:):

Thank you so much for the nice reviews. :)

I'm sorry this update is a bit late, I've had company for the last 3 days.

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Some of you have asked if Sans has already heard of Flowey, or rather a talking flower, from Papyrus. The simple answer is no. There are a number of reasons as to why, one of them being is that Fearia is supposedly the sixth child and not the seventh. In the game, Sans hinted about a flower to Frisk, the supposed seventh child, so now the timing is off. However, to give you an even better explanation as to why this is not the case, would be to point out that this is an AU, and because of that, this Flowey is ever so slightly different. You'll see. ;)

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Bittersweet

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Stretching, the child let out a tired yawn as she slowly awoke for the second time that morning. A small headache started up as her eyes slid open only to be greeted by light streaming through the window. She still didn't quite know what that light was but she knew it wasn't the sun. Whatever it was, it was too bright.

Closing her eyes again, the tiny human laid there, awake, as she waited for the throbbing in her head to subside. From down below, her keen ears picked up a low murmur of conversation from the kitchen along with the clinking of a pan and the sliding of a chair. Fully awake now, Fearia's amber eyes snapped open in alarm. Sans and Papyrus were already awake, and she was missing out on breakfast!

Clambering out of bed, the tiny human rushed over to the door and got it open with practiced ease. Not bothering to close it behind her, she was already halfway down the stairs. Poff, who was napping on the lumpy green couch, let out a happy bark before bouncing to the floor to greet the tiny human. Together, they sped into the kitchen to join the two skeletons.

Sitting at the dinning table with today's crossword, Sans had been working on his second cup of coffee when he heard the bark. The light pitter pattering sound of little feet could be heard seconds before a small white dog and a tiny human with a bad case of bed head appeared in the doorway.

"whoa, what's the rush there, kiddo?" The skeleton asked with amusement as he calmly lifted his cup.

"Miss Fearia!" Papyrus smiled. "You're Finally Awake. Are You Feeling Better?"

"Yeah." Fearia nodded as she looked around the kitchen. "I'm feeling better now." What was that smell? It was so familiar she thought as her stomach growled quietly. Sniffing the air like a half starved puppy, the small child quickly located the source. On the dinning table, a single plate of something was laid out near the center. Whatever it was, it smelled delicious!

Pulling herself up onto one of the chairs, Fearia was just about to do a full investigation of the plate's contents when it was slid out of her reach. Pouting, she glowered over at the grinning skeleton. "What are those? And can I have one? Please?" She asked as politely as she knew how as her eyes were drawn to the bunny shaped pastries.

"they're called cinnamon buns, and yes you can have one." Sans replied with a touch of humor as he cautiously slid the plate back towards the ravenous looking child. "i got more than enough this time so ya don't have to go and inhale them. take your time and eat slowly."

Completely ignoring the generous skeleton's words, Fearia had already stuffed an entire cinnamon bun into her mouth. It was warm and gooey and delicious! The sweet doughy bun wasn't quite as sweet as the nice goat lady's pie, but the taste was similar. She loved it!

Rolling his eye lights at the tiny human, Sans couldn't quite bring himself to chastise her for doing exactly what he had just told her not to do. Really, he should have known better by now. Sans gave a slight smile as he watched the small child fully enjoy the sugary treat. Her round cheeks were now overstuffed with dough, and she had a delighted look on her face. He just hoped that she wasn't going to choke.

Sans quietly drank his coffee while he waited for Papyrus and the kid to finish their breakfast. He'd let them drag it out for as long as they wanted to. This might be their final one together, though he didn't want either of them to know it. The kid had herself a Royal Summons and he couldn't be sure how it was going to turn out. So right now, he wanted her to enjoy herself.

Half an hour later, breakfast was finally over and the plate of cinnamon buns had been licked clean, quite literally, much to Papyrus' horror. Out of a compulsive need for cleanliness, he had had to thoroughly clean the messy uncooperative human of the sugary stickiness. Even though the small white dog had begged and pleaded to help, the tall clean fanatic hadn't allowed it. He would have just had to clean the child off all over again. Dog slobber... yuck!

Following his brother and the small child into the living room, Sans knew that their time was up. As much as he hated it, he was going to have to be the bad guy about this. He'd already spent a few hours dragging his feet, but he knew he couldn't put it off indefinitely. He needed to take the kid to the Capital.

"What Are We Going To Do Today, Miss Fearia?" Papyrus asked happily. "Your Warm Clothes Are Still Dirty, So Maybe We Should Spend The Day Inside. Would You Like To Draw Some More? If You Want, Later We Can Practice Writing Again. After That, I Bet The Mettaton Show Will Be On."

"actually, paps." Sans cringed as he looked away. He hated this. "the kid's got an appointment today... at the capital."

Feeling as if the wind had left his sails completely, Papyrus' grin lessened as he turned to look at his brother. "But... I Thought... Maybe She Would Have A Few More Days?"

"I don't wanna go to the Capital." Fearia stubbornly protested, crossing her arms with displeasure.

As expected, they were both gonna give him a hard time about this. Fortunately, Sans had had a few hours to think about what he might have to say in this situation. It was dirty, but he was going to have to pull the sister card on the kid. As for Papyrus, he knew nothing he could say was going to make him feel any better. His brother might be naive but he wasn't stupid. He knew that humans didn't come back from the Capital.

But maybe, by some miracle, this particular human just might. They could only pray.

"yeah, me neither, kid." Sans commiserated. "but the king wants to talk to you."

"Why?" Fearia frowned. Was he talking about the nice king or the mean king? From what she understood, there were two of them.

"i think he knows your sister." Sans shrugged as he stuffed his bony hands into his pockets.

"He knows Frisk?" Fearia exclaimed in surprise. "Really?"

"he also said he knew your mom. her name was freya, right?" Literal garbage. That's how Sans felt right now as his words effortlessly tapped into the child's natural curiosity.

"That... That was my mom's name." Fearia confirmed as she unconsciously brought a small hand up to tug lightly at the borrowed shirt she was wearing. "Did the King really know my mom? Like really? I never got the chance to meet her..."

"only way to find out for sure is if you go and ask him." The self-loathing skeleton replied. "so, howzaboutit, kid? wanna come with me to the capital?"

"Okay." Fearia agreed with nervous determination. "I'll go talk to the King."

"Fearia..." Papyrus said sadly as he knelt before the tiny human. With an illogical sniffle, he leaned forward, wrapping her in a gentle hug. "It Was So Nice To Get To Know You. Please Stay Safe Wherever You Go."

When Papyrus finally pulled away, the little girl caught sight of the skeleton's strange glowing orange tears streaming down his cheekbones. "Don't cry, Pappy!" Fearia gasped as she reached up to try and wipe the liquid magic away. "I don't know how far away the Capital is, but I'll definitely be back."

"You Will?" Papyrus asked with childish hope as he sniffled again, his tears unrelenting.

"I promise." Fearia vowed with no amount of uncertainty. "Here." She said as she bent down to try and collect the panting ball of fluff. "While I'm away, you're in charge of Poff. You have to treat him nicely. He's a good boy."

Overjoyed with the attention, Poff eagerly licked the small child in the face as she attempted to lift him.

Finally giving up, Fearia simply hugged the happy white dog monster. "And Poff, you're in charge of Pappy." She said as she pressed her forehead to the dog's. "You have to keep him company while I'm away. Okay?"

Poff gave a bark of confirmation before licking her once more.

Sans watched as his brother numbly bent down and gently lifted the small dog into his arms. He looked heartbroken but at the same time hopeful. After a few more somber words of goodbye, Papyrus had given the child a final loving pat on the head and then retreated back to his room. This felt worse than he could have ever imagined. But he couldn't take it all back now. The King was waiting.

Heading for the front door, the little girl turned and gave the lazy skeleton an impatient look. "Come on, Sans. Let's go."

Sighing, Sans slapped a fake smile onto his skull as he gestured for her to come back over to him. "instead of walking, i've got a better idea. come back over here, kid."

"What do you mean?" Fearia asked as she rejoined the skeleton in the middle of the living room. Staring up at him, she tilted her head curiously.

Resisting the urge to compare her to an adorable puppy, Sans bent down and carefully lifted the tiny human into his arms. "i know a shortcut." He revealed conspiratorially.

"Really?" Fearia asked with interest as a small smile lit up her face.

"but it only works if you close your eyes." Sans explained.

"Really?" Skepticism was clear in the child's voice as she arched an eyebrow.

Sans gave the little girl a passive-aggressive grin for being to predictably difficult. "just close your eyes, kid."

With a small pout, Fearia closed her eyes and then covered them with her hands for good measure. "Are we there yet?"

Rolling his eye lights, Sans gave a small smirk at her words. "we'll be there in three... two..."

"one."

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This chapter was kinda painful to write...

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In the next chapter, Sans, with great reluctance, finally delivers Fearia to the King.

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Sheii Bae~