:-"Reunions"-:

Memories that Sans wishes he permanently forgot are brought to the forefront of his mind.

He struggles to suppress them in order to continue his search…

Finding himself, in the literal physical sense and not the philosophical one, shouldn't take much longer.

Sure enough, he rounds a corner and is greeted with his destination… A door that reads:
"Head of Magi-tech development: Sans, C"

Sans takes a brief moment to collect himself, 'man… it's gonna be pretty weird seeing myself.'

As sans reaches for the door, alarms start going off, "*Kchshht* ATTENTION! ATTENTION! SOMEONE HAS BROKEN INTO THE TIME LAB! ALL AVAILABLE SECURITY PERSONNEL REPORT TO THE TIME LAB IMMEDIATELY! THIS IS NOT A DRILL! REPEAT! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!*Ktch*"

With a sigh of relief, Sans opens the door to his old lab and walks in.

Sans sees himself in the flesh.

Literally, in this case, since it's before the first rebellion.

He briefly misses having hair, but closes and locks the door before continuing inward.

Past Sans notices, and turns around, "You must be the one they're looking for. I've gotta tell you, buddy, you picked the wrong ro-"

Future Sans interrupts his past self, "you've got it all wrong pal, they're lookin' for sanchez. i'm just a more handsome version of you."

Curious, Sans' old self asks, " right , as if I'd ever look as sloppy as you. This facility only allows one version of a person at a time, so, if you really are another version of me, you must have screwed up pretty bad to end up like that and be allowed here."

Retorting, Sans says, "you're one to talk. do you even know what you're researching? what they've turned you into?"

Future Sans takes off his fake head/helmet, revealing the cracks and cut marks on his skull, "this is what david is going to do to you, and… well, gaster does it to himself on accident… but you can stop david from doing it to papyrus too. that thing you're making, david is gonna test it on you first."

Past Sans returns to his work, "how do I know you are even telling the truth? You know this place is connected to, like, basically every timeline, right?"

Sighing, Future Sans replies, "i'm here 'cause i time travelled. you know that off-limits pet project of yours? the one with the f.u.n. values? it works, but not yet. it needs some tweaks… ok, it needs a lotta tweaks… but it works."

Caught red handed working on something he isn't supposed to be working on, Past Sans starts to get the feeling that this skeleton is telling the truth. "I need some proof. Show me your SOUL."

With a smirk, Future Sans pulls out his SOUL. It is definitely not a monster's SOUL, at least in its shape.

Past Sans walks over to investigate it and, sure enough, it's his SOUL but older… much older.

Unable to comment, and still sceptical, Past Sans goes back to his desk and continues working, "I can't just stop. If I do… something bad will happen to Papyrus. If you really are from the future, which is starting to look pretty likely, you've gotta give me more to go on."

Shrugging, Future Sans says, "fine, but don't say i didn't warn you. travelling to the past is rather pickle, i'm pretty sure it'd cause a paradogs or something if i told ya too much."

Past Sans scoffs, "you know, if it weren't for the fact that your SOUL is identical to mine, I would never believe that you are even distantly related to me. Those puns were so terrible, I bet Papyrus would slap you or something."

Future Sans winks, "yea paps does get pretty worked up over the puns… hey, can you do me a huge favour? i can't generate dt on my own any more, could you uh… share some? i need it so i can get away from this place; lots of bad memories."

Turning away, Past Sans considers the request, then replies, "I… don't know."

A few more moments of hesitation.

Future Sans advises, "hey, if you leave the output for that as high as you've got it… it'll kill you when he tests it. that thing permanently drains hp. i only have 1hp thanks to it, and that was a mistake… so, take it from me, your better, smarter, stronger future self: set the output to 50%."

His Past self considers the information, then hesitantly replies, "you seem pretty adamant that David is going to test it on me… I… I suppose it isn't like the output can't be increased later… but, why not set it to something else?"

Future Sans replies, "the goal is to do enough damage that he's only curious 'bout why it isn't stronger, instead of angry. this way you get the chance to claim that you were testing it at 50%, and forgot to set it back. if it were lower, we'd probably be killed."

After contemplating the information a bit more, Past Sans nods and adjusts the device… "alright, yea, I can see that… So, you need DT to get out of the facility? I'm guessing that'll boost your shortcuts?"

With a nod, Future Sans replies, "yea, but it'll also let me make a shortcut through the void, which is more efficient."

Past Sans gulps a little… worried about what will happen if David finds out about this… but nods.

Future Sans takes off the lab coat, his jacket, Gaster's turtle neck shirt, starts unlatching a canister held in his chest cavity, and holds it out for his past self. "here ya go, just hold both ends and feel super determined… if you can."

His past self takes the canister and holds it as instructed, then starts to focus.

After several minutes, the canister increases in capacity by 1%.

Exhausted, Past Sans returns the canister… "s-sorry… I… couldn't do more…"

Future Sans shrugs, "no big deal, this should be enough; this was made to hold dt from a pure red, so 1% in here is more than average… huh, i… don't remember why i know that."

Past Sans shrugs, and says, "if you say so…" then turns back to his desk and continues working sluggishly."

Future Sans becomes lost in thought, trying to remember where he got all the DT in the first place.

He gives up, unable to remember, and puts the canister back and then gets dressed.

With a wink, despite his past self not looking at him, Future Sans says, "thanks, me, i'm gonna leave now."

Back to focusing on his project, Sans' past self doesn't reply.

Future Sans takes a piece of tech from the lab before leaving. 'sorry, me, but the dt you gave me isn't gonna cut it… not without this prototype personal dimension bridge. to think, for all these years, i thought someone else stole it; but it was me all along. man, i really do love getting myself into trouble, don't i?'

:-:

The entire facility is on high alert, the sound of things breaking can be heard in some of the hallways, as well as shouting and screaming. 'looks like sanchez got some other disgruntled employees to join in, and they're really doing a number on the lab. good. this'll make the weakness past-me will exploit to get revenge.'

Doing his best to blend in, Sans makes his way to the entrance of the facility.

Everyone else is so focused on Sanchez that no one pays Sans much attention.

After successfully evading attention and getting to the beach of the island, Sans pulls the prototype dimensional bridge out from under the lab coat and starts to tweak parts of it.

'this'll never work in its current condition, i need to tweak the spacetime interface or it'll fizz out mid-jump…'

With his alterations made, Sans enters some coordinates into the device and then pours the remaining DT in his suit into the device. It whirs to life and begins creating a dimensional bridge to Ebott Valley… Sans can tell that he won't be able to use this device again, since it is slowly tearing itself apart. He's just hoping that it lasts long enough for him to make the jump.

Opting to play it safe, Sans starts to use gravity magic on the device to hold it together.

After five agonizing minutes, the bridge is finally complete. Sans runs and jumps through…

The device breaks under the strain of holding the bridge open while Sans is within, and the end closes rapidly; it causes Sans to be forced out into Ebott Valley faster than he expected… parts of the device also happen to make their way though the bridge, but Sans ignores them.

Having "landed" in Ebott Valley, Sans dusts off the permanently borrowed lab coat and starts looking for the ITCs. He's glad that HP only responds to killing intent, otherwise he would be dead.

It takes him the rest of the day to find the ITCs, but when he does he spots a note:

Yo Sans, you didn't say how many
of these IT-whatzits you needed, so I
took three and left the others in the lab.
If I took 'em all they'd probably get
suspicious. And don't worry your
stupid little bald head, I made sure to
make it look like the three I took were
destroyed instead of stolen.

Good luck and whatever.
Thanks for the booze thing.
-R. Sanchez

Sans hadn't thought about that…

With a shrug, Sans crumples up the note and sits against a nearby tree to get some sleep…

CU-270 wakes him up in the morning.

"I see you've managed to secure three ITCs. Very good. We will have to work quickly, my…"
"… time in reality is almost up. My replacement may not be as good with time travel and the…"
"… like as I am. Speaking of which, while you went off to get the ITCs, I borrowed my…"
"…SOUL from Papyrus and wrote a small book on time travel for you. Papyrus has it."
"It'd be best if we hurried, so I have hired some acquaintances to help move these bulky things."

:-:

The rest of the week is filled with manual labour as Sans, and the hired hands, work to move the devices under Mt. Hume and set them up. They still have their connection to the Main Controller, but no one should be able to find them…

A few years pass as the pair record and go over the data with the ITCs. Some time during then, CU-270's replacement self showed up; he seems a bit… rougher than the last one.

"There was only one message sent to the past, 'RETRIEVE PENDANT AS'"
"I think I know exactly what pendant is being talked about."
"Back when humans and monsters were just getting to know each other, I posed as a human…"
"… and brokered peace between them with items from my timeline."
"The humans received a key, and the monsters a pendant."
"The key is fairly useless here, and is symbolic, but the pendant can absorb nearby magic…"
"…More specifically, magic that has been given instructions."
"We need to take that pendant, but we cannot do so until after Frisk arrives at the Sanctum."

:-:

Curious, and still not sure who 'Frisk' even is, Sans asks, "why not?"

"They need the Pendant to ensure they have magic when they arrive at the Sanctum."
"Otherwise, they would not be taken seriously without direct intervention."
"Many children in the Sanctum are claimed to be the Red Child, but none ever are."
"People do not understand the problems which come with being a Pure Red, they only desire…"
"… the prestige."

:-:

Shrugging, Sans replies, "if you say so. other than that pendant, what else needs to be done?"

"Well… it looks like there is an anomaly in the choices made while you were here."
"We will have to adjust everything in order to correct the path. If left the same, let see…"
"Ah… you will be fused with the Gibbering Horror, which will grant it access to your skills…"
"… and abilities."
"Suffice it to say that most timelines that have that creature in them are properly shafted."

:-:

With a shiver, Sans says, "right, so i need to fix my mistakes. lead the way cu-270…"

"No. You are going nowhere. You will remain hidden here until the Horror is defeated."
"After that, it is likely they will try to find a way to return all of your memories."
"I will go and make corrections. This will be the last you see of this iteration of me, Sans."
"Farewell, and good luck."

:-:

The room gets a little brighter, and Sans sighs, "welp, i have the place all to myself at least."

Silence dominates the small facility… Looking over the documents he has, Sans notices two pieces of crumpled paper that were not there before.

One is a crudely made drawing, and the other is the mysterious note with his name on it.

'frisk, huh? you seemed to have been pretty important to me… i guess it's for the best i don't remember. at least i won't be as lonely.'

:-:

… 23 years pass, it is 1975. Autumn is in full swing. The Great War has begun.

Sans can feel the humans' hatred and killing intent through the mountain as battles rage on throughout Terra.

The machines in the lab have grown somewhat rusty, due to the ground shifting and causing some of the concrete to crack and sheet metal to bend; some lime stalactites are also threatening to form, but for now they are just thin build up.

Sans does what he can to keep the machines from failing all together, he still needs to monitor the timeline.

:-:

While evaluating his memory issue, Sans has found that some more memories have disappeared, memories he swears he had before. His investigations into the phenomena reveal that some of his memories are adrift in the time-space continuum.

He attempts to restore them, but fails. It results in more memory loss.

The silence is almost maddening… almost. Sans has found comfort in long periods of dreamless sleep. His mind wont break if it is not active enough to think about it.

:-:

… 18 years pass, it is 1993. Summer. The Great War is near it's end.

Sans wakes up to the sound of a large group of people arriving in Ebott Valley… The ITCs also recorded an anomaly.

David appears in Terra. It is just for a moment, but he appears around the same time as the humans. It's likely he made one small change and then left, but, unfortunately, the ITCs can't tell Sans what David did.

Another anomaly, but this one is unrecognizable… it just says "VOID."

Knowing David, it was probably nothing good. Sans' first guess is that David messed with the Artifact in transit, because there is no way a slightly bumpy ride in a car would scratch or crack the diamond it is made from; especially not enough to cause the Barrier to fail.

Sans hears, and feels, the thundering boom of the Barrier forming and braces for the burst of chaotic magic…

But nothing happens.

Sans can feel the magic, but it's as if he is protected; he is grateful.

:-:

The echoes of screaming SOULs haunt his mind as he sleeps, and Sans gets the feeling where his gut would be that the Gibbering Horror is being formed.

David appeared before the screaming, which makes Sans believe that he is responsible for that abomination.

:-:

He can feel its hunger.

:-:

The silence is affecting him even in his sleep now. It is maddening.

He finds himself beginning to hallucinate. At first it's just himself, trying to get him to leave, then Gaster, then Papyrus; but now they're all here.

They stopped pestering him after a few years, and instead have come to be a source of entertainment.

He has to remind himself that it isn't real occasionally, but fortunately he sees the reality of his situation when he wakes up. No hallucinations, no whispers from the empty rooms… nothing.

Sometimes he wonders why he's even bothering, though.

:-:

… 52 more years pass, it is 2045. The ITCs report that the timeline has the same FUN values as it did the day of his trip to the past.

Hallucination Gaster has taken to doing things Papyrus normally does, and Hallucination Papyrus has taken on a personality Sans doesn't recognize. He seems to keep a neutral expression on all the time.

Oh… and some monster named Jerry showed up. Annoying as hell.

Sans decided to ignore that one, but he swears that when he wakes up, and his other hallucinations are gone, Jerry is there… Sans doesn't even know why Jerry is here, he doesn't remember him at all.

The worst part is how grey he is, he doesn't even look like the other hallucinations. It really bugs Sans.

At least the hallucination Gaster and Papyrus look like they should exist, Jerry just seems… wrong some how.

:-:

Sans finds himself talking out loud to the hallucinations now, not caring that they are fake.

Sometimes he loses himself in pretending they are real, but Jerry comes in and ruins it.

Always with something stupid like, "OMG Sans are you still talking to yourself? You know they aren't real, right?"

It is almost as if it's Sans' mind trying to keep him grounded in reality… almost. It would be far more believable if it weren't someone as annoying and gross as Jerry. Seriously, he doesn't even wash his hands!

:-:

In a dark room within the Sanctum, many skeletons are working on various bits of technology and magic items. Their shadows deepen unnaturally.

:-:

"Adjustments have been made. Lucy, how goes your work?"

"Preparations are complete CU-270. Time-Jump-Sans is under Mt. Hume. It should be noted, however, that he has entered a state of severe mental destabilization and will need significant assistance in recovering. It also appears he has come into contact with a Grey, which seems to have helped prevent his mind from deteriorating further. We still need to lure the monster known as 'Flowey' into the Sanctum."

:-:

"Any word on the Pendant?"

"The pendant is under Frisk's bed, we are prepared to seize it."

:-:

"Do so."

Lucy nods, "request acknowledged. The Pendant shall be retrieved now."

Looking to another skeleton, Lucy signs a short message; it nods and turns invisible as it begins to depart.

:-:

"I will stop Post-Pre-Jump Sans from jumping, but, if that book Papyrus has is accurate,…"
"… both versions of Sans will continue existing."
"It is a shame I am not the one who wrote it, I can barely make out the chicken scratch."
"I will get Frisk to lure the flower into the Sanctum."
"You know what to do with the Pendant, I assume?"

:-:

Lucy nods, "yes, it must be added to the barrier to reinforce it; granting more time to prepare. You should go and complete your tasks."

Their shadows return to normal.

:-:

In the Addams' manor, Sans looks at the picture Frisk drew for him as he stands in front of his time machine… it's oddly familiar, but he can't tell why. He shrugs it off. 'no time to dwell on it now, sans. you've gotta move forward.'

Time stops.

Sans' shadow deepens.

"Everything is as it should be now. You need not time travel. It has already been done."

:-:

Questioningly, Sans asks, "how can that be when i haven't even jumped yet? nothing will change until after i jump."

"Incorrect, you have already jumped. Your fragmented memory is proof of that."
"Time travel is more like copying and pasting yourself where you want to be."
"The present we are currently in is the result of you time travelling in a present that no longer…"
"… exists."

:-:

Wanting to be 100% sure, Sans asks, "so… what would happen if i decide to jump again?"

"We have only had you jump again when things didn't go right."
"Jumping to the past irrevocably destroys the present we are in."
"It has taken multiple time jumps to get where we are now. In some you directly fought David…"
"In others, you became our worst threat. We are currently within the optimal curve."
"I have found that we cannot confront David yet. We must survive the Barrier breaking, first."

:-:

Time resumes.

Shrugging, Sans replies, "alrighty, that's all i needed to hear. the field trip is off. so, is all this jumping stuff the reason i remember this picture more than i should?"

CU-270 doesn't answer, having left after resuming time.

Deciding not to worry about it too much, Sans starts powering the time machine down right as Papyrus enters.

Concerned, Papyrus reaches out and places a hand on Sans' shoulder, "SANS… ARE YOU SURE YOU SHOULD DO THIS? WHAT IF-"

Sans winks and says, "i dunno what you mean 'should,' it's already done and over with. i was just powering it down."

Though confused, since he cannot tell that anything has changed, Papyrus says, "WORRY NOT BROTHER! I WILL NOT TELL A SOUL THAT YOUR LITTLE EXPERIMENT WAS A FAILURE! WE CAN SAY IT WORKED FOR AS LONG AS YOU NEED TO!"

Opting out of trying to explain it, Sans pats Papyrus' hand and says, "aw shucks, how'd you find out? thanks paps, you're the best."

Wiggling a glove covered finger at his brother, Papyrus retorts, "SANS, I KNOW WHEN YOU ARE BEING BROTHERLY. TELL ME WHAT IS REALLY GOING ON!"

With a shrug, Sans says, "i told you that i already went to the past, but you didn't believe me. i was super careful, that's why you don't notice anything is different."

Not convinced, Papyrus decides to let it slide. Though it is true that this Sans didn't time travel, a Sans has. Therefore, they are both correct. Sans has and has not time travelled, simultaneously.

With the time machine powered down, sans asks, "hey paps, can you help me take this thing apart?"

Jubilantly, Papyrus answers, "WHY YES I CAN! I AM GLAD TO BE OF ASSISTANCE!"

:-:

Frisk, eating lunch slowly due to being a little upset, starts to feel like something is… wrong.

The feeling eventually fades.

Once done with lunch, Frisk cleans their plate and goes into the living room to look out the window.

They hop up and sit on the window sill to get a better view.

It's breath-taking. Trees for as far as the eye can see, two mountains off in the distance, and the tippy tops of what Frisk thinks is their village. It's quite hard to see.

Frisk, not being in much of a rush, also recognizes the small town they had been in for a while… Looking at it sends shivers down their spine…

While looking out, Frisk wonders if they will ever be able to find Chara… The Sanctum is so large, there's no way they can find Chara alone… 'maybe CU-270 will help find Chara? He seemed to be getting along with them…'

Mindlessly, Frisk reaches up to grab for the pendant, but remembers that they don't know where it is…

They hop down from the window sill and head to their room to look for it.

As they enter their room, some almost unnoticeable movement, betrayed only by a faint glimmer, flashes in front of them.

Frisk decides that it must just be the magic in the Sanctum acting funny.

They check everywhere they can think to check in their room, but they don't find it.

One thing Frisk does notice, however, is that their Last Dreams are also missing now.

They have a feeling that maybe someone is taking things from them, but they don't know who.

For a moment, they think that maybe Sans took the Last Dreams… but they quickly dismiss that.

'Sans wouldn't take something from me without asking, right?'

Not wanting to give up, Frisk checks in the living room as well.

Frisk gives up after five minutes of searching the living room… 'maybe someone really did steal it when I was in the crowd…?'

Disappointed, but keeping hope that they'll find it someday, Frisk decides to find something to do around the apartment.

A knock at the door changes their plans.

Marceline comes out from her room to answer the door. "Ah, hello there Katsuro; please, come inside."

Frisk notices someone behind Katsuro, so they curb their enthusiasm.

Pointing behind himself, while walking in, Katsuro says, "ah, I also have Jeff with me. I thought it'd be a good idea to give you guys a tour of the Sanctum, that way Frisk is less likely to get lost when they run off to play."

Frisk sticks their tongue out at Katsuro, who replies in kind.

Marceline curtsies, "we meet again, hello Jeff. I think a tour would be perfect. I would be nice for Frisk to know where everything is. I was actually just about to ask about that…"

Jeff adjusts the spectacles sitting on his face and says, "ah, well, I would have given you a tour, but Kathryn broke my glasses 'on accident' a few weeks ago while performing a 'very serious and important science experiment' on them. Their project was to see if my glasses could be used to heat kernels to make popcorn; which caused the lenses to crack… Sorry, I'm just complaining instead of giving you the tour… Let me know when you're ready."

Marceline looks down at Frisk, who nods, "we are ready, lead the way."

Jeff nods and begins to depart, "I think it would be best to show you the school side of the Sanctum first."

Frisk, Marceline, and Katsuro follow Jeff to the elevator, which he has take them to the ground floor, then he takes them through the residences and back to the large domed area with the big tree in it.

Jeff then turns left to go to the northern door, which reads "Academy" in fancy curved letters on a plaque, with open books on the left and a quiver on the right carved into it.

The group can see that this hallway also leads to the large open field in the middle of the Sanctum.

After reaching a four-way intersection, Jeff stops and says, "to our left is the non-magic classes, aka the 'practical' classes, such as History, Math, Arts and Crafts, Herbology, Hippology -which is the study of horses-, and other such 'mundane' things. To our right are the magic classes, which currently have no practical use due to the lack of, well, magic."

Jeff clears his throat and continues, "anyway, there are classes for every colour of SOUL except red; If you have red in your SOUL, you are trained in one of the floating towers after you are done with the classes down here. It is usually advised to pick a general theme for how you want to use magic."

Marceline comments, "the last time I was here, they refused to let me take any magical classes; I just wanted to learn how to raise a zombie… Alas, they have no sense of adventure."

Jeff adjusts his glasses with a slight grimace, and tries to ignore what she said, "a-anyway. We will go through the practical classes first. The easier ones are kept on the lower levels, as they are generally safer to deal with, but harder classes are held progressively higher in the Sanctum. Oh, but classes that deal with heavy items are held on the lower levels for convenience. It is the opposite with magic classes, since you are expected to have superb control by the time you are taking advanced classes, and are expected to set everything on fire when you are just starting off; It is less likely for a magical fire to rapidly spread upwards if it is already at the top…"

Jeff continues talking… and Frisk doesn't pay much more attention. He clearly prefers the mundane classes over the magical ones.

All the rooms they see are basically the same, minus what and who is in them. A lot of the classes look interesting, but their presentation is rather bland and don't keep Frisk's attention.

Once at the top of the Sanctum, which houses the research-level rooms, Jeff stops the tour and says, "alright, I am pretty tired… and this level is just full of people researching to come up with new things for all the practical stuff you can learn; they probably won't want to be bothered. Kathryn is going to take over from here."

A small explosion is heard down the hall, followed by coughing, and a peculiarly cheery voice.

"Dammit! It was just supposed to be smoke! Ahem… Helloooo! I'm… well you already know my name. I am being forced against my-"

Jeff interrupts, "Kathryn… it can't be helped, you still have to make up for that."

The silence that dominates the hall makes Frisk curious as to what "that" is.

After clearing their throat, Kathryn replies, "yes well… still! Anyhow. Let's be off! We have a world of magic to explore…! Well, not literally, there's no… Whatever, you know what I mean."

With that, Kathryn turns around and waves for the party to follow. They wave goodbye to Jeff, who goes and sits down to rest, and then follow Kathryn.

In a matter of fact tone, that doesn't seem to fit them, Kathryn says, "now, in the Sanctum you must complete the practical classes before you can begin learning magic. So, it is only fitting that the lowest level classes are at the top; the low level classes are kept up high for safety as well. It was also symbolic of being allowed to use magic, as you are only allowed to use magic on the floor in which you are studying. So, by reaching the ground floor, you are essentially then allowed to use magic outside the Sanctum as well!"

They stop in front of a room marked "Intro to magic." Frisk takes a peek while Kathryn is explaining something they don't understand… it looks as boring as the other classes.

After a lengthy explanation, the group moves on… The next room they stop at is marked "Magic attuned materials." Kathryn really ramps up their ranting for this class, which Frisk also mostly ignores; Kathryn seems to really enjoy talking about this class, though.

Frisk isn't sure how bread and butter is involved, but it sounds tasty. Peeking in, Frisk can see all sorts of pretty rocks, gems, jewellery in various stages of completion, and a bunch of complex patterns on a chalkboard… Frisk feels like they don't quite look right, but they can't put their finger on it.

Moving on, the group goes through all the introductory classes for the different SOUL colours; Enchantment, Abjuration, Transmutation, Conjuration, Restoration, Divination, and Universal utility magic that can be used by everyone.

When they pass the Transmutation class, Frisk hears some girl chastise a boy about how he is pronouncing the verbal component of the spell they are learning, "… it's 'LeviOHsa,' not 'LeviohSAA!'" but it doesn't seem right, since the board clearly says, "pronounce 'adlevio' 'ad-lev-e-o' whilst performing the following gestures:"

Marceline seems somewhat bored with these magic classes, though Frisk expected her to be a bit more excited…

She responds to Frisk's curious face, "I expected there to be more chanting and darkly lit rooms… perhaps I should give them a chance, though?"

Frisk nods enthusiastically, because they would quite enjoy having their mother learn with them.

The group proceeds to the Intermediate classes, which have more interesting rooms. Unlike all the previous classes, the intermediate classrooms are shaped differently for each class.

Kathryn explains, "each classroom from here on out has its own layout and shape, this is to provide an optimal learning environment. You will notice now the Divination classes are like auditoriums, the Abjuration classes are like arenas, the Restoration classes are like laboratories, and so on."

Frisk is much more interested in these class rooms… They look nice. They can't wait till they can begin learning human magic!

As the group continues, they eventually reach the advanced classes. Though there are less rooms for the advanced classes, the rooms are at least two to three times larger than the other class rooms. Despite their larger size, however, there are barely anyone in the rooms.

Kathryn looks sad when they explain, "these classes are usually fairly empty, as most people decide that it isn't worth learning such advanced magic when we can't even use it; but a few learn it so that they can pass the knowledge on, in hopes that magic will return. Not to mention the classes are very difficult."

Frisk and the group are all tired now, thanks to all the walking, but it seems Kathryn still has places to show them.

Excitedly, Kathryn says, "alright, now for the best part of the tour! We are going to go into the technology department, and I am gonna show you the stuff you haven't already seen… namely, the Magi-tech side! That is where I work, it is pretty fun despite not having access to magic."

Walking… so much walking. Eventually the party gets to the Tech department in the eastern side of the Sanctum, and they take a few turns until they enter a somewhat hidden section. It is full of all sorts of cool/menacing looking, but obviously non-functional, pieces of tech that have "magical augments" attached to them. Like boots with yellow gems on the front, which Kathryn says are supposed to "give your feet a mind of their own, so you never trip," and a gold glove that has several different types of gems in it, which Kathryn calls the "Infinite Focus…" It doesn't look like it would actually work to help anyone focus, and is quite distracting.

Frisk is amazed by all the different kinds of stuff Kathryn has made, and wonders what would happen if they gave one of them a little bit of magic…

There is one item in particular that Frisk is actually willing to test that on, but it is under a glass case.

Upon Frisk approaching it, Kathryn exclaims, "ahh, so I see my magnum opus has caught your eye! That baby is probably the most advanced thing in here!"

It looks like a normal bag, so Frisk asks, "what is it supposed to do?"

Proudly, Kathryn walks up and pats the top of the glass, saying "this baby can hold SO much stuff! Not only that, it also wont feel like you're lugging it all around, and anything you want out of it will be right there on top when you reach in! No need to shuffle through messy pockets! I call it the 'Handybag of Holding!' I know, real original. I was having an off day with naming… The best name I've come up with is the gits-mo-gourgeinator-9000! The 9000 makes it sound like it's top of the line, but there could still be something better!"

Frisk decides that they would like to see if they can add magic to the bag, it seems the be the safest thing in the room… So they ask, "can I look closer at the bag? There is something I want to… see."

Kathryn thinks about it for a bit, then shrugs, "yea, I guess that'd be OK, just don't try anything funny!"

After taking the bag out of the case and gently handing it to Frisk, Kathryn waits with anticipation.

Frisk examines the bag and tries to find the magical patterns that make it work… but they can't see any.

So Frisk asks, "are you sure this is a magic bag? I don't see any patterns."

Expecting this question, Kathryn declares, "exactly! The patterns are actually woven into the bag! You won't be able to see them without either taking it apart, which you can't do, or magic…! Which… I don't think you can do? I heard they found the Red child, and that they did some magic, but no one knows their name! … You are the newest person in the Sanctum though, so who knows!"

Frisk opts out of saying anything, and focuses on the bag…

Kathryn comments, "if you were the Red child… I'd say that all the bag needs is some conjuration magic infused into the patterns, which is basically like telling the magic to stay where it is…"

Keeping that in mind… Frisk debates as to whether or not they should.

Ultimately, Frisk decides to give it a try. If it works, then they learned something new, if not… no harm done, right?

Frisk gathers some Perseverance magic within themself, which for humans is also called "Conjuration magic." They can't just send the magic into the bag, though, since the magic needs to stay inside the patterns; so they instruct it. 'Patterns, Find, Stay'

With their intent and their will made clear, Frisk focuses and sends their magic into the bag.

Purple glowing lines streak out from Frisk's hands and encase the bag, Kathryn looks on quietly with an excited expression, and the others wait expectantly…

It takes a lot longer than Frisk originally anticipated, and it turns out that they didn't use enough magic.

They can feel and "see" that the magic is moving throughout the patterns, but there are gaps.

Frisk puts more magic into the bag, and the gaps vanish. A flash of purple light emanates from the bag, and Frisk stops being able to "see" or feel their magic.

Disappointed, Frisk hands the bag back, "I tried to make it work, but I don't think I did it right…"

Kathryn takes the bag from Frisk gently, "well, lets test it to see. Even if it doesn't work, that doesn't mean it is your fault though! I made it without access to magic, so it is entirely theoretical."

Moving over to a counter, Kathryn uses one arm to hold the bag, and another arm to sweep all of the heavy looking tools into it.

They vanish without a trace, and don't seem to weight the bag down at all.

Ecstatic, Kathryn squeals and hops up and down before running over and giving Frisk a bear hug.

Frisk squirms and Kathryn remembers their manners… "sorry! I am just SO excited! Now to see if the other part works…! Uh, I am gonna do that… over there. Heheh. Stuff I make has a habit of exploding."

Katsuro takes a step back after Kathryn says that, then tugs on Marceline's sleeve to get her to join him. She opts out, not worried.

Kathryn thinks for a moment, then reaches into the bag and pulls out a screw driver. "AHA! ! IT WORKS! … kinda. Damn… I forgot to put a clause to help it distinguish between similar items. Thanks kiddo! I uh, promise I wont beg you to make all my other crazy experiments magical…!"

Marceline pats Frisk on their head, and says, "Frisk only has a limited amount of magic, so that would not be possible anyway. Best to save it for later, yes?"

Frisk nods in agreement.

Katsuro is not sure how to respond to the situation, "well, I can't say that I'm surprised Frisk has magic. In fact, I sorta figured, out of anyone, they'd be the one with magic… Good job, Frisky!"

Frisk grins mischievously at Katsuro, who responds with a worried smile.

He's pretty sure they are planning a magical prank now…

After Kathryn spends some time studying the bag, and enjoying pulling things out of it, Frisk notices that Kathryn's shadow flickers for the briefest of moments; at the same time, Kathryn's face looks briefly surprised.

They hide their surprised face with one of realization, put their bag in the display case again, temper their excitement, and say, "there is one last place we need to go, which I believe you have seen already. The large field in the center of the Sanctum. The rest of the Sanctum is just apartments, so we will not be touring that, but the field is great!"

Not even seeming slightly tired from all the walking, Kathryn guides the tired group out into the field.

Fortunately, there are some horses near the entrance to the field this time. Kathryn and Katsuro take one horse, and Marceline and Frisk take another.

They head to the western side of the field first, which has small greenhouses and lots of plants around it, including golden flowers.

While Kathryn explains stuff away, Frisk decides to wander around.

One flower in particular gets Frisk's attention. It's moving too much, and seems a bit too large.

They whisper, "(Flowey, is that you? I didn't think you'd actually follow me all the way here!)"

An annoyed huff comes from their right, "(Over here, idi… Frisk, that's just a flower. Of course I came, who else is going to stop you from killing yourself over and over again?)"

Embarrassed to be talking to a normal flower again, Frisk looks to Flowey and moves over to talk with him.

Squatting, so they are at eye level, Frisk whispers, "(I have some… bad news. Please don't be too angry…")

Squinting, Flowey replies, "(that depends…)"

Frisk is hesitant to speak, but eventually does, "(you… uh… You know that thing I had on my back?)"

Flowey nods gently.

Gulping, Frisk continues, "(that… that was a SOUL container and it … has Chara's SOUL in it…)"

Taken aback by the information, Flowey interrupts, almost too loudly, "wait, what!? You don't expect me to a-actually believe that, do you?! Do you think I'm some kind of idiot?!"

Frisk places their finger of their mouth and shushes him, "(shhshsh! That… That isn't the bad part… Someone in the Sanctum… stole them!)"

An angry and incredulous look spreads across Flowey's face, and he replies, "(Are you being serious, Frisk? You expect me to believe that not only is the SOUL Chara, but also that someone stole them from you?) What kind of IDIOT do you take me for?! Chara died a long time ago!"

His voice, slowly rising, is obviously shaky and upset from the information.

Shushing him again, Frisk says, "shhshshhh! (it's true, I swear! I need your help to find them, I'm too small to search the whole Sanctum…)"

Annoyed, but realizing that Frisk probably isn't lying, Flowey responds, "(I'll scour the entire Sanctum and make who ever stole them pay… but, if you are lying to me, you will regret it.)"

With that final statement, Flowey burrows away to start searching for Chara.

Marceline calls for Frisk, who gets up promptly, "coming!"

The party makes their way over to the East side of the field, where horses and other farm animals are being kept.

Frisk makes sure that every animal receives a pat, except the dog that is working; they are told not to pat the working dog, because it needs to focus on working. Frisk decides to come back and visit when the dog is not working, so they can give it a pat.

Kathryn explains, in their, now patented, matter-of-fact voice that still doesn't fit them, "This side of the field is where the animals are kept to be fed, it also has a path that leads right out to the Eastern fields so that they can eat up the clover and other left over bits when we rotate the fields. We also let them roam in here occasionally, so that the grass doesn't get too long. Pretty efficient."

One of the workers offers to let Frisk feed some of the animals by hand, and Frisk accepts with a strong nod.

They don't get to feed the dog, though, since it is still on duty. Frisk isn't sure what the dog is supposed to be doing, but it is doing a great job at it.

Once Frisk is done patting and feeding the animals, Kathryn looks over to the group and says, "well… the only other place left is the center of the field, where games and announcements are held; so there really isn't anything over there. You all look pretty beat, so I think that will conclude our tour."

Kathryn playfully punches Katsuro on the arm, "you are supposed to be a guard, don't look so tired from this little bit of walking!"

Katsuro sighs, and Frisk playfully offers, "I can bury you alive if you want, you'll sleep like the dead! Oh… but don't worry, I won't bury your head…! Completely."

Waving his hand dismissively, Katsuro responds, "no, no, that won't be needed. I just need to get off my feet for a while, I've been walking all day."

Marceline interjects, "come now, it is getting late. We should have had dinner a few hours ago," then turns to Kathryn and curtsies, "thank you for the tour, and please give Jeff our thanks as well."

Kathryn gives a toothy grin and says, "no problem! I bet Jeff nearly bored you to death though, so I'll get him to apologize. I should really be thanking Frisk here, though! Now I can run around and scare p-… hold all the tools I need for any situation, and get them easily! Well… mostly easily, I will have to put all the similar tools in holders so that I can get them all at once for the exact one I need…"

Frisk shrugs, made slightly uncomfortable by the praise. They don't really feel like they did all that much.

With the small encounter over, the group gets back on the horses and goes back to the southern exit of the open area.

Dinner can't come soon enough.

The trio, though tired, make their way back to the apartment. Katsuro flops himself onto the first poor couch that he gets close to, while Frisk opts to just lay on the floor directly in front of the door.

Marceline walks into the kitchen, and says, "come on, dinner won't cook itself. You don't expect me to do all the cooking, do you? You may find… surprises in your meal."

Katsuro, scared, frantically tries to get up off the couch, but ends up falling off the edge onto his butt instead. Once no longer on the couch, he goes and grabs Frisk by an arm, then tries to get Frisk to get up.

Groggily, as if they were asleep, Frisk responds, "nnnggh… let me rest for five more seconds."

Katsuro continues to pull on Frisk's arm, and eventually starts dragging them along on the polished stone floor. "c'mon Frisk! I don't want your mom putting frog eyes or fake bugs in my food again!"

With a mischievous smile, Frisk replies, "who said they were fake?"

Closing his eyes and doing his best to ignore the comment, Katsuro replies, "c'mon!"

Frisk, however, continues to lay there.

So Katsuro drags them all the way to the kitchen… It is fairly difficult, due to the awkward angle he has to squat at to pull them without hitting them with his feet.

:-:

Flowey does as he promises… He scours the entire Sanctum. Except the pesky floating towers.

Some of the rooms prove more difficult to get into than others, but he manages none-the-less.

Once in one of those harder to enter rooms, he finds the Skeletons that have made their homes there.

He is surprised, and annoyed. He hopes none of them are like Sans. Papyrus he can deal with, but that trashbag Sans is a pain. Last time he fought Sans, he couldn't even touch Sans' 20 HP; it was frustrating.

Thinking back on that experience, Flowey comments to himself… 'That guy has no right to have more than 1 HP! When did he get more?'

Flowey puts their thoughts on hold, as they evade discovery from a skeleton, and continue searching.

As far as Flowey can tell, the Humans don't even know that the Skeletons are here. 'Idiots…'

He makes his way through the hidden sections of the Sanctum, occasionally peering into the rooms inhabited by humans.

After several hours, night has fallen and he is almost ready to give up…

But he finds a room with something Red glowing in it.

Closer examination reveals it to be the SOUL they were looking for.

After looking around the room to make sure it is empty, Flowey approaches the container and wraps some vines around it. "(I finally found you. Do you have any clue how long it took me to find you… Look at me, talking to a SOUL like an idiot; I bet you can't even hear me.)"

A stern male voice behind him catches Flowey by surprise, "maybe not, but I can."

Flowey quickly turns around to see who it is, but by the time he does he's already trapped.

Squirming, Flowey starts yelling, no longer worried about being quite. "Let me go! If you don't, you'll regret it!"

The mystery person doesn't let him go, but instead Flowey finds himself becoming very… very…

very… sleepy…

"It's time, Chara. As I promised, I am going to help Asriel."
"But there is a catch. I have to help you too."
"Unfortunately, after this, I will have to depart. My time here is almost up."

"Stop lying, we both know what is really happening."

"Pardon…?"

"You are not just 'leaving.' You are being torn apart and put back together, are you not?"
"I've been practising this 'void sense' thing, and I can see the scars on you now."
"That is why you barely change, why you remember some things that you should not…"
"… remember if you really were from an alternate timeline. So just be honest."
"You are, and always have been, the CU-270, not one from an 'alternate timeline.'"

"… I guess you know my secret now. How I prevent myself from having too much DT."
"I really am from another timeline though, even though I am also tearing myself apart."
"Don't tell the others, though. I don't need them questioning me."

"… Fine."
"Oh, and at least say something before you leave. I was really annoyed when you vanished."

"… As you wish. I'm leaving now. I need to prepare."
"Someone will fetch you tomorrow."

:-:

Silence dominates the room as the older gentleman and CU-270 leave together, leaving Chara alone with their thoughts.

Chara decides to think about all the stuff they will talk with Frisk about. Like how invisible skeletons kidnapped them while they were getting out of the cart, or how there is a weird old man who married one of the skeletons and looks a lot like a vampire, or how they decided that they should rename the magical pendant from to magical pe. yes… lots of things to think about.

'At least Jerry left, that guy was annoying.'

:-:

Frisk prepares for bed. They, once again, take some time to appreciate the fact that they can get all clean.

Before they go to bed, Frisk and Marceline look out the window…

The view is still just as breath taking, even with the barrier shining threateningly in the distance.

After taking a generous amount of time to look outside, Marceline runs her hand through Frisk's hair and gently says, "don't stay up too late my little angel, you are going to start school tomorrow."

Frisk… is not entirely happy with that. They were hoping for private lessons.

They remember something, "oh, mom, I am supposed to go back to the red floaty tower tomorrow."

She is already gone.

Frisk turns back to the window gazes out at the night sky one last time… and notices large red cracks beginning to form on the barrier.