They were racing snails...
Or at least they were about to be.
There is a feeling of immense relief when he sees them. He'd been searching for them for nearly an hour now and he'd begun to panic- That it had been a trick, he'd given them exactly what they wanted in leaving them alone, that he would find a trail of dust-
But there they were...
Playing friends with the timid ghost.
The red eyes spot him as soon as he exits the shadows and immediately there was a strange glint reflecting off of them as they leaned over the side of the railing and the ghost hovered beside them.
They apparently felt better.
"Do you want to play?" They called out to him, a small smile on their face as that glint intensified.
"... is it a race?" Sans asked as he stepped in to stand next to them, pretending he wasn't recovering from a bout of panic. He eyed the snails in the enclosure then nodded in greeting to the ghost. "napstablook."
"o-oh. hellow sans." The ghost greeted back. "it is a race. it's called thundersnail."
"do we both chose a snail?"
"Nope." The 'Human' budded in. "Just one at a time."
"the snails will race, and if the yellow snail wins, you win." Napstablook continued for them. "it's 10g to play." Sans nodded evenly as he thought.
"okay, i'm game." He said, taking the gold out of his pocket. "gotta help support the local businesses."
"oh, th-thank you.. o-okay." Napstablook turned towards the snailed preparing to start the race. "be sure to repeatedly encourage your snail."
Encourage... huh?
That was more of a... Papyrus thing, Sans had to admit.
The red eyes gleamed as they watched him and Sans felt himself tense. They were already smiling victoriously.
"ready?" Napstablook asked.
There was no way Sans was losing to this demon.
3...
2...
1...
GO!
His snail was on fire.
It started off nicely enough. The snail trailing along with Sans' gentle encouragement, but then... It all went downhll the moment he told the snail she was going a good job and that he believed in her...
The snail just couldn't take it.
"come on, little bud." Sans began as the snail trailed behind.
He had tried his best to talk the snail up, but... with each thing he said, the snail just seemed to panic. And when he tried to be more energetic about it, like Papyrus would be, he...
The snail had stopped moving.
"hey, now, it's okay, bud, uh... you're not looking too good, but it's-"
The snail was shaking.
"oh come on, now, i know you can do it. you just gotta keep at it."
Failing. Miserably failing. The snail was collapsing in on itself with every word.
"don't give up, buddy..."
And that was that.
His snail was on fire...
How had it gone so wrong?
He'd thought he was doing well at first.
Everyone just... stared at the snail a moment.
"oh…."
Yeah, he knew it was bad, but Napstablook's drawn out surprise just drove it in harder.
"looks like you encouraged your snail too much…"
Sans. Sans, of all people, had encouraged his snail too much.
"all that pressure to succeed…. really got to her…" The ghost turned back to the snail in concern as she recovered. "oh…."
Sans lowered his head in shame.
What was even happening here?
"Can I try, Blook?"
Blook? Sans lifted his head. The 'Human' was that familiar with the ghost already? He'd been separated from them for an hour!
The ghost didn't seem surprised, though, as they looked from the 'Human' to the snail and back again.
"o-okay. 10g, please."
The 'Human' smiled as they handed the gold to the ghost. He wasn't sure how that worked. Did ghosts have ghost pockets? Then again he was a skeleton that breathed, that could sweat.
The 'Human' was still leaning over the rail as the snails set up for another go and it was clear right off that they were a lot better at this than Sans was. He watched them, noting how they didn't constantly try to encourage the snail, and when they did so, it was gentle and soothing. They definitely got farther than Sans did, but they must have been sorely out of practice...
"oh..." The ghost began sympathetically as the snail crossed the finish line last. The 'Human' was leaning back off the rail, their lips pressed together in a small pout. "you both tried your best but the snail looks discouraged."
Sans eyed the snail as it trudged back to its' starting place. He didn't know much about snails, but yeah, it looked a little worn down. Not very determined.
"her best wasn't good enough." Napstablook conceded.
Sans looked over to the 'Human', their jaw was set tightly and they were breathing in and out unevenly. A small fire was in those red eyes and Sans had to roll his own lights. At least their snail finished the race.
"Again." They said, taking out another 10g.
Sans sighed but watched them go at it again, admittedly curious and noting when they decided to encourage the snail and when they stayed silent. But still it was not enough, the snail slid across the finish line... second...
"your snail lost by a thin margin." Napstablook began, and Sans couldn't help but feel smug. "actually.. the snail is under the false belief that it won..." Wait- What?- "oh no... the snail is looking over here... here, i'll give you some money... act like you won.."
The 'Human' turned and gave the glowing snail a big smile and thumbs up as they pocketed the 30g. And Sans... Sans continued to stare...
They'd basically just taken his own money.
Sans turned towards the ghost, he thought he had a pretty good idea of how to work it now.
"i'll have another go." He offered.
"oh. okay. ready?" Sans nodded.
He'd channeled his inner Papyrus earlier, but this time he imitated the kid while also changing his pattern just a bit.
His smile was genuine and gloating as the snail crossed the line. First.
"heh." He let out as he turned to the other two. Take that, 'Human'.
"you won… congratulations. as a prize, you get 9G, sorry…" The ghost added quickly. "we have to make a profit somehow."
Sans stared in disbelief as he stood there with the money between his fingers. He heard the 'Human' stifle a small laugh.
"that's okay." Sans said as he pocketed it. He didn't look at the 'Human' who was smiling again. The weight of the experience was pressing down on him.
So… Even when they lose they win, and when he wins he loses. Was that not the story of his life?
"I think I better get going now, Blook." The 'Human' told the ghost as they jumped down off of the fence.
"oh. thank you for coming. it was nice to see you again." They nodded enthusiastically.
"Thank you for your hospitality and showing me your family tradition. I really needed it."
"o-of course. f-feel free to come by any time." They simply nodded again and waved with a big smile as they began to walk off. Sans nodded to Napstablook as well.
"see ya." Sans called as he followed after them. The 'Human' glanced back at him as he joined them on the road instead of hiding in the shadows like usual. They frowned a bit as the red eyes narrowed. But after having lost them for so long he wasn't about to risk it.
"so how was undyne?" He asked. "still alive i see."
Unfortunately.
Their frown deepened and they continued walking in silence, turning their back to him.
He hates them.
They stopped at the middle of the crossroads, their frown still incredibly grave as they lifted their hand and he saw them mouthing something softly to themself. He recognized the motion from before and the mouthed words-
Stay determined...
Their hand lowered and they turned away from Undyne's house, completely ignoring his now blatant presence in their life. He even followed them into Gerson's. The 'Human' eyed Sans as he did, suspicious and uncertain of what to make of it.. Sans only shrugged. It had been awhile since he had been in here.
It was kinda nice, actually, seeing everything, his traveling companion and circumstances aside.
"sup, gerson?" Sans asked as he entered behind the 'Human'. The red eyes flashed his way again, still suspicious... Guess he was messing up their expectations again. Good.
"Woah! Hey there. Long time no see!" The elderly turtle monster eyed the 'Human' beside Sans. He was leaning over the counter a bit shakily. "And just no see, I guess. WaHaHa!"
Sans was surprised to see the 'Human' smiling at Gerson. It wasn't their fake pretending to be friendly face. This one was not much unlike the one they had for MK. Almost real. But just almost.
"I've got some neat junk for sale." Gerson told them.
"i'm not here for anything, but the kiddo has some cash on 'em." The 'Human' nodded as they stepped up to the counter.
"Hey, what's this emblem?" They asked pointing to the wall behind Gerson. Sans almost frowned, not sure of what they were getting at with this conversation. He wasn't sure why they did anything though.
"Eh? You don't know what that is?" They shook their head. Gerson looked at Sans in disbelief. "What are they teaching kids in school nowadays?"
"don't know. i was goodly educated." Gerson rolled his still good eye, but he was also laughing as he turned back to the 'Human'.
"That's the Delta Rune, the emblem of our kingdom." Gerson began. "The Kingdom… of Monsters." Gerson laughed goodheartedly. Sans loved the old guy, he was always good for a laugh. "Great name, huh? It's as I always say… Ol' King Fluffybuns can't name for beans!" The 'Human' was laughing softly to themselves, Sans could see they agreed.
"What's it mean though?" They continued. Oh no… They were going to get Gerson talking on a history subject. This could be awhile. Or not if he couldn't remember. It was always hit or miss.
"That emblem actually predates written history. The original meaning has been lost to time…"
Sans sighed as he looked away absentmindedly. He knew how this story went… And he had a sick feeling he knew why the 'Human' was pressing this conversation. This was another round of their passive aggressive indirect conversation thing.
"All we know is that the triangles symbolize us monsters below, and the winged circle above symbolizes… Somethin' else." Sans gritted his teeth together. Yeah. Somethin' else. "Most people say it's the 'angel', from the prophecy…"
"The prophecy?" The 'Human' asked. The amusement and playfulness to their voice had disappeared. It sounded almost hollow now. As if, they had planned to steer this conversation to affect Sans and had forgotten how it would affect them in the process. Sans eyed them curiously. Their eyes had blanked out as they stared somewhere past Gerson but not directly onto the Delta Ruin.
"Oh yeah… The prophecy." Gerson continued. "Legend has it, an 'angel' who has seen the surface will descend from above and bring us freedom. Lately, the people have been taking a bleaker outlook…"
Both the 'Human' and Sans were looking towards the ground away from each other as he spoke.
"Callin' that winged circle the 'Angel of Death'. A harbinger of destruction, waitin' to 'free' us from this mortal realm…" Gerson finally seemed to catch on to the oppressive atmosphere the room had taken and eyed his two customers for a moment. "Well, in my opinion, when I see that little circle…" He began again more cheerfully. "I jus' think it looks neat!" He laughed loudly and seemed satisfied that the 'Human' had lifted their head to offer him a smile. It wasn't the almost real one from before though. It was a mask. Same as Sans' own as he watched them, his eyes dark.
"King Fluffybuns?" They nodded. "He's a friendly, happy-go-lucky kind of guy…" Sans had to agree with that. "If you keep walking around long enough, you'll probably meet him. He loves to walk around and talk to people."
He does sound kind." The 'human' said softly. Their smile widened. "Why the nickname?"
"Eh? Why do I call Dreemurr 'Fluffybuns?" They nodded again. "Oh! That's a great story…" Gerson paused. "…" Sans tilted his head curiously. "I don't remember it." Sans laughed. He loved this old guy. "But if you come back much later, I'm sure I'll have remembered by then."
"Okay." They promised. They began to turn away from him. "It was nice meeting you."
"Be careful out there, kid!" Gerson called back. "Undyne was just around here asking about somebody who looked like you. Watch your back now, and feel free to come around and buy some more items!"
"My inventory is a bit full." They admitted. "But if I need something I'll be sure to give you my business." Gerson laughed as they exited the shop. Sans sighed.
"welp. guess that's my cue to follow."
"Sans." The skeleton stopped and turned back to the old timer. "They seem like a good kid. Be a shame if somethin' happened to them." Sans stood there for a moment.
"you know what they are." Sans said, incredulous at his apparent concern.
"Son, I've given up on the surface a long time ago. We'll just end up dead anyways. Killin' to get there ain't going to help our cause none."
"well… not much we can do about that," Sans said after the silence had gone on for a bit too long, "it's up to the king isn't it?"
"Yes. I suppose it is." Gerson grumbled. Sans moved to exit the store.
"take care now." Gerson was laughing again.
"I'm not going anywhere." He replied obstinately. Sans chuckled. He hoped not. God, he so hoped not.
"see ya."
The 'Human' was at the box again, having changed into their glasses and holding the notebook to the side. He hadn't seen them use a weapon this whole time but he knew there had to be other perks they were utilizing.
"where to now, pal?" They glared at him over the top of the glasses before heading away from the store. Sans shrugged.
"There is only one way to reverse this spell." Sans turned towards the echo flowers as they repeated what someone had whispered under their breath as they'd read. "If a huge power, equivalent to seven human SOULs, attacks the barrier… It will be destroyed."
The 'Human' kept walking, ignoring the flowers and their whispered echoes, but Sans had to wonder about it... The 'Human' clearly believed the barrier could be broken. Well, he, Sans, knew that the barrier could be broken, and that they didn't need to die to do it. But he just had to wonder... how?
"But this cursed place has no entrances or exits. There is no way a human could come here. We will remain trapped down here forever."
Well… Sans had some news for whoever had written out these plaques… but he could relate to the sentiment..
The 'Human' continued only a little ways farther before being stopped in a FIGHT.
It was a Tem.
Less than two minutes later Sans was laughing harder than he had in so long. Sooo long.
With each "pet" the 'human' was growing more and more frustrated. No matter how much they tried to act cheerful, their face revealed all, and the way their eyes were watering. They were miserable and agitated. And it was just too much. The entire thing. They spared Temmie and Sans tried to stop laughing.
"oh come on! weren't you having fun?" He asked. They were storming away from him, but having a difficult time of it as they struggled to breathe from their allergic reaction. Sans didn't quite get how allergies felt but it seemed to have a lingering effect on them. And his smile only widened…. They were heading towards the entire village full of Tems.
He had to see this. He just had to see this!
This was the most honest he had seen them on the road since meeting them. They were utterly frustrated and Sans was reveling in it.
"hOI! im temmie! and dis is my friend… temmie!" They were pressing their lips together as all the Tems introduced themselves. The human eyed Sans as he remained chuckling at their plight. Suddenly the 'Human' was smiling a bit as they stepped over to the last Tem.
"Hi. I'm Bob."
Sans snorted…. He didn't have a nose. But he didn't have lungs either so guess that didn't exactly matter.
The 'Human' bypassed him and stood next to yet another box but did not open it, their hand reaching out through the air and they were mouthing to themselves.
"stay detemined." Sans whispered. Their head snapped towards him, their eyes pointed through the lense of the glasses as they stared him down. His smile widened. They moved to the box but then turned to him.
"Get over here and make yourself useful." They ordered.
"nah." They grumbled under their breath as they picked out items from the box. They entered the Tem store, hands a bit too full, and Sans followed.
It was endless. It was hilarious. And the human hated every second of it, but worked the system as well as possible without exploding. He was honestly almost impressed they were keeping it together as well as they were.
"come on now, don't be so heartless. look how hard temmie here is working, won't you throw her a bone? she just wants a good education."
The human was staring at him extremely straight-faced. Without looking they took out their money bag and Sans stared in shock as they poured the contents onto the counter.
If laughter added years to one's life…
But as it was, Sans was dying. It was all too much.
The 'human' had to lower their head onto the counter at one point as Sans struggled to breath. At first he thought it was out of continued frustration, but in the corner of his eye he caught sight of the shutter running through them as they tried not to laugh along. It was like a cold blanket being thrown over him. His laughter died as it weighed him down.
He'd walked right into it. He'd given them exactly what they wanted.
He'd played along.
Sans straightened his back and cleared his throat as he killed the laughter with new ease. The 'Human' lifted their head as Temmie continued to badger them about buying and selling items, but they kept casting glances Sans' way, immediately noticing his change in disposition. A frown graced their face as Sans refused to laugh anymore.
Good.
The 'Human' huffed loudly beside him as they made their way out of the shop and back to the box. From over their shoulder Sans could see that they had nearly emptied it out now. There was a piece of pie, the stick from earlier, what appeared to be a spider donut, those Nice Creams, and Pap's spaghetti. They returned the Nice Cream and Pap's spaghetti to their inventory.
"man, you sure cleaned house." He said darkly. They nodded somberly. "Gerson was right though, you're gonna need more healing items than that." They shrugged.
"I've got the money." They whispered. "and I've got a bit more in my inventory still… Not that you actually care." Their voice was low and even. Sans shrugged. True. Very true. They saved again and Sans watched, barely managing not to make another comment.
"You're not so original, you know." They said suddenly, their voice a bit biting. "I always made that Tem joke with..."
Their lips pressed together. Sans filled in the blanks.
With Frisk…
Actually, Sans had some questions about all that. For all that he had heard about Frisk, had felt about Frisk, he still had no clue who Frisk actually was and what they looked like. He'd ask but… That would key the human in that he cared about something in all of this and they could use it against him. He'd already given them enough recently. And besides… He didn't think they'd want to talk about it anyways. So would asking them questions about it be the right way for Sans to go? Maybe… But Sans was also afraid of what they'd answer.
They eyed the shop sadly over their shoulder and he could see it on their face…
Frisk would have loved all of that.
Why did… this hurt?
He hated this… He hated them…
He was tense as they turned away from him and he trailed behind them as they left the Tem Village. They stopped in the darkness.
"Can you… pretend to leave me alone for a bit?" They asked.
"what, don't like the company? thought you wanted me to come along?" They were silent for a second.
"I want Woshua to get these Temmie hairs off of me, I might not get attacked if you're here. And after that I don't think you want Undyne seeing you with me." Sans hummed. Yeah that was probably not the best.
"fine. but just know i really do have my eye socket on you." They nodded and he let them walk away alone. He teleported into the shadows; thankful to have the chance to get away from them for a while. He let himself shutter and relax with a loud sigh.
They didn't do much. They found Woshua like they had said and then walked around Waterfall silently much like they had before running into MK. It was extremely tedious turning on all of the lights to keep walking a few more meters. This was all nice but Sans was growing impatient with it, and he wasn't even the one doing all of the walking.
And now they were forced to walk through water in almost complete darkness to continue. He didn't have much sympathy here, to be assured, but it was growing a bit ridiculous as the 'human' came to a halt and he watched them from a small patch of grass-
"Behind you."
Sans froze on the spot knowing that voice. It had come from an echo flower but light was returning to the area to reveal Undyne. It'd been a trap. There was no way out.
But Sans now knew to not assume anything anymore.
"Seven. Seven human souls." Sans watched curiously as Undyne spoke. The 'human' had a serious expression as they stared Undyne down. They almost looked determined. "With the power of seven human souls, our king…. King Asgore Dreemurr…. Will become a god."
The 'human' was scowling now, and from where he was he could tell something had stirred within them at the sound of that name. The determination was real as the anger worked its way through their body.
"With that power, Asgore can finally shatter the barrier. He will finally take the surface back from humanity and give them back the suffering and pain that we have endured." The 'human's' fingers were curling in and out of fists as they gritted their teeth together and their chest noticeably moved up and down.
The fire inside of them was heating up once again. Sans wasn't sure what was stoking it though. They weren't surprised by Undyne's appearance, and they should have heard these words so many times before….
"Understand, human?" Undyne continued. "This is your only chance at redemption."
The 'Human' looked down sharply, the anger and determination cut off in an instant.
"Give up your soul... Or I'll tear it from your body."
The 'Human' forced their gaze up again, their expression daring Undyne to act and Undyne seemed to take it to heart. She summoned a spear and crouched in anticipation of the attack. The 'Human' didn't even flinch. Undyne rushed forward and Sans saw the wisps of magic around their chest as their Soul was called forth.
And yet- Something moved besides Sans and he would have jumped out of his skin as a blur of yellow bounded out from right there beside him.
"Undyne! I'll help you fight!"
The red eyes closed and they breathed out in clear relief, but once they opened again it was as if they hadn't reacted at all, keeping the same fierce expression on Undyne as MK stood between them. Sans shouldn't have even been surprised by this point… MK looked extremely confused as they looked back and forth, their eyes searching. Then they turned to the 'human'.
"Yo! You did it!" MK exclaimed. The 'Human 's' fierce expression was falling away again and they seemed pained as MK continued to speak. "Undyne is RIGHT in front of you! You've got front row seats to her fight!"
That was certainly one way to put it.
This kid was just too much. So innocent and oblivious. Somehow, Sans could see similar thoughts running through the 'human's' head, it was as if they couldn't understand it. MK was looking back and forth again. Undyne hadn't moved the entire time, spear still raised. The 'human's' expression was twisting into a strange smile; they seemed on the verge of laughing, traces of tears at the corner of their eyes as they held it in.
"…wait… Who's she fighting?" MK asked. Undyne snapped into motion. She took MK by the ear and began to pull them away from the 'human' quickly, to safety. "H-hey!" MK protested, but gave up quickly in trying to get her to let them go. "You aren't gonna tell my parents about this, are you?"
As soon as Undyne and MK disappeared the 'human' broke out into a strange, strangled laughter. They fell back against the wall and struggle to breathe as they covered their mouth.
"You aren't gonna tell my parents about this, are you?" The echo flower beside them repeated. They lowered their hand and took a deep breath as they rested their head against the wall.
"Uughh…" They let out.
"you seemed a bit relieved there." Sans called out suddenly from his place in the grass and they did jump out of their skin.
They were springing to their feet; a very strong curse word coming out of their mouth. They settled down before taking a fully defensive stance. They lifted their fist and shook it beside them as they controlled themself.
"wow. language." Sans said as he stepped out of the grass. "better not catch you talkin' to my brother like that." He warned darkly.
"You startled me!" They shot back. "I always said you needed a bell…"
"yeah. no. doesn't sound like me." He said as he came to a halt.
"That's the point. You don't sound like anything." They countered. They seemed to relax and the confrontational aura around them disappeared as they eyed him cautiously. "Thanks for not… sabotaging me." They mumbled, looking away from him, crossing their arms. Sans tilted his head in confusion. "I was afraid you'd sent them home." Oh. MK.
"you really think they'd have listened?" Sans asked. They laughed a bit and shook their head as they took a step forward.
"No, but you could have taken them back." They admitted. Sans hadn't thought about that… Oh well. It was behind them all now.
"that was some brave act for someone unsure the cavalry would be coming." They shrugged weakly. "you know you can make all those faces you want, but you can't hide the truth from yourself. you can't hide it from me." They were smiling. It was cruel, their eyes disquieting as they tilted their head towards him.
"Well what do you want from me?" They asked with fake playfulness. "For me to shiver in fear?"
"can't say i'm entirely opposed to it." He told them.
"A little help would be nice." They snapped.
This again.
"what? a weak skeleton like me going up against the head of the royal guard? nah… i'll pass."
"You're so full of shit." They said as they glared at him. Then they sighed. "But no… like… keeping me from getting hit. Somehow." They trailed off uncertainly.
"still see no incentives…" Sans told them. Their anger was returning but they were storming away from him.
"Whatever." They grumbled.
...
..
.
"… Hmm… If I say my wish… You promise you won't laugh at me?"
The 'Human's' anger had washed out of them the longer they had trailed through the water. Sans couldn't see their full expression, only in profile, but he could tell.. It was in their stance and how they looked upwards towards the stone sky..
"Of course I won't laugh!"
"Someday, I'd like to climb this mountain we're all buried under. Standing under the sky, looking at the world all around… That's my wish."
There was the sound of laughter echoing and the 'Human' looked down silently at their open hands.
"... Hey, you said you wouldn't laugh!"
The 'Human's' fingers curled together, the red eyes closing.
"Sorry, it's just funny… That's my wish, too."
"Frisk..." It was low, hardly a whisper, but one of the echo flowers caught it.
"Frisk." It repeated back.
The 'Human' lifted their head in surprise as the other echo flowers began to follow, catching the word and echoing it around the area. The word overlapped, louder and louder.
Sans' grim smile was gone and he felt struck, something in his would-be-stomach. The 'Human's' expression as they looked out over the field was clear horror.
The chorus began to teeter out and The 'Human' was left breathing in and out alone, they looked pale. They took a small step forward, as carefully as possible, but still it was too much and the movement of the water shook one of the echo flowers.
"Frisk." It repeated.
"Frisk." Said another.
Frisk. Frisk. Frisk.
The red eyes closed and they covered their face with their hands as they leaned forward in pain.
Sans took a thoughtless step forward, it hurt, but he caught himself.
That's just a past emotion. As real as the voice of the echo flowers. Someone else felt it, not him. Some other Sans for someone else. Not them. Not the red eyes. For-
Sans froze even more in his place.
"Frisk." An echo flower whispered beside him.
These feelings, looking at them like this, were the same that he felt for Frisk. They were his feelings for Frisk.
Sans' mind was working fast, trying to understand- if he could understand..
They were Frisk- No, that didn't make sense. No, but...
Oh...
Oh.
There was another thought that Sans hadn't had before. All this time grieving, their admitting- Frisk was dead, they had killed them... A RESET would have fixed that, should have fixed that. Unless-
The 'Human' lowered their hands and Sans slowly lifted his head in realization, his eye sockets wide as the lights shrunk to horrified pin pricks.
Those red eyes… They always looked like they didn't belong on their face. Those little flashes of Sans caring, of those short bursts of intense pain and grief. . All those times they were acting like someone else. Looked like someone else.
"Despite everything… it's still…."
"Frisk." The echo flowers whispered together.
The kid in the pictures… That wasn't this thing, not the red eyes, it was Frisk.
It's not a memory, just a feeling, just knowing. Sans knew it. He was right.
Sans was numb as he watched them walk quickly away now, almost a run..
A demon... A demon possessing the body of an angel.
Sans was numb as he watched them walk out over the bridge, his fingers resting on the faded, torn picture in his pocket and the locket underneath-
"Yo!"
Sans watched MK get dangerously close to the 'Human', this demon.
"Yo, I know I'm not supposed to be here, but..." MK seemed uncharacteristically nervous. "I wanna ask you something. Man, I've never had to ask anyone this before... Um... Yo... You're human, right? Haha."
The Demon was giving MK a sad expression.
"Man! I knew it!... Well, I know it now, I mean... Undyne told me, um, 'stay away from that human'. So, like, um... I guess that makes us enemies or something. But I kinda stink at that, haha."
The Demon's head fell.
"I kinda stink at being friends." They admitted softly. MK seemed caught off guard but then swallowed.
"Well then, uh, it should be easy? Yo, say something mean so I can hate you?" The Demon was grimacing, shaking their head. "Please?"
"No."
"Yo, what?" MK asked in surprise. "So I have to do it?" MK sighed. "Here goes nothing…" MK took a deep breath. "Yo, I… I hate your guts." There was a moment of awkward silence. "Man, I… I'm such a turd."
The Demon was not looking up, Sans was starting to worry even more acutely-
Something was off about them.
Something more than usual.
"I'm… I'm gonna go home now." MK said, taking a step back hesitantly before turning around and started to rush off. They only made it a few steps before staggering and falling off the ledge. "Yo, w-w-wait! Help! I tripped!"
Sans jumped, searching frantically for a place to teleport closer. The kid was being held up by the fabric of their shirt caught onto the wood. The Demon was tense... but unmoving.. Just letting their so called 'friend' hang there dangerously! But then Sans caught sight of what was making them hesitate, movement in the corner of his vision... Undyne had come into view. Sans found a precarious ledge to stand on and he watched the scene anxiously.
Finally, The Demon was running forward, but at the same time, Undyne made an uncertain motion, half wanting to lunge at The Demon and half certain it was a trap- The Demon froze, flinching, just as uncertain by the movement-
"I'm slip-" MK began and The Demon turned their attention back to MK in terror at the sound of ripping fabric. The Demon fell forward and caught hold of MK's torso. The two were dangling dangerously over the ledge. They were both slipping-
The Demon gasped loudly-
"SANS!"
The sound of his name echoed through the cavern, shrill and frantic, as the two kids began to fall-
Sans jumped, his hand shooting out quickly to turn MK's soul Blue. In one swift motion the two of them were back up on the ledge. The Red Eyed Demon was holding MK tightly, and there was a short moment as they both caught their breath..
"A-A-Are you okay?" The Demon demanded with short breath. MK was shaking, but nodded.
"Y-Yeah."
Undyne was looking around the cavern in confusion and Sans cringed even as a rang of other emotions fought for dominance. Oh man, she knew he was there, but Undyne was returning her attention to the situation on the bridge. The Demon looked up in fear. MK was jumping up, though, the situation apparent, finally, clicking into place in the child's mind. The Demon was picking themself up and taking a weak step back as MK stood in front of them protectively.
"Y… Y… Yo… dude. If… If y-you wanna hurt my friend… You're gonna have to get through me, first." Sans had never seen Undyne so thrown off guard. She took a step back and stared at the young monster. Then she was backing up farther and turning away.
And Sans was still frozen on his precarious ledge, still struggling to understand.
MK turned back towards the Demon.
"She's gone…" The Demon nodded, they still hadn't caught their breath. "Yo, you really saved my skin."
"But I didn't!" They cried, breathlessly. "I h-hesitated to act. We were going to fall!" They were looking around the cavern, Sans knew they were searching for him and it set his rage ignite. "I... I messed up...!"
Yeah... He bet they did.
"Well, I messed up being enemies." MK offered. "Guess it was just a nice thought, haha."
The Demon was holding their head.
"We'll just have to be friends instead. See? You're not actually so bad at it after all."
"You don't understand. You just really don't understand!" MK was watching them sadly.
"...Well... I sort of need to get home. I bet my parents are worried sick about me." The Demon was lifting their head and nodded slowly. "So... I guess... See you later?"
"Y-Yeah.. Later..."
MK was racing away, more careful this time and The Demon stood, clearly still distraught as they began to back away. Once they were off the bridge they stopped and seemed to be trying to collect themself. Even from a distance, Sans could see that they were still shaking.
Teleporting from his precarious position, Sans stood in front of them, the anger radiating off of them.
"i don't appreciate being used like that, red." He said dangerously. They lifted their head in apparent confusion. "oh don't give me that face." He snapped. "forcing my hand into getting involved like that, right after you asked me for help? such a real coincidence." He continued sarcastically. "is this just another game? risking that kid's life to get back at me?"
"You think I did that on purpose?!" They demanded, lifting themself off of their knees and leaning in towards him dangerously. When he didn't respond their eyes widened in anger. "I didn't!" They shouted. "I didn't mean for that to happen!"
Sans tilted his head, not believing it at all, and they could see he didn't, but what else was he supposed to think? They were just so angry at him. It was rolling off of them. They shook their head and began to storm off once more, but then they stopped in hesitation. They seemed to lean forward but then coward back, they looked sick to their stomach.
"scared to go die for real, kid?" He asked mockingly. They looked back over their shoulder, fear still in their expression. The red eyes then hardened as they turned away from him.
"I'm not afraid of death..."
"sure ya ain't." The Demon had been shaking their head as he spoke.
"I've never been afraid of dying." They told him. "I'm..." The resolve broke quickly and they had to swallow. "I'm afraid of failing.."
They were looking at their hands again. Those dark brown hands that weren't theirs.
"How can I face them?" They whispered. "It's all my fault and if I fail..."
The fingers curled together again into fists.
"Even at their lowest they could always pull through. But... In the end, they always were more determined than me."
They looked sad and weighted down as they lowered their hands and stared at the wall.
"You said I better hope my anger was enough... And you're not wrong.. Anger. Spite. They seem to be my go to for determination." They shook their head lightly. "They were always slow, patient, and they'd do anything forever to get what they wanted. I just lash out and keep going until my anger either wins or runs out... All those times I killed everyone..."
There was a blaze of memory in their gaze as they placed a hand on their chest.
"I'd died for this! Why weren't they all willing to do the same? I came back when they called! When I was determined, why couldn't they just back me up? See what all of it meant and agree? Why hadn't he just backed up up?!" They turned towards Sans, their hand shooting out towards him. "Why can't you just back me up?!"
They sighed, their head falling as they crossed their arms, hugging themself.
"... I know why... I was wrong. I had it all wrong and then I did it again not even a timeline ago. So... How can I ask you for help? How can I expect anyone to come?"
Their face was masked in darkness..
"Frisk should have just Erased me... That first time I called... They should have just taken back their Soul and left me to the Void.. But they Saved me. After all I did. To them. To everyone. They chose Mercy and were determined to get us to the surface. To let us heal..." They looked up finally, meeting Sans' gaze with tears refusing to fall as they clung to the sides of those red eyes. "They were just too good, Sans..."
They've said the same thing before, Sans remembers, about Papyrus...
"And they loved you more than life itself." Sans couldn't help but not the touch of accusation that laced their voice, but it is short lived. The red eyes closed and they lowered their head again in shame. "So no... I'm not afraid of dying..." Their voice was growing stronger despite the tears in their eyes. "I'm afraid you all will be stuck down here and I'll have taken everything from them."
There was a pause...
"I know I don't deserve it... And I know you've been beaten down too many times to count... but... please... If you have any inclination about them. If you feel anything. Do it for them, or... even just for yourself."
There was true conviction in their voice but then... it faltered again.
"I don't think my best… will be good enough." They continued looking away from him towards the ground, but their focus was too distant. "Because it's never been good enough before."
Sans has to watch them for a moment, trying to pinpoint where he had recently heard something similar…
"i think you best get movin' along..." Sans said finally. "undyne's not the patient type."
The Demon... The Red Eyes... sighed... but they did not explode like he had anticipated... but he supposed.. they knew he was going to refuse them again. Yet they'd still asked. He didn't get them. It was... frustrating... The Red Eyes uncrossed their arms and turned away from him.
"I'll just have to prove us wrong." They said as they walked away. Sans saw their fingers curling back into fists. "Because then... I'll be finally proving Frisk right."