A warning: the characters do briefly talk about suicide in this fic. Specifically one character begs another not to. No suicide actually happens, but if you find this subject at all uncomfortable I'd rather you back out now than attempt to endure. Here it's played to comedic effect, but actual suicide is no joke and I hope you all understand that I would never treat it lightly in real life.

Anyway, have this cute fic about a bird and a fish falling in love!

The first time Sans saw him he'd been lounging in a tide pool. He hadn't been trapped, okay? The tide had just gone out without him noticing, but that didn't mean he couldn't get out if he needed to. It's just the rocks could be sharp sometimes and it was dangerous to drag his delicate fins over them and it's not like being in a tide pool was in any way dangerous, he even had a few crabs and things in there with him so it wasn't like he was going to starve while he waited for the tide to come back in and he just wasn't trapped! Okay?! Okay, good, just so you understand.

He'd been resting with his head laying on the lip of the pool (it wasn't a particularly big one and he'd rather have his tail stay wet thankyouverymuch) when he heard the flapping of wings. Very, very large wings. Worried that he might be about to be carried off by a roc or harpy, he'd looked up towards the sound. He watched as a glowing monster fluttered heavily to the ground nearby, crouching with the force of his landing before straightening to his full height, wings rustling as they tucked neatly behind his body. He looked right at Sans.

"… Do you need help?"

Sans had instinctively summoned a halo of defensive bullets, he relaxed enough to dismiss them but kept a firm grip on his magic in case this other monster turned out to be less friendly. "eh, not really."

"… You seem trapped."

Sans shrugged, "i could get out if i really wanted, but i don't. too much work." He threw in a wink for good measure.

The glowing monster looked down, carefully stepping around various other tide pools and puddles as he slowly approached, Sans only just then noticing how from the knee and elbow down he had almost scaly looking skin (not like the glowing, fluttering, moving, reddish orange skin of the rest of him or the shimmering feathers on his back and forehead) complete with sharp looking talons. Then he noticed the trailing tail feathers that were carefully being lifted to not touch the ground. Sans didn't know why it took him so long to figure out the monster was a bird of some kind, the wings should have made it obvious enough. The wet ground under his feet began to sizzle and steam.

"… Are you sure you don't need help? As I understand it your kind is in danger of drying out."

Sans laughed, "nah, drying out doesn't really become an issue unless we've been dry for a really long time. besides, i've got this pool, don't i? the tide will come back in soon and i can leave or i might just stay, it's pretty relaxing here." He stretched and tucked his hands behind his skull to show off just how relaxed he was. "what about you? you seem pretty skittish about the water, you one of those types that drown or something?"

"… Or something," he murmured with a nervous glance away. Then his brightly glowing eyes turned back to Sans, who had his head tilted in clear confusion. "… I'm a phoenix."

"nice to meetcha, afeenicks. i'm sans."

The other chuckled, "… No, phoenix is the kind of monster I am. My name's Grillby."

Sans blushed, "oh."

"… I suppose that means you don't know what a phoenix even is?" He carefully tiptoed a little closer, then squatted to talk with Sans more comfortably.

Sans shrugged, "some kind of bird."

"… A fire bird." He held up a hand, forming a glowing, flickering ball that looked like his glowing, flickering skin.

"cool, i have no idea what that means."

"… It means I'm made of fire, I burn bright like the sun but can be doused by water." He held the flickering ball out towards Sans, who recoiled from the sudden heat. He pulled the ball back, letting it fade away.

"so that means at best we're dangerous to each other."

"… I suppose that's true."

Sans thought it over, then shifted around the pool until he had his arms resting on the lip nearest Grillby, his chin resting on them as his tail flopped out the far end. "so what's flying like?"

The sixth time Sans saw him, Grillby was sitting on a boulder with a leg hanging dangling off, the water below dangerously close to his limp toes. The only thing keeping the waves gentle (and thus from making any dangerous spray) was the fact the shore all around this particular island in this particular chain was full of broken rocks acting as breakers. Those were dangerous too, but to Sans rather than Grillby. He got as close as he dared, bobbing up and down in the gentle waves a few yards out from Grillby's perch.

"whatcha staring at?"

Grillby started, then looked down at Sans in surprise. "… You startled me!"

"heh, sorry. didn't mean to ruffle your feathers."

Grillby chuckled and shook his head. "… I was watching the sun set."

"that's hours away."

"… Yes, it's a lovely show."

"so you've been sitting here for who knows how long just watching the western horizon and are going to keep sitting there for a few hours more?"

"… Yes."

Sans shrugged, not that he thought Grillby could see his shoulders under the water. "sounds like something an old man would do, but it also sounds like something i'd do. heh, guess that makes me an old man."

"… You did stay in a tide pool all day because you didn't feel like crawling out."

Sans just laughed, then swam around until he found an acceptable bit of rock to lay on and watch the horizon with Grillby. They sat in silence, Sans drifting in and out of light dozing while Grillby's eyes stayed firmly on the horizon. Then the sun came into Sans's line of vision. He tried holding a hand up to keep his eye sockets shaded, but that would quickly tire out his arm. A glance towards Grillby showed his eyes had shifted to focus directly on the sun. "hey, does being made of the same stuff as the sun make you immune to it or something?"

"… You mean the same way you're immune to drowning?"

"oh right, i keep forgetting not everyone can just breathe whatever they feel like."

Grillby snorted, "… I doubt you can breathe smoke and volcanic ash."

"you're just full of points today, huh buddy?"

"… My apologies, it seems I'm getting grumpy in my old age." He shifted and stretched, flames crackling and popping "… Don't feel obliged to keep this old grump company."

"not that old or grumpy."

"… I suppose one could always be older."

"ain't that the truth?" Sans swished his tail and re-angled his body so he wasn't staring directly at the sun's path, that was better. He stayed there with Grillby, watching the sun slowly sink into the ocean. Once the sky grew dark and the stars came out they both flipped onto their backs to admire the stars.

"hey, grillby, wake up."

"… … 'm 'wake," Grillby slurred.

"the tide's coming in, you're gonna need to move."

"… huh?"

"water, lots of it. heading right for you. slowly. get up, get above the water line."

"… Right, right, okay." Grillby's joints creaked and his flames gave off more pops, sparks, and crackles, but he was moving. "… G'night, Sans."

"night, pal."

The eleventh time Sans saw him, Grillby was walking out onto an outcrop of rock protecting a cove. It was a rather wide stretch of rock, but the tide was high which meant the waves on the ocean side were equally high, even if they were calmer on the cove side.

Sans had been passing by when he spotted Grillby, too far away and on the wrong side of the outcrop to see what was going on, so he swam into the cove and drew up to the calmer side of the rocks, floating up near the surface to watch what the other was doing. Grillby crouched over the water, something dark in his hands. Sans watched as he gently and carefully laid whatever it was into the water. Sans could clearly see the underside now, it looked like a bunch of big leaves held together with twigs and ragged twine. It was a boat, a small boat made from things Grillby had hunted up around this island.

That was too adorable.

Sans moved to be a little closer so the boat wasn't blocking his view of Grillby, skull now breaching the water so he didn't have to bother with that distortion. Grillby carefully poked the boat, sending it out into the cove, a glowing smile spread across his face.

Sans couldn't help himself, Grillby was just being way too precious, he couldn't handle watching anymore! He gripped the rocks and pushed with his tail to get out of the water and press his teeth to Grillby's bright smile, magic sparking between them.

There was a hiss and a sizzle, then the sensation of something burning hitting his tongue, a mirrored cry of pain. Sans quickly ducked back underwater, letting the cool ocean fill his mouth and sooth his poor, burning tongue. Why did he even have that right now? He didn't remember summoning it. He hadn't been eating! He quickly dismissed it and most of the pain with it, leaving behind only a stinging through his mana lines. Still, what had burned him? He wondered if Grillby had been burned too?

Oh no!

Sans poked his head back up only to find Grillby had fled back to dry ground, his hands firmly over the lower half of his face. "grillby! oh stars, did i hurt you?!" Sans felt like he couldn't breathe, his vision went jittery. He raced through the cove, then hauled himself up the sandy beach nearest where Grillby stopped just inside the high water line. "oh stars, grillby. are you… are you okay? how bad is it? should i heal you?"

"… Gimme a minute," Grillby mumbled.

Sans cursed. "what can i do to help?"

Grillby sighed, "… Just gimme a minute." His hands were a brighter orange than usual, turning almost yellow as they continued to press to his face. Then they faded back to their usual red-orange and dropped from his face. Grillby turned to look at Sans.

"oh god, i hurt you."

On his face, right where his mouth sometimes showed up, was a dark spot about the size of the small metal disks often found in sunken ships. Something thick and orange was oozing from it, whether it was lava or ichor Sans wasn't sure, not that it mattered. It was even giving off wisps of smoke.

"… It's alright, it'll be gone by morning."

"but i hurt you, i didn't think and you're the one who had to pay!"

"… And I forgive you."

"at least let me heal you."

Grillby hesitated, "… You're still wet."

Sans cursed again, he hadn't been thinking. Again! His attempt to help would have just hurt Grillby more. "sorry, yeah, i uh… we shouldn't… we really are dangerous to each other." He thought of the sting still coiling in his skull's mana lines, the way his tongue had burned. He was pretty lucky whatever had fallen off Grillby had only hit his tongue and not something he couldn't just dismiss, like his tail or delicate fins.

"… I'm going to go rest someplace dry, meet me here tomorrow and we can talk about this more?"

"yeah… okay… tomorrow."

The twelfth time Sans saw, Grillby, Sans was sitting contritely on the cove's beach, a few fish, crabs, and clams laid out as a peace offering. When he noticed Grillby walking towards him, still quite a ways away, Sans started shifting nervously. He was torn between wanting to talk to Grillby and never wanting to get close to him again. Grillby raised a hand in greeting once he was within speaking distance.

"… Hello, Sans."

"these are for you." Sans motioned to his catches.

"… Thank you, but you didn't have to."

"no, but i wanted to. i'm so, so sorry, grillby. i wasn't thinking and you got hurt and i should've known better…"

"… And I forgive you." He moved to sit next to Sans, but Sans started scooting away. "… Stop that, you're not about to hurt me again. I can see from here you're completely dried out."

"i'm sorry."

"… Apology accepted. And since I know you're not going to let it happen again, I forgive you." Grillby leaned on the last three words.

Sans just nodded, looking down at the sand.

"… And it's already better, see?" He motioned to his face, flickering away like normal. Nothing to give away where the water had been just yesterday. "… And it wasn't even that big." He held out a hand closed around something.

Sans held out his own hand, something warm and small was dropped into it only to bounce out and land in the sand. Sans picked it up, a small piece of black volcanic rock. It was even smaller than the metal disks, Sans wasn't sure if he'd just been mistaken on the size yesterday or if it shrank or broke since then.

"… See? It was only a few drops of water."

"a few drops of water was all it took to hurt you."

"… Sans, I chose to fly out over the ocean and come to an island, I chose to stay here, I chose to keep talking to you. Accidents happen, but beating yourself up over it isn't going to change what already happened. If you really want to make it up to me the only way is to do better in the future."

Sans nodded, he knew it was true but even if Grillby had already forgiven him it was going to take time to forgive himself.

Grillby smiled, it reminded Sans of the moon when it was just a sliver in the sky. "… How about I make us some lunch?" He picked up the crab, cradling it in his hands. Sans could swear he already smelled it cooking.

"you and your cooking," Sans teased. Not that he was complaining, he liked the food Grillby heated up. It all turned into monster food.

"… Well, when you're as well equipped for it as I…" Grillby trailed off when Sans laughed at that. Then he leaned closer and looked Sans right in the eye sockets. "… So… … was that a kiss?"

Sans started crawling for the shoreline.

The fifteenth time Sans saw Grillby, Sans had been sunning himself again. This time he was lounging on a boulder, occasionally getting misted with sea spray. The rest of his pod was sunning themselves too, laid out over sun warmed rocks or laying with their tails immersed in the waves, a few were even singing a sea shanty they'd heard from some sailors. If Sans remembered the story right they let that ship carry on its merry way as thanks.

Everyone's attention was caught by the flapping of a huge pair of wings, every pip turned skyward warily. Grillby wasn't hard to spot, shining as he usually was, bright orange and red against a blue sky. And chasing him were streaks of darkness that he seemed to be flying erratically to dodge.

Arrows.

Humans.

Sans (and likely the rest of the pod) watched in horror as he flapped erratically towards the ocean. The ocean of all things! Then he was hit and started spiraling down into the frothing waves. Sans cried out, trying to desperately crawl towards Grillby. One of his fins snagged on a rough patch. Sans cursed, but the pain helped clear his thoughts. There was no way he could possibly crawl all the way to Grillby before he was doused. Instead he wrapped the fire monster's soul in blue and flung him towards the shore. He tried to be as gentle as he could, but there was only so much he could do at that distance.

Singing started up around him, some of them moving inland. Good, the rest of his pod was taking care of whoever had attacked Grillby. Sans pulled himself into the water and swam around to the other side of the rocky shore, most of the shore on this island was rocky. Thank the stars one of his podmates had followed him, he only had to ask once to get flung up the shore near Grillby.

"hey, buddy, you okay? you're not doused, are you?" He wasn't dust yet, at least.

Grillby was nothing but a wheezing clump of dim feathers, talons, red flames, and something brown. "… … am not… completely doused…" Grillby said weakly.

Sans was afraid to get any closer, he was still dripping himself. "can you move? you're still pretty close to the shore and the tide was already on its way in."

"… A little time," Grillby begged, continuing to wheeze.

"i can move you if you need it, it's a lot easier to control this close, it won't be rough at all."

"… Is that… what happened?"

"yeah, it's a mermaid thing. usually we use it to draw things in, but we can use it for other stuff too."

Grillby gave a breathy laugh, "… Useful." He rolled over then, slowly getting into a mostly upright position. "… Thank you, Sans." He gave a lopsided grin.

Sans's pips went out, leaving his eye sockets blank voids as deep, dark, and bottomless as the ocean. Grillby's grin was lopsided because half his face looked like fresh lava on the ocean floor. It was dark and crusty, glowing bright around the edges of the wound, one of his eyes was just gone, the brown lava-like substance replacing his face simply smooth where the eye should be. One of his wings was a ropy, tangled mess of half cooled lava, the shoulder and arm on the same side affected too. It stretched across his chest, breaking up into splotches and splashes of more cooling lava down his legs. His tail was just gone.

"… Come now, it's not that bad. I've survived worse."

Sans couldn't help laughing at that, sharp and shrill as he shook his head in disbelief. "how? you don't have any scars."

"… It's just like that kiss you gave me, some rest and healing magic and it'll rekindle."

"i'm not as good as my bro, but i can do some healing magic. there's no way you'll bounce back from that on your own."

"… Thank you for the offer, but you're wet."

"i won't actually touch you, but i can't heal you from a distance."

"… Alright, thank you."

Sans dragged himself slowly, carefully, painfully over the rocks. It would be fine if he hadn't already scraped up one of his fins, but he had. It was fine, he was sure Papyrus would heal him up the moment he got back to the pod. He carefully shook as much moisture as possible off his hand, then slowly reached out until his phalanges were as close as he dared to get, a gentle green aura lit up the space between them, sweat beading up on his skull as he focused all his concentration on Heal Heal Heal, damnit! Heal!

Sans really wasn't any good at healing, but he figured every little bit would help. When he couldn't do anymore he finally stopped, letting his hand drop away, panting from the exertion.

"there, how's that feel?"

"… Better. Thank you."

"does it really?"

"… Yes. But I still need to get away from the shore."

"right, you go do that."

"… It may be a while before I can come see you again."

"that's fine, go get your rest on. be a lazybones like me. then i can tell you more about the ocean when we do sea each other again. i'll tell you all about all the shipwrecks i've explored."

"… And I'll tell you about the distant lands far from any ocean."

If Sans hadn't been watching for Grillby he wasn't sure he'd have seen him the thirteenth time. The phoenix was carrying a hefty looking pile of wood towards an already large pile of wood laying on the only sandy beach on this island. It looked like the wood was arranged in some kind of shape, but Sans couldn't tell what from his angle. He'd just have to get closer.

"hey, bucko," Sans called with a wave as Grillby came back with another armful of branches and driftwood.

"… Hello, Sans." He dumped the wood next to the already arranged pile and started tossing the new ones on. He had to do this one handed since the other was still injured. Instead of the black rock the other injury had become, this one was a mottled ashy gray. Grit fell from the elbow every time he moved it, showing glowing lines of orange underneath.

"whatcha got there?"

"… Tinder. The best way to reignite a fire is with a lot of fuel."

"cool. why on the beach?"

"… I don't want to accidentally include the whole island in my funeral pyre."

"in your what now?"

"… Oh, right. A pyre is like… it's another word for a bonfire." Grillby paused in thought, "… And a bonfire is just a word for a really big fire. You lay out lots of wood, top it with even more kindling, and set it going."

"are we just going to skip over the whole funeral part?!"

"… I thought that was rather self explanatory." He gave Sans a lopsided grin. "… After all, it's not like I can really keep living with all this going on." He motioned to his injuries.

Sans was too horrified to say anything else, simply laying there with his mouth gaping like a landed fish. Grillby seemed to take that as the conversation being finished and went back inland. When he came back, this time with a heaping pile of branches and sticks, Sans finally found his voice. "it's not that bad! i mean, you aren't having trouble walking, right?"

Grillby simply dumped his pile of sticks right on the pile, not bothering to arrange them at all, then he turned to Sans and shook his head. "This hand and wing are useless, I can't feel them at all."

"is it really worth killing yourself over?!"

"… How else am I to be reborn?"

"what?"

"… What?"

"reborn?"

"… Oh, you haven't heard that tale, have you? Every phoenix does this once in a while, when we get too old or injured we gather ourselves a funeral pyre and throw ourselves on it to burn away the old and emerge renewed. I'll admit it's been some time since I did this last, and the first time was definitely frightening."

"oh… okay." Sans ended up just staring blankly at the pile of wood. Grillby went back inland. When he returned he had more sticks and branches, these ones he put more care into arranging around the rest.

"is that what you meant by surviving worse?"

"… Yes! Exactly so. I was once reduced to a mere glowing ember, fortunately my family was there to build a funeral pyre for me. I'm fairly certain I'd have set the whole plains on fire otherwise."

"good. great. okay so uh… that's a thing. is it like… literal reborn? will you be a little fire chick?"

Grillby laughed, "… No, I'll just be a young man. Back in the prime of health."

"neat," Sans said, popping the T. He was still reeling from the revelation a little.

"… It is pretty nifty." He turned and went back inland. As he continued his back and forth, moving from branches to twigs to dry grass, Sans continued asking questions. This was going to be Grillby's sixth rebirth, most of them had been just from getting old, phoenixes seemed to age faster than other monsters, and this was the second pyre built for an injury, the first of course was the instance when he'd been reduced to a mere ember, that one had been due to magical exhaustion while defending his home and family.

Finally, as the day was turning to evening, Grillby dusted his hands off, then stood with his good hand propped on his hip, admiring his hard work. "… Not the best looking pyre I've built, but not the worst either." He nodded to himself, then turned and started walking over to a rocky outcropping he'd built the pyre next to.

"where uh… where're you going?"

"… Throwing oneself may not be essential, but it is still traditional. If you can then you should."

"there's no one else here but me," Sans laughed.

"… Oh hush, you don't hear me making fun of your traditions."

"making fun of traditions is traditional."

Grillby laughed, slipping back down the rocks and losing what little headway he'd made.

"so, would helping you up be against tradition?"

"… Not at all, it would be welcome even."

Sans encased his soul in blue and carefully lifted him over the rock. Once back on his feet Grillby brushed himself down, then he turned and faced his pile of wood. He took a deep breath, then a few steps back, then a running leap. He belly flopped right onto the wood. Sans winced, he wasn't sure how Grillby was supposed to land but none of the options seemed good.

The moment Grillby touched the wood it went up, a huge blaze of fire licking at the sky. Sans had to put a hand up, the intense heat of it crackling over his already too dry tail. The fire just seemed to grow hotter and taller, Sans started to wonder if he needed to flee back to the water. Then the fire twisted and formed into a tall shape that split into three, one bulbous shape in the center and two spreading wide on either side. There was a great, roiling roar, then the fire flapped its wing-like shapes and shot into the air. The fire became a distant streak, shimmering golden in the evening air. It left behind nothing but a smoldering pile of char and smoke.

Sans watched theflame streak away, shading his eye sockets from the low sun. He wasn't sure when Grillby was going to come back. He barely had time to wonder if he should just head in for the evening when Grillby came back. He landed far more gently than Sans had ever seen him before, lightly touching down only to bounce into a hop, a skip, and a little turn, wings and arms twisting about him as he did, a bright smile like a half moon spread wide across his face. Sans wondered if that was the strange land monster dancing Grillby had told him about once.

"… Well, how do I look?" Grillby stood before Sans, arms and wings spread wide. Sans took a moment to look him up and down, the way his skin shimmered in hues of yellow and bright orange, glinting like gold in the deepening twilight, how there wasn't a speck of ash or obsidian in sight, how he stood taller, flames burned higher, shoulders broader, even his wings looked fuller.

"you look amazing," Sans said in awe.

"… I feel it, sometimes I forget just how old I'm starting to get." He rolled his shoulders, then fluttered his wings. "… I could probably fly all the way to my homeland without stopping."

"i'd miss you," Sans blurted out, still staring up at Grillby like he was the brightest star in the night sky.

"… I'd miss you too, so of course I'd come back. But not right now." He smiled down at Sans, though it quickly faded. "… You look as if you're about to crumble into fish flakes." He strode over, his renewed heat more than Sans was used to. That combined with how he'd spent almost the entire day drying out under the sun had Sans feeling a bit weak. Grillby scooped Sans up into his arms, then started walking straight for the ocean.

"wait, don't get too close to the water! you only just got over your water burns!"

"… Don't worry so much, I'm freshly renewed! A little water isn't going to do much."

"the whole damn ocean might."

Grillby laughed, but stopped just short of where the wet sand started. "… There, will this do?" He set Sans down on the waterline.

"yes, thank you."

"… I'll see you again, then. Tomorrow? At our usual spot?"

"why not here? it's easier for me to climb up sand than onto rocks."

"… Here it is, then. I look forward to it."

The latest time Sans saw Grillby he'd been waiting in a tide pool again. This time it was intentional, a pool Sans had carefully searched out. It was fairly round and large enough for him to turn in a circle, deep enough to keep his tail fully submerged, usually had quite a few things to hunt when he got hungry, had a lip to lean against, and there was even a palm tree growing over it that kept off the sun during the hottest time of day. In short: it was the perfect spot to lounge and slack off in. And slack off he did with great gusto, tail idly swishing the still water as his skull lay back against the rocky ground and felt the breeze whistle over his face.

There was a flapping of wings, Sans grinned and looked up to find Grillby landing nearby. He smiled when their eyes met, then walked confidently over to Sans and leaned down to plant a kiss on his upturned face.

"welcome back," Sans murmured once the kiss was broken.

"… It's good to be back," Grillby said in the same subdued voice.

Sans picked up a seashell he'd set out to dry once the tide went out, "i got you a shell from deep down, it's plain on the outside but the inside is a shimmering rainbow." He offered it to Grillby.

"… And I brought you some fruit from a place called Ebott, it's called a crab apple." He held out a red, round thing that had a pair of claws growing from near the bottom. "… I thought the name would amuse you."

"aw, you know me so well." Sans took the fruit and bit into it, careful to avoid the claws. "it's sweet."

"… You did say you enjoyed the sweet things I'd brought before."

"but not as sweet as you."

Streaks of blue flickered through Grillby's body. "… Thank you."

Sans pulled him in for another kiss.