter tears falling from your eyes.
"...I couldn't save them. All because I can't resist this...this THING that's wrong with me. A few stupid words...and I KILLED THEM ALL!" You cry out, voicing your souls pain. You stiffen as Sans wrapped his arm around you. You almost expect him to kill you then and there...yet you can't bring yourself to care.
"Sans..."
"I'm sorry." He says. You want to laugh at the sheer ludicrousness of his apology, considering you're covered in the dusty remains of all his friends. You want to cry, to scream, to destroy something...anything...but all you do is nod. You stand and turn away from Sans, angry fists at your side.
"I'm going back. I'm going to reset, and wipe out this horrible timeline. I'm going to make that perfect timeline again, and this time...when you challenge me...I can truthfully say you're wrong. I won't ever have to do something like this again. I can try and forget this ever happened..."
"I have a code-word. It's '*******'. Use it, then tell me about this time-line. You need a friend to talk to...someone to watch out for you. Tell that other Sans...to not let something like this happen again." Sans said.
"...I will. Sans...I'm sorry." You say. He nodded and walks away. You blink, and he's gone. You close your eyes.
"You'd be dead where you stand." Sans said. You shake your head.
"No Sans...you would. '*******'." You say. His eye sockets widen in surprise.
"How did you..."
"The power to reset time. The inability to resist a compulsion to answer any challenge. And a skeletons refusal to fight until a genocide is committed. That's how." You answer.
Sans is rendered speechless as you slowly stand, walk around the table, and slowly grab him in a bear hug, and start sobbing into his jacket. Stunned, all he can do is return the hug, and try and comfort you, as the weight of what he had done to you sunk in. It took a surprisingly long time for you to stop crying, but Sans didn't push you away, or give any indication that he was growing uncomfortable. The only hint of how long you had been there was the large wet spot on his jacket. You finally pushed yourself away from Sans, and looked towards his face. You were surprised to see tear marks coming from his sockets. Despite his obvious guilt, you still delivered the message you were told.
"Don't...don't let it happen again. The other Sans...told me to tell you that." You said.
"I'm sorry...kiddo. I never meant to..."
"I know..." You say.
"I won't...let it happen again. You have...you have my word." You recognized the seriousness of the situation, as Sans made a promise, something you knew he hated to do.
"Sans..." You pressed your face back into his jacket, as a new round of sobs wracked your body. You didn't resist as Sans pulled you higher up and looped his arm under your legs, letting him pick you up. He slowly began to walk out of the resort, back towards Hotland. You didn't know when, or even if you would go to face Asgore, but right now, that didn't seem important. Right now...you needed Sans. And he was here.