Disclaimer: I do not own Undertale.

Iterations

Cave-in Part 2

"Papyrus."

He jumped. He had been working in silence since his confession and Frisk had respected his need. Undyne's strong voice was enough to startle him. He faced the armored monster.

"YES, UNDYNE?"

"You've been here all day. Go home. Get some rest."

He glanced at the collapsed tunnel behind him. "BUT–"

"But nothing. That's an order," she spoke firmly.

His gaze flicked over to his brother, shoveling dirt by hand. "I'LL REST LATER. WHEN SANS TAKES A BREAK."

"He'll be fine."

"BUT HE JUST GOT BACK. HE MUST BE TIRED."

She sighed in exasperation. "Believe me, Papyrus. I tried. He said he rested between trips."

"...ALRIGHT."

"Good man," she said, clapping him on the shoulder. "I'll let him know you're leaving."

"ACTUALLY, DO YOU MIND IF I TOLD HIM MYSELF?"

"Of course not," she replied understandingly.

She walked off, returning to where she was needed without another look back.

Sans could see his brother approach from the corner of his eye-socket. Using his weight to stab the shovel into the ground, he turned to fully face Papyrus.

"hey, bro," he said, leaning against his shovel. "sup?"

He was immediately scooped up, hugged with almost crushing force. Sans frowned and pushed away slightly so he could look at his brother. "pap? you okay?"

His only answer was an unconvincing nod as he was placed back onto his feet.

"c'mon now. you can tell me," he pressed.

"IT'S NOTHING. I'M JUST...," he floundered for an excuse. "TIRED."

He did not believe him. But he hoped his brother would come to him if it became more than he could handle. The smile that he forced onto his face was only marginally reassuring. "hmm... you've been working hard, haven't you? maybe you should head home. i can take it from here."

"YES, I WAS ABOUT TO LEAVE. UNDYNE DISMISSED ME FOR THE DAY. I JUST WANTED TO CHECK ON YOU FIRST."

Sans grinned up at him, genuinely glad that his brother was going to get some rest. "thanks, bro. you're the best."

It was concerning how Papyrus did not puff up from the praise as he always did. He hoped it was just the exhaustion from working a full day. For the first time ever, the brothers found themselves in an awkward silence. The conversation left off on a point neither knew how to continue from. Open-ended enough that Papyrus could not just take his leave, but with a tone that was laced with a feeling of finality. It was not until Frisk peeked out from the inside of Papyrus' shirt that Sans was able to force himself into action. At a loss of what to do, he reverted to his typical tactic. Humor. Specifically self-deprecating humor.

"guess they're finally getting these lazybones of mine to work," he remarked jokingly. "does volunteer work have legally required breaks?"

There was no appalled, foot-stomping blow-up from Papyrus. Instead, he was met with heavy silence and a stillness in his brother's posture that he had never seen before.

He did not know how to deal with this reserved, serious Papyrus who could barely keep eye contact with him.

"PLEASE DON'T SAY THAT," he said, voice cracking.

"wha–?"

Papyrus finally looked up, eye-sockets filled with tears. "THAT YOU'RE LAZY. PLEASE DON'T SAY THAT EVER AGAIN..."

He blinked, surprised. Confused and concerned, he scrambled to calm his brother. He reached out an arm, wanting to place a hand on his shoulder but uncertain if it would make things worse. "a-alright. it's okay. i understand. no more calling myself lazy."

He shook his head and insisted, "NO MORE LETTING ANYONE CALL YOU LAZY. NOT EVEN ME!"

He hesitated, taken aback, before continuing to appease him. "okay. i've got it, okay? no one. i promise."

Papyrus nodded and took a deep, shuddering breath, finally seeming to calm down. Sans waited until his breathing returned to normal and he wiped his tears on his red scarf. He tugged him down so he could hug him properly, wishing– not for the first time– that he was taller than his brother like when they were just kids. His brother promptly went to his knees so he could hug his fully. Neither moved until he had recovered completely.

"so, you want to tell me what all that was about?"

"I ALREADY TOLD YOU. I'M JUST TIRED."

"right. sorry i'm such a numbsku–" He cut himself off, uncertain how he would take another negative comment directed at himself. He started again. "i mean... sorry. i forgot. you should get home. get some rest."

Papyrus pulled away from Sans' hold with reluctance and stood. "YOU'RE RIGHT. I'M GOING TO GO AND... DO... THAT."

A nod.

"DO YOU THINK YOU CAN TAKE..." He looked meaningfully down into his shirt.

"sure."

Papyrus' whisper-yelled into his shirt. "TAKE CARE OF HIM, OKAY?"

A quick glance around told him that nobody else had heard. Satisfied, he wisely pretended he had not heard what he said either.

Papyrus quickly slipped the little soul into his hand before departing. He called on his magic, teleporting the little odds and ends in his pocket to their home before placing her inside. He deliberately ignored the nausea that accompanied the action. If he was having trouble moving such a small amount, he definitely was out of commission for at least a few days. But it did not matter. Frisk had taken care of his brother all day. The least he could do was make sure she was comfortable in a clean pocket.

He could feel her concern seeping into him.

"he'll be fine, kid," he murmured reassuringly. "he just needs a moment alone. he'll get some rest. make some puzzles. help some people. then he'll be back to normal. don't worry about it."

She nuzzled into him worriedly.

He had worked well into the night, Frisk keeping him motivated with her constant stream of inspiring feelings and determination. They tunnel had been cleared and reinforced. The survivors had been attended to by the unit Undyne had been working on forming since they had been run into the ground. The dust of the dead had been taken by other volunteers who would give them the best funerals possible. It was difficult when so many could not be recognized from clothing alone. While not ideal, the tunnels were crowded enough. They would be begin making settlements for monsters in the unstable tunnel tomorrow. Giving a tired wave to Undyne as he left, Sans began the walk home.

A/N: A bit shorter than usual again, I think. But it gets me to where I need to be. In retrospect, this may have done better as part of the last chapter. Some good stuff happened and next chapter you get to find out who joins our little group. Yay! They won't be as close as our little trio but maybe they can be in the future, yeah? Sans' "treasures," on the other hand, still won't appear in the next chapter. They shall be appearing soon. Do keep guessing if it amuses you. It certainly amuses me.

All these little ones need hugs. Give them some?

I hope this relatively quick update shows that I'm serious about being better and being back to my usual updating shenanigans.

As always, thanks for reading.

Until next time friendlies,

Dfsemina