Determination: A Mafiatale.
Undertale and all its characters belong to Toby Fox.
Chapter one
How did it come to this? It was just supposed to be a normal shake up. The boss hadn't gotten his protection money and asked me and my bro to go check in on them. If they were good then we were supposed to break a few things and scare some sense into them so they wouldn't miss another payment. Pap and I had just arrived when I felt something that made my marrow run cold. Papyrus stops when he sees that I froze. "Bro? Is something wrong?" he asks, tightening his grip slightly on the bone he'd summoned. I shake my head, looking away from the house and towards the locked cellar door.
My eyesockets narrowed as I turned and stormed towards the door, snapping my fingers I summoned my blaster shooting the door into oblivion before running down into the dark, cold cellar. I glow my eye and look around, trying to spot the soul I sensed while I was outside. It was hard to see anyhthing in the inky blackness. I carefully feel the wall trying to find a switch or something. I tripped over something small on the floor and froze, slowly reaching down. May philanges met something soft and shivering. The tiny thing whimpers a little at my soft touch. "Shh, shh it's okay. I got you, kiddo. I got you." I whispered soothingly, scooping the shivering creature up into my arms and holding them to my chest.
I dart up the stairs again reaching the outside just as Papyrus leaves the trashed house. "Sans? What did you..." His eyes landed on the tiny form in my arms and widened slightly. "S-Sans...is that..?" I looked down at the little one. I knew they were worse off but..in the light..my soul ached for the kid. They were so tiny. If not for the too pale skin stretched over them I could have mistaken them for a baby bones. They didn't look older than one, maybe two years old. I shifted the kid into one arm, taking off my jacket. "They're hurt bad, Pap. We gotta go." I said firmly as I wrapped my jacket around their trembling form. Papyrus nods shakily and puts a hand on my shoulder.
I took a shortcut to the nearest hospital. "Help! Someone help us!" I yell. Nurses rush over, trying to see which of us was injured, not noticing the precious cargo bundled in my jacket. "It's not us," I said, carefully placing the child on the stretcher. One of the nurses gasps at their condition. The kid's breathing was shallow and weak. I could see every single one of their tiny ribs. If they were a skeleton I wouldn't be as bothered by this, but they were human and I knew for a fact that human ribs weren't supposed to be showing like that.
The doctors rush the little one away quickly, leaving me feeling a bit shaky and helpless. I wanted to be there for the kid...to protect them. I'd SEEN how bad they were damaged. I HAD to help them...Papyrus gently puts his hand on my shoulder, steering me to a chair. I vaguely heard him mention to me that he was gonna call the boss. I must have been pretty out of it cause soon after that I felt a strong, yet gentle hand on my shoulder. I turned my sockets up to find myself looking into the concerned eyes of Asgore. "Sans, what happened?" he asks me gently as he sits beside me.
I rub my skull, my hands shaking. "Pap and I went to that place you told us to check out...Like always I scanned the place for souls. Make sure they were home, ya know?" Asgore nods. "Well, they were...but there was a third soul...a baby soul...in the cellar." I put my head in my hands, gripping my skull. "You should have seen their soul...It was so...broken...The poor kid was so thin..." I choked out. Papyrus sat beside me, wrapping an arm around me. Not many people knew it, but I had a bit of a soul spot for kids. I practically helped raise Asgore and Toriel's kids Chara and Asriel before they were killed in an ambush on the family while they were on vacation. It had broken something in all of us to hear that the kids had died. Ever since then we all did the best we could to keep children out of our conflicts. Sadly, some slip between the cracks and get hurt.
The doctor walks out, looking over at our odd little group. I sit up straiter as he walks over to us. "How is the child, doctor?" Asgore asks. "Not good. They aren't very old. From their size and structure, I'd say they're maybe a year old if I'm pushing it. Aside from serious hypothermia and malnutrition they don't seem to have any injuries. That said if they have been fed at all it was very little. The fact they are even alive is a miracle in an of itself. Any other child their age would have died from neglect long before now...They're determined that's for sure." I sat down heavily in a chair and took a shaky breath. "What happens now?" I ask.
"Well, once their fever breaks we'll be able to start them on a diet to put some meat on their bones. It'll be up to their foster parents to make sure they stick to the diet though." the doctor says. I tense and so does Papyrus. "Foster parents?" Papyrus asks. "Is there a chance that perhaps..we could take the child with us?" he asks, surprising me. I look up at my little brother and saw a familiar look in his eye sockets. It was the same look Toriel had in her eyes when we found Chara and took him in. I confess I felt the same look on my skull. If Pap hadn't asked I would have.
The doctor looks torn and uncertain. "Doc," I say, getting his attention. "This kid's gonna need a place they can feel safe and cared for. They know me at the very least by voice." He sighs. "I shouldn't...but, you're right. Until we can find them another home they can stay with you." I sigh, nodding in relief. "Can we see them?" Papyrus asks.
The doctor leads us down a seemingly endless hallway until we reach the kiddo's room. They looked even smaller on the bed. I slowly walk over, taking a seat beside their bed and holding their little hand gently. They stir slightly, whimpering. "Shhh, it's okay. You're safe." I whisper, rubbing the back over their hand with my thumb. This seems to calm them down a little. I look up to find Papyrus sitting on the other side of the bed. "Brother...Their soul is-" I cut him off, nodding. "I know...It's just like Chara's was..." Papyrus looks down sadly. "We'll protect them, Pap...We'll do it right this time." I promise him, myself, and the toddler sleeping on the bed. I'm not gonna let this one die...I'm not gonna let them go.
