"I'm not sure how you've managed to shove four months into almost nine hours but I meant what I said about not needing to see you for four months, Sans," Dr. Hendrix informed him as they knelt at his side.

"Hey, what can I say? Missed your company."

Dr. Hendrix snorted at that. "I'm sure. Now, we're going to start poking and prodding as we examine the extent of the damage. When something becomes unbearable, speak up. Otherwise, you are just going to have to deal with it until I'm done."

He gave a short dip of his chin, a nod, before Dr. Hendrix got to work with whoever they had brought with - Lilac or something; honestly, he hadn't paid the slightest attention when they had been introduced at the door. Papyrus sat above his head while Grillby hovered near the kitchen out of Sans's line of sight. Foreign magic weaved itself in among his ribs and a strange weight settled among the bones.

The first prod sent fire through his ribs and he managed to strangle the yelp into a hiss of air sucked through clenched teeth. Dr. Hendrix and the other personnel paused, looking at him. He shook his head, a tremor of pain coursing through his body for his choice of action. "I'm good. Just surprised me."

He had no concept of time as they continued. He had no idea what the foreign magic was for; if it was for the pain, it was either completely useless or the pain was more than the magic could counter. All he knew was fluctuating pain as they prodded and Papyrus's soothing touch on his head. When they finished checking him over, it felt like he had been suffering through it for a good few hours. Everything ached. Had he the magic for it, he was certain a cold sweat would have been clinging to his bones.

"You've certainly had a number done on your ribs. Though, had no one informed me that your socket had been damaged as well, I wouldn't have been able to tell."

"That would be thanks to his brother," Grillby piped in. "Papyrus has a far greater capacity for healing magic than I do and he had taken to Sans's socket as soon as he saw the injury."

Dr. Hendrix raised an eyebrow - his viewing angle made it hard to tell if it was a show of curiosity or if that had impressed the doctor - before looking to Papyrus. "Ever thought of joining the medical field? A bit of training and you would be a valuable asset."

Papyrus smiled weakly. "I will keep that in mind if I ever tire of being a guard."

"So what's the damage, doc?" Sans asked. Papyrus swatted his forehead at the pun and he grinned. His chest still ached, leaving him no desire to chuckle.

Dr. Hendrix turned a sobering look onto him. He suddenly didn't want to know. "You have multiple displaced fractures that follow a rough line from your right clavicle near the shoulder to the lowest point of the ribcage on the left-hand side." He glanced up at Papyrus in shock, sockets wide. His brother tried to offer him a smile but the expression was too taut to be comforting. His soul started pounding in his chest, a low panic starting to seep into his bones as unwanted memories sank their teeth into the back of his mind. "There is quite the number of hairline fractures that branch out all over your chest to the point that I'm surprised none of it turned into comminuted fractures; though what healing your brother did do to your chest may be behind that."

"Comminuted?" Sans asked, the word failing to define itself in his head.

"The type of fracture that creates more than two pieces; lots of pieces and shards from a single break sort of fracture. In a not so pleasant image sort of way: if the hairline fractures had become comminuted, your ribcage would have shattered."

A shudder coursed through him, earning him a wave of pain. "Lovely," he ground out.

"Even with healing magic, it can take months for comminuted fractures to heal and to properly heal depends on what remains and what has to be regrown or grafted." He shivered when the doctor placed a hand on his chest. Pain skittered after the shiver but it barely registered. "Your brother's magic has done an amazing job repairing some of the damage but we still have to deal with the displaced fractures that cross your chest before we can heal the hairline fractures."

"So I should expect more pain?"

Dr. Hendrix frowned. "Hopefully not. At this point, Illic's magic should be enough to neutralize anything significant into an annoyance." The doctor's attention turned to Papyrus. "Are you willing and able to use more healing magic? There is less of a chance his form will reject the aid with how much he needs."

"If you think it can help," Papyrus assured them.

"Then get on his other side. We'll be holding the bones in place as you work."

Papyrus rose to his feet. "Grillby."

But the fire elemental was already there, a hand going to Papyrus's arm. "I have him. Please avoid overdoing it."

Grillby took Papyrus's place at the top of Sans's head. Warm hands traced from his forehead to his temples, the fire elemental's fingers stilling against the back of his skull and neck. To his surprise, Grillby took the weight of his skull doing that, supporting it an inch or so off the floor. It gave him a better view of his brother; he was glad it didn't make his view of his chest any better.

"Sans." He looked to Dr. Hendrix. "Bear with us a few moments longer."

"Already bared my chest for ya, doc," he joked. Illic snorted and Papyrus swatted at his shoulder for that. "I'm sure I can bear whatever else you've got for me."

He hoped the look in Dr. Hendrix's gaze was humor before it shifted to Grillby. "Best to keep him distracted if you can. The less he pays attention to our hands, the better."

"Of course," Grillby offered with a nod.

Dr. Hendrix turned to Papyrus. "Alright. All you'll have to do is provide the magic as we realign..."

"Have you told anyone else?"

He looked up at Grillby, losing track of the conversation happening over his chest. "Told anyone?" he parroted.

"About the new soul."

Oh, duh. "No, I haven't."

"Planning to?"

He wanted to shake his head no but Grillby's hands were firm against either side of his skull. "No. I..." He frowned. "Even if the soul drops without any problems, I might not tell anyone until the soul's born."

Grillby frowned at him. "So you are anticipating this to progress as expected, then."

Surprise rushed through him. "Expected? You know about skeleton reproduction?"

There was a burst of pain but it quickly dulled. He hissed from it anyways, doing his best to stay relaxed. Grillby started rubbing his thumb against Sans's cheek. "Probably more than you are expecting," the fire elemental informed him, gaining his attention again. The frown deepened. "Though, what information I know is a touch rusty. You are the first skeleton in a good fifty or so years that I have known personally to carry."

"Huh." The pause hadn't been intentional as another shot of pain distracted him briefly. It was gone as quickly as the first but it still pulled a choked noise from him. "You know, I feel like I should have expected that about you."

Grillby chuckled. "It is not a topic that crops up in polite conversation."

Sans grinned at him. "And yet."

Grillby shook his head, amused. "Will you be nesting the soul for the full nine months, then?"

What humor he had vanished at the serious topic. "I have to. My body isn't really durable enough to create another soul. If the new soul is going to make it through the remaining four and a half months after dropping, I have to give it a fighting chance."

"So the lack of te-"

White hot, all too familiar pain shot through his chest. Terror chased the pain through his limbs. He screamed, jerking his limbs in an attempt to get away only to find himself pinned. The cry that escaped him was strangled by a sob. He thrashed about. He could feel words escaping his mouth but the roaring in his skull made it impossible for him to comprehend any of it.

"Sans!"

He gasped, choked, and started coughing. Pain rippled through him with each convulsion but the coughing fit didn't last long. He sucked in greedy breaths of air as his brother's words finally made it through the noise in his head.

"I've got you," he was saying. "It's alright. You're safe. You're safe."

He started sobbing.

Time passed but he didn't know how much had slipped away. What he did know was that he was still holding onto his brother's forearms and Papyrus was still bent over him, their foreheads pressed together. Papyrus's left thumb rubbed at his cheek. "Sans?" the lankier asked tentatively.

"I'm here," he assured the other, though it came out in a croak.

Papyrus pulled away. A shiver raced through him and, for the first time in a very long time, he felt cold. Grillby's warm hands returned to his head and he leaned into the warmth.

"I apologize, Sans," Dr. Hendrix offered softly. "I had hoped your lack of awareness would help more than hinder our efforts."

He waved the doctor off with a heavy hand as Grillby started rubbing his forehead. The other warm hand cradled the back of his skull. Papyrus's hands had yet to leave his face. "Don't worry about it, doc. Didn't think I'd react that way either."

Not that he could actually tell anyone how he had reacted. Beyond the panic and the pain, he couldn't actually remember anything.

"Sans." He focused on Dr. Hendrix again. "We have to do that two more times."

Dread dropped his soul to his stomach and it was all he could do to suppress the panic that tried surging through him again. He didn't want to be back there again, even if it was just the memories. "What?" escaped him in a breathy squawk. The next word wasn't much better. "Why?"

"You healed faster than I had anticipated. We have to re-break your sternum to get it realigned. We're doing what we can to neutralize the pain as we work but your construct is extremely sensitive and I can't do it again without giving you fair warning." A whimper escaped him against his bidding. Dr. Hendrix gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Two more breaks and that should be the last of it."

He tried for a cheeky grin but it felt off on his face and fresh tears leaked out of his sockets at the motion. "Can't knock my ass out with the good stuff while you do it?"

Papyrus's thumbs rubbed the tears away.

The hand on his shoulder tightened, almost painfully. "If I thought they would do anything for you, you would have been drugged immediately, but Illic's magic is stronger than any drug I could give you and you're still feeling a considerable amount of pain."

"Shit," he hissed. Papyrus removed a hand from his face and wrapped it around his left hand tightly. He desperately squeezed back seeking his brother's gaze.

"Just two more, Sans, and the worst of it will be over," Papyrus urged. "You can make it through this. I know you can."

"Pap," he tried but his voice broke and the memories that had barely retreated swallowed him. It was all he could do to keep from sobbing. They had killed the damn psychopath; why did he have to be haunted by him?

"I am right here, Sans," Papyrus assured him. "You're safe and with people we can trust. Only two more breaks and I will be healing both of them as soon as they are set. Just two more."

The memories fought to keep their hold on him; they were winning. He managed a weak, shaky, "Ok," in the wake of his brother's words anyway.

Papyrus's touch left him and panic burst through his system. Grillby reached over him and took hold of the hand that he raised to grab Papyrus. The warmth of Grillby's hand cut through the panic, grounding him better in reality than he had expected. Grillby gently pulled his hand over his head till his arm rested in the fire elemental's lap. Pain shot through his chest but he didn't care. As long as it meant he could keep hold of reality, he'd take it.

"Raise your other arm so that you're symmetrical," Dr. Hendrix directed, "if you want to stay like that."

The pain was worse when he tried to raise his right arm and his entire body convulsed from it, stealing a pained gasp from him. Grillby's hand was in his right at the same time Dr. Hendrix's hands found his arm. He barely registered Papyrus's hand on the side of his face.

"Dr. Hendrix?" Papyrus asked, bringing Sans's awareness back to center. He couldn't remember closing either socket and only managed to open the left one. His magic refused to form an eyelight so he was left with the blurry blobs of color that were Papyrus, Dr. Hendrix, and Illic.

"Sans, I need you to try and not brace for the breaks," Dr. Hendrix said instead. Whether it was a deliberate choice to ignore Papyrus's question or something nonverbal had answered in lieu of words was unclear. He made a face and the doctor's hand returned to his shoulder. "I know, I get it, but if you tense, your magic will fight us as we do it and we'll only cause you more pain."

He squeezed Grillby's hand and forearm. The fire elemental had returned the other hand to his forehead. "No, yeah. That makes sense. It's all…" He sucked in a shuddering breath, faint waves of throbbing pain dancing across his ribs and spine. "Just be quick."

"We will be."

Dr. Hendrix's attention moved away from him and he committed to just keeping his sockets closed. He could hear them moving around over him, could hear them talking, and it was a relief when Grillby drew his focus. "Sans, I want you to listen to me, to focus on what I'm saying. I will be listing a number of items and I want you to categorize them."

A breathy laugh escaped him. "Yeah, ok. What kind of things?"

"Fruits and vegetables."

He made a face. "That is not my strong suit, Grills."

The fire elemental's amusement danced in among his words. "That is the point, Sans."

Searing pain exploded in his chest and his body reacted underneath it. Hands held him firm, holding him in place, and it was all he could do to not get lost in the memories again, to calm down and relax and not make it worse.

The whole thing was over in less than a minute; it had felt excruciatingly longer than that. Papyrus's magic was precise and powerful, snatching away the pain nearly as quickly as it had slammed into him. Tremors danced through his body and he felt even colder than before.

"One more," Dr. Hendrix announced.

He hated those words.

"Sans." He pulled his attention back to Grillby, not wanting to give into the distraction, not wanting to do that again. "I am going to give you ten things. I want you to remember all ten and then tell me which ones are fruits and which ones are vegetables, both categories alphabetized."

He hated those words, too. "Fine."

Grillby listed ten ingredients in quick succession and he was certain he had forgotten at least two of them when the elemental stopped talking. Surprisingly, he remembered what most of them were but he couldn't remember what tomatoes counted as. He was certain it was a trick question but he wasn't about to give in-

Something cracked. For some reason, he didn't understand what it had been.

Pain caught up with the sound.

Voices were talking. Urgent, worried voices. He couldn't understand what was being said - his skull felt like it was packed to bursting with wool - but he knew that whatever it was, it wasn't good. Or maybe it was the situation that wasn't good.

Something had happened, something serious. He could remember waking up from a nap while they waited for Grillby to get home. For some reason Dr. Hendrix was called and another was brought along, Lilac or something, but why? What had happened?

A tingling sensation finally drew his focus to his body and whatever had been blocking out the pain broke. A hiss escaped him. He shrank away from his brother's magic as if it was the source of his agony. He knew it wasn't, could feel the orange magic weaving into his bones and holding him together, but it hurt and all he wanted was for the pain to stop.

Surprisingly no hands joined his brother's and he suffered the consequences of his wiggling. The wool in his skull fell away and the words around his snapped into clarity.

"-ine. He's coming back around," Dr. Hendrix was saying, voice taut. "Sans? Can you hear me?" A beat. "Are you able to acknowledge me?"

It took more than he cared to admit to speak. "I 'ear'a," he slurred, exhaustion wrapping around him.

A collective sigh escaped the room and some of the pressure on his chest eased. Dr. Hendrix's hand found his forehead, sending a shiver down his spine. The doctor's hand was hot. "Sans, I need you to stay conscious for me. Do you know what happened?"

He tried to shake his head no but couldn't tell if it moved. "Nuh."

"Your form gave out."

Either his brain hiccupped or he didn't understand what that meant.

"You tried Dusting on us."

The tiny shot of adrenaline had him blinking sockets to clear the magic in them, the world quickly coming into fuzzy clarity. He barely noticed the flinch he had at the light. "Dusting?" he parroted, at a loss.

"I'm not sure what happened," Dr. Hendrix confessed. "You had been stable up through the last break only for your body to suddenly give out." There was a glance towards Papyrus. "Papyrus was transferring magic before either Illic or myself were able to register what had happened. I have only seen a small handful of trained professionals effectively and efficiently transfer magic and heal at the same time."

"'N no 'dea why?" he questioned.

Dr. Hendrix shook their head. "When Papyrus has you stable, I am having you transported to the hospital. We'll be able to run tests and make sure this isn't something that's life threatening." A softer look crossed the doctor's face. "It will be far safer to check on the souling at the hospital than it will be here, especially since I do not want to stress it out more than it has already been stressed. Any chance there was time to pick a pediatrician?"

Papyrus answered for him. "No. We had other priorities after we saw you."

"I thought as much but I had to ask."

Grillby shifted over his head. "Did you have someone that has worked with skeletons?"

Dr. Hendrix gave him a shrewd look. "Do you know one?"

"Dr. Albit Kole from New Home. He worked with the doctor who assisted with a skeleton I knew 50 years ago who carried."

"Call and see if he's available to make the trip today." The doctor blinked. "Or give me his contact information and I can have my team do it."

The transport arrived ten minutes later and despite the magical transfer from Papyrus having replenished over half of his magic, they didn't let him stand. He was helped into a sitting position - there were only faint cracks marking where the largest cracks had resided on his chest, everything else completely healed - for a short while before he was hoisted onto the gurney and wheeled out.

The ride was pleasant despite the severity of the situation. Papyrus rode in the back of the transport with him appearing to be a bit more at ease than he had been earlier. The medic in the back maintained some light conversation between him and his brother, making the ride all that much shorter.

Dr. Hendrix didn't appear again until he was in a private room for a good thirty minutes idly flipping through tv channels. "Apologies for the wait," the doctor offered in lieu of a greeting. "I had to handle some paperwork and set up the tests. Shouldn't be anything too terribly intrusive and should take less than an hour."

"Is Dr. Kole able to come?" Papyrus inquired as Sans watched a nurse come in with a wheelchair and park it next to his bed. The nurse gave Sans an encouraging smile. He returned it.

"Yes. He'll be here in a few hours which will give us time to get the test results back." Dr. Hendrix looked to the nurse. "Be careful with that one, Tol."

"Of course, Doctor." The nurse looked back at him. "I'm Tolbara. I'll be taking you to the different tests and moving you in and out of the wheelchair. If you are ready, I'll be picking you up and placing you into the wheelchair now so that we can get these done as quickly as possible and get you back with your companion."

Sans pushed the warm blanket away. "Just don't drop me," he joked, hoping to hide the shivering that started as soon as the warmth was gone. It felt so strange to feel cold so sharply with so much magic in his system.

"Never," Tolbara assured him with a grin, arms slipping around his back and under his knees. The nurse lifted him as if he was nothing more than a pile of sheets; he knew he had some weight, he'd read the scale when they had weighed him earlier. Tolbara sat him in the wheelchair with that same ease and obvious practice, hands always in the right places to make sure he didn't hurt himself or get smacked around. He couldn't help the sigh of relief when Tolbara wrapped a fresh hot blanket around him. "Alright. All set?"

"Am now." He looked to Papyrus. "I'll see you in a bit."

Papyrus nodded, gesturing with the tv remote. "I'll be here."

The tests went by quickly and the only one he had an issue with was the one that had him standing awkwardly against a wall for a good ten minutes. Papyrus had given him plenty of magic so standing for ten minutes shouldn't have been a problem, but when the machinery was moved and Tolbara stood before him giving him the all clear to relax, he sagged into the nurse, unable to sustain his own weight anymore.

"How're you holding up?" Tolbara asked once he was wrapped back up on the wheelchair. The shivering had returned with a vengeance. Not only were his teeth chattering from it but nearly every bone was. It was ridiculous.

"F-fine now," he managed around his chattering teeth.

Tolbara's concerned frown deepened. "The next test is the last one and you should be able to keep the hot blanket. I'll grab you a new one for when the test is done, too."

The last test felt like the longest. The urge to doze during it would have won out if the technician hadn't talked to him the entire time.

Wrapped in a new hot blanket and back in the wheelchair, he really did doze off.

He woke to gentle knocking, blinking his sockets blearily at the door as it opened. Dr. Hendrix was there with another doctor he didn't recognize. Papyrus stood from his seat by the bed.

"Have a nice nap, Sans?" Dr. Hendrix inquired as the other doctor closed the door.

"Unintentionally," he said.

Dr. Hendrix nodded. "Sans, Papyrus, this is Dr. Kole, the one Grillby referred. Dr. Kole, this is Sans and his brother Papyrus."

"Pleasure to meet you both," Dr. Kole greeted, smiling warmly. "Dr. Hendrix has filled me in on what has happened and why my presence is required. Sans, are you comfortable with me checking the new soul in Dr. Hendrix's stead."

"Of course. Do you need me to do anything?"

"Only to relax. I'll be using Green Magic to check your soul and the nested soul over."

Sans found himself nodding, settling back into the mattress.

The foreign magic sent a shudder down his spine but the exhaustion that had got him to nap earlier made it hard for him to register the conversation that happened over his soul. He knew Papyrus was actively listening, inputting when he failed to, and understood enough to know that Dr. Kole was walking Dr. Hendrix through his observations, though it seemed Dr. Hendrix was doing some studying of his soul in turn over Dr. Kole's shoulder.

The examination seemed brief as his soul returned to his chest. Dr. Hendrix placed a heavy hand on his shoulder, urging gently, "Get some rest, Sans. There's nothing that you have to be aware of for the next few hours."

He didn't need to be told twice.

When he woke, the room was much darker. Someone had turned off the lights and what little glowing came from the equipment made it difficult to see anything. He could make out his brother's form at the opposite wall on what he was assuming was some form of bed but that was about it. Night had very clearly settled over the hospital and it left him wondering what the time was.

The door clicked open, filling part of the room with light. It was contained by a curtain that had been drawn between the door and the rest of the room, leaving Papyrus better illuminated but undisturbed. An unfamiliar nurse slipped in between the curtains and offered him a soft smile. "Good morning," the stranger whispered, walking over. "I'm Deborah, the AM nurse. I'm just checking on your levels real quick."

"What time is it?" he asked, keeping his voice just as quiet.

Deborah tapped the screen of her watch. "5:06." She met his gaze. "Do you need anything while I'm here? Water? Food?"

He watched her check the equipment as the inquiry settled in his tired mind. He blinked at her, finally answering with, "Can I get another hot blanket? And water would be nice."

"Any ice?"

"No. Thank you."

She smiled at him as she tucked one of the screens back in place. "Of course. I'll be back in a moment with both."

He wasn't sure how long that "moment" turned out to be. When she returned, he had dozed back off and woke to the door opening again. She placed a few things down before turning to him. The glass was cool beneath his fingers but he didn't try taking it out of her hand, taking long pulls from the straw. She set the glass next to the fresh water jug and pulled the pile of blankets briefly off to put the new one against him, trapping its warmth around him.

She slipped back out with a smiled goodbye.

The room returned to darkness.

"Do you want to hear what Dr. Kole and Dr. Hendrix had to say or wait until you are more awake?"

He looked towards his brother, not surprised the other was awake but unable to see him. "We can talk now if you want."

There was movement at the foot of his bed and it moved along the right edge to the lamp that clicked on. Papyrus looked as tired as he felt but the lankier simply sat on the edge of the bed. "The new soul is fine but yours isn't."

He winced at the implication. "Straight to the point, then. And the specifics?"

"Your soul has a number of cracks. They should fade over the next few days but Dr. Hendrix is expecting it to take at least another week before you start generating your own magic again."

Panic sank its teeth into him but he barely noticed. A number of questions sprang to mind and he started with the most concerning one. "I don't understand. I have magic, though."

Papyrus let out a sharp breath, mild frustration coloring the thoughtful frown. "From how I understood it, the magic I gave you is simply in you. Your soul has not taken it and utilized it as it should have, as if it doesn't even realize it's there. Dr. Kole said the new soul is healthy and appeared unharmed. It took what magic it needed without your soul's assistance - which he said was a good sign, especially when its draw gets beyond what you can generate."

A pause settled in Papyrus's summary. He prompted, "So my being cold…"

"Is a sign that you are not generating magic, that what magic you do house is not circulating like it is supposed to." A breath. "Sans, Dr. Hendrix is very concerned about this. The minimum is only if the damage to your soul properly heals as it is supposed to."

"It might not?"

Papyrus shook his head. "According to both doctors, this kind of thing is rare to the point of almost unheard of. Most Dust with the kind of damage your soul took."

"It's connected to me nearly Dusting yesterday, then."

That heavy gaze was answer enough. "Dr. Hendrix believes so. There has been some speculation on when exactly the cracks appeared since I do not remember seeing them when I checked your soul. The most probable answer is when they broke your sternum the first time - when your magic was triggered again. Despite how much I must have given you, Dr. Hendrix said it was very possible that the triggered memory caused unintentional damage to your soul, either by your magic turning inward as before or by expending far more magic than your soul had left after the initial outburst."

He pulled a hand out from under the blankets, rubbing at his face. "Ok," he offered, the word drawn out as he tried to get all the information to stay in his head. "So what does that mean for the next few weeks?"

"Dr. Hendrix is restricting you to bed rest for the next week at minimum with as little physical activity as possible. After that, it depends on how well your soul and magic has recovered. It is possible that you could be walking out of here in just over two weeks, just as it is possible you could be here until after the souling is born. Both doctors are wanting to edge on the side of caution for both your and the souling's sake."

A breathy chuckle escaped him. "Hey, won't see me complaining." The smile that had accompanied the words fell away. "And you? How are you holding up?"

He caught a scattering of emotions chasing each other over Papyrus's face but he left them undeciphered. "I will be fine. Grillby is working the schedule so that he can be more available to us over the next two weeks."

"You don't have to stay here, Pap."

Papyrus shot him an affronted look. "I am very aware I do not have to stay. However, Grillby and I will be far more at ease with one of us here, even if only for the next two weeks."

He smiled. "Hey, I'm all for the company. Just know that while I'm happy to have either of you around, I don't need you here."

"But do you want us here?"

He held his brother's gaze with ease. "To whatever extent the two of you can? Absolutely."