They stayed like that long enough that Sans dozed again. A soft knock on the door brought his awareness back to the room but he didn't react. He felt the mattress dip as Papyrus clambered off the bed. Sans wondered how long it would take for him to doze off again if he kept his eyes shut. There was a click at the door before it opened. Sans wondered whose idea it had been to lock the bedroom door.

"Hey. Food run from Toriel." Alex's voice was like a calming balm to his frayed nerves and Sans had the sudden urge to scrub himself of it. He didn't even know Alex and here the man was soothing some foreign part of Sans just by talking. Gods above this was going to get old very quickly. At least it was someone Sans had interacted with previously.

"Thank you, Alex," Papyrus replied, voice solemn. There was a clattering sound and the sound of dishes knocking gently against each other. Sans heard the tray being placed on the nightstand near his head. There was a pause in the sounds of the room before Papyrus's hand stroked Sans's skull. It had taken everything Sans had not to flinch at the sudden touch. Yeah, he really wanted to get over that too. "Should he be sleeping so much?"

"Yes," Alex spoke, the door clicking shut. "He'd been in a coma for almost eight weeks. His body – more specifically his magic – is not used to having to deal with motion and stress." The chair scrapped against the floor as the bed dipped beside Sans. Papyrus hadn't stopped stroking his head yet so Sans assumed Alex was the one to sit in the chair. "It'll actually take quite a while before Sans doesn't need to nap throughout the day to maintain his strength."

"We do not need to give Sans more reason to be lazy," Papyrus countered, clearly not pleased with the idea but the thought made Sans smile. He could see the look his brother was giving Alex even with his eyes closed.

Alex chuckled. "He only seemed lazy to you because of how hard he worked in the Lab. Sans would outstrip me on a good day with how much stress he would put himself under and his only outlet ever seemed to be spending time with you."

"And you," Papyrus added, sounding confused.

There was a brief pause. "We took breaks together. I wouldn't necessarily call that down time for him. When he was here, it was business. Even after hours and on breaks."

Papyrus's hand had stilled on Sans's skull. "Sans was always working."

A heavy silence settled for a while as Sans tried to figure out what exactly that had meant. As far as Sans remembered, he never had worked in an actual lab. There was the one that had been in Hotland and he had ever only stepped in there to deal with Alphys. The room under his house was just a place he dabbled when he needed a break or to hide from reality. Was he really a scientist after all? Would explain a good number of things. But what had been his focus? He couldn't remember anything specific about the lab in his dream beyond a tarp covered object, the thoughts of a few blueprints, and a picture of three people with "don't forget" written on it. Funny. He couldn't remember the actual image even though he had handled the picture several times.

Alex broke the silence. "I met up with the others." Papyrus went back to running his hand over Sans's skull. "They're worried and had asked how Sans was. I told them that he was fine, awake." There was a pause. "He won't be able to walk for at least a week. It's going to take some time for his body to get used to being used again. Even then, he'll most likely be walking with some sort of assistance, be it a cane or crutches of some sort, for anywhere between four to eight weeks. We'll have to be patient and keep Sans busy. It's going to be a frustrating process." Sans was not looking forward to it either. "I told the others not to mention anything that hasn't already been previously discussed."

"Why?"

Alex chuckled. "They asked the same question. As did Sans, though not quite as calmly." The chair creaked. "Whether Sans remembers or not, we both have had experiences with those that have suffered from Dissociative Acute Amnesia before his Fall. The majority of those diagnosed reacted badly to having their history told to them. I doubt even Sans would be an exception to that rule."

Papyrus's hand stilled on Sans's skull once more as the lanky skeleton shifted. "I take it the others were not too fond of that idea."

Alex gave a snort of a laugh, his tone dry and sharp. "They tried to argue against it but they care a lot about Sans."

Sans got the distinct feeling that Alex was hiding something. It seemed Papyrus had a similar feeling or had seen more than Sans had heard because the lanky skeleton asked, "They didn't trust your word."

"Why would they?" Alex challenged, bitter. "They still blame me for his condition."

Sans eyes snapped open as Papyrus leapt to his feet, shouting, "But you had nothing to do with that!"

"And you're the only one that believes me," Alex countered, getting to his feet as well. But the dejected look on Alex's face eased some of the panic that had seized Sans in the first place. Alex shook his head, his expression changing into one of self loathing. "I know there was nothing I could have done, no way of knowing this was going to occur, but still, I…."

Papyrus rested a hand on Alex's shoulder and Alex covered it with one of his own, meeting Papyrus's gaze. The skeleton smiled gently. "You have no reason to still be carrying your guilt, Alex. You have done plenty for Sans and myself over these last weeks to prove you had no hand in his coma."

Alex's expression closed off. "The others don't see it like you do, Pap."

"They do not have to," Papyrus stated plainly. "What matters is that you had found Sans, saved him, and have been helping me make sure he has stayed alive these last weeks to finally awaken. We'll get through this together."

Alex took in a breath, nodding. He was still guarded but he seemed at ease with Papyrus's words. Sans closed his eyes, mind racing. How unknown was Alex to everyone that they wouldn't trust him? How different were the others to what he remembered? But, then, how had he succumbed to a coma and why did Alex blame himself? Sans fell asleep with turmoil in his mind. It was a miracle he hadn't had nightmares because of it.

He woke to his brother at his bedside grinning. Papyrus presented the breakfast he had brought and chatted away, talking about anything and everything yet nothing specific. Sans found himself halfway through breakfast when Alex came in. Alex and Papyrus talked away as they waited for Sans to finish and, while Sans didn't really know what they were talking about, he was glad they were acting so casual around him.

The instant he had eaten all that he could – it was surprising how lacking of an appetite he had after being out for almost eight weeks – the tray was taken away and the physical therapy began.

If Sans said it was exhausting, it would have been a gross understatement. Alex had him not only working on walking, but just moving in general. Push-ups, pull-ups, crunches, stretches, and countless other exercises wore Sans out quickly. They stopped for lunch before going at it some more. Twice they stopped for Sans to take a nap. At the end of the day, Sans was passing out during dinner but both his brother and Alex made sure he ate as much as he could before letting him crash for the night.

The following morning started way too early for Sans's liking.

The cycle repeated day after day and, while Sans wanted desperately to flop on the nearest flat surface and pass out, he discovered that the inability to move as he normally had was an excruciatingly infuriating motivator. Especially when the sixth and seventh day rolled to an end and he found himself not as exhausted but still just as shaky and weak as he had felt at the top of the week.

"I think that's enough for today, Sans," Alex commented, wiping sweat from his brow as he glanced at the clock on the wall. "I'll get dinner."

Sans scowled at the human's back as Alex left the room even as his legs shook from exertion. "I'm fine for a bit more."

"Brother," Papyrus urged, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder.

Sans looked up at Papyrus to find the skeleton looking exhausted. Guilt seeped into his soul for who knew how many times that week. Papyrus had been using his magic to make sure that Sans didn't fall. While this wasn't the dream where one hit would take him out, Sans was still very frail. The last thing Sans needed was a broken bone. He shuddered at the thought but no one thought it was an odd concept. Guess it was just another warping of the dream.

Sans sighed, nodding as Papyrus helped him sit on the edge of the bed. Sans wouldn't admit it out loud how concerned he was about the lack of exhaustion gnawing at his bones. He had been less exhausted the two previous nights as well and he had dreamt – something he was desperately trying to avoid. The dream he had been in during the coma had diminished into a nightmare near the end and he knew he had that fuel in his mind to create horrific imagery. There had been too many times in the dream where he had woken many times from nightmares of the timelines he was subjected to experiencing. If he could avoid that here, that would be great.

Alex returned with three meals and the three of them ate in Sans's room. Sans still found himself nodding off to the soft lull of his brother and Alex talking but it did not ease the worry gnawing at the back of his skull. He prayed to whatever deity existed that he didn't have a nightmare that night.

Alex left with the used dinnerware, leaving Papyrus to tuck Sans in and say goodnight. When the lanky skeleton turned off his light and closed the door, Sans found that he couldn't sleep, stress eating away at him and, whether it was truly not being exhausted enough or from the stress of the possibly of having a nightmare, Sans fell into a fitful sleep.

The flash of a silver blade sliced at Papyrus's throat.

It flashed again as it cut him down shortly thereafter.

He screamed as his magic lashed out.

Papyrus lurched awake at the sudden scream, his magic feeling as if it had turned to ice around his bones. He threw his covers back as he spared a glance at the clock. 02:17 AM glared at him through the darkness. His bare feet scrapped against the floor as he stumbled to the door. He yanked it open and dashed out, colliding bodily with a familiar form.

"Watch it," came the gruff reply as familiar, strong hands kept Papyrus from going very far. Papyrus looked up at Undyne. She didn't grin at him like she normally would. "You know who screamed?"

"Sans." He gripped her arms, urging, "Please, I need you to fetch Alex for me. I'll go check on Sans."

Undyne nodded and took off as Papyrus made his way to his brother's room.

Alex jerked awake as his door was kicked in and banged off the wall. He squinted at the door as he reached for his glasses. "What in the–"

Undyne cut him off, stalking over to him. "Sans. The bonehead has had a nightmare."

Alex was throwing off the covers and rolling out of bed before she had even finished talking. Undyne's hands hovered close to him as his feet got tangled in his sheets but he managed to keep upright enough to grab his desk chair before he could greet the floor with his face. He yanked the lab coat off the chair and started for the door. Undyne took off at a jog, beating him out of the room, but Alex kept pace with her down the hall as he pulled the lab coat over the undershirt he was wearing.

The trip was short. Alex's room had been placed close to Sans's for a reason but when they approached the room, Undyne slowed down and summoned a spear into her hand. Alex shuddered, the sensation of Sans's magic brushing over his skin causing him to instinctually bristle. That was not a good sign. Undyne stopped at the door, looking to him. Alex couldn't spare her the glance. He slowly crossed the threshold into Sans's room, quickly taking in the situation.

Papyrus was already there trying to talk Sans down but that only made Alex uneasy. He quickly crossed to Papyrus and gently pulled him back as the first signs of an attack came into existence. Papyrus gave a startled yelp as he was passed off to Undyne. She pulled him back as Papyrus exclaimed, "No! I was helping him!"

"Undyne, get Pap to the door and protect him," Alex ordered, the attacks solidifying into bones.

"But I can help!" Papyrus argued, fighting against Undyne's hold. "I want to help!"

"And if you get injured at this point in Sans's recovery, there's no getting our Sans back," Alex countered sharply, though his glance towards the pair was apologetic. "Please, Papyrus. Let me do my job."

Papyrus scowled but followed Undyne to the door. He stepped just past the threshold before turning around and facing the scene. Undyne placed herself before him but didn't block his view.

Trusting Undyne and Papyrus to let him do this, he slowly approached Sans. The small skeleton was leaning forward, one arm wrapped around his chest and the other hand over his left eye. Sans was shaking as the magic rolled off him in a way that reminding Alex briefly of the surface of the sun. Funny. He seemed to like that analogy when it came to magic.

"Sans," he called out, stepping around a few bones that were protruding through the floor. He urged, keeping his voice even and calm, "Come on, buddy. Time to wake up."

Sans twitched on the bed and Alex jerked back, taking a step back as he twisted his body to the side. A bone narrowly missed his face, the other one missing his chest. Alex gritted his teeth. He crossed to the bed in two steps and knelt on the mattress. An attack was solidifying before Sans as if there was an enemy standing before the skeleton and, while Alex was grateful they were just bones, it was clear Sans would impale himself if they were released. Ignoring his heart pounding painfully in his chest, he knelt before the stout skeleton.

The buzz of Sans's magic was almost overwhelming but Alex pushed through it, desperate to reach the monster still caught in a night terror. He couldn't run like his instincts were screaming at him to do. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end and Alex was suddenly out of time. His hand snapped out as he used a brutally commanding voice that had unknowingly been used by Fate in Sans's dream.

"Wake up," he called out as his hand made contact with Sans's shoulder.

Sans snapped awake as the bones were released and impaled Alex's back. Alex was thrown into him. Sans grasped at the human with a start, not understanding as his right hand gripped the back of Alex's lab coat, his left going to Alex's upper arm. Sans's breath hitched as he realized that the lab coat was quickly turning red due to several of his bone attacks protruding from Alex's back like porcupine spines. Just beyond the focus of his view of the injuries, he caught sight of a glitching health bar, one that was too distorted to make out any of the stats on and, though it disappeared when he tried to focus on it, it sent a shudder of horror through him. Even if it had been a figment of his imagination, the thought of what it could have meant left him shaking more than the night terror had.

Alex had recovered as quickly as he could and pulled back, cutting off Sans's view of his back. Sans locked his horrified gaze onto Alex's face. Alex had his left eye squeezed shut out of pain and his half crooked smile was tight. "Welcome to the waking world, sleepy bones," Alex joked. Sans felt like throwing up.

Undyne and Papyrus appeared at their side, Papyrus instantly wrapping himself around his brother and spewing a string of apologies. Sans only half listened to Papyrus trying to make amends for "not waking him from such a horrible nightmare". He watched as Alex collapsed against Undyne at the same moment Papyrus's hug forced Sans to let the human go. Undyne carefully helped Alex off the bed, the fish monster incredibly careful. It was startling for Sans to see her be so gentle. It made his brain do a weird misfire. Sans's hand jerked up and gripped at Papyrus's arms as he forced out, "Alex, I…"

Alex stopped – much to Undyne's indignation – and turned to look at Sans. He gave the smaller skeleton a smile, waving him off. "I'll be fine. This is what I'm here for."

Sans couldn't tell if that was suppose to make him feel better as Undyne resumed her half-carry escort of Alex towards the door. Sans buried himself into his brother's embrace. He blocked out the world, ignoring Alphys's voice that cut through instructing Undyne on where to go. Silence fell as the door clicked shut and it was stifling. Papyrus must have been bothered by it as well because the taller skeleton voiced, "How about we go for a walk, Sans. I can push you out to the grounds and we can watch the snow come down."

Sans caught the odd waver in Papyrus's voice, the one that spoke of carefully chosen words. Sans wasn't dense. Someone had urged Papyrus to get Sans out of the room as soon as possible so that they could change the soiled sheets. Sans pressed farther into Papyrus at the thought of the injuries he had caused the strange human. "Sure, Pap. But I don't want to be pushed around."

Papyrus frowned and gave him a quizzical look, though Sans could see that Papyrus already had a guess to what Sans had meant. Sans forced a small smile. It felt weird. He hoped it didn't look weird. "Can you pass me my crutches?"

While he would have much preferred the cane, they had just started working on it the day before and he knew that he was far too exhausted to keep himself upright with one stick.

Papyrus pulled back the sheets still tangled around Sans swiftly and in such a way that Sans didn't even get the chance to see if they had any blood on them or not even if he had wanted to. Papyrus helped him to sit on the edge of the bed before passing over the metal crutches. Sans hid his grateful sigh as Papyrus's magic wrapped around him as he situated the crutches where they needed to be. With the aid of his brother's magic, he was more or less upright and hobbling towards the door. Even with his magic wrapped around Sans, Papyrus kept as close to his brother as was possible.

Sans took the lead once they were in the hallway and hobbled around two humans he didn't recognize. At first, he just picked a random direction, letting his mind wander. A memory half there took over and Sans found himself standing before an Alex that looked a bit more up kept, younger, and healthier.

He gave the younger man a look. Alex laughed. It was warm, soft, and amused; all things that Sans found were missing from the Alex he knew. Alex raised his hands, offering, "Come on, Sans. We have to figure out if someone can gain a tolerance to your magic and there's no one better qualified than me."

Sans felt his magic stir, his left eye coming to life as he withdrew his left hand from its pocket. He made a face, not at all ok with this situation. "I don't see why it has to be you, Fatum. I've known you for a whole, what? Month now?"

"Two," Alex corrected automatically, his expression becoming soft. "And it's Alex. You using my last name keeps making me think you're calling me phantom and I ain't dead yet."

Something flickered through Alex's gaze too quick for Sans to make out but he was sure it wasn't positive. Sans smirked despite the horribly timed joke on Alex's part, joking in return in an attempt to dissipate the tense atmosphere. "Your Fate ain't that cruel, Alex," Sans teased.

Alex laughed at the play on his last name, clearly appreciating the attempt. "Thus, you get me as the guinea pig. Sides, there's no one better qualified in the labs."

Sans scoffed, encompassing Alex's soul in magic. Alex breath hitched as the human's hand snapped up to cover the glowing heart shape in his chest.

"We could always use an intern."

Alex gave a bark of a laugh, refocusing his gaze on Sans. Sans frowned. He couldn't tell if it was a trick of the light or if Alex was indeed paler than what was normal for him. "We need those to be left un-traumatized, thank you very much."

Sans gave a one shoulder shrug as he felt sweat bead down the back of his skull. Alex hadn't dropped his hand. In fact, he now had a vice grip on the fabric over the shape and he could feel the human's soul fluctuating. This was a really bad idea and he gave Alex one last out. "You sure you want to do this."

The smirk he received should have been answer enough. It was dry, humorless, and every warning bell in Sans's head went off. "I'm not backing out so you might as well go through with it."

Sans let out a sharp burst of air through his teeth. "Your funeral," he muttered as he raised his left hand.

He regretted his words not even a moment later.

He threw his hand out to the side till his arm was straight. He misjudged how effective his magic was going to be and watched in horror as Alex flew across the room and slammed back first into the wall before he could even begin to correct his mistake. The choked gasp cut through Sans as he lost hold of his magic. Alex slumped to the floor, a gasp of pain rushing through the human. Panic flooded Sans as Alex remained slumped over. Even from where he stood, Sans could hear Alex fighting to breath.

"Oh Gods," Sans uttered and ran over. He slid to a stop on his knees at Alex's side. His hands hovered over Alex as he rushed, "I was joking about the whole funeral thing."

Alex attempted to laugh but it came out as a wheeze. Sans gave in to the urge to touch Alex and aided the man in sitting up. Alex rested his head against the wall behind him, muttering, "I've already got one foot in the grave so it doesn't really matter."

Sans tensed, his wide eyes snapping to Alex's face. "That's not funny, Fatum."

Alex opened an eye even as sweat started beading his forehead. Alex attempted to give a crooked grin but it came out a grimace. "Sorry. I have this bad habit of not warning people about my condition. Just…just give me a minute."

Sans sat back and placed the bottoms of his feet together. He leaned forward as he gripped his ankles, watching Alex. It took a while but Alex eventually got his breathing under control even though his hand hadn't released its white knuckled grip. His face was still ashen and speckled with sweat. Alex opened his eyes but kept them focused on the ceiling. "I have Left Ventricular Non-Compaction Cardiomyopathy, a very complicated name for simply not having a fully developed left ventricle. It inhibits me from doing anything too strenuous but, thankfully," he smirked at Sans, "science isn't generally strenuous."

Sans didn't get the joke.

Alex lost the humor in his expression as he returned his gaze to the ceiling. "Smoking isn't helping much of anything but it's a habit I'm finding a hard time kicking. Docs think I may have some lung issues too, but they're equating it to the smoking." He gave a dark chuckle. "Yeah, no. My lungs have never worked right, right along with my heart." He flinched and pressed his hand harder into his chest. Sans convulsively released his ankles but Alex was already relaxing. Dropping his hand, he sat up and looked to Sans. "Shall we try again? We need to see if I can't build a tolerance to your magic."

Sans sat there gaping at him. "Y…You can't be serious! You nearly died!" Sans argued, throwing his hands up. Alex laughed. Sans could hear the hint of strain on the edges.

"I'm fine now, Sans. Besides, if we just sit here, I may keel over dead from boredom." Alex stood but his posture was no longer the same loose, easy going it had been earlier but Alex still offered Sans a hand and a smile. "I'm more useful alive."

Sans took Alex's hand and got to his feet, fully and completely agreeing with the man's last statement though he didn't voice it. He watched Alex return to his starting point, seeing the defensive way Alex moved. Sans had the distinct impression that he had lost a large part of his partner's trust and he wasn't sure if it was something he had done or if it was something he could fix.

Sans blinked and found himself before a door with a keypad, the memory fading and leaving behind a strange sensation in Sans's bones and a weird taste on the back of his tongue. Without thinking, he unlocked the door with a flicker of fingers. The door opened to a mess of a lab.

It was Sans's lab.

He recognized it, remembered the mess and remembered all the stuff in said mess. The impression of what had happened slammed into him like a physical blow and Sans's legs gave out from under him. Papyrus gave a startled cry as his magic tightened around Sans.

"Sans. Are you alright? What happened?"

"I'm ok, Pap," he offered softly, getting his feet back under him.

Sans made his way over to the computer terminal. He was aware of the tightness of his soul that had nothing to do with his brother's magic and rubbed at the dampness prickling the bones of his cheeks. Sans flicked the systems on, glancing at Papyrus once to see the skeleton standing just inside the door. Sans flopped into the desk chair and pulled up the files he was looking for.

He was not surprised to hear a soft intake of air from behind him several minutes later. He glanced over his shoulder at Alex standing just a few feet behind his chair, glasses gone and eyes skimming the screen. His lab coat and undershirt had been replaced with the button up shirt from the previous day. It was unbuttoned at the moment, revealing a wrapped chest that he had an arm wrapped around. "You found his notes," Alex spoke breathlessly.

It wasn't a question.

Sans didn't answer but he felt the human's eyes fall onto the back of his skull. Alex's voice gained strength as he stated, almost accusingly, "You've been using his work."

Sans shrugged, offering, "I had every right to."

A deep voice spoke out. "Every right to do what?"

Sans glanced towards the door, realizing that the others had drifted in. Asgore was looking at him, having been the one to ask the question. Sans looked to Alex and found the human looking at him. Sans gave a shrug, making an off gesture at Alex in a half assed way of telling the other scientist to go for it. Sans wasn't sure he could even be able to voice it at the moment. Too much was going on in his soul for him to make sense of so much.

Alex sighed and explained, "Sans has not only found but has apparently been utilizing the research of one Dr. W.D. Gaster, one of the first Royal Scientists of the Underground." Alex looked to Sans but Sans kept his focused feigned on the scrolling text. "Though, I have no idea what the mad man's work has to do with our current project. Neither of us have had a need to touch any of his old studies."

"Old studies?" Papyrus inquired.

"Gaster had done some research into amnesia," Sans interjected, pulling up a few files. Alex glanced over the files, recognition flickering through his eyes. "Sadly, there had been very little of his notes actually published."

"I had forgotten about these," Alex commented. "You found his unpublished notes?"

"What does that have to do with what you're doing now?" Undyne snapped.

Alex looked to her, offering, "Both of us had done a few studies around amnesia during our schooling, though we had been in separate years and classes so our studies had been done individually. In our spare time over the last two years, we would talk about our old studies and the research we had done. Two of our experiments had risen out of some of those conversations."

"Somehow we had both done a study around Dissociative and Dissociative Acute Amnesia. Gaster had published some of his notes on amnesia in general," Sans muttered, gaining everyone's attention. "We later discovered that every subject with any form of Acute Amnesia outside of Gaster's study of amnesia had some sort of connection to the doc."

Alex frowned at Sans, quickly reaching a conclusion he wasn't sure Sans had been aiming at. Still, he looked at Papyrus. The taller skeleton was frowning at his brother but it seemed he hadn't connected the dots fully. It was clear Papyrus knew his brother had meant something behind that statement but didn't know what. Alphys was the one to present the final piece to Papyrus. Alex watched him as Alphys asked, "D-do you have s-some sort of c-c-connection to Dr. Gaster, Sans?"

Shock warped Papyrus's expression before it was changed by fear as Sans gave a dry chortle, his gaze still on the screen before him. "Apparently we had been experiments of sorts. Apparently, a long time ago, we had been his play things."

Betrayal flashed across Papyrus's face while Sans's expression remained emotionless. Alex reached out and touched Papyrus's arm. Papyrus pulled away, leaving Alex's hand suspended in the air.

It was like someone had draped a blanket over the room. The air thickened. Sans reacted to the sudden tension, turning in his chair to catch sight of his brother's face. Sans moved without thinking. He got up to walk over to his brother's side but, without the crutches, he was unable to keep himself upright and he collapsed. Thankfully, Papyrus was still as quick as ever, wrapping his magic around Sans and keeping the skeleton suspended mid collapse long enough to reach out and wrap his hands around Sans to support him physically.

Sans, in turn, gripped at Papyrus, urging with a frustrated expression, "I have no idea why I haven't told you, Pap." He sat down at Papyrus's guidance. "I can't remember why I never did but I would bet that timing was a big factor."

The blatant reminder of Sans's lack of memories was like a slap to the face for all present. It was clear Sans had remembered a good portion of information but it was still not enough for the stout skeleton. Papyrus, for his part, accepted the apology for what it was with a soft smile. He reached out and covered Sans's hands with his own. "It's ok. All that matters now is what happens next." He frowned. "But I don't understand. How were we experiments? I don't recall this Dr. Gaster at all."

Sans shook his head. Whether it had been a genuine answer to the question or his attempt to not tell Papyrus wasn't divulged as Undyne snapped, "Look, what does any of this have to do with now? What the hell was this bloke working on?"

"Life and magic," Sans supplied, frowning as he turned to the computer, "or so I've been able to decipher. I only have partial notes for a lot of what he worked on. There are mentions of other experiments, things possibly dealing with time and the mind." Sans rubbed at his face and growled, "I can't figure out what all this has to do with what had happened before my coma." He threw his hand out – thankfully away from Papyrus – as he turned a magic burning gaze on Alex. "I know this is my lab. I know this research. I know I had been doing something but I can't remember WHAT!" The magic flared before sputtering out as quickly as it had come, tears quickly taking the magic's place in Sans's eyes. Sans rubbed at the tears but the sob still broke free. "I-I can't help but feel that if I can't recover my memory, we're all screwed."

The silence was heavy, only filled with the hum from the computer and the noise from the hall. There was a pause before Alex stepped forward, placing a hand on the stout skeleton's shoulder. He gained a watery glare. Alex doesn't offer him a smile like he would have. It wouldn't have come out right anyways. "In some way, that's true." He ignored the collective gasp from their audience. Honestly, they should have expected him to be that blunt after knowing him for so long. "You are the only one that knows the connection to Dr. Gaster's research and our seventh experiment.

Sans straightened. "Seventh."

Alex flinched at his slip but took it in stride as he shrugged under Sans's demanding gaze. "Guess a history lesson wouldn't necessarily hurt."