Toriel was wrenched out of her slumber immediately as the sound of the scream met her ears. It wasn't particularly loud, as it was rather muffled by something, but years of being a mother as well as just the worrisome monster she was left her ever-alert to such things. She hurriedly sat up and looked around, trying to clear away the fog of sleep from her mind and take in the situation. The moment her eyes landed on Sans she felt everything from earlier come rushing back.

He had torn himself away from her at some point and had ended up curled up on the couch at her feet, still tangled in the blanket. He was writhing and twitching beneath it, body shaking with noisy rattles as he choked out muffled, intelligible words of distress. Worst of all though was the unmistakable glow of his flashing blue and yellow eyelight seeping up through the thick fabric of the blanket, casting everything around it in an eerie luster. For him to believe he was in enough danger to warrant the use of his most powerful magic…

Toriel snapped to full attention, her drowsiness forgotten in an instant. She slid off the couch to sit on her knees beside it, her paws hovering hesitantly over Sans' quaking form as her mind raced to determine the best way of handling this. He was clearly still asleep, still in the grip of whatever horror his mind was subjecting him to. His earlier warning came back to her in a flash, making her grit her teeth. Waking him now would likely lead to him lashing out at her in a panic, and with his eyelight already flooding with magic she could be facing a pretty intense barrage of attacks.

Another strangled sound from him withered any indecision she was feeling. She could not leave him like this, she had to wake him, whatever risk that entailed. She gently laid her paws on him, beginning to carefully pull the blanket away bit by bit.

"Sans." She said, in an elevated but still even tone. "Please my friend, wake up, it is only a nightmare, you are alright."

He didn't seem to react to her voice, just continued mumbling and trembling as she removed the rest of the blanket from him. Now uncovered, Toriel could see just how bad a state he was in. His eye sockets were screwed shut, yet blazing wisps of magic surged from his left socket, now illuminating the whole area in dizzying luminance. Sweat dripped down his skull and his phalanges were curled frantically into the plush material of the couch. Now without the blanket to muffle him, she could hear his panicked words with a bit more clarity, able to make out a few things.

"…ss-stop… i… m'sorry…" He gasped, the magic from his eyelight flaring up even brighter. "d-don't… i'm tr-trying… d-d-don't… pl-please…"

Toriel felt her soul seize up at the pain and fear in his voice. It took a great deal of willpower not to become panicked over the situation herself. She had to fight back tears as she gave him a few shakes, raising her voice a little more.

"Sans! Please, you must wake up! Listen to me. You are safe, my friend."

He froze up under her touch, going silent but remaining tightly curled up. She was about to speak again when suddenly his eye sockets shot open and she was staring down dark emptiness and the full intensity of his blazing eyelight. All at once, she felt a tremendous weight on her soul, pushing down on her body to the point she could hardly even lift her arms. He stared at her with a strange, detached expression before swinging out his arm and curling his phalanges around his open palm.

She opened her mouth to say something but was suddenly flung back against the coffee table, the impact knocking the wind out of her and sending the empty glass off the table with a crash. She gasped for breath, gripping at the table to keep herself steady and all the while mentally kicking herself for not being prepared. Meanwhile Sans was getting to his knees on the couch, drilling her with that terrible fervid eyelight. He kept his arm outstretched, pushing down on her soul and trying to keep her in place. It might have been an intimidating scene, if not for the way he trembled and the tears she could see gathering in his sockets.

"i-i'm s-sor-rry…" he wheezed out, as his magic formed a few bones around him. "i… i-i… h-have t-t-to… or h-he'll… h-e'll…"

He trailed off, his unfocused gaze lost to whatever he it was he was seeing. Toriel didn't wait for him to speak again, she pushed through the grip he had on her soul, forcing herself back to her knees in front of him. She could feel the prickle of magic as the bones drifted around her body, waiting to plow into her at Sans' command. She steeled herself, waiting to feel the sting of them striking her, but they didn't. Something in his fearful gaze had shifted, and she took the chance to try and snap him out of it.

"Sans, please look at me." She pleaded, moving forward to cup his skull in her paws. "It is I, Toriel, your dear friend. We are here in our home on the surface. You are safe. Whatever you are seeing… it is not real, I promise."

He blinked, something she had not seen him do since he had woken up. Then he blinked again, the fear and distress radiating from his soul beginning to wane. His eyelight's blaze dwindled a bit as well, and Toriel could feel the bones he'd summoned dissipate into a harmless shower of magic around her. He blinked one more time, causing the tears welling up in his sockets to spill down his cheekbones. His eyelight locked onto her, and she felt as though he were only now truly seeing her.

"…t-tori..?" He croaked, expression shifting then from fear to despair.

Toriel's soul was practically alight with relief, but she did her best to stay focused and continue talking him down.

"Yes, yes my friend. It is me, I am right here." She soothed, loosening her grip on him a bit. "You were having a nightmare, but you are safe Sans. Everything is fine. Just breathe."

He just continued staring for a moment, then he flinched a bit as his eyelight guttered out and Toriel felt him release his hold on her soul. She couldn't help the sigh of relief that left her as he did so, finally able to keep her arms up without straining. She regretted her actions immediately though as he cowered back from her against the couch cushions, clasping his left hand against his chest.

"oh g-god…" He said through a weak sob. "w-what was I d-doing to you?"

Toriel was quick to placate him, waving her paws in a dismissive manner.

"Sans, it is okay, I assure you, I am fine."

The throbbing in her lower back begged to differ with her, but it was nothing serious, nor worth upsetting him further over.

"I tried to wake you, but startled you and you took hold of my soul, you also knocked a glass off the table. That is all."

He gripped at his hand tighter and dropped his gaze from her, still shaking and gasping lightly through his teeth as he tried to ground himself. Tears continued to spill in a seemingly helpless manner down his cheekbones, dripping off his skull and falling into his lap. Toriel wanted so badly to approach and comfort him, but she hesitated, not wanting to potentially set him off again.

"Is it okay if I come sit by you?" She asked softly, resting her paws on the couch in front of her. "Or do you need some space right now, my friend?"

Sans couldn't manage a verbal reply it seemed, so he just nodded stiffly after a few seconds. Toriel clambered back up onto the couch in turn, keeping her movements as soft and controlled as she could. She settled in beside him and gently laid a paw against his shivering back, moving it in small circles.

"Deep breaths now, deep breaths." She murmured, feeling the slight sting of residual magic still flowing through his bones beneath her paw.

He heeded her and worked to slow his breathing. Toriel kept up her gentle words and acts of comfort all the while, giving him all the time he needed until his gasping finally eased and he could breathe normally. Even then he kept silent and continued shaking, leaving the soft rattling of his bones the only sound in the room.

Toriel watched as another tear fell from the bottom of his skull, vanishing into the dark material of his shorts. The sight made her feel as though her soul were being squeezed. In all the time she'd known him, she had never seen him cry. Before today he had always been so calm and collected, the very idea of him being reduced to tears like this should have shocked her. But after all that had transpired that day, everything she now knew about him, she didn't find it surprising at all.

Her nurturing instinct kicked in though and without really thinking she reached out with her other paw and gently wiped the tears away from his face. He stiffened, but did not stop her, only pulling away a bit once she had finished and rubbing at his other eye socket himself with his sleeve.

"s-sorry…" he sniffed, voice thick and uneven.

Toriel resumed rubbing his back and shook her head, even though he not was facing her to see it.

"Do not apologize for that." She replied quietly, voice warm with understanding. "You can cry if you need to, my friend."

He set his jaw hard but did not offer a response to that. Toriel took a mental note of his reaction but did not push the issue further, letting them both lapse into silence for a while longer. His trembling calmed a fair bit, but it still did not cease. She could also feel the magic in his body rolling through him in unsteady waves, his soul seeming worked up and subdued all at once. The frown on her face deepened in concern. With how unstable his magic levels were from the alcohol earlier, his lack of proper rest, and his refusal to eat, he was bound to be feeling pretty horrible at this point, even on top of recovering from such an intense nightmare.

Her eyes fell on his water bottle laying on its side beside her. She picked it up and offered it to him, tapping it gently against his hand.

"Try to drink a little something, it should help settle your magic a bit." She said, breaking the silence at last.

She was surprised when he turned from her sharply and clamped a hand over his mouth, shaking his head stiffly. His trembling increased in violence again and beads of sweat dripped down his skull.

"What is- "

She started to question him, but saw him squeeze his sockets shut and clutch at his middle with a groan as another violent wave of magic rolled through him. She realized what was wrong in a flash.

"Oh Sans… do not try to fight it dear, it is okay…" She soothed, quickly reaching over the couch and grabbing the plastic waste basket she had set there earlier.

"Here." She gently set it in his lap and pulled his hood back from his skull, rubbing tenderly at his backbone again.

Her poor friend could only continue resisting a few more moments before giving in, pulling the basket close and ducking his head into it. His body heaved as he retched violently and he curled his phalanges around the rim as if he were clinging on for dear life. All the excess waste magic he'd created in his panic from before on top of all the alcohol he had consumed was finally taking its toll on him. His blighted soul was now purging it all, and it was not a pretty process.

Toriel winced in sympathy as he vomited again, trying not to let her own unease keep her from comforting him through the whole ordeal. In truth, seeing others get sick like this was very difficult for her. It reminded her too much of a certain human child after they'd eaten a great deal of poisonous flowers. How they just kept getting sick again and again, until their body finally gave out on them…

She did her best not to think about it, reminding herself that the situation was not the same. Indeed, with as little spare magic as Sans had in his soul to begin with, he was already beginning to recover. When he retched again it was far less intense than the first time.

"Easy now… Easy…" She soothed, feeling the magic within him twisting and rolling beneath her paw. "Just take your time, try to breathe. It will be over soon."

He seemed to listen to her, drawing in shuddering breaths where he could between retches. She kept talking him through it and eventually she felt his soul's fervor calm. He continued weakly gasping as the dry heaves ceased, keeping his grip on the basket as tight as he could. It took some gentle coaxing, but after a while he did let her take it from him. She tried not to look at the mess of fizzling waste magic inside as she set it back on the floor and pushed it away as far as she could with her foot, far enough that it was out of sight, but still reachable should it be needed again.

She glanced down at him in faint surprise when she felt him lean against her and grip at her dress lightly. It seemed that without the basket to cling to, his light headed-ness would have sent him sideways otherwise. She gingerly wrapped an arm around him to support him, mindful not to apply too much pressure. She gave him a minute or two to ensure he didn't show any signs he'd be sick again before she spoke.

"Are you…" She cut herself off before the question could leave her in full. Like before, it was a foolish thing to ask. She rephrased it quickly.

"Can you talk to me, my friend?" She asked, running the curve of her claws lightly down his arm. "How are you feeling now? Is there anything I can do to help?"

His droopy, lightless sockets looked up at her briefly and she could see he was going through about a dozen emotions at once. Eventually though he let out a shaky sigh and managed to speak again.

"m' alright…" He croaked, and the barest hint of a weary smile returned to his face. "well, o-okay… i f-feel like shit. but i-it'll be… i'll be f-fine…"

His words came off as though he were attempting to salvage some normalcy into the situation. Toriel wished he didn't feel the need to do such a thing, but she decided not to comment on it. Her own guilt was welling up within her once more, leading her to hang her head a bit as she replied.

"I am sorry Sans, I am sure if I did not hurt you earlier the way I had, you wouldn't have drank so much and you wouldn't be feeling so badly now…"

Sans tightened his grip on her a bit and she felt him shake his head. He tried to reply but it was lost to a few coughs. He waved her off her concerned look, wheezing softly until he was able to speak again.

"n-nah… really th-this is… normal." He rasped, looking up at her again with the faint glow of his normal eyelights restored.

Toriel stared down at him, unable to keep the sudden shock off her face. He blinked at her reaction and his forced grin turned more into a nervous grimace.

"s-sorry, shoulda' rephrased th-that… its n-normal for me… heh."

That certainly did not make her feel any better. Worry clawed at her soul as the weight of his words sank in.

"So… it is always this bad? Even…" She gestured vaguely in the direction of the waste basket. "That bad?"

Sans looked as though he wanted to deny it, but he conceded her words with a small nod, directing his gaze away again.

"yah… it… it d-depends obviously. s-some nights are worse than o-others. it o-only occasionally g-gets… that bad."

He paused, and she could feel him tense as he suppressed a shudder.

"course… as y-you've been n-noticing, it's been a l-lot more intense recently… so occasionally m-might not be the right word to u-use anymore…"

Toriel rested her free paw against her chest, over her soul, as the implication of his words became clear. She swallowed against a lump in her throat, trying not to let her voice shake with sympathetic emotion.

"So… When I found you out in the kitchen two nights ago… and all those other times… you had just gone through…" She couldn't finish, feeling the sting of tears in her eyes.

She remembered the state he'd been in back then, strangely without his jacket and slippers, trembling and gasping as he sat on the counter, nearly collapsing when he tried to walk to the door. It all was starting to make sense.

"yah…" Sans replied softly, seeming to pick up on the fact she wasn't going to complete her sentence.

He tried to force something of a reassuring smile, glancing back at her.

"but y'know… it's o-okay t, least w-with you here i was able to… sn-snap out of it a lot quicker than usual, heh… "

Once again, his attempts at dispelling her worries only worsened them. She was beginning to feel sick herself as her weary mind processed the true severity of her friend's struggles.

"How… how long does it usually take you…?" She asked weakly.

Sans didn't reply for a bit, clearly not expecting the question and mentally kicking himself for inadvertently triggering it. Still, when he did finally reply, he tried to come off as light-hearted as he could manage, giving a small shrug of his shoulders as he spoke.

"eh… like an hour o-or so… give or t-take…"

Toriel felt her soul clench within her and she was unable to keep the shock off her face. She couldn't help but picture her friend lying alone in the darkness of his room, sick, terrified and unable to discern his nightmares from reality. The thought of him trapped in that state for an hour or more... The despair she was feeling for him must have been evident on her face, because his attempted casualness all but withered upon meeting her eyes again.

"c-come on tori… don't look at m-me like that." He implored, reaching a shaky hand to rest on her paw.

"i'll be alright… h-honest. like I s-said, i've d-dealt with all this for a long time now. i'm sorry you had to s-see all that, but it… really is normal. n-not anything to get so worried over, heh."

She stared back at him in silence for a while longer before letting out a quiet sigh. Getting worked up like this wasn't going to help anything. The realization of just how badly he suffered at night should not be so shocking, especially considering the nature of the other things he'd already told her. She couldn't go back and stop what had already happened to him, but she could help him now. That was what she needed to focus on.

"It should not be normal though, my friend…" She replied softly, reaching over and picking up his water bottle again.

She offered it to him and he took it without any hesitation this time, pressing the nozzle to his teeth and taking a few small sips. Even the small amount of magic it restored in him seemed to help, as he hands stopped shaking as much after a bit. Still, he set it aside again rather quickly, clearly not totally trusting his soul not to reject the newly absorbed magic. He leaned against her again with a sigh of his own, his tone sounding defeated.

"i-i know… i know…"

They slipped into silence again for a little while after that, letting their turbulent emotions settle within their souls. During this time, Toriel dug out her phone from her purse and checked the time. 3:14 AM, meaning they had slept for around 5 hours or so. That was certainly more then she had expected, but it didn't stop her from feeling weariness weigh down on her soul again. Everything that had just happened though had jolted her awake in a way that she knew meant she would not be sleeping again for a while. Judging from her friend's unsteady state, it would likely be the same for him.

Accepting that, she held out her paw in front of her and summoned a steady blaze of pale purple flame. Sans perked up with interest, blinking at the sudden light and warmth. She shot him a soft smile, a touch amused at his reaction. With a controlled, calculated flick of her wrist she flung the fireball across from them into the fireplace. It engulfed the logs there and flared up before burning at a stable level, retaining its purple color all the while. The whole room was softly lit up by the flames, just enough so they could see properly but not too much as to be a strain on their weary eyes. The fire crackled pleasantly and enveloped them both in a comforting warmth.

Toriel hummed contently in her throat, enjoying the feeling of the gentle heat on her fur. Sans seemed rather pleased by it as well, if the sudden lack of tension in his posture was any indication. He did something a bit odd then. Perhaps caught up in the moment, he started to move over as though to climb into her lap again. He remembered himself quickly though, shrinking back a bit and glancing up at her uncertainly. Toriel understood, nodding with an inviting smile and giving him a little nudge forward with a paw. He obliged, still with a touch of embarrassment in his expression. He settled back into her arms as she closed them around him, still ensuring she was especially gentle about it. They both sat in the now more comfortable silence for another minute or so before Sans spoke up again.

"tori… i… uh…" He started but trailed off, seeming to doubt himself a bit.

"Yes?" She responded softly, hoping to encourage him.

He worked his jaw in indecision before getting the nerve to speak again in a quieter tone.

"i… well, i jus' wanted… t-to thank you."

Toriel blinked in mild surprise, but did not interrupt him as he went on.

"i know i'm a mess… and you didn't have to… y'know, put up with my issues all th-this time. talking about everything that h-happened before is hard as hell and I suck at it... i really suck at it… this whole thing sucks. i am un-suck-sessful at not sucking."

She could practically hear the small smile that came with the pun and she found herself fighting back a grin of her own. He quickly returned to a more somber tone though, huddling a bit closer.

"but uh… i'm glad y-you got me to… to talk. i guess i was in denial about how bad I've g-gotten recently. and I'm not sure how much longer i could h-have went on like that before… uh… well…"

Toriel could feel him try and fail to suppress a shudder, and she tightened her grip on him in response. The nature of his words was not lost on her.

"s-something was going to have to give eventually." He croaked, voice becoming thick as he forced himself to finish the sentence.

For a moment, she thought he was going to start crying again, but he took a steadying breath and went on in a more even tone.

"so… thanks… sh-shitty as this is, it's easier to deal with it with y-you around."

Toriel felt her soul flood with a mix of emotions at that, leaving her rather choked up. She momentarily couldn't find the words to reply. She could only hug him tighter until her mouth wanted to cooperate with her again.

"I… y-you are welcome… Of course, my friend." She managed at last. "You know I would do anything for you… and as I said before, I could never consider you a burden. Your struggles are nothing to be ashamed of. I will do whatever I can do help you through this, and hopefully in time, these nightmares will not be such a normal thing for you anymore."

There was so much more she wanted to say, but she left it at for now. His gratitude warmed and reinvigorated her soul in more ways than one, only furthering her desire to ensure she saw him through this. Despite how much he had recovered since waking up, she was well aware he was still feeling pretty terrible and she wanted to do what she could to address that. An idea popped into her head, but she put a pin in it for the moment, directing her attention back down to Sans. He had gone rather quiet after her response, only replying to it in the form of a nod against her chest.

"Sans, how are you feeling now? Specifically, I mean…" She asked, slowly running a paw down his back, trying to get a feel for the state of his soul.

His response mirrored what she was she was feeling for herself.

"heh… w-well, if I'm being honest here… my skull f-feels like someone took a hammer to it, my s-soul feels like it's being twisted up, i've got like… chills or s-something and i'm dizzy as hell." He paused as a weak excuse for a chuckle escaped him. "so yup, that h-hangover's definitely come a knocking."

Toriel hummed thoughtfully, considering what could be done about all that. His condition was certainly being made worse due to his refusal to eat, on top of what little spare magic he had had being lost during his bout of sickness. Even just drinking water was difficult for him at this point. Her idea sprang to mind again. It would certainly help… but she wasn't sure what he would think of it. Feeling another unsteady pulse of magic from the skeleton's soul made her decide it was at least worth a try.

"My friend…" She spoke up once more, shifting back slightly to be able to meet his gaze.

"Could I… May I… see your soul for a minute?"

Sans blinked up at her, pale eyelights shrinking a bit in surprise. He quirked a brow ridge at her in a somewhat playful fashion, a touch of cyan coloring his cheekbones.

"that's… uh…" he coughed once. "that's r-rather forward of you tori…heh heh heh"

She shot him a flat look and gave him a light swat.

"Not for that you bonehead." She retorted in an irritated tone, though she found herself fighting the urge to smile as she did.

He chuckled in response, holding up his hands in surrender. The actual genuine-ness of his laughter made it hard to feel any real exasperation for his comment, but she kept her expression hardened for her own sake.

"No… I simply want to donate some magic to you. It will help you feel better, especially since you don't feel up to eating anything." She explained.

"oh…" He uttered simply in response, humor dying from his expression quickly.

He ghosted a hand over his chest, gripping at his undershirt over the spot where his soul no doubt floated beneath. Uneasiness and perhaps even a touch of self-consciousness shone in the weak light of his eyes.

"i dunno tori… my soul is uh… it's n-not a pretty sight y'know? and i've n-never really…" He trailed off, kneading the fabric nervously between his phalanges.

Toriel's expression softened in sympathy, scarlet eyes gentle once more.

"I understand that Sans, I figured as much from what you have told me. I would certainly never judge you for such a thing... But if you do not feel comfortable with the idea, that is fine my friend, I can try and figure out something else that can be done."

Toriel could see the indecision in Sans' eyelights as he considered her words, a few drops of sweat forming on his skull. After a minute though, he drew in a steadying breath and nodded, meeting her gaze again.

"nah... you're r-right… as usual. i trust ya, tori." He said, working up a weak smile.

Toriel smiled right back, soul welling with gratitude. She watched as he shifted back a bit, still sitting on her outstretched legs, but putting a bit of space between them. He took a few more deep breaths before the process. He uncurled his phalanges over his chest, pressing his hand flat against it and summoning up a gentle cyan glow.

The glow spread from his hand until Toriel could see the light of his soul brightening within him, making the silhouette of his ribcage visible beneath his clothes. Slowly, he pulled his hand back and as he did, he drew his soul out with it. He moved both hands to cradle the floating upside-down heart as its glow dulled back to its usual luster. He stared down at it with a strange mix of sadness and discomfort in his expression as it spun in lazy circles before him.

Toriel had to admit she had been rather transfixed watching the scene unfold. Now though, she snapped herself out of her stupor and held out her paws flat to him in silent entreating. The skeleton hesitated only a moment before ever so carefully handing his soul over to her, laying it gently over the pads of her paws. She cupped her paws protectively around the little heart, cradling it as though it could shatter at any moment. She felt her own soul sink within her as she took in the condition of the one floating in her grasp.

Sans had certainly not been exaggerating when he'd said his soul was not a pretty sight. It's glow was weak and pulsed sluggishly, only about half as bright as it should be. The magic flowing from it felt unstable and jittery, clearly a result of Sans' poor state and his soul's own inherit frailness. All of that paled in comparison to the most notable concerning feature though, the cracks. The soul was positively covered in them.

The largest and most notable crack ran all the way down from the top tip of the soul to the bottom left bell curve, marking itself as a harsh white line against the pale silver of the soul. Toriel reasoned that it had to be the one from when Sans was first "made", the crack he'd gotten from the injection of the human traits. The other cracks were hairline thin, fracturing out from others and crisscrossing each other wherever their paths crossed. There was hardly any area of the soul left unmarked by these small cracks. They were not nearly as noticeable if one wasn't looking closely, but they were just as concerning when taken into consideration with everything else.

Toriel did her best not to look too shocked at the sight, knowing Sans was watching her anxiously. She inhaled deeply through her nose and faced him again, forcing a small smile. As much as she wanted to say something about the nature of his soul, she decided to let it be for now. Nothing could be done in the moment for it, and dwelling on it would only potentially upset him. She had to direct all her attention into the task at hand.

"I am going to start now, let me know if anything feels off and I will stop, okay?" She said softly, bringing the soul a little closer to her chest.

Sans blinked, perhaps surprised at her lack of comment regarding the dire appearance of his soul, but gave a small nod in response. She could feel his gaze on her as she took a steadying breath and summoned up a soft green glow about her paws. Slowly, she began directing a gentle flow of magic into his soul, watching it carefully for any signs of it not taking it well. It responded with a slightly brighter glow, drawing in the magic without a fight.

"w-woahh…" Sans stammered in surprise, eyelights shrinking a bit as he began feeling the effects of her work.

Toriel gave him a worried glance, preparing to cut off the flow if needed.

"Are you alright? Do you want me to stop?" She asked.

He shook his head, watching the process with suddenly wide sockets.

"n-nah, its fine. j-just… wasn't expecting that." He said, shivering a bit. "feels k-kinda weird but not bad at all… its warm, but also like uh… tingly?"

Toriel giggled softly, making sure not to jostle his soul at all as she did.

"That is normal my friend." She assured him, keeping her eyes glued on the soul in her paws.

After another minute or so, she felt satisfied with the amount of magic his soul had absorbed. Its glow had brightened noticeably, even if it was still far from ideal, and the pulses of magic from it felt far more steady and balanced. She carefully severed her magic's connection from his soul, drawing the rest of it back down into her paws again. There was a noticeable ache in her head that came with giving up large portions of her own magic, but she was happy to ignore it in favor of smiling down at the result of her work.

She kept that tired smile on her face as she handed the soul back to Sans, and watched him guide it back into his chest. Once it was returned to its proper place, he let out a content sigh and faced her with a far more genuine grin.

"well damn, that really does feel a lot better." He said, still looking tired but not as utterly exhausted as before. "thanks tori…"

"You are quite welcome Sans, I am glad it helped." She replied warmly, relaxing back against the couch cushions again. "I have not used that technique in quite some time, I am grateful to see I have not lost my touch."

He blinked at that, looking as though he were going to comment on it but for some reason deciding against it. His silence invited Toriel to speak again, though she felt equally reluctant considering what she planned to ask. They had been avoiding the topic since he'd awoken and now that he was in a more stable state she couldn't shy from it any longer.

"So, Sans… do you… do you want to talk about your nightmare?" She asked quietly.

He froze up a bit and avoided her eyes, smile withering into a grimace. The sight made her feel a stab of guilt, but she kept on with it, feeling that it was necessary.

"You were apologizing to me… acting as though someone were forcing you to attack me… or well, whoever you thought I was." She explained, working to keep her voice gentle.

Sans shuddered lightly, but met her gaze in distressed surprise. She could see him internally warring with himself, eventually seeming to deflate in resignation.

"honestly… i don't want to talk about it, I really don't, but…" he trailed off, eyelights becoming hazy. "but… i probably should huh?"

Toriel worried her lip with her fangs, reaching over to gently lay a paw on his shoulder.

"That is up to you, my friend." She reminded him. "If you think it will upset you too much to talk about, then you do not have to. But if not… it might help to get it off your chest."

He offered a reluctant nod at that, eyelights wavering as he considered her words. After a few moments, he shifted forward back into her arms again, settling into her embrace before muttering out his answer.

"i'll… tell you the gist at least..." He relented, voice soft enough that it was almost lost to the crackle of the fire.

"Very well…" She replied. "Take all the time you need."

He made a soft affirmative sound, going quiet again as he seemed to be thinking it over. She could feel him tapping his phalanges against her arm as he considered his words.

"basically, i was… uh, dreaming about one of the experiments that the doc and the others used to do with me." He explained, voice rather dull.

"i told ya about the uh, heh, "karmic retribution" right? this was one of the ways ol g tested its effects. he'd bring in monsters off of death row, monsters who'd done seriously bad things, real sickos. and uh… instead of them being executed the official way, the scientists would try to get… me to do it."

Toriel felt a chill run down her spine, trying to think back on how such criminals were dealt with in her time. Execution was only ever to be used in the most dire of circumstances, and it was a very rare occurrence. If this Gaster and his group did these kinds of experiments on somewhat of a regular basis… That meant either the standard of criminal slated for penalty of death had been lowered since her leaving the throne, or monsterkind's imprisonment underground had driven far more monsters to depravity by that point. Neither option lessened the unease she felt pooling within her soul.

"keyword being… try." Sans went on with a touch of false humor. "despite all their threats towards me and their insistence on how totally rotten my targets were, i just… couldn't do it."

She felt him shudder again, his bones rattling quietly. She squeezed him a little tighter, rubbing gentle circles into his back until he could continue.

"i'd fire a blaster at them, and it would seriously hurt them… they'd, y'know, scream and their hp would drain… but they never died. thing was, back then as a kid, i just couldn't muster up any intent to kill… even with monsters most would agree are better off burning in hell… and intent is everything with my kind of magic… i'm too weak to really kill anything by accident…"

He trailed off for a bit, seemingly lost in thought… or lost in memories. It went on long enough that Toriel thought he'd said all he could manage for now, but he eventually went on.

"the doc didn't like that… he really didn't like that. after all, he made me to eventually kill humans, that was my whole purpose. even if i was just a prototype, he was determined to get some use outa' me. so uh… everytime i'd fail or even hesitate too much, they'd… well, punish me."

Toriel gulped at that, her emotions swirling between anger, dread and sadness. That odd twinge of protectiveness stirred within her again and she felt her claws extend to their full length as she held him close.

"course… they couldn't do much to me, er… physically y'know? i was too fragile for that. usually they'd just lock me up in this weird little isolation cell they had for a few days since they knew how much I, well… hated it. but when that didn't work for them anymore, they started threatening to hurt papyrus if i didn't cooperate. they were just messing with me of course. they'd never risk harming their final project, but that didn't stop me from believing them."

He drew in another shaky breath and Toriel could feel subdued waves of his own dark emotions radiating from within him. In the moment, it almost felt as though their feelings, and by extension their souls, were in sync with each other.

"sometimes they'd tell me they had killed him after i failed, just to push me past my breaking point, trying to see if that would be the key to unlocking my killer instinct. it still didn't work, all their threats and attempts led me to try as hard as i could, but i still couldn't finish any of the targets off. Then ol g would just… kill them all himself in front of me, showing how easy it should be, drilling into me what a complete waste i was... eh heh… his words, not mine."

He went silent again and for a while the only sound came from the gentle crackle and pop of the fireplace. His emotions seemed to even out within him again, and it was as if she could physically detect the sensation of him repressing them back from whence they came.

"yah… i think that's good enough for now… you get the idea i'm sure…" He mumbled, voice becoming guarded once more.

"Yes… Alright…" Toriel said as she nodded numbly. "I… I am so very sorry, my friend."

She didn't know what else to say. What could she say? No words could make this better. It didn't shock her as badly as when she had first heard about his childhood, but that didn't mean it wasn't devastating to hear regardless. His frantic mutterings from when he had been having the nightmare came back to her. All the pain and terror she'd heard in his voice then now made clear sense. She found herself fighting back tears again.

"you know…it's kinda weird." Sans spoke up again after a moment, surprising her. "i haven't had nightmares about the stuff from back then in a long time. usually it's all just the more uh… recent events, h-heh…

She wasn't sure how he managed it, but he kept a deal of light-heartedness in his tone as he went on.

"I know it's because we dredged all that up today…er yesterday, but sometimes it feels like my mind just wants to change up the program, y'know? can't have me getting too used to the usual fair after all. gotta keep it fresh and make sure it's always enough to keep me from trying to sleep again."

He shrugged his shoulders a bit in a sarcastic manner, then let them fall again with a sigh.

"it certainly hasn't failed yet... no way i'm getting back to snoozeville any time soon." He admitted, doing his best to mask the unease still lingering in his voice. "my mind's a real piece of work, but a clever one, i'll give it that."

Toriel hummed thoughtfully at his words, casting her eyes towards the violet flames of the fireplace. Clearly, Sans was trying to avoid getting worked up as he had before, clinging back to his usual, dismissive way of speaking in an attempt to accomplish that. Still, it had allowed him to talk about it easier, even if it meant treating the dark subject with not even a fraction of the weight it deserved.

She let it be, sensing he really wanted to avoid discussing the topic further at this point. She took a mental note of all of her questions and thoughts surrounding this new batch of information, intending to write it down in her diary with everything else later.

"I fear I am not going to be able to sleep for the time being either, my friend." She replied finally, doing her best to refocus her thoughts. "Would you… like to do something to take your mind off this for a while? Maybe watch that documentary you told me about?"

Sans shifted back a bit to look up at her, giving her a weak, but seemingly genuine smile. It should have been a relieving sight, but the dark shadows under his eye sockets and the faint remnants of tear tracks on his face made it difficult to offer an equal smile back. She did her best anyway, about to reach for the remote when he stopped her with his answer.

"actually tori, i uh… i was thinking. I never really letcha have your turn, y'know? to talk about you, i mean. i kinda, heh, screwed it all up by being a mess earlier. but uh… if you want..."

Toriel blinked in surprise. Truthfully, she had almost forgotten about her side of the deal in all this amongst everything that had happened. She felt a small pang of gratitude towards Sans for bringing it up. Her smile grew far more sincere.

"Interested are we?" She teased softly, giving him a wink. "Of course my friend, I did promise you I would, did I not?"

He only replied with a sheepish grin, but it didn't last long. He moved back to rest against her comfortably and looked up at her expectantly. He was trying to appear casual, but Toriel could see genuine interest shimmering in the lights of his eyes. It prompted another soft chuckle from her, finding it all quite endearing.

"Just give me a moment to gather my thoughts on the matter…" She said, wrapping a supporting arm back around her friend.

She sat up a bit more and tapped a claw against her chin, casting her thoughts back to her earliest memories for the first time in a long, long time. It was a strange feeling, reflecting on events from so long ago that they may as well been from a different lifetime entirely. She ultimately settled on a few key points, turning back to meet her friend's gaze.

"Well, as you said yourself, it is always best to start at the beginning, is it not?" She said, voice softening.

"ideally yah, otherwise you might really start-tle your audience." Sans quipped back with a wink of his own.

A snort of laughter escaped her at that before she could go on, and she felt quite happy for the sudden feeling of normalcy. She cleared her throat with a bit of dramatic flair.

"I was born… many centuries ago, in a grand castle that used to stand not too far from here." She began, casting her eyes back towards the fireplace as she spoke.

"I was the only heiress born to my parents, King Manual and Queen Guia, the rulers of the western monster kingdom. You may recognize their names from old history books. I grew up as one would expect of a princess, living a rather lavish lifestyle. Dresses and crowns, etiquette lessons, visits to our subjects, visits to the other monster kingdom and various other settlements, banquets, dancing… all of it seems quite silly looking back now."

Her eyes turned a touch wistful as some notable moments from her early life seemed to flash before her.

"Back then, I was never happy about being a princess. All the rules and expectations wore down on me. I was determined to be a free spirit. I caused my parents quite a deal of grief with my acts of rebellion. I would change into shabby dresses I had made myself before important events, sneak off into the royal gardens to hunt for bugs and play with the animals, pull pranks on the servants and guards and just generally act silly and undignified when I really should not have."

A warm giggle escaped her, feeling her face heat up a bit at admitting to her younger self's unruly behavior. She caught a glance of Sans' amused grin from the corner of her eye and turned her gaze back to him.

"sounds like you were a pretty awesome kid to me." He chuckled. "and y'know, i'd say you haven't changed all that much."

Toriel quirked an eyebrow at that, not sure if she should be offended by the statement or not.

"Oh? Certainly not. I handled my role as queen far better than I did my early princess days. Why if I had true power back then I would probably have made snails an official delicacy or ordered every royal structure be painted in polka dots. I was near incapable of taking anything seriously in those days. You cannot say that is the case now."

Sans shrugged playfully, eyelights brightening with mischief.

"nah, i mean yah, you grew up and had to be responsible and sophisticated and all to rule the kingdom but… you're still a big goofball at heart tori." He lightly poked her muzzle with a phalange. "don'tcha try and deny it.~"

She attempted to frown at him but her scrunched up muzzle probably made the look appear more amusing than she intended. Eventually though her façade failed her and her face split into a grin again. She batted his hand away, unable to keep the smile off her face.

"Fine, I shall not deny it." She replied. "But you had better watch yourself funnybones."

He shrugged again in response, shooting her a wink. "heh... alright old lady."

After a few moments, his grin suddenly faltered a bit and he looked up at her again with far less confidence.

"hey, so uh… you don't have to answer this if it's too personal, but i was just… wondering. what were your parents like? did you… y'know… get along with them?" He asked.

Toriel's own expression mellowed out at the question and she blinked slowly before answering. A torrent of memories regarding her mother and father came flooding back to her and she did her best to parse them effectively.

"As much stress and frustration as I caused them, my parents loved me and raised me well." Toriel replied, reaching up to rub one of her long ears between her fingers, an old self-soothing ritual.

"My father was a kind and energetic soul, he always made an effort to smile and see the positive in any situation. He was gentle, but knew also how to be firm and address serious threats with a great deal of strength and dignity. Monsters really respected him, he was a friend to many and a guardian to all."

Her scarlet eyes shone with warmth as she spoke, fangs flashing as her smile widened.

"He and I were very close. Despite all the trouble I caused, he always found something to praise about my efforts, even if it was just my tenacity alone. He used to carry me everywhere on his shoulders and I have many fond memories of sleeping on his head between his massive horns, all curled up in his thick black mane. He was also the one who encouraged my um… unique sense of humor. I think you would have liked him, he certainly would have liked you."

Sans seem a touched surprised at that, offering a smile but one that seemed weak in comparison to before. When he didn't comment on her words, Toriel continued.

"My mother… well, our relationship was a little more complicated." She admitted, eyes dulling a bit. "She was beautiful, dignified and almost always serious. She wanted so badly for me to change and be what she envisioned for our kingdom. It seemed we spent far more time fighting than anything else. She was never neglectful or cruel, just never seemed to accept me as I was."

Toriel felt a dull, old ache in her soul. An ache that only worsened as she went on.

"Then when I was about eleven or so, she was terribly injured and her face disfigured in an assassination attempt by a group of humans. I will discuss that in more detail later but… it caused her to lose all confidence in herself. She rarely ever made public appearances again and became far more distant from everyone, especially me and father."

She shook her head slowly, still gently rubbing her ear between her pads of her thumb and forefinger.

"Things were never the same after that. I would have loved for us even to fight again if it meant she would speak to me at all aside from occasional one word answers. I tried everything I could think of in those days to get her to smile again, to engage with us. But she had just shut down. It was that way until she passed unfortunately. We had a few good moments here and there, but in all… It was hard for me not to feel abandoned by my mother."

She forced herself out of her musing, facing Sans with a sad smile.

"Sorry, kind of rambled a bit there. Despite my issues with my mother, I look back on my parents fondly. They taught me much of what I needed to know and I carry that still to this day. I hope that answers your question."

The skeleton nodded, looking away and still with a rather empty looking grin. The possible cause for his behavior came to Toriel quickly and she immediately felt the too-familiar sting of guilt. How could she have not seen how talking about her parents could affect him? Here she was complaining about her relationship with her mother as if it held a candle to what he'd been through. How could she be so insensitive? She opened her mouth to apologize but he beat her to it.

"yah… it does. makes a lotta sense actually." He murmured, offering her a slightly stronger grin. "your pop sounds like he was a swell guy. shame about what happened with your mom but, for what it's worth, you really showed her y'know? you turned out to be ten times the mother she ever was. a hundred times even."

The compliment caught her off guard a bit, banishing her earlier thoughts for the moment. She knew he intended the words to bring her comfort, but they met her soul with a rush of pain. Faces of all the children she'd failed flashed across her mind, filling her vision briefly. She tried not to shudder or let her sudden despair show on her face.

"I… I do not know about that." She replied weakly, blinking the painful images away. "But… thank you, my friend."

He did not meet her words with a response and she found for the moment she could not face him. She felt him reach over and lay his hand over her paw. It was a small gesture, quite literally, but its intent was clear. She moved in turn to properly hold his hand, enveloping it in her large paw and giving it a gentle, grateful squeeze.

They let the silence between them stretch on for a while, listening to the soft sounds of the fireplace as the near-spent logs settled downward with small showers of sparks. Neither let go of the others hand. Toriel wasn't sure how long it had been, but she was eventually broken out of her daze when Sans spoke again.

"tori… this is a little off topic but…" He began, prompting her to finally look back at him. "you're like, immortal, right?"

That gave her pause, but she managed a nod in response.

"Yes, as of now. My kind can only age as our children do. Our… biological children."

The clarification at the end came with another wave of pain and she tightened her grip on his hand a bit. Sans' eyelights flashed with sympathy but he went on, expression rather hollow.

"right… i just… i just wondered uh, does it ever… get to you? Your immortality I mean."

Toriel tilted her head a bit, a small frown appearing on her face.

"Sometimes… certainly, if I allow myself to dwell on it. But what exactly do you mean by "get to me"?" She asked.

Sans cringed slightly, looking then as though he wanted desperately to drop the subject. But something drove him to keep with it, despite his clear unease.

"like… does it ever make you feel detached from everything? like you're stuck in a way that no one else can really relate to? like nothing you do really matters in the grand scheme of things?"

The rather profound and harrowing nature of the questions left her stunned, as well as his sudden eloquence. She only truly considered an answer for a moment before concern for him overwhelmed those thoughts. What would prompt him to ask such things? She opened her mouth to say… something, but no words came. She eased it shut again, swallowing hard.

Sans didn't seem to notice her reaction, he had an oddly faraway look in his eyelights as he turned his gaze towards the purple flames before them. His voice mirrored this as he spoke again, sounding just as distant and emotionless.

"does it ever make you want to just… give up?"

The question hung in the air, it's terrible weight heavy on both their souls. Toriel could only stare at him in shocked silence. He kept his gaze locked on the fire, the flitting shadows dancing across his face in an eerie manner. Neither said a word.

Outside, a distant peal of thunder rumbled ominously and the wind picked up with a light howl. After all the calm weather that day, it seemed that a storm was closing in.