Strider Notes: This here is a little bit of a lighter chapter to… well, try and help ease any trauma we caused you all. Though I did enjoy causing it. Heheheh.
Silverwing Notes: So, the date of when I write this AN is Nov. 15th, but recently I discovered a picture that convinced me that Caeruleus and Aliquam were now less Skeletal monsters and more like their father, a Shield over their ribcages plus actual flesh here and there. So though they'll stay Skeletons for this story, if we write with them again, they'll be more Blaster-Beastly
But onto the story, I am eager to see how you guys react to THIS chapter, Mwehehehe!
The police had come by, after having begun setting up regular patrols around the compound, and had offered their condolences to both the monsters and to Toki's family. There were one or two squad cars that rotated shifts and kept watch for the main entrance of the compound- but there was little else they could do to help beyond that.
Caeruleus ended up staying at his house- though he wasn't alone. Asgore had moved into Tenebris' room, with Frisk and Toriel taking Papyrus' old room. The house was full- and they were there to make sure that nothing else could go wrong.
Caeruleus came to keep her company as well during the day, bonding over what was on TV, as well as the random come-to-mind banter... He did seem to make a good comfort for the twins as well, being their mother's 'pillow' of sorts, while Aliquam was kept busy between Toki and continuing to heal the wounded monsters.
Han's funeral was scheduled for Friday. He was to be cremated, and his ashes divided up between his family members so they could spread him across his favorite places to go with each of them.
It had been hell on Toki, getting it arranged. She did have some help- her mother, once she had finished sobbing with Toki over the phone, had proved to be invaluable at handling a lot of it. It was still up to Toki to do a good portion of it, but her mother was a good guide.
The phone calls were another taxing thing all together. She had to call each of her siblings after she'd informed her parents. Everyone had cried. Even her stoic father had broken down into the quietest and most heart wrenching sobs that Toki had heard. Toki's soul hurt even more. Grief was a powerful thing, weighing heavily on her soul.
They had offered to come stay with her- but Toki had declined. She needed time to grieve and heal- and on some level, she was terrified that she would lose another family member should they come to stay with her. Losing Han was bad enough- losing any more was not something she could handle. So she pleaded for them to stay away. And, for once- too caught up in their grief to argue- they listened.
Todd had been told too. The fox man had crumpled where he stood, tears streaking down his muzzle, and Toki had folded herself around him while he howled his pain into her shoulder. The sounds that came from him hadn't been entirely human anymore- but the meaning was still the same. His fox-like howling had drawn the wolf guards in as well and the area surrounding the village had echoed with the mournful sounds.
Felix had hunched his shoulders and strode angrily away, tears finding their way down his cheeks.
Rosie had openly wept, and rushed into her father's side, needing nearly the same amount of consoling as her father.
Toki also dealt with nightmares. Whenever she slept too deeply or too long, she would fall into one. It was always the same nightmare. Black figures, red masks, hell hornets- and Han, lying in her lap hemorrhaging out despite everything she tried to do to help. He would beg and plead to stay- and ultimately die. And then the carnage would start- and she would wake up in utter terror as the men in masks screamed and were torn asunder.
There was guilt within her for taking the lives that she had. It was belated guilt- but guilt nonetheless. The Humans Against Monsters were still human, even if they had been twisted and corrupted by Cruelty's views and desires. Some of them might have even been decent people at one point.
She wept tears for Han, and for the lives that her hornets had taken so savagely, even though rage simmered not far below the surface of her grief.
Between her nightmares and the magi-drain, which had her dealing with bone deep weariness and exhaustion, Toki was worn thin. She might not have been responsible for the monsters anymore, but they deserved her care and comfort all the same. So she stretched herself, helping the monsters plan their funerals as well as working on Han's. Working herself to the bone let her take short naps where in she didn't dream.
The harder she wore herself down, the less the nightmares plagued her. She was aware that it wasn't healthy. But truly, it was the lesser of the evils.
Toki noticed a problem, however. Her magic wasn't regenerating fast enough to overtake what the twins needed in order to thrive. At first she didn't think it was a problem- but she encountered what that meant for her shortly after.
Toki had shambled through the house early in the morning while Pap had taken off to do his morning checkups on the wounded, and she had proceeded to sharply clip her left femur on a side table when she'd turned a corner without paying attention. It had sent her stumbling and cursing- thanking everything that was holy that she had been alone for that short amount of time- and she'd barely managed to catch herself on the wall before she was sent sprawling.
She had thought nothing of it- she had wide hips, and her pregnancy waddle had her running into everything under the sun.
But not even forty minutes later, she had been getting dressed for the day and had spotted the nasty bruise blossoming down her femur from her reflection in the mirror. Her magic was tied to her defense, which meant that without her magic her defense was practically nothing. The bruise was tender to the touch, and she had hissed in pain when her fingers brushed over it.
"Shit." She muttered, staring at the dark green bruise streaking from her hip joint nearly half way down. The bone was soft and spongy almost, and the bruise was darkening more as she looked at it. Toki finished tugging on a long shirt, and then eased herself onto the bed with her sweat pants half off so she could gently prod the bruise and make sure she hadn't cracked anything.
Her bone was solid enough, no visible cracks- but the color was deepening, and the ache growing. She really had caught her self good- but she hadn't been in pants, either. Her clothes were a little less filled out than they usually were, but it hadn't really mattered. Her nightgown only covered so far, and it was thin. Thin clothes didn't make good buffers between solid wood and fragile bone.
"Glass canon." she scoffs irritably to herself, fingers rubbing the area around the bruise as her tired sockets pinch tighter. "More like glass bones…"
There was a soft knock at her door bedroom door. "Toki? Hey, you awake?"
Toki startled at the knock, and cursed loudly. "Y-yeah, I'm awake!" She struggled upwards, nearly tripping over her sagging pants. She worked to tug them upwards.
"Pfft. You are crashing around in there. You okay?"
"Just- ow, OW- dealing with a bruise." Holy hell, the bruise was tender. Her pants made it hurt like hell, and she hobbled faintly as she made her way to the door. She opened it, and peered at the face across from her.
The skeleton was grinning as usual, but the underlying gleam in his eyes was a dead giveaway that there was something up. "Could I, uh... Could I come in?"
"Of course." Toki nodded and stepped back, motioning for him to come into her room. She left the door open, and hobbled back to her bed, before taking a seat on it. She eyed him slightly; tiredness making dark circles under her eye sockets, and then canted her skull towards him while patting the space next to her on the bed. "Something wrong, Sans?"
"Yeah, well... No... I mean... I think... I don't know..." he came in and closed the door behind him before he sat down beside her. "Well... You know how I've spent some... Extra time with Grillby?"
"That's one way of putting it." She flushes slightly and chuckles softly. "What about it? You two aren't having problems, are you?" Her eye lights glimmer at him slightly, and she reaches out to pat his leg.
"... Tokes..." he looked at her with a small frown before he reached up and gently rubbed his stomach, "I... Uh..."
She noticed that motion, and her sockets widened marginally. "Are you… pregnant?"
His grin had long since fallen, but now it looked stressed, his teeth clenching together. "I haven't told him yet... But... I think I am..."
"Shirt and jacket up please. Pretty sure I know enough to confirm or not." She flicked her eye lights to his face, seeing the tense look, and tilted her skull quietly to offer him a gentle but confused smile. "… Do you not… want it? I didn't think monsters could have accidents."
"... I didn't think it would actually happen. We tried a few times but this hasn't happened before..." he explained as he lifted up his shirt. "It was just a comfort thing... We... I didn't think it would actually TAKE this time...!" His usual gut was there, a gentle blue in color, but in the bowl of his pelvis was what had woken him up.
There was a tiny speck of light, flickering like a small flame. It was surrounded by a visible ball of aura, connected to the ecto-magic around it by thread like sinews.
Toki eased down to peer into his middle quietly. She hummed softly, eye lights roving gently over the generous swell of his middle. Her fingers followed shortly, bones pressing in with a careful touch as she peered down into his pelvic girdle. "Yeah," She says after a moment, "you're pregnant. It only takes once, Cae. Congratulations though! You're making me an aunt." Her fingers retract, and she gives him a gentle smile. "I... know it might be an odd time, but... this little one is a light in a dark time. We still have hope. When we get your dad back, he is going to be so surprised."
"A light..." he looked at her, then laughed weakly. "A light... Just like their Dad..." he commented as he lowered his shirt again. "I don't know how I'm gonna tell Grillbz though..."
"Telling Grillby should be pretty easy." She smiles slightly. "Just lift your shirt and say 'surprise, you're a dad'. You've been trying- I can guarantee he's going to be excited to see your little ray of hope."
"Heh... yeah, it'll... We'll get there..."
"You seem a little uncertain about all of this." She says softly. "Talking might help, if you have some worries." Given the state of her pregnancy, Toki might be able to offer a fair bit of advice. "I'd say I have an ear to lend, but I have no ears. Which is a shame. I miss my cartilage piercing." She cracks the tiniest joke to try and get him to smile.
"Well... I've gotten so used to things..." He mulls over how to phrase it. "Not working out for me. Like... things get better... and then..." He wiggles his hands. "Poof... It's all back to step one. Now that things are staying... permanently... I just..."
"You're scared of it all resetting again." Toki summarizes gently. "I understand that. Its... hard to adjust, and to believe that this is the last one. You've got to take it one day at a time though. Frisk isn't going to reset anymore. If something else happens, they will load a save."
"Yeah... I know." He sighed gently, before smiling at her, a little more assured now, "Yeah... I'll have to get used to it..."
"You will. We'll help though." She smiled at him softly, and opened her arms in an offer for a hug. "I'm excited to be an aunt again. If you need help to talk to Grillby about your little ball of hope, let me know."
"Yes please" he agreed without hesitating, reaching out and tugging her gently into his grasp. He hugged her tightly, but gently.
"Then I'll help you tell him. How do you want to do it?" She tilted her skull with a warm look, and snuggled into his grasp carefully. Her leg bumped his, and she hissed very softly at the painful touch.
"You okay?" He released her rapidly, looking her over with a worried gleam in his sockets.
Toki shrugs and adjusts how she's seated so her femur doesn't touch him. "I hit myself on a table earlier this morning," she says idly, "and I bruised myself a bit. Its tender."
"Oh." He winced. "Ow. Bruises suck,"
"Yeah. It's a wicked bruise. My magic isn't up to snuff as far as defending me goes. Its not regenerating fast enough." She shrugs slightly and reclines back on the bed with a soft sigh. "Now- did you have an idea how you want to tell Grillby? You're going to have to do it, but I can talk you through it."
"Well..." He huffed. "There's no way to sugarcoat this. I'm fucking pregnant and it's his."
"There you go." She quirks a slight grin to him. "That's how you can tell him."
"..." Sans covered his face with a frustrated groan. "Why do you make it sound so easy?"
"Because it really is." She chuckled heartily. "Grillby loves you, Sans. You literally have nothing to fear."
"... Yeah I know..." He then rubbed his face. "Shit... was it this hard for you too?"
"Papyrus fainted the moment he found out he was a dad, and I had a panic attack that required Grillby to coach me through calming breathing exercises. It was hard, but in a different way." Toki gave him a gentle but warm smile. "You and Grillby were planning to have a kid, weren't you? Planning makes all the difference. Grillby is a good dad, Cae. He'll probably take really, really good care of you." Toki recalls when she had gotten back from her first trip to Lana's place, and subsequently Fuku's. Word had spread over the Undernet that Toki had healed Fuku- and the massive bartender had fiercely hugged Toki the moment that she had gotten home. Grillby had even swung her around like a doll, before stealing her away to his bar for a free milkshake. She chuckles, and reaches out to gently pat his belly. "You, and your ball of sunshine."
He smiled gently and nodded slowly. "Yeah... heh... Sunshine." he reached and rubbed his stomach gently, before he sighed and leaned over to rest his head against Toki's. "Thanks, Sis." he murmured.
Han had called her that too. Toki resolutely did not begin to cry, and instead gently nuzzled his skull. Han would be happy to see the family expanding. "I'm glad I could be here to help, Bro." She smiles softly for him. "Sunshine… That sounds like it would be a cute name. Little Sunny. Pap and I have already come up with a couple of possible names for the jellybeans."
He adjusted his arm around her shoulders to give her a gentle squeeze, his usual grin returning to his face. "You mind if I hear 'em?"
Toki leans into him without issue, and chuckles at the soft squeeze. The skeletons were strong; horrifyingly strong sometimes, in all actuality. Without her magic there to reinforce her body, she could feel how her bones creaked just slightly, even under such a gentle touch. Toki peers up at him with a lopsided grin and twinkling eye lights. "Only if you promise not to laugh."
"I promise."
"Alright." She sighs softly and glances away. Toki shyly grinds her teeth. "We chose four. Skylar, Eras, Verdana… and Honey."
"..." He wasn't gonna laugh, he wasn't gonna-
Snrrrk.
Fuck.
Toki frowned at him and swatted his knee. "Sans! You promised you wouldn't laugh!" And to her knowledge, he rarely made promises. She pouted at him. "It's not that funny, Sans." Though she did giggle slightly herself, even under her pout.
"N-no, no, I'm not laughing! Those are some great names!" He smiled at her gently. "I promise, I'm not laughing because they're funny, I'm laughing cause they're adorable."
Amusement flickered in her soul, and she half-lidded her sockets at him. She contemplated him for a moment, before gently flicking his forehead. "You're not always the best liar, Sans." She chuckles softly. "They are adorable though, aren't they? We chose one name for each gender, and then two gender neutral names."
"I think that's a great idea."
Toki nods quietly. "I thought so too. I'm pretty certain I'm having a little girl… At least one, if not both." She chuckles softly, and rubs her finger over her middle. Her eyes glimmer warmly up to Sans. "You know, our kids will grow up together. It's going to be really cool."
He smiled gently and nodded slowly. "Yeah... heh... It will be."
She smiles back at him and shifts. "Mhm… Well, all right. I don't know about you, but I need to get up and move around before my back cramps up again. Do you feel better about going to tell Grillby now? It's honestly not as scary as you think it is."
"Right... we should... as soon as possible." he replied with a smile, standing up before offering her a hand.
She took his hand, and let him haul her to her feet. Her leg throbbed, and she hid a wince as she waddled for her door. "Oh no, this is not a 'we' thing. I'll help you find what to say. This is something you have to do on your own, Cae. Really, you'll be okay." Grillby was the one that had asked Caeruleus about having kids, after all.
"..." He rubbed his head and took a deep breath to steady himself. "Right, I... me..." he then grinned at her gently. "I can do this."
"You can do this." Toki grinned to him, and wiggled her fingers. "You'll have to call and tell me what his reaction is. I have little doubt that he's probably going to keep you captive for the day. If you want, I can tell Papyrus when he gets back from checking on everyone." Which should have been soon, barring anyone needing more intense care.
"Alright." Sans followed her out of the room and down the stairs. Once they were at the ground floor, the ruffled skeleton offers her a slightly nervous wave, and then ducks out the front door to go deliver his news.
It didn't take him long to make it to the bar. The problem was, it took him a long, long while in order to gather the courage to go into it. He sat out there for a long while, simply peering in as people came and left for the early breakfast rush.
He waited until it was over.
Sans took a deep breath as he walked into the bar. It was empty... good.
He slowly reached and gripped the open sign, flipping it over so that 'closed' was seen from the outside.
Grillby had been wiping down the bar and noticed Caeruleus come in. Setting his rag down, he was going to greet him until he saw him flip the sign. "... Sans... Is there something wrong?" he asked, concern filtering into his low voice. He came around the bar and met his mate in the middle of the bar, taking the skeleton into his arms to hug him close, and caress his skull gently as he felt the other hug him back in turn.
"Grillby... There's... there's something important I gotta tell you."
Toki watched him go and shook her head with a tired sigh. Once he's gone, she slumps slightly, and rubs her fingers over her eye sockets, before padding into the kitchen to begin cleaning it. With all that had been going on, trying to get things planned for Han's cremation, and just everything else that the universe deemed needed to go wrong, Toki had been remiss in house chores.
Now that everything was finalized- she needed to clean. It didn't matter if she had the energy or not. Toki wouldn't be up to cleaning after the cremation. Seeing her family, being with them for the funeral was going to wreck what little fragile peace she had built to keep the festering storm of grief at bay.
Usually Toki would sing or hum when she went about her chores, particularly after getting good news like the news she got from Sans. But, as she swept and mopped and did dishes and bumbled her way around the kitchen, no song found it's way through her teeth. No hum reverberated through her bones.
Toki simply toiled in silence as she waited for either Pap to come home, or for Sans to finally work himself up to tell Grillby. She was no fool- it would take him some time to work himself up. She knew him well enough by now to tell that much.
Aliquam hummed quietly as he entered the home, closing the door behind him before he looked around. "Toki? I'm home" he called out.
The tile that made up all of the floors was freshly mopped and spotless, darn near shining in the light. The rugs had been shaken, the cobwebs swept, and dust cleared away. The house was clean once more by the time that he had gotten home. But it wasn't clean enough, obviously. Toki was still hard at work, down in the bottom floor bathroom. It was the one that Han had used- and her brother had left it a mess.
Part of her had not really wanted to clean it- but she'd hardened up her spirit and set to doing so. It was one step at a time. Doing the bathroom- then removing the remainder of his things from the general house- and then tackling the hard, hard task of his room. That was for last. There was so much… So much of Han there, that Toki hadn't even brought herself to open the door yet. She couldn't. Not yet.
Toki stood in the shower, working to scrub something off of one of the walls. Human men could be so gross- and that was definitely one thing she hadn't missed about not living with her brothers. The rest of the bathroom was spotless. The toilet had been scrubbed, the sink cleaned, toothbrushes and other cleanliness products that had belonged to Han had been set under the sink cupboard.
"I'm in the bathroom, Pap." She called back, putting more elbow grease behind her efforts to remove the stain. It looked like hair dye- but she hadn't noticed Han using it. Though… Her dark haired brother had been beginning to gray early. It was possible he'd been using it to cover up the grays.
He padded into the bathroom, having followed the sound of her voice. "Toki, hey... how do you feel?" he asked, leaning down and kissing her head.
"About the same as I did last night." She grunts softly. Toki spares a moment to turn and give him a soft kiss, before it's back to scrubbing. She favors her sore leg slightly as she shifts her stance against the tub. "I'm okay, Pap. How is everyone healing down at the school?" It was the only building with the space for everyone to heal together in a protected location.
"They're recovering well enough so far." He murmured in response, eying her as she scrubbed. "I'm more worried about you."
"You're always worried for me, Pap." She responds with a soft sigh, and grumbles as she re-wets her scrub brush with tub water. Another few scrubs, and the stain to the shower tile began to truly come off. "I'm glad everyone is recovering steadily. But really- I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me."
"Toki... Are you lying?"
"From time to time a little white lie never hurt anyone." She doesn't give him a straight on yes or no answer, opting instead to focus more upon the task at hand.
He reached out and closed his hand gently over her shoulder. "Tokiko."
That was a tone he hadn't used with her before. Toki tilted her skull to show she was listening as she switched arms for scrubbing. "Yes, Papyrus?"
"You're lying to me now."
"Yeah." She says simply. "I am." Toki's not mean enough to deny lying. Lying is a bad habit anyways. She's also never been the best liar, even after growing up in a house full of boys. Toki swallows slightly, and sighs through her nasal cavity.
He sighed. "Get up and come with me." He ordered, releasing her shoulder to give her room to get up.
That… sounded suspiciously like an order. Toki's teeth grind together indecisively as she was released, and she paused mid scrubbing to rotate her skull and look at him. "I'm not done cleaning, Pap." The stain was mostly gone now- just barely even visible. It could probably wait, really.
"I don't care." He told her. "Please. Get up."
"What exactly do you want me to come with you for?" She turns back, looking at the remainder of the stain, and heaves a sigh. Irritation bubbles within her, but Toki takes a calming breath so she doesn't fire off something mean out of anger. At least he said please this time. The gravid skeleton gives the wall a few more scrubs- lo and behold the wall comes fully clean with those last couple of scrubs- and then rinses the brush and sets it on the non-slip mat so she can finish cleaning the area in general later.
Toki probably was a little intentionally sluggish with getting out of the tub and rinsing her finger bones. But she won't admit that to anyone. Soon she is standing, hands clean and drying them on a towel as she looks at him to lead the way.
He led her to the front room, sitting her down on the couch. After a moment he looked at her and sighed through his nasal cavity. "I can tell that you're suffering from Magi-Drain again."
"I've been dealing with Magi-drain since Han died." Toki peered up at him from where she was situated on the couch, and crossed her arms. "And it hasn't gotten better. Besides, I'm used to the chill by now." It wasn't so much suffering when she was used to the cold. At least she could walk mostly on her own now. "So I'm fine, Pap. Really. The house needs to be cleaned, and I'm not done yet. So… can I get back to it?"
"No." His answer was almost immediate.
She arched a brow up at him and pursed her teeth. "Hm… I don't really have to ask permission to clean our house, do I? So…" She shifted and worked to gain her legs under her so she could get off the couch that she had been guided to. "Your suggestion is taken into consideration, but my work is not done yet. I still have to do the upstairs, and get the laundry done. If I didn't get stuff done just because I don't feel well, I would never get anything done at all."
"Toki, no." he said sternly as he stepped up to stop her. "I can't let you. Not like this. We need to go find Grillby."
"Grillby is busy with some very important things right now." She informs him. "More important than funneling magic into me."
There was a muffled shout that drifted through the open windows. It was obviously muffled- but the words were clearly Grillby's and damn near clear as day. "I'M GOING TO BE A DAD AGAIN!"
Toki quirks a faint grin. "I told Sans that he would be excited. Congrats, by the way. You're going to be an uncle. And Grillby is probably going to keep Sans busy for quite some time today."
Papyrus stiffened, his sockets widening and his jaw falling open. "C-CAERULEUS IS PREGNANT?!"
His shout was unexpected, and she leaned a little bit away from him with a soft hiss. Her hands fly to her belly, which had jerked with his noise. The sudden yell had startled the twins, and they were nailing her ribs with all of their might. He certainly wasn't this loud often anymore. "Ow, ow, ow, little ones, it's okay. Daddy is just excited about your new cousin." When the flurry dies down to a little less painful thrashing, she flicks her eye lights back to him. "Yes. He came to me this morning for me to confirm it."
He looked at her worriedly, seeming to debate between running out the door to go find his brother or to stay with her. He made his decision and then he sighed. "I trust Grillby will take care of him. I'm more focused on you."
"Grillby knows best how to care for Sans." Toki makes one more attempt to get up, using the arm of the couch to haul herself upwards. Getting up isn't easy, after all, particularly with the big skeleton standing before her like a sentry. "But you don't need to focus on me, Papyrus. I'm fine enough, okay? I can handle a little housework." She needed to do the housework. Sitting still, resting, it all gave her time for her mind to wander, and she didn't want to deal with the thoughts and feelings that she knew would rise up. Keeping busy was how she coped with things- and keeping busy was how she was coping with Han's death.
"Toki, no." he repeated sharply, "You're not. Not until your magic is replenished."
"Pap, I can't just sit still and do nothing!" Frustration and growing irritation taints her voice as she gets to her feet. Toki steps around him carefully, and finds herself nearly dropping as she bumps her femur into the arm of the couch in an effort to step around him. She hissed, and took a seat on the arm while waiting for the bruise to stop hurting. "My magic isn't regenerating fast enough to cope with what the twins are taking, Pap. And I can't sit still. I can't, okay?"
"It's not helping that you are draining yourself physically either! You need to rest!" He reached out and gripped her arms gently. "Watch TV, go on a walk, I don't care what you do, but I want you to rest!"
"I can't!" Her arms don't fight his grip, and she just stares up at him through dark sockets. Her teeth curl into a sharp frown. The bones of her arms bend slightly under his gentle touch. Toki is so fragile without her magic to reinforce her bones. "Keeping myself busy is the only way to keep my mind off of Han. I watched him bleed to death in my arms, Pap. I watched my little brother beg me not to make him leave, not to let him die. When my mind is at rest, that is all that comes to mind, because his death is on my hands. I still sometimes think I smell his blood on my bones, Papyrus. I just… I can't rest, Pap. I can't. Not… Not until Han is laid to rest, okay?" She tugs just slightly on his grip on her, and frees one hand to rub her leg once more. "I'll just… I'll be careful, okay? I know I need to be careful not to run into things right now."
"What happened wasn't your fault, damn it!" He snarled. "You did everything you could! Han would know this!"
"Just because it wasn't my fault doesn't mean that I don't blame myself!" She didn't lift her voice to a shout, despite him snarling at her. Her teeth ground, sending sparks over his hands that grasped her. "Han was scared, Papyrus! He didn't want to die- and there was nothing I could do to stop it. You don't understand. You're not an elder sibling- and elder sibling is supposed to protect and guide their younger siblings! I helped raise him, Papyrus! I helped raise all of my brothers! They were as much my brothers as they were basically my children. Han had a hard life, and Han carried ghosts of his own that haunted him because of the things he had been made to do. He was going to find happiness, Papyrus."
Traitorous tears pebbled in her sockets, and she jerked her arm out of his grasp so she could swipe them away as they rolled down her cheeks. "And he d-died. He had that ripped away with him just when he was starting to find happiness for once in his life. I failed to protect him. I had to listen to my mother sob over the phone. I had to listen to my dad break down into tears, because I failed to protect my little brother. That is something that I have to live with for the rest of my life, Papyrus. That's what is in my mind when I'm at rest. That's why I can't rest."
He watched her, and then he sighed and took a step closer, hugging her gently.
Toki sniffled quietly, but planted a hand on his chest and kept him from hugging her. She scrubbed her sockets and gave him a sharp look. If she collapsed into his arms now, she would shatter what fragile peace she had struggled to maintain. "If you can come up with something that qualifies to you as resting and also either keeps me company or keeps my mind busy enough not to think of everything, then please, by all means, tell me and I'll do it. I am tired, Papyrus. I am tired, and my leg hurts, and I want to rest, but I can't. Until then, I have cleaning to finish. Excuse me." She sniffled again, scrubbing her palm against the tear tracks on her face, and stood to return back to what she had been doing prior.
"No." He let her body go, but his hand stayed folded around her wrist. "Tokiko. You're not going to exhaust yourself any further."
"Then what do you suggest? Hm?" It is a struggle not to be sharp with him, and Toki knows the edge of it lingers in her voice. Her wrist is weak against his grasp, and she knows she can't escape it without losing her hand. Tears still bead in her sockets, betraying her upset and her inner hurt. "I already told you. If you can come up with something that qualifies as rest, but keeps my mind occupied, then you are welcome to suggest it."
"What about a bath... something nice and hot. Just you and me."
"A bath…?" She was expecting him to pop off with a walk, watching television, or reading- none of which would help. Talking let her think- She didn't have the focus for television, and that bled over to books as well. Toki took a deep breath, and quelled the instinctive part of her that wanted to demand to go back to work.
Papyrus was right- and she knew it. She was pushing herself too far; far too far to be good for her, and for their children. Toki's free hand came up to scrub her face, and she heaved a sigh. It would be him and her in the bath. "Okay. A bath… A bath sounds good." She murmurs tiredly. Her hand scrubs her eye sockets again. "I'm sorry I snapped at you."
"I'm sorry I did too." He purred gently and pressed a kiss to her head.
Toki sighed gently and shifted to lean against his chest. Her arms hesitantly come around him to give him the hug she had previously denied. "You were right to be worried." She murmurs. "I have been pushing too hard on myself and my body." She nuzzles his shoulder softly, feeling her irritation deflate back into hiding. "Why don't you get out of your boots, and I'll go get the bath started?"
"Alright." he murmured, going to kick off his boots and jacket.
Toki pressed an apologetic kiss to the top of his head, and then left him downstairs. She made her way up, the stairs giving her a small bit of trouble with the tender spot on her leg, and then to their bathroom. Kneeling down was difficult with her middle, but she managed, and got the tub running with piping hot water. She toned it down a bit after a moment of consideration. Papyrus wasn't quite immune to the heat like she was.
After rinsing the tub of any dust, and got the stopper put in the bottom, and left the massive thing to fill while she worked to get to her feet. She really was starting to have some serious problems getting up and down with the weight in her middle. Once upright, Toki slid her shirt over her head and then took a peek at her profile in the bathroom mirror. Her belly was large, distended from the once empty gap in her middle. The magic that wove up her ribs, keeping it in place, faded odd almost perfectly. Her pants sat oddly on her hips from how her belly sat, and she toyed with the elastic band with a small smile. The flesh was dimmer than it usually was, on account of her lack of magic no doubt.
A soft laugh trickled from her throat as one of the twins kicked, and a small lump appeared on her belly. She rubbed her fingers quietly over it and sighed. Her ecto belly even had the bellybutton thing going for her- and now that she paid it attention, it was very nearly on it's way to being an outtie. "I'm sorry I haven't been taking proper care of myself for you two." She murmurs softly to them, the sound of the water rushing through the pipes blocking her from hearing Papyrus come upstairs. "I'll try to do better from now on, my little Jellybeans."
Papyrus soon made his presence known, smiling as he walked up to hug Toki from behind. He was mostly undressed, but there was his undershirt left to remove. It meant she was able to feel his form behind her, "Tokiko." he whispered gently.
Toki only had her pants and underpants left to remove, so his arms slid around her bare torso. She smiled slightly. "Papyrus." she murmured gently in response, resting her hands gently on his for a moment, before making the effort to shimmy out of her pants. Once she got them below her hips, they could fall the rest of the way down her legs, baring them bruise and all, so she could step out. She did so, and once she was completely bare to him save her engagement ring, she leaned back and peered up at him. "I'm sorry I was a bit of an ass down stairs. I shouldn't have tried to lie to you, no matter my reasons."
He reached out and slowly ran his hands down to her hips, smiling gently as he looked down at her. "It's okay, Toki." he purred gently, "We're all frustrated... and tired... and..." his gaze lowered and he frowned. "Toki, your femur...!"
She spotted where his eye sockets had drifted, and she tucked her chin slightly towards her chest. "Ah… Yeah… So here's the thing. I hit my leg really hard on the side table this morning after you left, and… yeah. My defense isn't up with as low as my magic is. So… My bones are really, really fragile. More like glass bones instead of glass canon, I guess. It's just a bruise, I promise. I looked it over when I noticed it."
Papyrus heaved a sigh and set his hand over it, humming quietly as he released magic to heal it.
Toki sighed as the bruise began to fade and the bone hardened up again. "Thanks Pap. It would have healed on it's own, you know. There are other monsters who need the healing more than I do." But still, she doesn't fight him healing it. It feels good, the healing, and the twins squirm in response to the pleased feeling in her soul. "Mmm…"
He huffed softly and nuzzled her without answering her directly. Once her bruise was healed, he retracted his magic. "I'll get in first." he murmured. He stripped his tank top off and dipped his fingers into the water. It was hot, but not too hot.
He slowly climbed in and leaned back with a small sigh, before he reached up and offered her his hand.
Toki let him get settled, and then padded to the side of the tub. Offering him a soft look, she accepted his hand and let him keep her balanced as she stepped over the high edge. She reached over to turn the water off, as it was now high enough for them to relax in, and then slowly eased down. Getting seated in the tub was a small chore, but going down was easier than going up was going to be.
She eased herself gently against his chest, pressing her back flush to his rib cage. The water was greatly displaced by the bulge in her middle, and she laughed softly. "Oh sweet gods above, it's so warm…" The heat from the water felt fantastic, and her bones were practically ice cubes as they pressed back into him. The twins squirmed and stretched, enjoying the heat and letting it be known as they made tiny ripples in the water.
He kissed her skull, happily spooning with her before he set his hands on her stomach and released his magic into her body to make up what he could.
Her middle brightened like a light bulb, the twins greedily devouring what their father put forth. Toki heaves a huge sigh and slumps into him. "Mmm… They take almost more than I can make at this point." She murmurs softly. "It's probably safe to say that I'm not going to be able to do much with my magic here soon. We've still got four months or so to go, Pap. Provided they keep growing at this rate, of course. It could end up being three or two months- twins are often early." Their need for magic would only grow. Part of her worried a little bit, about if they'd be able to keep up with it, or if she would be permanently tired and freezing for the rest of her pregnancy. Cae wasn't going to be able to donate at all now that he was supporting his own, so it would fall to Papyrus more often now. Her worry flitted through her soul aura.
"You cannot use your magic other than what is absolutely necessary..." he told her, stroking her stomach gently to soothe her and the children both.
"I'm starting to see that." She sighs quietly. "Which sucks, because I really like being able to boil water really fast." Toki relaxes more into him, her arms coming down to rest along his thighs. Her fingers gently rub over his femurs, more to keep her digits busy than anything else. She can faintly feel the mark where Vikki had shot him. It had healed over nicely, but the fresh bone felt different than the old. "I don't really know what to do." She admits quietly. "I need to be able to defend myself, but… I don't know. Those hell hornets, when they fired off those beams of light… I could feel it sucking my magic, faster than anything else I'd ever done."
The twins shift in her belly, and one of them nails her in the rib hard enough to make her suck in a breath. "Okay, okay, no more negative talk from me, I get it. Good lord, you two." Her finger rubs along her lower rib, and she grimaces.
"Boiling water doesn't really take too much magic." he chuckled softly, stroking her stomach gently as he took to humming quietly instead of talking.
The humming and gentle touches soothed them, and she exhaled softly in response. "Ow." She breathed. Her rib stung something fierce. "Yeah, that's true. I suppose cooking will be fine enough in small amounts." She murmurs. Toki shifts, and nestles her head contently on his sternum. The glow of her middle is bright under the water, and the twins shifting within her makes faint ripples between his hands. "Mmm, they're enjoying the warmth. So am I, really. It's… nice. Very relaxing." As tired as she is, she can feel her sockets begin to droop, and actively fights against falling asleep.
"Good. Sleep. Rest until fatigue no longer haunts you." he murmured, "I shall always be here to watch over you."
"Fatigue isn't what haunts me. Or at least, isn't the complete cause." She murmurs back. Toki shifts against him, scooting up slightly and bracing her arms slightly on his raised knees. The position reminds her some of something from a parenting book she'd read somewhere- but it was comfortable enough that she wasn't in danger of losing feeling in her legs immediately. She flicks her eye lights up to him. "If… I do rest… Will you wake me if you see a nightmare start to set in?"
"If you twitch out of place even once." he promised, kissing her head again.
Toki smiled quietly. "Thank you." She murmurs. It takes her a moment of wiggling to find the best comfortable spot, but as she gets settled, so to do the twins. They settle high against her ribs, close to her soul, and she relaxes with his hands cradling them. Her sockets drift closed, and she finds herself drifting to the sound of his humming.
