[[ Ayyyy Brit here with another update. I've got a couple things that I wanna say before we really get into things, so sorry for the longer-than-usual Author's Note.
First of all, I just broke 100 followers on this fic's Tumblr! I'm thinking about doing something special for it, maybe an art stream (not that I haven't already done several), or writing a special fic. I'm not sure what you guys would want, though, as the Readers of this piece. SO HEY! Pop over onto my tumblr (life-sans-sin dot tumblr dot com) and lemme know! Leave me an ask with "100 Follows" and your idea! I want to hear from you guys on this, so don't be shy!
Second, as I've already mentioned and should be kinda obvious, the end is drawing near. I'm aiming for the end of 'Act 1' of With and Without to be around Chapter 50, and that, BY NO MEANS, means that the fic is ending yet. I've already got a lot planned for Act 2, and I'm gonna ride this horse for as long as it'll carry me. If there's anything special you'd like to see in the fic, find me on Tumblr and let me know! I'm dying to know what sort of shenanigans you guys can come up with for our characters here to get into.
With that all said and done now, here's Chapter 48. Enjoy! ]]
There was something special to be said about the nightmares he experienced that night. They were farther and fewer between than the usual, and, unlike those run-of-the-mill terrors, these were far more…vague. Instead of having Chara's glaringly bright blood-red gaze waiting for him as soon as his consciousness left him, he instead was left wandering endless hallways in the dark. Familiar voices would echo down the corridor, but they were too faded for him to properly place. Some of them had him searching endlessly for his human, and there were times where he could see her just ahead of him but, no matter how loudly he called or how quickly he ran, he just couldn't catch up to her. A few times he woke up, his hands reaching out as if trying to grab her. He didn't even need to open his eyes for the reassurance to come, like a warm, steady wave coming from the gentle pulsing of her soul next to his, within his. She felt so safe, and it was hard to be afraid when she was so sure, laying so peacefully in his arms.
Eventually morning came, though, and, for whatever reason, he awoke. There was the familiar banging of cookware coming from the kitchen that told him Papyrus was already up and about, no doubt making breakfast for them. Or lunch. He didn't know what time it was, but he wouldn't have been surprised if it was after noon. He'd used a great deal of magic, as well as having been emotionally and mentally exhausted. His arms twitched slightly around Lena's waist as he fully roused himself from sleep, jaw nearly unhinging as he opened his mouth in a wide yawn. The little flickering beads of light within his eye sockets were still blurred from sleep, but they brightened and became sharper quickly as he realized that they were not alone. A foreign, very human pair of arms were wrapped around his human's waist, but despite the small part of his mind that told him to panic, he didn't. Her soul was thrumming peacefully, calmly, trusting the souls surrounding it. He forced his gaze to focus and couldn't contain the short chuckle as he spotted the familiarly short hair peeking out just behind Lena's wavy mass of hair.
'Heh, guess I can't blame her…' He sat up slowly, disentangling his limbs from Lena's. She gave a small grunt and tried to tighten her hold, but, after he pulled himself away a bit more, she turned over to bury her face into the pillow next to Brit's. He wanted to feel jealous but, for some reason, couldn't. With a small sigh he moved to get up, bones creaking slightly as he stretched his legs. A sudden grasp on his wrist startled him from his movements, and he turned back to look at the once sleeping humans to find one of them awake. Heavily lidded green eyes stared back at him, Brit's brow's furrowing slightly as if thinking over something difficult. Her gaze softened then, giving his wrist a small squeeze before she withdrew her hand, curling her longer body around Lena's form as she closed her eyes, obviously trying to return to sleep.
Sans sat upright and watched the two humans closely for a moment, eye-lights flickering slightly as they cuddled closely together. He wanted nothing more than to return to that, maybe join in and bask in that closeness for a while. Hell, he might even take a nap with them, despite having just woken up. …but no, he had something that he needed to do first. With the sounds from the kitchen guiding him, he pulled himself from bed and moved to put his hands in his pockets, only to remember he'd taken his jacket off, leaving him to run his hands oddly against his sides. He gave his skull a small shake, trying to jostle his mind a little to wake himself up. His jacket was hanging over the edge of the dresser, though he couldn't remember how it'd gotten there. He's fairly certain that he'd dropped it on the floor…maybe Papyrus had come in at one point and put it there? 'It's even folded…' he mused as he picked up the article of clothing, shaking it out briefly before slipping it on with a practiced ease. He immediately nuzzled into the fur lining of his hood, his hands moving to rest in his pockets.
He absolutely was not stalling.
…Alright, maybe he was a little. Not that he expected Papyrus to do anything else but forgive him for his awful behavior, but something about having to face how he'd been was leaving him feeling a little rattled. A sigh hissed past his teeth and he left the bedroom as quietly as possible, not wanting to disturb the slumbering humans behind him. Once the door clicked shut softly he headed into the living room, pausing just outside the kitchen doorway. Papyrus was wearing that frilly MTT-brand apron, complete with disgustingly hot-pink hearts and ruffles and a picture of Mettaton's face, and matching oven mitts instead of his usual gloves. He stood at the stove, his back turned to Sans and his hips giving a little wiggle as he stirred a bowl of what looked like batter. He was humming an upbeat little diddy that was so Papyrus, it brought a smile to Sans' face.
"OH, SANS!" Shit, when had Papyrus actually turned and seen him standing there? Sans started the slightest bit at suddenly being called, but his expression was as easy as it always was. "GOOD MORNING BROTHER! I HOPE THAT YOU SLEPT WELL… I WILL BE MAKING PANCAKES SHAPED LIKE LITTLE BEAR FACES AS THE HUMAN BRIT SHOWED ME!" The older of the two chuckled and stepped around to stand by his brother's side, smile coming more easily.
"Yeah? I can bearly wait." He saw Papyrus' brow bone twitch slightly, the mitt-covered grip on the mixing spoon tightening the smallest bit, but otherwise got no reaction. "I'd offer to help, but that'd end up being a pretty grizzly experience. Ursa-mazing though, bro, so I'm sure they'll turn out pawsitively perfect if polar the one in charge-" Snap! The end of the wooden spoon went flying off toward the sink. Sans fought to hold back his snickering as he glanced up and saw that Papyrus' eye sockets were open wide, obviously surprised that the spoon had broken. The shorter skeleton began to say something else but was quickly cut off.
"SO! BROTHER! DO YOU HAVE SOMETHING YOU WISH TO SAY TO ME? …Perhaps something of utmost importance?" He lowered his voice at the end after hearing an aggravated groan come from the bedroom Sans had just left. Brit doesn't take to being woken up as kindly as Lena did, as Papyrus too easily remembered now. Sans chuckled and gave a weak shrug of his shoulders.
"Yeah, actually. I was hoping you wouldn't fly off the handle-"
"SANS…" Papyrus' tone was warning, and Sans gave a snort of laughter.
"Alright, alright. I… Look, I wanted to say that… I'm sorry." The taller skeleton made a small confused sound, but Sans ignored it, pulling one hand out of his pocket to rub the back of his skull. "For, y'know. The other night. I was…well, you were right. And 'm sorry for saying what I did."
"...OH."
"...oh?" Sans raised a brow bone and glanced up at his brother, who looked as surprised as he'd sounded. He set the bowl down on the counter top and turned to gather Sans up in a hug, lifting the shorter skeleton off the ground and swinging him around.
"SANS, YOU BONEHEAD, I HAD ALREADY FORGIVEN YOU FOR THAT! THERE REALLY IS NO NEED TO APOLOGIZE, THOUGH I APPRECIATE IT!" He set Sans back down until his slippers touched the linoleum and pat the top of his skull with one Mettaton-mitt-covered hand. Sans ducked his head the slightest bit, grin spread wide across his face as relief flooded him.
"Sweet. Awesome. You really are the coolest, bro." Papyrus turned back to the stove, grabbing a ladle and scooping out some of the pancake batter to pour onto the ready and waiting skillet. Sans used his magic to pull down one of the coffee mugs in the top cabinet (really, Lena couldn't reach that high, why are they up so high?) and turning to prepare the coffee maker.
"...SO…There is nothing else that you wish to tell me?" Sans made a small questioning hum, not turning away from his task as he lazily measured out heaping spoonfulls of coffee grounds into the filter. "YOU KNOW- ahem. I mean, something that, perhaps, might have happened that…you would like to tell your dearest brother? Maybe?"
"Hmm…dunno, bro. Can't think of anythin' off the top of my head."
"NYEH- are you certain? There is nothing at all involving yourself and the human Lena that you want to tell me? Nothing at all?" Papyrus began fidgeting at the stove, constantly glancing between the skillet and Sans who was staring at the coffee machine with a too-wide grin.
"...You seem awfully energetic this morning, huh bro-"
"OH FOR THE LOVE OF ASGORE, JUST TELL ME ALREADY!" The taller skeleton was stomping his foot in a childish manner, his oven mitt-clad hands clenched into fists, and it was so familiar and nostalgic-feeling that Sans couldn't help the loud snort of laughter it pulled from him. Papyrus made small distressed 'nyeh' sounds as he waited, staring at his brother expectantly and hopefully. After a long moment, Sans made a show of taking a deep breath, getting ready to speak.
"...that pancake's gonna burn if you don't flip it, bro," he said, grin practically reaching shit-eating levels as he gestured vaguely toward the stove.
"SANS!"
"Oh, and I uh…may or may not have bonded last night. No big deal- oomf!" Sans felt the air being knocked out of the lungs he didn't have as he found himself suddenly pulled into a near bone-crushing hug, the happiness radiating off of his brother in waves. A small blue flush rose to his cheekbones and he pat Papyrus on the back, chuckling.
"NYEH HEH HEH! I KNEW IT! OHHH, SANS, I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU! HOW DID IT HAPPEN? DID YOU MAKE SURE TO MAKE IT AS ROMANTIC AS IT SAID IN THE DATING HANDBOOK? DO YOU NEED TO RE-READ IT? SURELY YOU NEED THE ASSISTANCE SINCE YOU HAVE NOW TAKEN YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO SUCH A NEW LEVEL!"
Sans was spared the embarrassing questions by the sound of a door opening, and both pairs of eye sockets moved to glance over at the now open bedroom door and the two humans standing there. "Oh, uh, good morning…" Lena greeted sleepily, her freckled cheeks turning a faint shade of rose pink at the absolutely adoring expression on Sans' face…and the overwhelmingly excited one coming from the taller skeleton. The lazy grunt coming from behind her pulled her focus back to Brit, who was draped across Lena's shoulders. "Heheh, she's not really awake yet… Um, do you need help with breakfast?" Papyrus set his brother down again and turned back to the stove, quickly grabbing the spatula to flip over the pancake. It wasn't quite burned, but close enough that it made him frown in disappointment. He had to pay more attention from now on…but how was he supposed to do that when this was going on?!
"Mornin' babe. You uh…feeling alright?" Sans asked, shuffling his feet across the floor as he approached the humans. Lena smiled and leaned down the slightest bit to press a kiss between his eye sockets, giggling quietly at the way his eye-lights flickered to look like he was going cross-eyed. "Heheh, yeah. I, uh…yeah." He gave a bashful grin and reached out to lace their fingers together. A small, high-pitched sound pulled them from their little daydreamy state and they both glanced up to see Papyrus standing in the kitchen, his back to the stove, looking at them with the most eager expression on his face. The Mettaton oven mitts were clasped in front of his face, eye sockets wide and sparkling. "Uhhh… Pap?" The large skeleton shifted his weight from foot to foot in little hops, doing a little 'happy dance' in the kitchen before he forced himself to turn back to tend to the pancakes.
It didn't take long for breakfast to be ready, and Papyrus expertly balanced ridiculously high stacks of pancakes to the dining table. Sans and Lena had barely gone a minute without touching in some way (a brush of hands, him brushing her hair behind her ear, her reaching out to scratch at the base of his skull the way she knew he liked, etc.) and it was only after a particularly grumpily mumbling Brit dragged herself to sit at the table that everyone decided to follow suit. Papyrus took his seat at the head of the table, opposite of Brit, and Lena sat next to her, leaving Sans between her and his brother. Before anyone could even get a word in edgewise the grouchy human stabbed her fork into one of the looming stacks of pancakes, throwing four of them onto the auburn haired woman's plate. Lena frowned slightly in confusion and glanced over at her friend, but any possible protests she might have had died on her tongue at the exhausted and downright pissy expression she found there.
It was one of those mornings where trying to insist she didn't need to eat so much was obviously a bad idea…so, instead, she made a show of reaching for the butter and syrup that had already been placed in the center of the table. Brit huffed a humorless laugh and reached a hand out to rest on the back of Lena's hand, thumb rubbing small, soothing circles on her skin. "Good girl…" The small mumbled praise went almost completely unheard, but the other human's face lit up regardless, and Sans couldn't help the amused smile that twitched upward at the corners of his mouth. Brit got herself a heaping plateful of pancakes and drowned them in syrup as the brothers helped themselves to some as well, the atmosphere quiet but peaceful.
"Des pfancaykse arr gud Papae!" The tall skeleton frowned as the human across from him spoke with her mouth full.
"HUMAN BRIT, PLEASE DO NOT SPEAK WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL. IT IS RUDE, AND MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE SAYING…" With a roll of her eyes, Brit made an obnoxiously obvious show of swallowing what was in her mouth before she tried again, setting her fork down only momentarily so she could grab the glass of water set before her on the table.
"I said that these pancakes are good! Maybe sometime I'll teach you how to make buttermilk pancakes from scratch. It's not that much harder, and they taste sooooooo much better. Like an orgasm for your mouth."
"NYEH? … THAT SOUNDS…MESSY. IS THAT REALLY NECESSARY?"
Everyone else at the table snorted back laughter while Papyrus glanced around at them, confused as to what was so funny.
"It's just an expression, Pappy," Lena offered helpfully, sending him a patient smile before looking back down at her plate to take another healthy-sized bite. She chewed and swallowed before she spoke again, using her fork to cut up the rest of her pancakes into easily stabbed bite-size pieces. "It just means that they're really, really good." He seemed placated by this, because his smile had returned and he resumed eating.
"OH, GOOD! I WAS AFRAID ITS MEANING WAS MORE LITERAL. THAT WOULD MAKE FOR AN AWKWARDLY LOUD BREAKFAST."
Sans nearly choked on his pancakes as he fell into a fit of laughter, wheezing while Lena, red in the face, smacked his shoulder and Brit waggled her eyebrows at the two of them.
"Anyway!" Lena interjected, trying to cut through Sans' wheezing giggles and snickering. "Papyrus, do you have any plans for today?"
"AH, YES, ACTUALLY! LADY TORIEL WISHES TO SPEAK WITH ALL OF US."Sans' laughter slowly died off and he sat up, his smile still in place but a bit strained. "SHE IS GATHERING EVERYONE, I BELIEVE. I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS SHE WISHES TO DISCUSS, BUT IT APPEARS TO BE VERY IMPORTANT…"
"Yeah… It is. Very important." His speaking apparently caught Papyrus off guard, because he gave a small, questioning mumble of his brother's name before the other continued. "There's some stuff that I gotta get out in the open, and it's…heh, tibia honest, it's not great." The younger brother did not even react much to the obvious skeleton pun. Sans stuffed his hands into his pockets and shrugged his shoulders. "But it's time to patella the truth." He felt a soft hand slip into his pocket to grasp at his own bony hand he laced their fingers together easily, giving the hand a reassuring squeeze. "It can't wait anymore."
The tension the room held wasn't suffocating, but it was enough to let everyone know it was there, a driving force that reminded Sans of his predicament and gently pushed him into action. 'I can't afford not to care anymore…' Those were words he had spoken once, but he had no idea how much truer they'd come to be. With pancakes devoured and dishes set in the sink for later, the two skeletons and one human waited patiently for Lena to lock up her apartment before they all took off, beginning the short walk toward Toriel's apartment.
Footsteps echo faintly down the long and winding corridors, the air holding that familiarly stale taste that it held Underground. A bob of brown hair just barely manages to disappear around a corner, the stone wall beginning to crumble from the centuries since it had been built. "Frisk! Come back!" The pads of Toriel's feet smacked gently against the stone floor as she took chase, following after the child. Where were they going? Why were they still Underground? Could…all of their life on the Surface really been…just a dream? As she rounded the corner she stopped, giving her head a firm shake that sent her long ears flying. 'No! I must find Frisk. Everything else can wait for later…' Just as she began to follow, the room around her shifted and warped, like the space around her were being pulled through a narrow tube. Her head spun and she blinked, but the room was gone. Instead she found herself in a long hallway, seemingly endless. No doors or windows marred the wall's flat surface. It was all a dull and flat gray, the color having bled out of her surroundings. A figure standing just a few yards ahead of her caught her attention and she smiled, relieved.
"Frisk!" she called out…but no sound escaped her. She couldn't hear her own voice, couldn't hear anything except for a soft white-noise, like running water, or static. Whether they heard her or not, she didn't know, but Frisk immediately took off running again, the very instant she moved toward them. She chased, running as fast as she could…but for every step she took, they were five steps ahead. 'Frisk, please! Stop! Where are you going?'
"Wait."
She slowed to a stop, her eyes widening as she heard…something…calling out to her. It wasn't a voice, wasn't a sound, but she could hear it. Something was calling out to her very soul, and she raised a heavy paw to rest over her chest as she felt it cry out in earnest.
"Please, don't go…"
The smell of flowers, their scent cloying and thick in their sweetness, washed over her, and the memories they brought up with it left her nauseous.
"Don't leave me behind…"
Toriel turned to glance behind her, just enough, enough that she could still keep Frisk in her sights. The golden yellow of an astonishingly large field of flowers was almost too bright in the dull grayscape of the endless hallway. Before the mass of flora stood one lone flower, all alone, its petals drooped and wilted, sad-looking amongst all the happy vibrant ones behind it.
"Please…"
Tears were in her eyes, though she didn't know why, and the calling pulled at her soul painfully, though she didn't know why, and she wanted to run and scoop up that lone little flower, though she didn't know why. It was with a significant amount of will that she forced herself to look away from them, ignoring the sweet scent as she looked for Frisk. They had stopped running, a short distance ahead of her, their back turned, unmoving, as if they hadn't just sprinted down the hall away from her. She tried to call out again, but her voice was still silent.
"...please."
She didn't know if it was the light playing tricks, or the suddenness of their movement, but when they turned around, she could have sworn that they were wearing a green and yellow striped sweater instead of the one they were known for. Their hair looked a little too red, and their smile looked a little too wide, their skin a little too pale, and she just knew that it had to be a trick of the mind, because…
…because…
She'd been following Frisk. Who she saw at the end of that hallway… They couldn't possibly be there.
She turned her head and could have sworn that, amongst the field of dead and dying flowers, amongst the browns and sickly greens of wilted leaves and dried-up petals, that she saw a flash of white and a similar sweater, and it hurt. The pain in her soul, the way it was practically twisting and writhing in agony within her, crying out for what had been calling to her but had since fallen silent.
Toriel woke up with tears soaking the fur beneath her eyes.
The usually calm mornings are nowhere to be seen in the modest apartment. She had already called everyone to let them know that they'd be needing to discuss something of great importance, though just how great, she honestly couldn't say. Toriel recalled the small interaction between her child and Sans, the weight in their gazes, the age in her child's face that seemed to show through in that moment…and she felt far too out of touch. But now it was happening, and everything that she'd had kept from her was going to be out in the open, and she was afraid. What was she going to learn? What was it that her child had kept from her, that her friend had kept from her..?
"Toriel?" She glanced up from the stove and the kettle of water to Asgore's face, taking note of the way his thick brows were drawn together in obvious concern. The kettle was whistling loudly, the flames spouting from beneath it a dark lavender color fueled by her magic, and she felt a light flush rise to her cheeks as she quickly withdrew the paw resting on the kettle's handle.
"Oh, goodness, I…must have zoned out for a moment there." The smile she sent him was reassuring, but he frowned, reaching forward to move the steaming kettle to the back burner of the stove. She chuckled tiredly and smoothed her paws across the front of her apron. "My apologies. You can go sit back in the living room, I'll bring you your tea." She reached for the cabinet that held the boxes of tea but was stopped by another, larger paw resting atop her own. She blinked in surprise and met Asgore's gaze as he pulled her hand down, cradling it gently between his two like it were something precious. "…Asgore?"
"Are you alright?" His question was simple, spoken in that soft yet deep tone he always had, but it held just a touch more than the usual gentleness. She nodded, and she waited. "…Very well." He raised her paw to his muzzle and gently pressed a kiss to the back of it before releasing it. The smile he sent her was reassuring and trusting. "In that case, I'll go check on Frisk." He turned and left the kitchen in a few short strides, ducking just slightly to fit beneath the door frame, and Toriel took a seconds pause to compose herself. The usually steady thrum of her soul had quickened the slightest bit and, if her child were present, she was certain that their eyebrows would be dancing in delight at the scene that had just played out.
'...But they are not themselves this morning,' she reminded herself, mouth pulling down into a small frown at the thought.
Frisk had been awake long before she was, and the bags beneath their eyes made her wonder if they'd slept at all. They had refused to eat breakfast and spent the morning either pacing the apartment or laying in bed with the lights off. It was troubling enough that she'd confided in Asgore, asking if he, by any stray chance, would know why they were acting the way they were. Of course he hadn't known, but the promise of them finding it out together had been uplifting.
She set to the task of pulling out enough tea cups for everyone who was supposed to be joining them, counting off in her head as she made a mental role-call list. Eight. She grabbed the special '#1 BROTHER' mug for Papyrus, sought out the 'qualiTEA time' mug for Sans, and even went so far as to find the worn and dusty 'World's Best DAD' mug for Asgore, giving it a quick rinse before setting it on the tray she had resting on the counter. She dropped a bag of golden flower tea into Asgore's cup and two of the 'regular' mugs for Frisk and herself, filling them with hot water from the kettle. She grabbed spoons and the bowl of sugar and placed them onto the tray as well, carrying it carefully into the living room.
Asgore glanced up the moment she entered the room and immediately made to take the tray from her, setting it on the coffee table for her while she thanked him quietly with a smile. Her eyes wandered over to the hallway and saw Frisk walking back and forth, into their room, then out, then back in, then out to look out the front window, then to peek out the peep hole on their front door, then back in their room again-
"Frisk, my child, are you alright…?" she asked, again, not missing the way they faltered in their steps. Their face was tense and their smile slightly strained as they signed to her, telling her that they were fine. She huffed a sigh, "Very well, then. Won't you come sit with us? I made you some tea." They looked like they wanted to refuse but, in that moment, a knock came from the front door loud enough that they jumped, hopping onto the couch next to Asgore almost immediately. She rolled her eyes slightly and made to get up, but Asgore raised a paw, smiling as he got to his feet, allowing her to settle down on the couch herself as he got the door.
"Heya, Asgore! I wasn't expecting you to be here so quick!" Undyne said, her eyebrows raising minutely, and Asgore coughed to try and cover a brief moment of embarrassment. "Hey Punk! Toriel!" The fish-woman easily made her way past the towering Asgore and into the living room, flopping onto the love seat opposite the couch and allowing her arms to rest on the back of it. A timid Alphys followed behind her, squeaking a greeting to Asgore at the door as she quickly moved to join Undyne. The instant the reptilian monster sat down she was pulled until she was practically sitting in the others' lap, yellow skin turning orange and blue scales turning a vibrant purple with their blush.
"Not in front of the child, please," Toriel gently reminded and the two of them split apart, moving instead to sit where they were just barely touching side by side. They had the grace to at least look a bit sheepish. "Wasn't Mettaton going to be joining us today?" Alphys glanced over at her and wrung her claws, her smile nervous.
"W-well, yes. He just, uh… h-he said that he had a shoot he was doing, a-and that he'd be here as soon as he c-could…"
"I suppose that's fine…but I did make sure to express how important this was. Hopefully he will not be too late."
"Yeah, speakin' of, what's so important? It's gotta be a big deal for you to call us all together like this!" Undyne shouted, startling Frisk so badly that they jostled, tea spilling out of their cup and down their front. They hissed slightly as the heat of it burned on their skin.
"Oh, Frisk, what on earth… Why not go change, my child?" Toriel raised a paw to rest on their head, gently petting their hair in an attempt to soothe them. They gave her a weak smile and nodded, setting down their mug and all but bolting for their room. Once their door closed she sighed heavily, meeting her gaze with Undyne, who looked guilty. "They have been…nervous all morning, though I do not know why."
"Wait, so… you don't even know what we're comin' together for?" At Undyne's question the ex-Queen gave a heavy sigh, raising a paw to rest on her cheek thoughtfully. "Geez, what is this, Secret Central or some shit?!"
"Language, Undyne," Asgore piped in suddenly, stepping heavily across the living room to take his seat on the large recliner just next to the love seat. The blue-scales on Undyne's face burned a deep purple as she threw her hands up, growling in annoyance. Alphys pat on the disgruntled monster's elbow affectionately in an attempt to soothe her temper. "We are waiting for Sans, Papyrus, and Lena now. As soon as they arrive, we will be ready to find out…whatever it is we're finding out." It did little to placate the impatient Undyne, but she sighed, slumping back against the cushions with a huff, muttering a short 'fine'.
"I-it's really rather o-odd that Sans would want to talk t-to all of us, right…?" Alphys asked, glancing around the room for confirmation. The two large goat monsters glanced at one another before Toriel gave a slow nod.
"He has…always been a monster who likes his privacy, that is certain. He has never been one to talk about much. Even I have heard very little from him about such matters…but you worked together, did you not?" Alphys flinched slightly. "Perhaps you might know the nature of what he wishes to discuss?" The reptilian monster tapped her claws together anxiously, beads of sweat already beginning to form at her temple.
"I-I-I…er… W-we did work together once, b-but that was a l-long time ago, and… H-he doesn't ever like to talk about th-that." A cobalt-colored hand rested atop Alphys head, scratching lovingly, and she glanced over to her mate with an appreciative smile. "I-it could be about the uh…th-the last royal scientist…b-but I don't know for sure…"
"Maybe he got her knocked up!" Undyne pratically shot up from her seat, fists clenched in front of her in earnest excitement. Toriel fought off amused giggles, raising a paw to cover her mouth politely.
"I do not believe that to be the case. Besides, it might not even be possible, since she doesn't have magic-"
"But she does! I heard somethin' about her putting up a shield… a magical shield!" Asgore made a strange choking sound at the mention of magic, his eyes widening, and Toriel cast him a quick, narrowed glance. She remembered far too well how he felt about humans with magic…
"That could have been from something else… The damage done to her soul was unnatural and horrid. It could have been for any number of reasons that there was a shield present." Her words seemed to deflate Undyne a bit, her enthusiasm lessening as she flopped back to the couch with a small 'hmph'. Asgore gave an almost silent, shaky sigh and reached for his mug of tea, raising it to take a calming sip.
A door down at the end of the hall opened, and Frisk walked out with a solemn expression on their face, walking right past everyone in the living room and going straight for the front door. Toriel moved to stand and stop them, ask them where they were going (as her dream played so vividly in her head), but as soon as they opened the door, Sans was standing there. His hand was raised like he'd been just about to knock, sockets slightly widened in mild surprise, but then he saw Frisk and his expression sobered as well, though that usual 'lazy' smile was stretched across his mouth.
"Heya kiddo. You're supposed to wait for me to knock first, then you say, 'who's there,' remember?"
"BROTHER, PLEASE SAVE YOUR TERRIBLE JOKES AND JUST GO INSIDE!" The taller skeleton rushed forward and scooped Frisk up into his arms, giving them a big bear hug (or 'skeleton hug', as Papyrus called them). Sans only managed to sidestep out of the way to keep from being bowled over. He pulled his right hand out from his jacket pocket and gave everyone in the room a short wave, receiving a variety of greetings in response. "HUMAN FRISK, ARE YOU ALRIGHT? YOU ARE VERY QUIET TODAY." Sans snorted loudly and even Frisk gave a small, breathless giggle, and Papyrus' eye sockets bulged as he grit his teeth. "YOU KNOW WHAT I MEANT!"
"I think that's a bit of a mute point by now, don't ya think?"
"SANS…" Toriel smiled and clasped her paws together in front of her, and she could see the way Papyrus' eye sockets narrowed.
"I'd say it's quiet important, Sans!"
"OH GOOD LORDY, THIS IS IT!" The large skeleton threw his hands up, Frisk maneuvering themselves until they were seated on his shoulders, patting the top of his skull.
"Hey, what's the score, Tori? Y'think we're tied yet?"
"You mean tongue-tied-"
"THIS IS THE WORST!" Papyrus wailed, running a gloved hand across his face in aggravation before he turned to the door. "HUMAN LENA! RUN, WHILE YOU STILL HAVE A CHANCE!" Lena had only just barely managed to get in the door and close it behind her when she was called and she glanced up, blinking in mild confusion. Crossing her arms over her chest she set the two punning monsters with a stern look.
"Come on, guys, don't torture Papyrus! It isn't nice…" she trailed off, her expression cracking as a smile pulled up at her lips. "…but that goes without saying." Sans looked at her like he were seeing the stars for the first time, the amount of adoration in his gaze almost tangible. Toriel was laughing behind her paw, and Papyrus fixed her with a look that held so much betrayal that Lena couldn't help the snort of laughter that escaped her. "I'm sorry, Papy!" She reached out for the taller skeleton who shied away from her, pouting as he slounched across the living room with Frisk in tow, who was breathlessly giggling atop his shoulders. The auburn haired human finally noticed Sans' expression and felt her face flush slightly, smiling back at him. "What?"
"There are no words for how much I love you, babe. I'm speechless." Undyne and Alphys both sighed, Papyrus covered where his ears would be and screeched, and Asgore gave an awkward chuckle. "You could say that I-" Lena waved her hands in front of her, shushing him.
"Alright alright, that's enough! Don't over-do it!" she scolded, though she was smiling just as widely as he was.
A soft smacking sound filled the room and Papyrus flinched, pulling Frisk off from his shoulders, where they'd been slapping the top of his skull excitedly. "GOOD LORD, HUMAN, WHAT IS IT?!" A flurry of hand movements were made right in Papyrus' face, Frisk's brown eyes wide and flitting between the two still standing at the door and him. "SLOW DOWN, WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?" Toriel gasped and pressed her paws together in front of her muzzle, eyes widening as she caught sight of a few of the signs. Her head whipped around to look at Sans, staring with great concentration at his chest.
"Sans, you…?" She raised her eyes to meet his gaze and he felt his cheekbones flush a faint azure, but his grin widened and he nodded. "Oh… oh my goodness, you-!" Her cheeks hurt with the width of her smile and she felt her eyes beginning to tear up, a wave of emotion washing over her. "Congratulations!"
"Wait, what the hell's going on?" Undyne frowned, glancing around the room with confusion clearly written on her face. Alphys squeaked loudly and began tugging on her arm, her eyes so bright that there were practically stars within them. The fish-woman's one revealed eye widened in understanding, her sharp grin becoming almost too big for her face. "Woah, no way! Holy shit, you guys bonded?!" Lena's face flushed a deep red from the attention, her smile wavering the slightest bit as she began to play with her hair. "You go girl!"
"Heh, that's, uh…not what we came here to talk about, but yeah. It sorta just happened."
"Something like this does not simply 'just happen' Sans. How long have you two been planning this? We didn't even have a ceremony for you! Goodness, this is all just so sudden! I didn't even know it was possible-"
"Trust me, it wasn't…planned, exactly," Sans said carefully, smile falling a bit as he shoved his hand back into his pocket, rolling his shoulders with a shrug. "It was kind of spur of the moment. The magic they injected made it possible."
"Injected…?" Asgore's deep, rumbling voice broke through the excitement and Sans tensed, his hands curling into fists inside his pockets.
"Yeah… That's one of the things we oughta talk about, but that ain't the start." His eye-lights flickered over to Frisk and they nodded solemnly. The energetic atmosphere in the room broke, and there was suddenly a weight that had been long approaching but no one expected settling across the room. "Where's the tin can? He was supposed to be here too, wasn't he?" Papyrus huffed quietly at the 'nickname' and Alphys was quick to pull out her phone, claws tapping across the keyboard rapidly.
"H-he had a shoot to g-go to…b-but um, I'll get him in a v-video call so that w-we can all hear this." She pulled up the call and, after a few seconds, Mettaton's face appeared on the screen, his eyes narrowed and looking somewhat cross.
"Hello, darlings. I do hope this won't take too terribly long. I have work to do."
"Hate to interrupt the obviously important stuff you got goin' on over there, but this is important," Sans said shortly, tone clipped and impatient. There was a slight whirring sound as Mettaton rolled his eyes, lips pursed, but Toriel spoke gently, disrupting whatever bickering the two of them were bound to fall into.
"So let us discuss, then," she began, gesturing a paw in a circle meant to encompass the entire room. "We are all present and accounted for. Where shall you begin?" Sans huffed a humorless laugh and raised a hand to scratch at his skull, the soft grating sound of bone on bone filling the room.
"Good question… Not sure I even know where to start…" His gaze flicked over to Frisk, who was climbing out of Papyrus' bony lap to join him, standing before the small group of gathered monsters. As if only just realizing something, he turned to Lena, browbone raised. "Is Brit comin'?"
"Yeah, she just-"
"Yeah, she just needed to make a phone call," Brit interrupted suddenly, stepping into the apartment and closing the door silently behind her. She regarded the group of monsters with a simple wave, nodding her head respectfully to Asgore and Toriel before she plopped down on the floor next to the sofa, long legs stretching out in front of her.
"You sure you wanna be here for this..? I mean, a lot of this shit is gonna be over your head-"
"Hey, my head's over yours, so it can't be that high over…" She reached up and grabbed Lena's hand, pulling her down to sit next to her on the floor. She slung an arm across the smaller woman's shoulders in a relaxed manner, shooting the short skeleton a grin.
"Alright… Then, I guess I might as well start from the beginning."
[[ SORRY FOR CUTTING IT OFF LIKE THAT BUT THAT DISCUSSION IS BOUND TO HAVE A SHIT-TON OF WORDS AND THIS CHAPTER WAS GETTING LONG ENOUGH! I'M SORRY! (Bro's already on me like "So where's the next chapter?" and I'm like BITCH I AM IN THE MIDDLE OF POSTING THIS ONE, CALM YA TITS)
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