Blue just couldn't get over how weird it felt to put on clothes that weren't his battered hoodie, t-shirt, and shorts. Those were now languishing in the rags pile. It was a little sad to see them go, but not by much. He felt so different from the monster that had worn those clothes, and having his new threads to put on felt… nice. Appropriate. Good. His new clothes were just reaching that stage of wear where they didn't crinkle anymore. He'd had them for a few days now. He liked the way they felt.

The clothes weren't the only thing he liked the feel of. He had been working with Razz on a lot of things; his touch-sensitivity, his vocabulary around emotions and caring, his skill in trusting others, and his ability to relax - all of them were improving by the day. Blue was so proud of him.

He was coming to love the simple things about Razz. Things like his dry humour, which, while so different from Blue's own puns, still made him laugh every time. Things like his mischievous nature, which Blue was more than happy to aid and abet. Things like his taste in food and drink. Razz had an excellent palette, and he loved having Blue to experiment on. Blue had never eaten so well in his life. Things like his smile, which had such an amazing range for so simple an expression. Things like his warmth, which Razz was now happy to share with him. It was surprising and comforting in a way that he, with his natural cold, couldn't help but appreciate.

Blue was also coming to love the feelings he got from his soulmate. They were growing stronger by the day as their bond settled in and grew. Razz might not laugh at Blue's puns, but he could feel his mirth. The rush of confidence when they pulled off a prank was addictive. Every meal that Blue loved created pride. Blue loved the little spark of happiness when Razz saw him smiling for real. And he loved that contented purr when Blue cooled him down.

All of this loving had Blue yearning for something special. It had been weeks since they had become soulmates, and they still hadn't kissed. Blue wanted to know what that would feel like to press their teeth together. He couldn't remember ever having kissed someone before, and Razz seemed perfect to try with.

So when Razz and he found a secluded place in the woods to themselves, Blue tapped his soulmate on the shoulder. "razz, i, um, wanted to ask you something. and you can say no! you can always say no to me. you know that, right?"

Razz chuckled. Blue could feel his amusement. "YES, BLUE, I KNOW. WHAT IS IT YOU WANTED TO ASK ME?"

Blue gulped and put himself out there. "could we… maybe kiss?"

Razz blinked at him in clear confusion. His head slowly tilted to one side. Then he smiled his happiest smile. "WE HAVEN'T YET, HAVE WE? THAT IS CERTAINLY A SITUATION IN NEED OF A REMEDY. FORTUNATELY I, THE MAGNIFICENT AND TERRIBLE RAZZ, HAVE A PLAN. DO YOU WISH TO HEAR IT?"

It was Blue's turn to chuckle. Razz had shared with him his favorite books from the Surface the other day. They were by an author called Steven Brust, and were written in the voice of a creature called Paarfi. Blue knew what the appropriate response to that question was by now. "i believe i have been asking for nothing else for half an hour!"

"HERE IT IS, THEN," Razz answered with a twinkle in his eye, "WE SHOULD KISS."

Blue smiled back at his soulmate, loving him all the more. "okay, then. um… i don't know how to kiss you."

"AH. IT ISN'T THAT COMPLICATED," Razz explained kindly, "WE JUST PRESS OUR TEETH TOGETHER FOR A START. THEN WE LET OUR LIPS FORM, AND MAYBE OUR TONGUES LATER ON. FOR NOW, WE JUST DO THE TEETH AND LIPS. YOU CAN DO THAT MUCH, CORRECT?"

Blue nodded. He concentrated, forming the soft lips that he used normally when he wanted to use a straw. Razz did the same. Then they leaned toward each other, Blue closed his eyes, and… nothing happened. He opened them again. Razz was gone. He looked around frantically, panic filling his soul so much faster that it rightly should. Nothing. There were just trees and snow as far as his eye lights could see. Then-

"SANS!" Blue winced. Who would dare to say that name, now? "SANS, CAN YOU HEAR ME? DR. ALPHYS SAYS THAT YOU SHOULD BE SOMEWHERE IN THESE WOODS! ARE YOU THERE?" Blue recognized that voice. It sounded like Slim's, but higher in pitch and less rough. It was- "SANS, BROTHER, WHERE ARE YOU?!"

"pap?" Blue said, voice breaking, "is that you?"

"SANS! I CAN BARELY HEAR YOU! CAN YOU SPEAK LOUDER?" His brother called out. Blue would recognize that voice anywhere. It was his brother.

"i'm here, pap! i-" Blue called out as loud as he could. He was interrupted by the approaching sounds of a large monster crashing through the thick snow. He waved frantically. "i'm here, papyrus! i'm here!"

Then he saw him. Through the trees, running without any regard for his clothes and personal safety, was Papyrus, Blue's brother. He was dressed in his battle body, which, apart from the few tears that still had twigs in them, was only marred by a slight singeing all over. His boots were muddy. For some reason, that's what Blue fixed on. There was actual mud splattered on his brother's boots, and it was in a pattern that he did not recognize. On the one hand he was glad he didn't, because that would be too much. On the other hand…

"papyrus? i thought you were dead? what-" His words were drowned out and bowled over by the tight hug he was catapulted into. Blue winced. His chest burned like crazy at all the unexpected friction.

"SANS! OH, SANS, I MISSED YOU SO MUCH! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? YOU'VE BEEN GONE FOR WEEKS!" Papyrus said, squeezing him tightly.

"i-" Blue tried to answer.

Papyrus interrupted him. "-AND YOUR CLOTHES! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR HOODIE? NOT THAT THESE ARE UGLY. FAR FROM IT! BUT THEY LOOK SO DIFFERENT FROM WHAT I SAW YOU WEARING LAST, BROTHER."

"they-" Blue tried to answer once again.

Again, his brother interrupted him. "WHY DOES YOUR CHEST FEEL SO LUMPY? IT FEELS LIKE YOU'RE WEARING AN OLD, LUMPY DOWN BLANKET UNDER YOUR CLOTHES, SA-"

It was Blue's turn to interrupt him. "stop calling me that! let me answer your questions! breathe!" Papyrus' mouth gaped open. Blue took that opportunity to speak. "my name is blue now, got it? not sans, blue. i've been… somewhere else. another universe, i think. one with copies of me and you who are probably worried sick that i'm gone. their names are razz and slim. they and their muffet have been taking care of me. my clothes got pretty ratty, so their muffet, who runs a clothes shop, insisted on making me some new clothes. i helped. and, my chest-"

"Hey Paps! Did you find him?" A voice called out that had Blue shivering and looking around desperately for a place to hide. It was the Empress, and she was going to kill him, he just knew it. But, when she came into the clearing, she looked… different: softer, kinder, and much, much happier. "Hey! One of you should answer when we call out for you!"

Blue swallowed. "um… hi, undyne."

Her smile showed altogether too many teeth. "Hey, nerd! Where have you been, exactly? Paps here has been worried sick. He got the whole Underground to help in searching for you!"

Blue gulped. But… he thought they'd been dead… "the whole underground, huh? that's, um, that's a lot of people. are they all gonna want to know this stuff? because my voice is definitely going to run out before i can tell everyone individually."

Undyne frowned and Blue winced. Now she really was going to hurt him. "You've got a point. How's this: you can make an Undernet post about it when you get home. Sound good?"

Blue blinked. She… didn't try to hurt him? But he was sure she had done so before. What had changed? Why was everything so different? "yeah… okay. i'll do that. now, uh… can we go home, bro? i've got some questions for you, and i'm sure you've got questions for me."

Papyrus smiled brightly and nodded, picking him up like a football and lunging through the wood. "OF COURSE, BROTHER! I WILL GET YOU HOME IMMEDIATELY!"

One terrifying ride with trees zipping by his face with less than an inch to spare later, Blue found himself set down on the couch. Papyrus sat next to him. He was picking at the seams on his gloves in obvious stress. Blue reached out and soothed them. "it's okay, bro. i'm here. i'm back. i'm okay."

Papyrus wailed, "BUT YOU'RE BLEEDING, SA- BLUE! AND YOU'VE CHANGED! NOT JUST YOUR NAME, BUT EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU IS DIFFERENT! YOU EVEN SMELL DIFFERENT. MORE… FRUITY?"

Blue chuckled. "that's what i had for breakfast, pap. razz made this great peach cobbler last night and we were finishing it up."

"OH," Papyrus said dubiously, "THAT SOUNDS… NICE. IS THIS RAZZ A NICE PERSON?"

Blue smiled wide. "he's great, bro! he's snarky and confident and such a prankster. i love him so much, i-"

Papyrus' eyes bugged out. "YOU LOVE HIM?! SANS, DID I JUST HEAR YOU SAY WHAT I THINK I HEARD YOU SAY? OR DID WHAT I HEARD YOU SAY ACTUALLY SOUND DIFFERENT THAN WHAT I THINK I HEARD YOU SAY?"

"yeah, pap, you did. razz and i are soulmates, although… we still haven't kissed. a lot has happened in the last few weeks. why don't i tell you about it from the beginning. it all started when…"