Oops, I almost forgot this chapter existed.

The Royal Guard Dogs have replaced the crowd around me, keeping a firm grip on me. "C'mon, this way." Sans beckons to them, and they push me forward to follow him.

"Where are we going?" I panic.

At Sans' silence, Papyrus steps in. "Please Sans!" He begs, gesturing frantically to the crowd around me. "There's no need for any of this. Why not just put the human through some puzzles instead?" He suggests, a bit of hope in his voice. "I'm quite positive that would be a much better solution to this conundrum!"

"Well, Paps…" Sans hesitates before putting on a small grin. "Just think of it this way. You'll be able to join the Royal Guard now."

Papyrus' eyes widen in amazement. "I can?" He grins, putting his hands next to his face.

"Yes." Sans responds, "But only if this human is turned in to them."

Papyrus is hesitating. Would he really sacrifice me in exchange for the position of being in the Royal Guard? He rubs the back of his skull, thinking. "It would be really nice," He admits, "If I could finally join the Royal Guard."

"Exactly." Sans says. "It's always been your dream. We'll just have a quick talk with the human, and then we'll figure out whether or not to hand them in to Undyne."

"So there's still a chance you won't turn them in?" He questions hopefully.

"Yes."

"And they won't be hurt even if they are?"

"Nope."

"And they'll be fine?"

"Yes."

"Okay then! I don't see anything wrong with this arrangement. After all, it's nothing the Great Papyrus can't handle." He nods, turning to me. "Don't worry, human! Sans is a good person, he would never hurt you. And even if you get turned in and I become a member of the Royal Guard, you will still be in the hands of Undyne! Although she is very violent, I know she would take good care of you! Nyeh!"

Yeah, I think to myself, Good at taking care of my dead body.

"Then we're set." Sans holds up a thumbs-up, leading the way. The crowd around me shuffles forward, keeping me trapped in the midst of their bodies, not allowing me to escape. I've stopped struggling for a long time already. I whip my head around, trying to see where the others were, and figuring out whether or not they could see me being carried away. But I couldn't see anything, the monsters kept blocking my view whenever I turned my head.

My attention focuses back onto the skeleton in front of me. Sans. I could only see his back, but just staring at his jacket was giving me shivers down my back. I've worn that jacket before. I've held that jacket before. Bleeding, dusty, in my arms. I was scared.

But I was more scared for Cowboy. "Are you taking me and Justin to the same place?" I ask Sans, vainly hoping to get an answer.

"Shut it." Dogamy barks next to me. "You'll get plenty of time to talk once we get there."

"Get where?" But once again, their shushing tells me to be quiet. They won't listen now. Having no choice, I settle for being a good and silent captive. Maybe if I cooperated and got where we needed to be, I could explain and defend myself. I just had to be patient.

We're eventually led to the shed next to the skeletons' house. I have to stop myself from chortling a laugh. Sans opens the door to the shed and enters, with me being pushed right behind him. I've actually never been here before in person. I notice that the inside of the brown room is old and cracked, with some spiderwebs hanging in a few corners. The widely-spaced jail bars set up by Papyrus were also here, as I had guessed. I'm escorted in by Greater and Lesser Dog, but the rest stay outside, giving me piercing glares.

"That'll be all." Sans dismisses the dogs, even the ones standing next to me. "You should leave now. Ya know, get back to whatever you were doing before this started."

"You'll be alright alone with this human?" Doggo asks, one ear twitching and eyes flickering around nervously.

"Sure thing." He winks. "No need to worry about this sack of bones."

After some mutterings and woofs from the rest of the guard, they eventually disperse. The two standing next to me also depart, leaving me with one final warning bark before shutting the door behind them with a loud bang! Had they even locked it?

"Come on." Sans slips between the wooden bars to the other side where a desk and two chairs sit. "Take a seat, kid." He invites me, sitting down on one side of the desk. I cautiously take the chair on the opposite end. It's like an interrogation room, minus the fact that I could probably escape at any moment I wanted.

"So," Sans starts, laid-back arms behind his head, "The name's Sans. Though it seems like you already know, heh."

I remember how I had mumbled Sans name when I saw him. A careless mistake. "Cowboy told me." Is my immediate response.

"Huh, I figured. Ya mind introducing yourself then?" He shuts one eye closed. "I don't think it's particularly fair for you to know mine and not have me know your's."

I gulp. Maybe it was better to play it truthfully instead of faking my name? No, there was no reason I had to tie these problems to my name. At the very most, I could piss Joyce off too. That would be a plus. "Frisk." I say.

"Ok." We awkwardly stare at each other in silence for a moment. Finally, Sans sighs. "Am I going to have to start this, or do you want to explain yourself?"

"It's not what it looks like." I respond quickly, trying not to focus too hard on his face, and instead switching my attention to the table top. "We're innocent."

Sans seems to notice my reluctance to look him in the face, taking it instead as a guilty reaction. "How so?" He asks, an amused expression on his skull. "You just charged in here and attacked a resident of Snowdin town without any reason, didn't ya?"

"I was helping Justin." I explain, "He told me what Joyce had done."

"And what, may I ask, had she done?"

I grit my teeth. "She killed Snowdrake."

"Uh-huh." Sans continues to give me an unamused look. "I know."

I blink at him, giving him a confused look. That wasn't the response I had expected. Why wasn't he surprised? "You knew?" I question, baffled.

"Well, yeah." Sans huffs. "But everyone makes mistakes. She just didn't know what she was doing." He shrugs. "I mean, you should know, right? Being a human in the Underground is tough stuff. She was scared, and simply attacked out of fear. After that first encounter, she learned from her mistakes and never did it again."

"But… but Snowdrake!" I protest. "He's gone, dead now because of Joyce!"

"We've all mourned for him. Someone had to deliver the news to the rest of his family. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get into contact with his cousin or his mother. But we did find his father in the MTT Resort." He makes a small, helpless shrug. "He was devastated, and kept blaming himself for the accident. Joyce apologized profusely."

I stare at him, my mouth open in disgust. "Well, how can you be sure that she's a good person just from her apologizing for her mistakes?"

Sans gives me a warning glare, demanding me to tone down the hostility. "By the tone of your voice, I would've thought you knew her?" At my expression, he grins. "Guess it was silly of me to assume." He looks to the side, the pinpricks in his eyes looking thoughtful. " She's a good kid. She's nice to all the monsters here, and always willing to lend a helping hand. She's actually basically become one of us now, heh."

That sounded nothing like know-it-all Joyce. This must've been a mistake. And hearing it from Sans, of all people, continued to raise my suspicions. "But isn't she ever stubborn, or rude?" I ask, and an immediate look of concern crosses Sans' face. However, my stupidity ignores it, continuing to plow on. "Not to mention, isn't she always kissing up to you? Doesn't she always cling to you and seek your attention?"

"Where are you getting this from?" Sans demands, a thoroughly baffled look on his face. "She's never done that before."

Suddenly, I realize I don't get it anymore. If that were true, it must've meant that Joyce had been a good person this timeline. She was kind to the citizens, and never did anything possessive or even slightly aggressive towards Sans. She had only killed Snowdrake, but she hadn't even so much as touch another monster.

Suddenly, it all made sense. No wonder Elaine had looked so afraid of me, and Cinder so grim and serious. Cinder thought Joyce was nice, and so Elaine was told that. They believed in her, and that was why I was pinned with the blame. I was the one who attacked the kind, innocent human. Not the other way around.

But it couldn't have just been a mistake. It was impossible for Joyce to have killed Snowdrake out of fear. No, she had plenty of practice in the Ruins to know how battles worked. She should've known exactly what she was doing. Even during the battle, she had displayed her the fierce side of her personality. She had even threatened to kill Snowdrake again.

Joyce definitely hadn't changed one bit. But no one in Snowdin knew that.

Sans finally breaks the silence and puts a stop to my musing. "So you're telling me you were mislead?" He asks, a skeptical look on his face.

"U-uuh…" After a moment, I slowly nod my head, trying to look thoughtful and sound embarrassed. "I heard a lot of things from Justin. I guess I hadn't known that the things he said didn't actually match up with real facts. I had just jumped to conclusions, so that's why I helped him." My explanation reminded me strongly of Cowboy's own reasoning when he had come back to me in Waterfall to apologize. The resemblance made my heart clench.

After a moment of suspiciously staring at my wide, innocent eyes, he nods. "...That makes sense. Of course you would trust another human. Believing in him was the safest choice for you."

Relief fills me that he had fallen for the excuse. "Sorry."

"No need to be sorry for something you didn't start, kiddo." Sans shrugs.

I frown, suddenly feeling a little confused. Just like that... it was that easy to convince Sans that I was innocent? "You believe me?" I ask him, skeptical.

"Mostly." He answers, tipping his skeletal hand side-to-side.

"And just 'cause I'm curious," I hum, "How did you come to that conclusion?"

"You really like making things hard for me, huh, buddy?" He sighs drearily, almost like he hates to explain things, then leans forward to rest his arms on the table. "It just doesn't look like you could attack Joyce out of hate, since you don't seem to know her, ya know?"

I wondered if I was just digging a hole for myself, but I couldn't stop myself from blurting out, "But what if I'm lying?"

He grins in amusement, surprisingly playing along. "Then you wouldn't have attacked her, knowing that she was a good person."

"Oh." I suddenly realized I had actually slightly lifted myself upwards from the tension, and I move back to sit down again.

"Yep. That is, unless…" His grin suddenly falters as he looks to the side for a moment, but then he shakes his head. "No, I don't think you've-" He makes an even larger exasperated sigh, seeming more tired with this interview than ever. "You know what? Just… just be more careful about things like this next time. You don't want to do anything that you'll end up regretting, right?"

I felt bad for tossing away Cowboy's trust in me and throwing him under the table like that, but I knew this was the best choice for me to make. "Yeah, I will."

"It looks like you're pretty much cleared." Sans confirms, posture finally relaxing. "I wanted to believe Papyrus when he said you were good, ya know? But we can't just go around taking any chances at this point."

"Why not?"

"It's too dangerous. Any human that comes down here is just another threat to us monsters. And who knows? They might even kill us all, heh."

I narrow my eyes. That didn't sound like Sans at all. "What makes you think that?"

"Warning from Joyce." He responds simply. "She's told us all about humanity on the surface. We can never be too careful."

I hesitate. There was no way I was going to be able to get around this. Joyce was everyone's role model, their hope for humanity. I couldn't take that away, no matter how hard I tried. All I could do was try to gain information on the situation. "If it's not too much to ask," I start, "Could you tell me what really happened today?"

"Curious to know the truth, huh?" He winks. "You're just like someone I know."

Huh? "Who?"

He ignores the question, instead plowing right into the explanation. "Before you got here, Papyrus was patrolling the outskirts of Snowdin. The two humans were hanging out at our house. You know, the big house with lights that we passed by on our way here?" At my nod, he grins. "Yeah, my bro put those up. He loves them, 's part of the festive spirit. Anyway. Joyce had decided to leave the house to do something, and left Cinder on her own."

"And where were you?" I ask, wondering why he had left that particular tidbit out.

"Oh, at Grillbyz. It's the bar just down the street, next to the fork in the road."

"I know that." I frown. "But how did you know everyone else's whereabouts while you were there?"

"Why so suspicious?" He wiggles his bone-brows. I noticed he was ignoring the question. "What, so you're the interrogator now?" At my serious face, he gives me an unamused look. "What, you can't take a little humor? Papyrus filled me in on everything during the fight, kiddo. He also told me what Cinder told him."

Oh, of course he would respond that way. Nevertheless, I still doubted that it was the true reason. "Right. Sorry for interrupting." I dismissively wave my hand a little.

"Then Cinder heard a scream." I noticed how he was suddenly speaking in past tense; Papyrus' perspective. Definitely suspicious. "She recognized it, of course, and ran out. There was a small crowd starting to form in the center of town. As you can probably guess…"

"The fight." I realize. "So Cowboy had literally just… ran in, and attacked Joyce?"

"Sounds like it." Sans responds, keeping a careful eye on me to see my reaction.

I clench my fists under the table again. The chances that Joyce would leave the house right when Cowboy appeared to attack her, and when neither of the skeletons were around to stop it? "I hadn't known that."

"Right. The battle went on for a little while, since no one could put a stop to it. Then you and Paps appeared from out of the blue." He grins. "I'll admit I was a little surprised to learn that more humans, much less three of them, had shown up to our humble little Snowdin town, heh."

"And nobody could hear us talking in the air during the fight?"

"Not from what I could tell, buddo." He huffs, smile still plastered on his skull. "I did see your mouths move, though. Does that count?"

I cross my arms. "And all this time while a battle was rampaging outside, you were in Grillby's eating a burger."

"Fries." He corrects. "How'd you know Grillbyz served burgers, anyway?"

I blink furiously. Um. "Just… a lucky guess."

"Either way, you're filled in with the details now. Ya satisfied?"

No. Definitely no. All this time, Justin and I had been trying to serve Justice, and when it had actually succeeded, this had to happen. I sigh. "Yes." I lie. I knew Sans could tell I was lying too.

But he puts up a skeletal hand, like he's trying to stop me from saying anything further. "'Kay kiddo, I think that's enough questioning for today. Take it easy for the rest of the day, take a stroll through Snowdin maybe, and we'll be finishing our business with Justin." The name sends an immediate spark running down my back. He hops off his chair, trotting over to the door to the cabin. I quickly get up and follow him.

"What will happen to him?"

"Based on what you've just told me," He hums, "Probably be turned in to the Royal Guard."

"R-really?!"

"He's not who we all thought he was." Sans shrugs, looking surprised at my reaction and pushing the door open without any resistance. So it really had been unlocked all this time! "Was a mistake on my part for assuming things, I guess."

My fists are clenched and I have to give everything I have to not shout at Sans. To not protest to these ridiculous claims, and to not defend Cowboy like I should've. It wouldn't matter anyway, I convince myself. I had already betrayed him, and there was no going back on that.

"Not who you thought he was?" I ask meekly.

Sans comes to an abrupt stop. There's two Royal Guard dogs outside, seeming to have been waiting there the whole time. It's Dogamy and Dogaressa. They give Sans guilty looks when they see him.

Sans cocks a bone-brow. "What're you guys still doin' here?"

"Sorry Sans!" Dogaressa apologizes.

"Sorry Sans." Dogamy repeats after her, almost simultaneously.

"We were just worried about you." Dogaressa continues, casting me a wary look. "We wanted to make sure you got out safely before departing. After all, what kind of Royal Guards would we be if the human got to you because we left?"

"I'm flattered you're concerned for me." Sans chuckles, jabbing a thumb at himself. "But I'm fine, as you can tell."

"Of course." Dogamy barks. "But what of the human?"

"This human is cleared too." Sans replies, sticking the arm back into his jacket pocket. "'Course, it doesn't mean they're harmless. Still, they mean well."

"Oh!" Dogamy immediately turns to me, giving me a sorry look. "I apologize about how I acted earlier, human. That harsh behavior was unnecessary of me."

"Me too!" Dogaressa woofs next to him.

"Um," I shake my head. "No, it's okay. You guys were just doing your jobs. You just had to be safe, right?" Sans gives me an approving look at the choice of my words.

"Thank you human." Dogamy responds, with Dogaressa barking the same words right after him. "We're glad you understand."

"Y-yeah…" I step forward, and reach up to give them a few hesitant pats on the head. The two wag their tails enthusiastically. That was a good sign.

"We must depart on our duties now." Dogaressa barks after a moment, facing Sans.

"Just spread word about the kid being cleared." He grins. "We don't want another unprovoked attack, do we?"

After giving me one more nod, the two dogs turn tail and scurry off in a direction. Then it's just me and Sans, standing outside in the cold snow.

"She did that too, when she first saw them."

Confused, I cock my head at Sans. "Who did what?"

"Joyce pet them too." Sans muses, using an interested tone. "When she saw them for the first time, it was her first instinct." He grins at me. "Guess you two are pretty similar, huh?"

Oh. "Y-yeah… I guess."

Sans starts walking again, and I find myself getting lost in thought. Nothing made much sense. Who was Joyce in this timeline? Did she mean anything to Sans? Was there… something more between them?

After all, Sans had seemed pretty overprotective about her. Not to mention the threat he sent at me after I was captured. Had he not referred to her as 'beloved?' Could that have meant something? Frustration and uncertainty was slowly crawling into my mind. Why did I care? Why was I worried about something so stupid?

After all, it was all going to have to be Reset anyway.

"Uh, are you gonna keep following me, kid?" Sans chuckles.

Oh. I realize I had just been trailing after Sans' footsteps in the snow without even thinking about it. "Uhm, I'm gonna go that way then." I jab a thumb behind me. "To the library."

"Huh." Sans raises a skeptical bone-brow. "How'd you know where the library is?"

I blink at him. "Um, we passed by it on the way to the shed?" I respond, trying to make it sound obvious. "It's literally right next your house."

"Right. Well, nice meeting you, Frisk." He turns his back on me, but waves still. "I'll be keeping an eye socket on ya."

Surprisingly, knowing that Sans would be watching me didn't fill me with any kind of unease. "Yeah," I smile. "Sure."

"I'll be taking care of things. You can just go do whatever. See ya 'round."

"Yeah. See you around." I slowly turn away to face the direction of the library, but stop when I feel a chill down my back.

"Just don't try anything funny."

Standing straight up, I quickly look behind my shoulder for a peek. But of course, Sans is already gone.

wow this was not supposed to be an entire chapter

but now it is, so. *shrug* NYEH HEH HEH!