Four days.

Four days had passed since she and her family had visited her old castle home. And still, her children had not come to talk with her about whatever great secret… or more likely, secrets … they were hiding.

That first night, she thought they were holding back simply out of the desire to focus on being there for her after they had all learned of some of the darkest parts of her history. She had hoped that this willingness on her part to share with them her own burdening secrets would inspire them further towards sharing their own. But it seemed that was simply not going to be the case.

They had become more distant towards her in the passing days, Frisk utilizing that neutral face of theirs that they so often used when they wanted to conceal their true emotions. And Flowey often avoided her gaze and hardly spoke a word, which was concerning coming from a monster that so rarely held his tongue. Toriel would have honestly have rather he spout his usual biting words, rather than subject her to this unbearable silent treatment.

She didn't understand why. Before they had seemed so very determined to tell her, they had both seemed set on it. Frisk… and whatever mysterious being it was that shared their headspace. So why were they not saying anything? Why must they torment her so? She feared that she was becoming so distraught over it, that it was starting to show in her outward behavior, and that they were surely beginning to see through the fact that she knew something. Was that the reason they were holding back? Had she made them lose their nerve towards telling her entirely?

"they're probably just waiting for next weekend tori." Sans had patiently reasoned with her, multiple times, when they were alone together. "they wouldn't want to share something big like this when you'd have to worry about work that same day. just hold out a little longer, okay? if they don't say anything by then…. i'll talk to them, just like i said before."

It was fair to say Sans was probably right, but that did not stop her fretful mind from fearing the worst anyway. Despite it all though, she found what distraction and comfort she could in her usual routines, burying herself in chores and in her duties at the school in order to keep her mind from drifting into any number of burdening thoughts. She may have also fallen into a habit of… "stress baking", to the point there was hardly a time during those four days where there wasn't one or two desserts sitting on the counter or in the fridge.

It couldn't keep her stress away completely, but it did help. Just like when she was in the Ruins, being busy kept her mind occupied from everything it could… and perhaps ideally should be thinking about. And Sans, bless him, was making a point to be with her whenever he could. Always happy to offer up jokes, meaningless but beloved conversation and a helping hand to many of her impulsive pie making binges. But not even he could stave off her increasing anxiety and dread, which grew steadily inside her during the passing days like some terrible blight upon her soul. And perhaps it would not have been nearly as bad… if her sleep was not also a place of such torment for her.

The nightly visions hadn't stopped, nor had the utterly splitting headaches that followed them each time she awoke. And just as they had feared, they only seemed to be growing worse without explanation. So bad in fact, that she found certain thoughts had even begun to trigger some flicker of them during the day. They were brief, but still greatly vexing to deal with and left her rather dizzy and even disoriented in their wake. The times this happened at the school were especially troublesome, worrying her students and coworkers to no end.

Sans, of course, blamed himself for it all. And on top of his other attempts at helping her through it, he had been working tirelessly the past four days to find the answer as to why she was suffering each night the way she was. He brought the printed report from Alphys' shed and his notebook with him every day to work, and she had caught him plenty of times abandoning his duties to pour over it.

Every time, she pretended not to notice, knowing that he would continue to do so even if she protested. And she knew deep down, that this affliction of hers was getting more and more worrisome by the day. If it continued on getting worse at this rate… she truly feared what may happen to her. His dedication to helping her was both touching… and appropriate for the situation.

It was all that stress and all those thoughts mixing and swirling endlessly through her mind that had left her painfully wide awake the night after the fourth day of silence from her children. Not even Sans' soul, slightly stirred up, but still contently sharing magic in his sleep, had managed to soothe her enough to follow suit. It was like before all this had happened, when her insomnia had a terribly firm grip on her.

So, in something of a haze, she had found herself wandering out into the kitchen and, in a moment of weakness, grabbing the tall bottle of wine she kept in a child proof cabinet on the top shelf. The fact she had a class to teach in the morning did not even enter her thoughts then. That is how far gone her mind had drifted at that point, that she would neglect her own duties and personal integrity. The very thing she had fought so long and hard for. Part of her almost wondered if she was dreaming, so out of it she was.

Before she truly realized what was happening, she found herself out on the porch swing, shakily pouring the dark colored wine into a plastic children's cup that had somehow ended up being the drinkware she'd grabbed on her way outside. The cup was bright green and covered in colorful pictures of zoo animals. Their cartoony eyes stared back at her as she finished filling the cup, as though silently judging her for her pathetic, woefully irresponsible life choices. She tipped it back for a gulp just so she didn't have to look at them anymore.

The wine burned as the large amount of it slid down her throat, causing her to cough twice and slosh a little of the liquid still in the cup over her paw. It caused a dark pink stain to appear on her white fur, sticky and unsettlingly close in appearance to blood. She set the cup down for the moment and held her paw up to examine the "damage" as it were. She watched as some of the strong smelling wine dripped down her paw pads and off the tip of her claws, vanishing into the darkness of the porch's wooden floor below her.

It should have been the sign that she needed to stop. That she needed to go wash up. That she needed to pull herself together and stop acting so utterly deplorable. But instead, she found herself taking yet another fiery gulp of the wine as though her own thoughts had no bearing on her actual actions anymore. Just like when she witnessed her past, lost memories through her dreams. It would have been terrifying… had she had the full presence of mind to perceive it. The second swallow of alcohol added to the burning sensation within her soul, beginning the task of dulling her mind even further.

She was oddly content with that in the moment, the idea of letting it all fade from her awareness, if just for a while. Even though she didn't regret her choice to share the burden of Sans' terrible secrets in order to help him, and know she would do it again without hesitation, it didn't change the fact that it was taking an immense toll on her. One that only seemed to grow worse by each passing day, as more and more pieces of this unending puzzle they were all wrapped up in came to light. She pondered then, through the haziness of her mind, how much better off all of them would be, Sans included, if they had all simply been ignorant to the reality of their world.

Such thoughts and continual dissociation likely would have led her to downing a dangerous amount of the wine, perhaps even the full cup. But before she could think to take another drink, a familiar voice suddenly brought her back to a better level of awareness.

"y'know, this is something of a… deja vu role reversal now isn't it?" Said the voice in question, and she turned her head to see Sans, somehow, had appeared on the porch swing beside her.

She blinked, inclined to be surprised by his inexplicable appearance, but she knew him well enough at this point to know that such things were not at all surprising coming from him. Plus, she was still just out of it enough for it not to warrant much of a reaction. Sans was still in his pajamas she'd seen him fall asleep in, which for him meant an oversized black galaxy print t-shirt and dark blue sweatpants. He was looking at her with an expression that was difficult to read, but clearly marked with concern. Especially within the soft, lovely glow of his eyelights in the dark of the night.

She took a moment to process his words and respond. For that short time, the only sounds were the soft chirping of crickets and the distant rustle of the willow tree's limbs gently teased by the wind. Conflicted, somewhat muted emotions stirred within her soul then, beginning to push through the haze that had gripped her.

"I... suppose so…" She finally replied, voice low and surprisingly thick as though she were ill.

She looked down at the plastic cup of dark wine in her paw and lifted it with a small shake in his general direction.

"I suspect… you are here to take this away from me?" She said, tone rather flat.

She had meant for it to come off as a joke of some sort, but it seemed her more negative emotions resulted in her words having more of a bite than she intended. Sans didn't appear too stung by it though, only quirking a brow ridge at her words before offering a weak, but knowing smile.

"well… i'm no expert on these things… but i think i'd be a pretty shitty uh... "boyfriend", if i didn't tori." He said, flushing a bit with an embarrassed chuckle after that term in particular left him. "heh, i don't think that word's ever gonna sound natural coming from me."

Toriel wanted to laugh at that, or feel any of the appropriate emotions really. But the moment passed where one would reasonably expect a reaction, and she found she could only continue to blankly look at him. His grin fell a bit at that, but he didn't back down. He shifted a little closer, making deliberate eye contact with her.

"y'know you wouldn't let me drink myself into a stupor." He reasoned, tone soft and perhaps a little sad. "and i know you don't want to deal with the hangover on top of everything else tomorrow morning, 'specially when you have classes to teach. i understand if you want to wine about it all a little though."

His smile perked up again reflexively at his own pun and he looked at her expectantly. But again, she just… couldn't find it in herself to laugh just then. And that fact made her feel worse than she probably should over it. Didn't she assure him just a few days ago that she would be okay? That was turning out to be more and more of a lie by the day. Enough so that not even his puns were able to get her to fully snap out of her funk. There was hardly a worse sign than that, was there not?

Sans' expression dulled again, grin slipping and concern causing his eyelights to dim. But still, he did not turn away. In some meager effort to redeem the situation, she let out a soft, weary sigh and forced herself to at least comply with what she knew he wanted. Even if her more positive emotions did not wish to return at that moment, she could certainly still feel a burning sense of shame growing more intense each passing second. Without a word and while avoiding his gaze, she handed over the plastic cup still half full of wine, as well as the bottle it had been poured from.

He took them from her in a gentle manner, first with his hands and then by using his magic to set them down on the side table beside the porch swing. A pained sort of silence stretched between them then as she continued to stare down at nothing, not having the will to look at him as more and more awareness of her contemptible behavior crept into her soul. Her head was clearing enough that she wanted to let out a flood of apologies, but the gentle touch of his hand on her paw kept that from happening. It did, however, give her the nerve to meet his gaze again.

He didn't need to say anything in that moment, the sympathy, guilt, and familiar heaviness in his eyelights said it all.

"c'mere." He implored gently, slowly wrapping his arms around her from behind and making an effort to ease her much larger body closer to him. "let's just… chill out for a bit, ok?"

Understanding his intentions, she only hesitated a moment before her need for comfort and security won over her own self loathing. She moved as he did, and after a few moments of shifting to get comfortable on the somewhat creaky wooden swing, she found herself laying down with her head in his lap, the back of it resting against his ribcage. It allowed her a from-below view of him that was quite a rarity indeed, given their difference in size.

She blinked up at him, feeling some flicker of warmer emotions return as his soul pulsed so very near her own. It willed her to be calm, to be content, to feel loved. And not even the haze of detachment and the newly consumed alcohol could stop those feelings from coming through. He slipped his arms under her long ears and rested his skull on the curve of her horns. That close contact was something she craved so deeply, but she never seemed to recognize that fact until she was actually receiving it. She was torn between the urge to close her eyes in contentment and her desire to keep looking up at him.

"here." He murmured suddenly, thankfully making the decision for her. "you can have this instead."

One of his warm arms disappeared for a moment, then returned with something notably cool. She reached up instinctually with her paw and took it from him, finding it to be a water bottle. She let out a weak, humorless chuckle at that. He was right, this really was a role reversal for them. She wasn't fully sure how to feel about that, but the input from his soul didn't let as much negativity as before cloud her thoughts. More and more they were washed away with every wave of magic from his soul.

She popped the plastic lid off the bottle with a claw and took a few sips of water. It didn't satisfy the craving she'd been indulging earlier, but it did seem to make her feel a little better. If only by placebo effect.

"Thank you, my dear." She replied softly, finally finding her voice.

She wished to say more. He deserved to hear more from her. But she just… didn't know what to say. What words could sum up how utterly pathetic this whole situation was? How irresponsible, how shameful, how…

Those thoughts were halted as Sans moved his hands to lightly cup her long ears. Then he began to rub them between his phalanges, tenderly smoothing out the silky fur present there. She was momentarily rendered unable to think at all, mind left thoroughly blank by his actions. Did he... know?

There was an inside joke among boss monsters. Or at least, there had been when there were quite a deal more of them in the world. Her father had told her that the quickest way to subdue any boss monster, even one as hardened as her mother had been, was to give them a nice ear rub. It could reduce any one of them to putty in the other's hands. That conversation had ended with her father having a fancy pillow thrown at his face from across the room. But the fact remained that he was right.

While her mind had no desire to think back on how Asgore would once do this for her when she was stressed or tired, and especially during her pregnancy, that time served as further proof. Especially since he had been the same way... It had even been a near surefire way of getting Asriel to sleep. Just holding him close, softly stroking those tiny velvety ears, and humming to him that ancient song of Home…

To say she was thoroughly comforted by Sans' actions was quite the understatement. It was a struggle to not all out melt into his touch, goofy giddy grin and all. Being that receiving affection like this was still something she was getting used to again didn't help her retain her composure either. She looked up and met his gaze again through half-lidded eyes, managing a stronger smile.

"Now that is just unfair…" She sighed, shifting a little in order to make the task easier for him and crossing her paws over her stomach. "I suppose you have figured out my weaknesses then, have you not?"

That brought a grin to his face, pushing through the more hesitant, weak smile that had been there before. Judging from the dusting of cyan still visible on his cheekbones, getting himself to do this had taken a bit of courage on his part. He was getting better at that though, faster than he realized. She could remember fondly how nervous and flustered he used to become just from holding her paw back when this all started.

"yup." He answered simply, with a rare sparkle of confidence in his eyelights. "wasn't too hard, 'specially when i have uh… similar ones."

That seemed to put a dimmer on that confidence and brought that bright blush back to his face. But after a moment, something seemed to occur to him and that shine returned to his eyelights. Along with a hint of mischievousness.

"plus, this is what made you purr that one time, remember?" He noted, giving her ears a more deliberate stroke with his bony thumbs.

She frowned up a him for that, puffing up her cheeks a bit with a huff. Her arms shifted to cross and she drummed her claws irritabily against the plastic water bottle. He just had to bring that up.

"I would rather not discuss that." She said, fighting against a blush of her own that was trying to form. "It was dreadfully embarrassing."

Part of her was ready to get up and leave after that comment, pulled enough from her earlier haze that her personal pride was capable of being wounded again. But she couldn't make herself do that, and not just because being shown this personal attention was so wonderful. With the way she'd been acting, she had little cause to be concerned with her own self worth.

"aww c'mon t, i really did think it was cute." He insisted, tone surprisingly genuine, if still rather jovial.

He rested one of his hands on her forehead and slowly swept his phalanges through the fur there, in and out from between her horns.

"it's like, natural for boss monsters right?" He went on, the smile evident in his voice. "you shouldn't feel embarrassed about it. just means you are happy, right?"

She didn't grace those questions with an answer. The frown remaining firmly on her face. Yes, he was technically right. But boss monsters, and most feline monsters really, avoided such behavior most wouldn't deem as suitable for civilized society. Of course… most also did not grow up as royalty, with a whole other level of expectations on presenting oneself. If she remembered correctly, her mother had told her making that sound, along with growling or anything of the sort made her seem "like some feral beast, absolutely unacceptable."

She had no reason to heed those words now, having long abandoned her royal title. Yet, the idea of doing that still made her feel terribly embarrassed. Even now it seemed, her royal roots still had their claws in her. And what sharp claws they were.

For the moment though, she eventually decided to play along with Sans a bit, unable to keep from being amused as she figured out his intentions with all this. Her frown softened into a small smile and her scarlet eyes slid shut.

"Ah, is that the true reason you are spoiling me so much right now?" She asked, in a lightly teasing tone. "This is all a ploy to hear that ridiculous sound from me again, is it not?"

He stiffened slightly and stopped petting her, but only for a moment. It was clear she had caught him, but he was managing to be resilient in his resolve today. Even if she herself was feeling lower than dirt at the moment, it made her happy to see that.

"maybe~" He replied, retaining confidence but clearly holding back a nervous chuckle. "i definitely wouldn't mind hearing it again... plus, it would let me know you are actually enjoying this and not just… humoring me."

His words were met with silence again. But this time, Toriel wasn't fully sure of the feelings driving it. She had fully intended to kindly let him down and turn the subject away from her embarrassing repressed habits. But she found his words, simple in their honesty, had stirred something in her soul. This idea that she was worrying over nothing again, the reminder that she truly had nothing to fear from Sans in that regard, and yet here she was once again slipping into the defensive.

It was silly, it was all so silly. And yet… it was again the dissonance he offered in regards to her old life that made her feel so very at ease. At ease enough to feel silly in the face of everything she was enduring. At ease enough to…

She slowly uncrossed her arms, settling her paws on the curve of her stomach instead and opening her eyes as she looked up at him again. Their gazes met, deep red and bright white and something silent but meaningful was communicated between them. No jokes or teasing this time, just a wordless understanding. It left Toriel with the encouragement needed to show a boldness on her part, just as he had with her.

When they finally broke that gaze, he kept right on stroking her ears as though they were among the most delicate and precious things one could ever hope to encounter. This time though, Toriel didn't fight her insecurities about enjoying it, instead directing her internal battles at the anxiety that wished to rob this moment from her. She shut her eyes again, letting herself all but melt under his touch and reaching into a part of her soul that had been pushed deep down by the passing centuries. And admittedly, the alcohol she had managed to get into her system likely helped with the process.

She hadn't done this willingly and openly for longer than she could even hope to surmise. But slowly, she gave into her natural instinct when faced with such contentment and love. She let herself be lost in those emotions and didn't think about her mother's opinions, her previous title, society, customs, or any of that. She just… let what came naturally… happen.

The sound was soft at first, nothing more than a small vibration deep in her throat. But then it grew in volume and strength, and she found her smile naturally grew with it, curling into an expression of peacefulness she so rarely wore on her time worn features. Soon enough, the sounds of the night now were undercut by a soft, warm, happy rumble. One that made Toriel sound like some massively oversized house cat in a particularly good mood. And it felt… nice. Nicer than she ever thought it would. It felt right, even. There was no other way to describe it but… natural.

Sans seemed to more than approve as well. He simply listened for a few moments, clearly taking in the sound and likely the accompanying sight of her as well. He didn't stop stroking her though, only slowing his movements some as the purring sound reached its full strength. She could feel from his soul that he was quite happy indeed that he'd managed to convince her of this, and also full of intrigue, as though what he was witnessing was something of great wonder. If she weren't so blissed out, she may have found that rather embarrassing as well. But right then she couldn't be bothered to feel anything but loved.

Eventually he did stop petting her, but only to slip his arms around her neck and hold her tight to him for a few moments. Partially just out of affection it seemed, but also likely wanting to feel her purring's soft rumble as well as hear it. She was happy to comply, turning her head some to offer him something of a nuzzle. The giddy feelings she could feel from his soul reminded her of what she had felt from him that first night they officially started their relationship. She had a feeling that if she could see his eye sockets in that moment, his eyelights would be in that wonderful heart shape again.

"wow." He finally said, sounding both dazed and amazed as he pressed his face into her fur. "i know this is gonna sound cheesy as hell, but that's really… well... beautiful."

She could practically hear the blush behind those words, even if they were still a good deal more confident than usual for him. If her vocal cords weren't occupied, she might have allowed herself a soft giggle at his expense. After a moment he loosened up his grip again, returning to idly stroking her long ears.

"heh... you're so amazing tori." He mused, almost sounding as though he only meant to speak to himself then.

The words, cheesy as they may be, were exactly what she needed to hear right now. She couldn't accept the compliment in full, as her self image was still in ruins, but the sentiment stuck and even brought a small sting of tears to her eyes. She blinked them away, and slowly trailed off her purring in order to speak again.

"Well… I think it is fair to say I think the same of you, love." She said, tilting her head back a little further in order to look up at him again.

He stopped in his stroking motions as her words sank in, and she couldn't help but smile at the wobbly grin on his face, paired with that oh so lovely shade of cyan. The magic causing the blush actually made the affected parts of his skull glow a bit in the darkness of the night. If he found her silly sound of contentment beautiful, then she certainly felt justified in finding that sight from him beautiful as well.

Her eyes and soul asked something of him once most of his flustered reaction had worn off. Unlike that very first time, she never let it be something done on impulse, at least not when it was like this. She waited for his silent answer, and it came as he moved his hands to better cradle her head. Letting him be the one to initiate it this time, she waited until he had gained the nerve to lean down and close the short distance between them.

The curve of his teeth pressed against her lips, and she felt that spark of magic pass between them once they made contact. It was an… interesting angle to be sharing a kiss from for sure, not exactly the romantic idea she had thought up in her somewhat alcohol addled head. Indeed, to a witness it would probably look quite… silly. But she supposed it was all the more fitting for them that their expressions of love be a bit silly in the end, was it not?

Their souls sang in that now familiar, lovely, unison, and Toriel was able to fully cast her original woes that had driven her out here out of her mind. At least for the moment. This night had started out so terribly, but now it seemed it may not turn out so bad after all.

They spent a good deal of time after that as they had before. With him continuing to insist on spoiling her and she just lying there, accepting it all with far less resistance. And yes, she did allow herself to keep purring for him. She found that for the time being, his reaction to it was worth any embarrassment she might feel over it all. How long exactly they stayed like that though, Toriel wasn't sure, a fact not helped by the alcohol she had managed to consume.

Eventually, she finally got a sense of the full reality of the situation again. That stopped that silly sound from her, and that alone seem to catch his attention. She didn't look up at him, but she reached up and took one of his hands in her paw, stopping it from continuing to pet her.

"You should go back to bed Sans." She said softly, gently rubbing his thin phalanges with her thumb. "One of us should be well rested for tomorrow."

Sans seemed a touch surprised by that, and she could feel that he was briefly caught up in conflicted emotions. But it seemed that spark of resolve she had felt from him before wasn't going away.

"heh... nah." He replied, in his usual lighthearted tone. "somehow i'm the one whose ended up sleeping well lately, thanks to you. and i can always catch up on z's by napping during my shift anyway."

She could all but hear the wink in his voice, even without looking up to see it. His attempts to charm her were admirable, but they simply weren't going to work this time. And her troubled silence seemed to communicate that to him well enough. The humor from his soul dulled, but did not die out completely. He closed his small hand around her paw, holding it as best he could.

"you stayed up with me when i was going through all my stuff and i know you'll do it again the next time i get low, 's only fair i do the same for you... is it not~?"

Those last few words he'd said in a painfully silly imitation of her own voice and usual tone. Something he'd apparently also done back in the Underground when describing to Frisk about their first meeting. She lightly batted at his face with her free paw in response, failing hold back a snort of amusement. One of his wonderful wheezy little chuckles was his reply.

"What am I ever going to do with you?" She mused once the giggles ceased, managing to maintain a small smile. "Do I really sound so haughty when I speak?"

He chuckled again and gave the top of her head a pat.

"nah, you sound… uh…"

He started off strongly, but faltered and paused for a moment, blush returning.

"well, i dunno a good word for it right now. but i guess the best way to say it is, you talk... pretty." He managed, not helping dull the color on his face. "i mean, y'know... you sound like you care about every word you say, like you chose them carefully and picked the nicest ones… kinda the opposite of me, heh."

Toriel giggled lightly at that, but felt rather touched all the same. Sometimes she couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed and alienated due to her formal way of speaking. Part of her really wanted to drop it, as a method of further distancing herself from her past as Queen perhaps, but every time she tried it just felt so unnatural. So to hear him affirm that he enjoyed her fanciful speech was a great relief. Sans might not think highly of how he himself spoke, but he still always seemed to find the right thing to say to ease her mind. That wasn't something that should be overlooked.

"Well, I am glad you approve. Though I still feel as though I should be trying to work more contractions into my vocabulary, it would certainly help me sound more like an average citizen, rather than former royalty." She said, before lovingly stroking his hand with her thumb again "And for the record, I like your manner of speech exactly the way it is, my dear. I would be quite startled if you adopted any of my speaking patterns. I do not think such things would suit you."

As with her, she could feel from his soul that her words summoned up a lovely mix of amusement and gratitude. And she managed to get him to laugh for the third time, even stronger than before. No matter what he said, she was always going to find that sound far more wonderful than her silly purring.

"heh, yah, i gotta agree there." He said, clearly grinning widely again. "No one needs to hear me try to talk all fancy. that just sounds like it would be a royal pain."

And just like that, he had pulled her back to herself again. Or at least, enough so to clear most of the lingering fog from her thoughts and reduce her to a familiarly giggly mess. Enough so that she had to cover her mouth with her paws to keep the sound from potentially being heard by the other skeleton and children in the house. He mirrored her laughter with his own, still holding her paw tight in his hand.

After that, he was able to draw her deeper into their usual banter, directing her mind away from her struggles for a while yet again. It wasn't until she heard him poorly suppress a yawn that she remembered herself and the situation.

"You really should go back to bed Sans." She said quietly, but in a less dull voice than before.

Sans didn't hesitate this time though, despite his clear exhaustion.

"sorry t, you're not getting rid of me." He replied matter of factly and she felt him beginning to stroke her ears again. "i'm not going in unless you come in with me."

She let out a weak sigh, knowing that she had little hope of dissuading him from that. She allowed him to tend to her again, but looked away out at the distant lights of Newer Home. The shrill chirping of crickets filled the silence that arose between them before she could get herself to speak again.

"I do not think I am going to be able to sleep Sans…" She admitted, drawing her crossed arms tighter against her body. "I just… cannot relax knowing that I am missing something so important with my children… that voice I heard from Frisk haunts me... and these dreams are so…"

She stopped, biting her lip until her fangs poked into it painfully. She didn't want to be drawn back into thinking about this, but it would have been foolish to think they could continue to avoid it all for too long. Her words made Sans pause in his actions again, and there was a small negative shift in the emotions of his soul.

"i know…" He said quietly, curling his phalanges against her shoulders. "i'm sorry i haven't figured it out yet..."

Those words immediately stirred up her nurturing instincts again, and she quickly reached up to take his hand again.

"Oh nonsense." She gently admonished him, pulling his hand down to hold against her cheek. "I know you are working hard, and I greatly appreciate it. I know you are doing what you can."

He turned his hand and brushed his phalanges through the fur on her cheek, something that made her soul flutter a bit inside her despite the circumstances. The action seemed to help him refocus his thoughts, and he went on in a low voice.

"yah... but if i can't crack it soon… i'm scared that…" He trailed off, just continuing to run his phalanges through her fur.

She could feel his soul give off a harsh wave of guilt and fear, but he managed to tame it back down again after taking a steadying breath.

"i'll show the report to alphys if i don't make any meaningful headway in the next few days, or if you have another one of those headaches during the day again... even if it means… i have to tell her some of the harder stuff..."

That took her by surprise. He had promised something to that effect earlier, but that didn't mean it wasn't still significant to hear that he would be willing to divulge any number of his terrible secrets in order to help her. Part of her even wanted to protest, knowing how hard it would be for him to have to talk about any of what he'd told her again. But given the increasing severity and uncertainty of her condition… she knew it may very well come to that.

She closed her paw around his hand again and briefly pressed her lips to his bony knuckles. In the past, it had been her who typically received such a gesture, during her days as royalty. Directing the gesture towards him held meaning to her. Both as a means to express her gratitude, and to show that she valued him just as much as many valued royalty.

He stiffened up in surprise at the gesture, but relaxed with an appreciative if a bit confused pulse from her soul a few moments later. She felt fair in guessing that it had left him rightly flustered yet again, but it succeeded to getting his full attention again as well.

"Very well… I trust you will do what you believe is best." She said, closing her heavy eyes for a few moments. "Just let me know if I can do anything to help."

The magic from Sans' soul communicated to her a swirling mix of emotions, some warring against others. But he seemed to accept her words and soon enough found the will to keep talking.

"yah… okay tori." He replied, voice hardly a murmur as he continued to grapple with his thoughts.

She was content to be quiet for a while then and allow him to do so. Just enjoying his close company and staring out into the darkness of the night, taking in the sights and sounds it had to offer. In the meantime, he went back to playing with her ears, though this time it felt like it was serving as as method for soothing himself as well.

It seemed to work well enough. For after another short period of silence, she could feel the emotions from his soul even out some, pushing his lighthearted joviality to the forefront once again.

"want me to tell you a story?" He asked with a restored grin."that always seems to work on my bro. gets him down for a solid 45 minutes at least."

She didn't laugh this time, but she did manage a soft smile and settle against him more snugly. Even if she still wasn't convinced it would get her to sleep, it was worth humoring him. And perhaps it would serve to make him more sleepy as well.

"That sounds lovely, my dear." She replied, looking up at him expectantly. "I would like that."

Wholly pleased by her approval, he straightened up and cleared his metaphorical throat before beginning.

"k, so this is my bro's favorite story. it's a pretty dramatic tale." He said, in an equally dramatic voice. "it's called..." He held up two phalanges where she could see them and wiggled them to simulate rabbit ears. "peekaboo with fluffy bunny."

Now she had to giggle. At least a little. She had heard fond mention of this story from Papyrus in the past.

"Sounds to be quite riveting just from that title alone." She quipped, playfully keeping a casual voice. "I can hare -dly wait to hear it."

He snorted at that, and graced her further with a few chuckles for her pun. She didn't feel it was up to her usual bad joke standards, but she was happy to hear he enjoyed it regardless. Once that bit of silliness was over, he launched into his story, still stroking her all the while.

"once upon a time there was a small, pink, fluffy bunny who lived with his papa bunny and brother bunny in a big hollow tree at the edge of the forest..."

From there, Sans wove a tale of fluffy bunny brothers searching for carrots, the appropriate times one should or should not prank ones siblings with surprise games of peekaboo, and the importance of familial love. It was a charming if childish story, but given that that was the actual intended audience she couldn't offer any complaint. And besides, Sans gave quite the wonderful performance. Doing voices and retelling the escapes of two fluffy pink bunny brothers in that perfectly unfitting monotone. It made the whole thing quite the delight to listen to.

Unfortunately, it made no headway in getting her to sleep. But it was a valiant effort on his part nonetheless. As he drew the story to a close, she found herself still just smiling up at him.

"A truly touching ending." She said, laying a paw over her chest. "Thank you for that, my dear.

He looked down at her, appearing disappointed but still managing to smile at her compliment nonetheless.

"heh, yah. The ending is always what gets my bro." He said, before letting out a soft sigh. "but... it's also usually the point he's ready to fall asleep."

She hummed thoughtfully in response, dropping her gaze downwards again.

"I am sorry, my dear." She replied quietly, thought managing to keep up a smile."I promise it is not for a lack of storytelling talent on your part though."

That elicited another short chuckle from him, but it was clear his own exhaustion was really starting to weigh him down. His sockets were droopy and he continually had to fight back the urge to yawn. Toriel wanted nothing more then to reverse their situation then. To sit up, scoop him into her own arms instead and soothe him to sleep. She knew she could do it, even if he wanted to continue to try and stay awake for her sake.

Settling on the idea, she made the move then to get up off his lap with the intention of playfully pulling him into her embrace before he could argue. But as she sat up fully, a sound made her pause and caused one of her long ears to twitch slightly. It was a voice. No doubt. She had heard someone speak, and it was coming from inside the house. Sans seemed to hear it too, as he also went still and quiet. She turned her gaze towards the door, wondering who could be up at such a late hour.

Thankfully, she didn't have to wonder long. After what sounded to be a few reluctant, approaching footsteps, the front door slowly creaked open, revealing a small human child who should have very much been asleep at that time. They stood there looking at Toriel and Sans nervously, hair all a mess, clothes equally unkempt and with bags under their eyes that betrayed the fact they had not been sleeping.

Toriel felt her soul seize up briefly with a mix of emotions, most prominent being guilt and deep worry. Since Sans had snapped her out of her stuporous state earlier, she could reflect on just how poor her choices that night had been. What a terrible mother she was, staggering outside in the dead of the night to drink her problems away, whilst her child may have needed her? Indeed, the slight fuzziness of the alcohol that flowed through her magic was no longer a relief, and only made her feel ill.

She resolved though, to feel bad about it all later. Right now, Frisk clearly needed her. That was all that mattered.

"Frisk?" She called quietly over to them, quickly getting up from the porch swing.

She swayed a bit, just once, knocking over the abandoned water bottle next to the swing. She tried to internally blame it on standing up too fast rather than the wine she'd had. But she quickly righted herself and hurried over to them. The creak of the swing and the soft footfalls of socks against the hardwood porch behind her told her that Sans was following as well.

"My child, what are you doing up so late?" She asked once she'd reached them, kneeling down in front of them and resting a paw on their shoulder.

Up close, it was much more obvious that they were distressed, and attempting to mask that fact. Their soft brown eyes carried a deep sort of dread and anxiety in them, mixed with something akin to anticipation. And worst of all, though it was faint, there were signs on their face that they may have been crying.

"I-I…" They attempted to speak the words aloud, coming out as a hoarse croak.

But rapidly, they lost the will and had to resort to signing again, the words coming slow.

(I went to your room, but you weren't there…) They signed cautiously, making the motions as clear as they could in the darkness.

Toriel felt the guilt grip her all over again, like claws against in her soul. She looked into her child's eyes apologetically, soul heavy with shame.

"I am so sorry dear. I was having trouble sleeping and I… I needed some air." She replied, the lie burning on her tongue. "Did you have another bad dream?"

Frisk hesitated in answering the question, looking downwards and fiddling nervously with their fabric of their pajama sleeves. The amount of nervousness she could feel from their powerful soul concerned her greatly. This didn't feel the same as the other times they had come to her after suffering a nightmare. They weren't coming to her for comfort as usual, instead acting as though she and Sans… were partially what they were afraid of. It made the claws in her soul dig in deeper as she continued to watch their words.

(Kind of... But it's not just that...) They signed at last, before briefly freezing up again.

Their fingers curled some with indecision, and Toriel gave their shoulder a delicate squeeze, hoping to encourage them to continue. They did, but only after taking in and letting out a deep breath. Only then did they meet her eyes with more of their signature determined look, pushing through their obvious nerves.

(Me and Flowey… we… we really need to tell you something.) They admitted, hands shaking somewhat as they did. (We wanted to wait until morning at least but… neither of us can really sleep because of it. And… We... should have told you a long time ago. We've just been really scared to...)

It was only then did the reality of what was happening here finally hit her like a wake up slap to the face. After all her waiting, all her struggling to keep her composure and feign normalcy, the very thing that had sent her out here ready to drown herself in alcohol was finally seeing the light of day. At long last, her children were finally going to reveal whatever terrible secret they had been hiding from her for so long.

She had been desperate for this moment to come, for it all to finally be out in the open so that the anticipation and dread she'd felt over it could finally end. She had no doubt whatever they shared would likely send her reeling mentally and emotionally like so much of Sans' secrets had. There was no way this was anything trivial, or something she already knew. Only Sans seemed to be aware of whatever it was, and even he didn't seem to know everything. That... honestly terrified her.

Would it… be too much? Could she really take anything that devastating again? Where her whole worldview would shift and shatter in an instant? And they had chosen such an inopportune time! It was the dead of night, a school night no less, where she had downed a good portion of alcohol that was still affecting her. On top of her exhaustion and the combined stress of everything else, it was setting up to be just about the worst time possible for this to finally be settled. Part of her soul couldn't help but remain chilled with fear.

But beyond all of that, she knew it had to happen. She had to know. Living in ignorance was tearing her apart and she couldn't go on the way she was any longer. Not if she wanted to avoid cracking and breaking down completely. Perhaps she could even dare to hope that knowing the truth would finally be enough to free her from a portion of her stress, at least enough that she wouldn't end up drinking alone on her porch at four in the morning again.

Maybe it would even get those accursed nightmares to finally stop…

She glanced over at Sans beside her as she felt him lay his hand on her shoulder. His eyelights were wavering from a mix of a kind of nervous, hesitant relief. But there was also a terrible dread there, a fear of how she was going to take whatever these great secrets were. She imagined he was quite the mirror for her emotions at that moment. If she was going to do this right, she couldn't allow her children to see how unsettled she truly was. She was still feigning some level of ignorance, was she not?

A whole conversation and understanding seemed to pass through their gaze in little more than a moment. Then she turned her attention back to Frisk with her best attempt at a reassuring smile.

"Alright, my child, of course." She said, glad when her voice came out even. "You know you can tell me anything, and I will listen."

She rose to her full height and gently took Frisk's hand. Her child seemed hesitant to meet her eyes, but they did not lose the determination that had led them out here after her.

"How about we go talk about this in your room?" She suggested, giving their small hand a gentle squeeze.

Frisk quickly nodded, but kept their gaze down on their heart pattern socks. The tension she could feel from them was palpable, and she was suddenly reminded of when she and Sans had their first talk beneath the willow tree. The fact that her child seemed nearly just as anxious over what they were to tell her made her soul seize up a bit with mixed emotion. But Frisk had accepted, and she had resolved to hearing what they had to say. There was no backing out now.

She looked over at Sans again, who was wearing an expression that was hard to read. His eyelights were dim and small, sweat ran down his skull and he seemed rather stiff. He was looking at Frisk intently as well, but her child would not meet his eyes. It was only then that Toriel realized that it might not only be her gaze that Frisk was avoiding. She could only imagine what both of them were thinking at that moment, what sort of shared knowledge drove both their reactions. But she wouldn't let either of their fears potentially stop this from finally happening.

"Alright, I will see you later then, Sans." She said, managing to gain his attention again. "Goodnight love."

The endearing words pulled him from his trance a bit, and his own eyelights darted to the floor briefly as his cheekbones took on a faint blue hue once again. To think, they had been sharing such intimacy just minutes ago, only for this to all suddenly come to a head when they least expected it. It was almost laughable, as was perhaps only fitting for them. Still, he held her gaze with a more heavy expression for a strained moment before returning her words.

"yah… okay." He said, rubbing the back of his neck in a show of restrained anxiety. "night tori, and uh… you too kiddo…"

Frisk did look at him then, their soft brown eyes full of those same swirling mixed emotions. Like a great volume of water gathering behind a dam, building towards the eventual, inevitable moment where everything burst out at once. They swallowed, squeezing Toriel's hand tighter before nodding and offering Sans a shy sort of wave.

She took the initiative then to begin guiding Frisk towards the door, not wanting any of them to have to endure any further strained anticipation that could rob them of their nerve to do this. Once her back was turned though, she could feel Sans looking at her the whole time. His gaze seem to bore into her soul, even from behind.

She had little doubt that he'd be snooping in on hers and her children's conversation in his usual fashion, and though it vexed her, she knew there was little she could say or do to stop him. Not without giving everything away right before the most vital moment. Whether or not that was for the best in the end, she couldn't be sure.

It mattered not. Nothing else mattered right then except finally hearing what it was Frisk and Flowey had been hiding from her… To hear the explanation behind Flowey's apparent great secret surrounding his identity, to hear Frisk's own account of the Resets they were behind, if they dared to share it. And… perhaps most pressing to her simply due to her hearing its voice… to hear an explanation of just what was sharing her child's body and soul.

She and Frisk stepped inside, with Toriel initially patiently leading her child by the hand so very much like she had that first day she'd met them. But after a few steps, Frisk's determination seem to build, and they quickend their pace so they were the one guiding her instead. She had to commend their bravery, knowing that whatever she was about to hear was something they had kept hidden for so long for a good reason.

They left Sans outside, but even when the door shut behind her, she still felt his gaze on her. In that way that only seemed to make sense coming from him. That didn't help her nerves, or the growing icy feelings of trepidation swirling about her soul. But she dared not to dwell on it. In a way, she was glad for the alcohol that still buzzed through her system. Perhaps without it, this whole situation would be far more overwhelming. It gave her just enough of a buffer to keep her steadfast on seeing it through. She only hoped it wouldn't cause any issues alongside that.

Once they reached the hallway's entrance, Frisk suddenly stopped just outside it. There was a beat where she was about to push through her dread in order to ask them what was wrong, but then they turned and abruptly threw their small arms around as much as they could of her in a hug.

She blinked, momentarily stunned. She'd been so focused on just getting to the room to hear what Frisk had to say whilst controlling her own emotions that the sudden hug came as a shock. Slowly though, she leaned down to return the embrace, holding their small body close to her. There were no tears or shivering, they simply clung to her tightly. Oddly, it felt as though they were trying to comfort her as much as they were asking to be comforted.

In a way, it did help her feel a little better, and see the bigger picture in all this, especially regarding the fact that her love for her children would endure no matter what she was about to hear. She had made the mistake of turning her back on her loved ones in the past, and no matter how she or any other sought to justify that decision, she was determined not to let it happen ever again. But receiving this hug now… why did it feel so much like a hug of farewell? Did they fear for some reason that this would be the last one they'd receive from her?

Just for that painful sentiment, she held them a little tighter, and let the hug last a few moments more. Their powerful soul thrummed against her, stirred up with all those conflicting, strained emotions.

"It will be alright, my child." She soothed softly, unable to keep her voice from shaking slightly. "Whatever you must tell me, I promise, we will find some way to make it all okay."

They weren't the best words of comfort she could offer, vague and perhaps irresponsible as they were. But they were all she could manage at the moment through the torment in her soul. It was even possible that they had somehow given something away on her end. But the feelings she felt most strongly from Frisk's soul in response were those of understanding and love. If they did know, or suspect, they didn't react with any negativity towards that fact. She supposed she wouldn't know for sure how much they had seen through her until they actually began to talk about this.

Thankfully, Frisk seemed to also recognize that they couldn't keep stalling and gently pulled away. They shared another look, too heavy and full of too many emotions to possibly parse through. Then her child began to lead her again, stepping into the hallway after taking a deep, steadying breath.

As they walked down the suddenly painfully long hall to her children's room, she felt flickers of that damned headache flaring up again. But she grit her teeth and pressed on, blaming it on the alcohol. She couldn't stop now, no matter the reason.

All this deception, all these secrets, all these lies. It would all end tonight. It had to.