:):
Thank you for all of the sweet reviews!
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This is just a little fluff chapter. :)
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Storytime
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"It's Ruined..." Papyrus despaired privately as he stared down at the limp noodles in the pan. He'd spent so much time upstairs, his spaghetti must have overcooked. With his brother and the little human already seated, he knew he didn't have to time to fix his mistake. Sighing deeply, Papyrus prepared the plates.
Setting the food on the dining table, the pasta fanatic lowered his skull in shame. "I Have To Apologize For Tonight's Disaster. This Is Definitely Not My Best Work."
"aw, it can't be that bad, paps." Sans said, trying to reassure him.
"It Is." The taller skeleton rejected depressively. "I Let It Boil For Far Too Long."
Staring down at her food, Fearia's stomach growled eagerly. Maybe it was the fact that she had gone all day without eating anything that made the dreaded spaghetti smell a little bit better tonight. Putting her past experiences aside, the little girl collected her fork and attempted to use it properly for once.
The noodles were soft this time! They weren't crunchy at all! And the flavor, although still tangy, was now devoid of the puckering overdose of salt. To be honest, it still wasn't very good but it was at least edible for once. Shoving another messy fork full of stringy pasta into her mouth, the little girl decided that it was at least good enough.
"i don't know what you were so worried about, bro. it's really not that bad." Looking over to the tiny human, Sans chuckled quietly at the messy display. "see? the kid's actually eating for once. told you your spaghetti was im-pasta-ble to resist."
Papyrus cringed as he watched a heap of spaghetti fall from the child's fork and onto the tabletop in a messy splatter. She still didn't quite know how to twirl pasta correctly, but even so, she was at least attempting to eat his cooking. Maybe humans preferred their noodles to be more on the soft side? Despite his misgivings about that, the taller skeleton smiled. He'd have to remember this recipe.
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Later that night, they had all gathered in Papyrus' room for the kid's first ever bedtime story. Seeing as it had been his idea, Papyrus also got to choose the book. 'Adventure's of the Little Fluffy Bunny.' Sans hadn't been surprised in the least that his bro had picked his all time favorite. He didn't mind of course. After today, a simple lighthearted story might be just what they all needed right now.
That is, if he could get through a few pages without having to stop every couple of minutes.
"Then what happened?" Fearia asked as she hugged the borrowed pillow closer to her chest. "Did the fluffy bunny find its family? Were they upset that it wandered off all on its own? Did they finally bake the cake at the end?"
Sans sighed tiredly as he gave the small human a humored look. She and Papyrus were both sharing the same bed for tonight's bedtime story. Whether his brother was simply tired of sleeping on the floor or he had a different reason entirely for joining the human, Sans wasn't going to ask. The squirt didn't seem bothered by it in the least as she ignored him completely, more focused on the story.
"you're never gonna find out if you keep interrupting me, kid." The tired skeleton warned as he flipped a page in the beat up hardcover. "now, where was i...?"
"You Were At The Part Where The Bunny Asks The Forest Creatures For Help." Papyrus reminded as he gripped the bed cover up to his jawbone. The taller skeleton was barely able to contain his joy. It had been so long since he'd heard this story! "This Is One Of My Favorite Parts!"
"How many times have you heard this story?" Fearia asked as she looked over to her friend.
"I've Lost Count." Papyrus admitted. "But No Matter How Many Times I Hear It, The Ending Always Gets Me. It's So Heartwarming How The Fluffy Bun-!"
"Wait!" Fearia demanded as she tried to cover the careless skeleton's teeth with her tiny hands. The attempt was futile but the gesture was understood. "Don't ruin the ending! I haven't heard this story even once yet!"
Sans tried to stifle a yawn as he waited for them to quiet down. Bedtime stories were supposed to lull the listener to sleep, but so far he was the only one occasionally nodding off. He really over did it today. Physical and magical exhaustion on top of chronic insomnia was nearly too much for him to handle. Sleep would just have to wait though, because he still had so much more to do tonight.
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Papyrus smiled as he looked over to the human curled into a tiny ball beside his rib cage. Somewhere close to the end of the story, she had gotten very tired. The events of the day must have finally caught up to her. "It's okay, brother." He said as quietly as he could. "I've already heard the ending, we should save that part for when the little human is awake to hear it."
"good call, paps." Sans agreed, shutting the book. "wouldn't want her to miss the ending."
"That is the best part of the story, I'm sure she'll agree when she hears it." Papyrus said as he reached over and pulled the warm blanket over the sleeping child. "I guess we'll have to wait until tomorrow night."
"alright, bro." Sans started as he lifted himself from the chair he'd been sitting in for the past hour. "i'm bone tired, so you're in charge of the kid for tonight."
"You're going to bed too, right?" Papyrus asked as he watched his older brother walk over to the side of the bed and turn the lunar nightlight on. Sans was acting even more lethargic than usual. He wasn't even doing any puns! Papyrus didn't want to be the nagging younger brother, but he often found himself worrying if Sans was taking care of himself properly.
"that was my plan." Sans casually replied as he reached down and tucked his little brother in a bit more snuggly.
"Really?"
Sans grinned down at his skeptical sibling. "you worry too much, paps."
"And you don't worry enough!"
Nothing could be further from the truth, but Sans would let that slide for now. Instead, he simply gave an apathetic shrug. "it's a good thing i have you then. you can worry enough for the both of us."
Papyrus frowned up at his lazy brother as he began to word his objection. Whatever comeback he had planned, however, was interrupted when a tiny hand reached out from under the covers and latched onto one of his ribs. Startled, the taller skeleton flinched in surprise.
"forgot to warn ya," Sans grinned in humor at his younger brother's expense. "the kid gets a little grabby when she's sleeping."
As if to prove his point, the small child mumbled something incoherent before pulling herself closer to her friend and taking captive another rib.
"sweet dreams, bro." Sans chuckled as he headed for the door.
"Sans, wait!" Papyrus squirmed. "What am I supposed to do about this?"
Peeking under the covers, the skeleton eyed the tiny creature that was attempting to fuse with a portion of his ribcage. It was a weird sensation and slightly off-putting because of the now unbalanced distribution of heat. One side of his ribcage felt toasty warm while the rest of his body felt much colder in comparison. Maybe he could try to persuade the small child to release him by offering her something else; a pillow, perhaps?
"Brother, can you get me the spare pillow from the closet?" His request was left unanswered as the seconds ticked by in silence. "Sans?" Looking to the doorway, Papyrus found that his brother was already gone. Blast!
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Sitting atop his own unmade bed, Sans reclined against his ball of unlaundered bedsheets and finally flipped open his phone to check his messages. He was already fairly sure what would be waiting for him, and he wasn't disappointed. There, in red text, was a Royal Summons. It had been sent to him a little over an hour ago.
Grin going flat, the lethargic skeleton let out a quiet improbable sigh as he looked over to the ball of fluff curled up at the end of his bed by his feet. As much as he'd love to just flip his phone shut and pretend he hadn't seen that message, he knew it would only make things worse. Best not to keep the King waiting for too much longer.
Sitting back up, the skeleton stretched his tired body before sliding his legs back over the side of his bed. Reaching over, Sans gave the small dog monster a little pat on the head and then stood up. "welp, i guess it's time to face the music."
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Sans is late!
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In the next chapter, Sans and Undyne both share their views on what happened.
Asgore is displeased.
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Sheii Bae~
