The first thing his mind registered was darkness, so thick that his eyelights struggled to penetrate it, so dense that he failed to see anything else through it. It seemed to fill his skull and his eyesockets, filling him with a vast emptiness that was all too familiar. Void. A shudder wracked his skeletal frame as he groped blindly, hands grasping at his sweat-soaked t-shirt, scratching over his ribs that lie just beneath it. 'It's just a dream. Just a dream, just a dream...' Were his eyes even open? He couldn't tell. He shakily got to his feet, feeling along the floor and walls for the lightswitch. It flicked uselessly once, twice, thrice; still no light. Cursing under his breath, Sans felt blindly for his door and, once found, he wrenched the doorknob and pulled it open, only to be greeted with a rush of cold, numbness.

"Why were you not able to save us, Sans?" a voice asked, and Sans let out a sharp breath, whispering to himself over and over that it was a dream, as if the words were a sacred mantra. "Toriel, Undyne, Alphys, Asgore, Papyrus... Their dust is on your hands..."

"No, it's gone. Chara, you fuck, you're gone! No more resets, no more games..." A high-pitched, manic giggle filled the air, and suddenly Sans found himself pressed against the wall roughly, a shimmering blade pressed to his cervical vertebrae, and red light flooded his vision. A cruel yet pleased smile was all he could see now.

"But are you so certain? My soul was trapped underground, but now, with the barrier broken, maybe I'm out, waiting for the opportune moment to strike... Maybe I'll possess your beloved brother!" Blue filled his vision as his soul rejected the very idea, violently, the harsh light-blue light flaring up in waves.

"You stay the fuck away from him." Sans' voice was heavy, suddenly much deeper, more menacing, and he shoved Chara back so forcibly that their body bounced uselessly off of the far wall, crumbling to the floor in a heap. "I'm not gonna let you hurt anyone ever again!" Blinded by rage and pain, he stormed forward, grabbing the striped sweater roughly and jerking it upward. His eyesockets widened as watery brown eyes looked up at him, pleadingly, imploring. "F-...Frisk...?" The child reached out for him, arms trembling weakly, then they fell limp, their red heart-shaped soul shattering into tiny pieces. "No..."

"How could you do this...? How could you? My child... My precious Frisk..." Toriel's sobbing voice filled his head, and suddenly there she was, clutching the child's broken, battered body to her chest. Their blood stained her violet and cream-colored dress, her body wracked with sobs.

"Tori, I... I didn't..."

"Why... Why did you kill him, Sans?"
"Why didn't you save us, Sans?"
"Why couldn't you free us, Sans?"
"Why couldn't you protect him, Sans?"
"Sans... Sans... Sans, Sans, Sans, Sans Sans Sans SansSansSanssanssanssanssanssans-

"-ns?"
"...Sans?"
"... Sans!"

Tired eyesockets shot open and Sans felt his soul thrumming nervously within his chest, magic coursing roughly through his bones, left eye aglow as he prepared to defend himself. Papyrus was shaking him, knelt at the side of his messy mattress, a grin spread wide on his face. He looked eager for something...

"What is it, Pap?" he drawled, managing to keep the tremor out of his voice from the nightmare he'd just had. The larger skeleton clapped his gloved hands gleefully, waving his hands and gesturing wildly as he spoke.

"IT HAS SNOWED, BROTHER! YOU SHOULD SEE IT! IT LOOKS SO MUCH LIKE SNOWDIN!" Ah, of course his childish enthusiasm had to be about something so simple. Sans couldn't help but smile fondly up at him, covering his mouth as he released a wide yawn.

"'s great, Pap. Are you gonna go over to Frisk's house and see if they wanna go on out and play?" Papyrus raised a browbone, then huffed, putting his gloved hands on his hipbones.

"YOU WILL BE GOING OUT WITH ME, SANS! GET DRESSED IN SOMETHING WARM AND MEET ME DOWNSTAIRS! YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES!" With that he hopped up and all but stormed out of the room, closing the door a tad too roughly behind him, but it was out of excitement, rather than anger. Sans groaned, raising a hand to scratch at the back of his skull. It didn't seem like he had an overabundance of choice in the matter. As much as he wanted to just crawl back into bed under the warmth of his numerous sheets and blankets, he had a brother to please. He rolled over to the edge of his mattress and pushed himself up, stalking over to his closet and pulling out his warmest, puffiest, fluffiest coat, which he eagerly put on. He also slipped on a pair of insulated black jeans over his usual track pants, and two pairs of socks. Turning to the door, he paused, then grabbed a pair of blue gloves and beanie before heading out the door.

Papyrus looked pleased when his eyes fell on his brother, descending the stairs toward him and dragging his fluffy slipper-covered feat. His eyesockets narrowed at this.

"SANS, IT'S COLD OUT! YOU SHOULD WEAR SOME MORE PROPER FOOTWEAR," he pressed, to which Sans simply shrugged. Papyrus rolled his eyes. "FINE. BUT I DON'T WANT TO HEAR YOU COMPLAINING WHEN YOUR FEET GET COLD!" He pushed the front door open and bristled slightly at the cold wind that blew into the warmth of their apartment, shivering. He'd even gone so far as to bundle up, putting on a specially tailored coat on top of his battle body, and snow pants (because, if you're going out in the snow, you have to wear snow pants, he reasoned).

The walk to Toriel's house wasn't too terribly long, but the closer they got, the more Papyrus' steps slowed, until he and Sans were practically walking at the same pace. He looked down at his brother, wringing his gloved hands nervously, and Sans shot up a reassuring smile. "Don't worry so much, bro." The simple words weren't much, but he saw the stress around his brother's eyesockets lessen slightly, and he considered that a victory. "Hey, look, there's the kid." Papyrus turned his head to see where his tiny human friend resided, only to meet a face full of snow. The sound he made was less than dignified, and he flailed his arms a bit as he lost his footing. He sputtered and raised a hand to wipe away the cold snow, clearing his vision to reveal a giggling Frisk hiding behind a snow bank.

"TINY HUMAN! YOU SHALL PAY FOR THAT CHEAP SHOT!"

He was already back to his usual self. Sans much preferred when his voice was boisterous and overflowing with its usual confidence, he decided, and as he watched the two of them run off to play, he pulled his phone from his pocket.

| Sans: * snow big deal if you decide not to show today, but papyrus and the kid are excited about it. |

He waited for a moment, to see if a message would be returned, but when it didn't, he shrugged a bit, shoving his phone back into his pocket and strolling toward the house. He kicked the snow off of his already damp slippers and opened the front door, slipping them off his feet once he was inside. He didn't feel cold as much as most other monsters did, but it felt really nice to be back into the warmth again regardless. "Yo, Tori!" he called, wanting to make sure his presence was known, and Toriel poked her head around the corner from the kitchen, smiling.

"Oh, hello Sans! I am surprised your brother managed to get you out of bed so early in the afternoon!" she teased, and Sans chuckled. "Have you heard anything from Lena this morning?" The question was asked easily enough, but there was a hint of concern laced through her tone that Sans wasn't entirely pleased with. He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head subtly. "Oh, I see... I sent her a message earlier this morning, but I had assumed that perhaps she was simply sleeping in." So he wasn't the only one worried about the human not coming back. (Did he just admit to himself he was worried about that? Jeez, what was up with that?) "Well, at any rate, I am sure she will show up when she can. She said she would, afterall!"

"Yeah, 'm sure," he muttered simply, eyes darting to the window when he heard a small thud. Snow was sliding down the glass slowly, and he chuckled at the sheepish grin both Papyrus and Frisk gave as Toriel shot them a warning glance. The expression turned to one of mild concern, and Sans felt his eyesockets narrow as he saw Papyrus scramble to hide behind a snow drift, cowering behind it as a vehicle pulled up. "Looks like she's here." He slipped on his soggy slippers again and walked back outside, hands deep in his pockets. He pulled one out to give a small wave as Lena climbed out of her car, smiling apologetically.

"I'm so sorry I'm late!" Sans idly thinks that they hadn't set a specific time, but says nothing about it. She closes her car door with her hip, her hands full holding a large thermos and a plastic container filled with...someting, he couldn't tell what. Frisk eagerly rushed over to her, signing frantically and throwing their arms around her waist in a hug. She smiled and lowered one arm to rub her forearm affectionately against the top of their head, giggling when Frisk's hair began to stand up from the static. "Hello, Frisk! Is your mother inside?" They nodded and she smiled, heading toward the door. Seeing Sans, her smile widened. "Hey. Sorry I'm late." He shrugged, a lazy grin pulling up at his face. "Where's Papyrus...?" she asked, glancing around, and it wasn't until a whimper drew her attention that she noticed the top of the tall skeleton's skull sticking just above the top of the snow drift. Sans stood back watching as she carefully stepped around the large pile of snow, kneeling down in front of the massive skeleton curled in on himself, no doubt getting the knees of her jeans wet. "...Papyrus?"

He seemed reluctant to look up, but when he did, the amount of uncertainty in his expression nearly broke her heart. "...I did not mean to..." he mumbled, his voice so incredibly small and so unlike himself that it startled even Sans. Lena frowned, brows furrowing, and she reached a hand out to rest on top of one of his.

"I know, it's okay. I... It just hurts, that's all. There are a lot of people who say those things and do mean it to hurt me. My heart has a hard time telling the difference sometimes..." Papyrus blinked down at her (he was so much larger that, even sitting, with her kneeling down, he still towered over her), browbones furrowing.

"Then... YOU DO NOT HATE ME, HUMAN?" he asked carefully, hope practically weaved into his words, and Lena looked surprised.

"What? Of course not! I couldn't hate you, Papyrus!" Her lips pulled up into a large, reassuring smile as she held one of his snow-soaked gloves in between both of her hands. The faintest tendrils of green reached out from her chest, invisible to everyone but Sans, who stood by the front door watching, eyesockets widened. They reached out for Papyrus, just barely brushing against the front of his coat, where his soul lay underneath, and suddenly his brother's face erupted into a bright smile. Large bony arms threw themselves around the human, picking her up off the ground as he stood and hugging her tightly.

"THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS GRATEFUL FOR YOUR FORGIVENESS, HUMAN! LATER WE SHALL PARTAKE OF SOME FRINENDSHIP SPAGHETTI, IN CELEBRATION OF OUR NEWFOUND FRIENDSHIP!" He paused then, glancing down, the faintest bit uncertain. "WE ARE FRIENDS... AREN'T WE?" Lena nodded, smiling, and Papyrus spun her around a few times before setting her down, setting a large hand on her shoulder as she nearly lost her balance. "SANS! THE HUMAN WISHES TO BE FRIENDS!" Then suddenly there were eyes on Sans, and he shrugged his shoulders, huffing a small laugh, trying to appear indifferent, but his mouth was curved up into a large smile.

"That's cool, bro." He closed his eyes and returned his hands to his pockets, absentmindedly tracing the tips of his bony fingers across his phone's edges, and when he cracked one eye open, he caught Frisk giving him a strange look. Their hands worked slowly as they signed to him.

'You were trying to see her soul.'

He felt his cheekbones flush warmly and he immediately pulled up the fuzzy hood of his parka. He really had been, hadn't he? Souls weren't just something you happened to see by accident. You had to really try to look at them. He was more adept at seeing souls than most monsters, sure, but it still took effort. Then Frisk picking the green game piece for her the previous night suddenly made sense.

It had looked green, like a pale mint color, but those were just the tendrils of aura. For all he knew, it could be olive green, or emerald green, or grassy green, or-

He shook his head firmly. 'Why am I trying to picture her soul?' Carefully dropping into a sitting position on the front step, a heavy sigh slipped past his clenched teeth, raising a gloved hand to reach into his hood and rub at the back of his skull. Humans were precarious, and multi-faceted. They can appear to be the nicest people on the surface, but could be hiding an ugliness and evil just beneath the paper-thin layer that is their kind facade. There had been enough times where humans had proven this to him to be true, that they could not be trusted. Frisk was..special. There weren't many other humans like them. 'I just don't want them to get hurt again.' His eyelights glanced over to where Frisk and Papyrus were gathering up large armfuls of snow, trying to build a snowman.

Suddenly, his soul peaked, and he moved before he could register his body was moving, effortlessly dodging a snowball he hadn't been aware was headed his way. His left eye glowed a faint light blue, and when he looked up to find the source of the 'attack', he saw Lena, looking surprised for an instant, a nervous smile overtaking her features.

"I guess I missed..." she said, giving a small, uneasy laugh. "You said we were going to have a snowball fight, right?" His guard slowly lowered back to its normal levels, and he chuckled, shrugging his shoulders slightly and rolling his neck.

"Yeah. Was waitin' for you to make the first move. But now that you have..." He closed his eyesockets, pulling one hand from his pocket and slowly raising it above his head. Balls of snow began to form, surrounded by a blue, ethereal glow. When he opened his eyes again, his right eyesocket was completely devoid of light, and his left burned with a fiery blue blaze. "It's game on."

The snowball war (far too brutal to be called a simple 'fight', Papyrus had insisted) was much less a team versus team affair and more like a free-for-all. Sans had the clear advantage with his magic, and though Frisk and Lena had fought valiantly, they were quickly overcome. They were currently laying flat on their backs in the snow, chests heaving for breath, every exhale leaving little clouds in front of their mouths that evaporated after a second. Papyrus was trying to repair his snow-Papyrus, mumbling about where its head had gone. Sans, far less physically exhausted, sat easily on the front step, a glint of amusement in his eyesockets as he looked over his fallen companions.

"It was snow competition, really."

"SANS, DO NOT START!" Papyrus barked, trying his hardest to fight the smile off of his face before his brother could notice. He failed.

"It was an ice effort, but in the end-"

"SAAANS!" his brother groaned, and Sans chuckled to himself, grinning. Lena pushed herself to sit up, shaking the snow from her hair, which had long since fallen out of her pigtails and was hanging freely around her face. She shivered, crawling across the snowy front yard and reaching for her thermos she'd brought with her.

"Maybe we should head in and warm up. I brought hot chocolate and cookies!" Frisk sat bolt upright at that, clambering to their feet and tugging on the woman's wrist, pointing toward the house. She laughed and nodded eagerly, struggling the slightest bit to get to her feet.

"I SUPPOSE WE SHOULD. WE DO NOT WANT OUR HUMAN FRIENDS TO FREEZE. ...WHAT IS... HOT CHOCOLATE?" The way Lena looked at him was as if he suddenly had three heads, and Sans snorted as she reached out and grabbed the taller skeleton's wrist, pulling him along.

"We have to remedy this, immediately. I can't believe you've never had hot chocolate!" Sans got to his feet easily and pushed the front door open, kicking off his slippers and shrugging off his heavy parka. Toriel, hearing the door open, bustled in, frowning at the ragged appearance of the two humans.

"Oh, my child, you are soaked to the bone!" She didn't realize her accidental pun until Sans snickered, and she giggled behind her hand. "Pardon me. Please, come in, come in! Frisk, go to your room and change into warm clothes at once. Lena, I do not believe I have anything that will fit you... I am quite tall," she chuckled, and Lena shook her head quickly.

"No, I'm alright, really. Um, here," she said, hesitantly holding out the thermos and container, which Toriel took eagerly. "I made hot chocolate and cookies, if you all want some?" The statement sounded more like a question, and the queen shifted to hold both items in one hand, settling a heavy paw on the human's shoulder and giving a warm smile.

"Thank you! It is most generous of you to share like this. Go, take off your coats, all of you, and I shall get us some mugs!" Papyrus stripped off his coat and gloves and boots, stacking them neatly by the door and pausing to set his brother's things more nicely as well, and Lena followed suit. They were eventually all sat in the living room, Papyrus and a now dryly clothed Frisk on one loveseat, and Sans and Lena on the other across the coffee table.

"SO, HUMAN, WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO BE MOVING?" Papyrus asked, and the human frowned slightly, mulling the question over.

"Well... I already have my things all packed. It's just a matter of when the apartment is ready, I guess-"

"Which will be tomorrow morning!" Toriel entered the room in a flourish, elegantly setting a tray full of mugs of steaming hot chocolate and a large plate of cookies on the coffee table. Frisk eagerly leaned in and snatched a cookie, stuffing it into their mouth, and Toriel scolded them lightly.

"R-really? Wow... Well, then, I guess I can move tomorrow..." Papyrus carefully picked up one of the mugs (which looked tiny in his large, skeletal hands) and took a tentative sip, eyesockets widening almost comically as a grin practically split his skull in two.

"WOWIE, THIS HOT CHOCOLATE IS INCREDIBLE! BROTHER, YOU MUST TRY SOME!" he looked over at his brother, who huffed a laugh, grabbing one of the mugs and taking a swig. He hadn't expected it to be quite so hot, but it was good... Not as good as ketchup, but good. "HUMAN, WE WILL MOVE YOU IN TOMORROW, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!" Lena gave a small, nervous laugh, eyes flicking over to Sans for a half a second before she quickly picked up her own mug, sipping it idly.

"I don't want to bother you guys, if you have better things to do tomorrow... I can move in myself."

"NONSENSE! FRIENDS HELP FRIENDS MOVE, RIGHT?" He glanced around the small circle of people, looking for confirmation.

"Right, bro," Sans said simply, giving a lazy grin. "Much as I'd rather sleep in, helpin' friends is what we do." The words had let themselves out before he really thought them over, and he winced inwardly, wondering if he was speaking too soon to call her a friend. The brilliant smile on her face made it a little harder to worry about that, though, and he quickly looked away, raising his mug to take another drink.

"Thank you so much! I... Wow, heh, I ... I'll find some way to make it up to you!"

Sitting so close, Sans could feel...something pulling at his soul. It was warm, and comforting, and he hated to admit it, but he found himself relaxing in spite of himself. He could see Frisk raising their eyebrows at him from across the coffee table, a mischievous smile pulling at their lips, and he pointedly ignored them. They began signing something to Toriel, who nodded eagerly, smiling as brightly as the sun.

"Yes, my child, what a splendid idea! Lena, my dear, we would like to throw you a 'housewarming' party, if you would be alright with that! This weekend is already almost over, but perhaps this following weekend, we could. That would give you time to get settled and whatnot." Lena felt her heart flutter in excitement, her cheeks hurting with how widely she was smiling. These monsters- these people, they made her feel so welcome and cared for... The pure, genuine happiness she felt was radiating from within her soul, and Frisk flicked their eyes toward Sans as they noticed it.

"That sounds...wonderful. Yes. Yes, thank you so much! I'd love that!"