Chapter 17:
I'm not exactly known for my extreme resistance to temperature fluctuations, especially when it goes from cold to hot. I had once went back in my house after playing through the snow for about an hour, and despite the house being on minimum heat to conserve money, I was sweating not even a minute later. My parents poked me at me for this, saying I would catch a cold if I removed the jacket I was wearing. The worst part is, they were probably right. So knowing this and stepping into a bar filled with people and a literal entity of fire in a suit, I was ready to get a heatstroke. I oddly felt nothing. I mean, I wasn't really cold, but I didn't exactly feel the heat despite it prodding me through the door a little bit ago. Dismissing it as mostly shock from seeing a squad of dogs inhabit the majority of the establishment, I worked my way after Sans, who was currently heading in a beeline for the stools closest to the fire monster.
"Hey Sans!" A porky looking monster called out. "You're late today, buddy!"
Sans grinned, and I could feel the terrible puns coming before he even said them.
"Sorry pal, I donut knowed how that happened. Just couldn't get out of bed even if I fried. I'm pretty hungry too, so don't let me near you unless you want a pizza your food gone." Sans replied, shrugging nonchalantly as the restaurant bursted into laughter. He sat down with Frisk, and glanced over at me. "Plenty of room over here, amigo. Don't be shy!"
I realized I actually HAD been moving pretty slow, and increased my pace. I was about to sit down, but first instinctively looked down, spotting a well-placed whoopie cushion. I raised my eyebrow at Sans, who simply shrugged once more.
"Better watch out, sometimes real weirdos put whoopie cushions on em'."
I sighed, before moving the prank device and taking a seat next to him.
"So, whadda guys want?" He asked, sliding menus over to both of us.
Frisk paused before pointing at the top item on the menu.
"That sounds pretty good." Sans commented, before turning to me. "What about you pardner?"
I blew out a puff of breath indecisively "Whatever you guys are having."
"Hey Grillby, can we get a triple order of 'burg out here?" He called.
The flame monster from before gave a nod before going through a door in the back.
"So." Sans began, his attention focused more on Frisk than on me. "There's been… something odd I've been struggling to figure out. Well, I guess not so much 'figure out' as remember stuff I already know."
Something was wrong. This wasn't how this conversation went in the game, I was 60% sure of that. And it had nothing to do with me, he was obviously directing it towards Frisk, who had began to shift around in her seat.
"Be honest with me here, kid, promise I won't judge you. ...Did you hurt them, kid? My family, my friends, everyone… did you kill us all last time?" He said, his voice deathly quiet.
I stiffened, atmosphere tense enough to cut with a knife.
And then… the world went dark.
I woke up in the void, already standing as the endless nothingness stretched out around me.
"What did you do, Gaster!?" I hissed, storming in a random direction, not caring what happened. "You can't just pull me out of situations like that when-"
"I didn't do this." Gaster called out, materializing in front of me somehow managing to look even more gaunt than normal. "Your 'friend' is loading a save in an attempt to the dodge the question. It won't matter. Sans will remember what happened anyway, she is simply giving him MORE of a reason to distrust her." His grim frown turned into a smile. "She thinks she can atone for what happened last time… but there is no mercy. Resets do not erase what you have done, they only blot of the memories of it."
"What are you prattling on about now?" I said, my resolve waning as I connected the dots.
"I don't think you even need my explanation now, you are very close to figuring it out yourself. Ta ta my little anomaly~" He chirped, before my vision started to blur, and the world went dark.
I was standing just inside the entrance to waterfall, in the same position I was before we met Sans at his post up ahead. I blinked, and realized Frisk was gauging my reaction. I wanted to tell her I knew but… something told me that wouldn't be a good idea. Instead I put on a smile and gave a small laugh.
"Talk about Deja-vu, why does it feel like I've been here before?" I said, hoping it was enough to appease her. After a minute of deathly silence, I received my response.
"Dunno why, I'm pretty sure I haven't. We didn't have anything like this back home." She said joyfully, 'marveling' at the scenery around us. I suddenly felt much less secure, watching her go through the same steps she performed the first time, but taking active care to avoid the post Sans would be at.
How much more was she hiding?
