It had been a Friday night, so Frisk went home with Papyrus.
Sans was waiting for them at home, pink slipper tapping impatiently on the ground as he leaned against the doorway watching the red car pull up.
"you're okay?" He asked Papyrus softly, nodding at Frisk in hello after Papyrus turned the engine off.
"OF COURSE WE ARE!" Papyrus said cheerfully, opening the door and helping Frisk unbuckle. "WHY WOULDN'T WE BE?"
"this." Sans said, face unreadable as he flipped his phone around to face Papyrus and Frisk. Frisk felt their stomach sink as they saw a video, shaky and clearly taken from someone's phone, displaying the entire complication from the concert. "it's all over the human internet."
"OH. THAT," Papyrus said, glancing at it. "DON'T WORRY, BROTHER, IT WASN'T ANYTHING DANGEROUS. I DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE ANYTHING WAS HAPPENING UNTIL FRISK AND UNDYNE RETURNED!"
"it isn't about whether it was a big deal or not paps," Sans replied, frowning. "it's about whether the humans make it a big deal."
(What do you mean?) Frisk asked nervously. (Undyne got the monsters to leave.)
"after they attacked human children with magic," Sans replied flatly. "not a good sign, especially after the latest meeting we had with the human representatives."
"IT SHOULD BE FINE!" Papyrus said brightly. "NEXT TIME I GO AS THE MASCOT OF MONSTERS, I'LL BRING SOME OF MY PUZZLES AND JAPES TO GET A FRIENDLY ATMOSPHERE GOING! NOBODY CAN STAY IN A BAD MOOD AFTER THAT!"
(Haha. I'm sure you can do that,) Frisk signed, relaxing as they nudged the tall skeleton. Papyrus grinned at them and ruffled their hair, Frisk pretending to be dismayed as they tried to fix their hair again.
"welp. anyways. you two eat anything yet?"
"NOT YET!"
(We can't break our Friday pizza and movie marathon tradition!) Frisk protested.
"heh. good, i just got two hot pizzas waiting inside. c'mon, then, i bet you two are bone tired." Sans waved at them, nudging the door open with his foot and entering the threshold.
Papyrus nudged Frisk back again playfully and followed, Frisk carefully shutting the door behind them. They looked around the well-lit room, the television already turned on and looping on the title selection sequence of a movie. It looked like Sans had chosen some kind of comedy.
Sans plopped down onto the green sofa, propping his feet up on the coffee table everyone had picked to put there. Papyrus shot him a withering glance, teeth clicking shut as he gestured at Sans' feet before giving up. ("AT LEAST HE CAN'T LEAVE HIS FEET THERE FOREVER," he had told Frisk in exasperation.)
The pizza was still in the boxes, so Frisk and Papyrus each grabbed one from the kitchen counter and brought it into the living room. Frisk claimed the middle section of the couch as their spot, and Papyrus took their other side.
(Why is one of the pizzas without cheese? It's just sauce,) Frisk questioned, peering into one of the open boxes.
"nah, there's sauce and ketchup on there. that's different."
"SANS! WHY DID YOU ORDER THAT?" Papyrus complained. "BROTHER, YOU KNOW ONLY YOU WILL EAT IT."
Sans shrugged. "not my fault you're such a weirdough when it comes to pizzas."
"SANS!"
Sans grinned, eyeing Papyrus as he carefully studied his expression. "oh, sorry bro, was that pizza joke too cheesy for ya? don't look so down, my pizza doesn't have any on it so it's all good."
(Sans, start the movie!) Frisk urged over Papyrus' loud, distraught groaning.
Sans fished around the cushions for the remote then grunted and flicked his finger, the remote turning blue and flying across the room towards him and landing in his hand. He winked in response to Frisk's raised eyebrows and clicked play, settling back and shoving the pizza into his mouth.
"THIS IS REALLY GOOD BROTHER! IS THIS ONE OF THE NEW OFFERINGS AT YOUR WORKPLACE?" Papyrus asked, splitting the plain cheese pizza with Frisk.
"yup. i'm too lazy to drive out of my way to get pizza. honestly, i can't wait until more monsters get licenses," Sans said thoughtfully. "not enough services can provide deliveries yet like i hear humans do with pizza."
(Human food isn't that good anyways,) Frisk signed with a grin as they wiped pizza sauce off of their mouth. (Half the time it gives you a stomach ache. I prefer pizza from monster restaurants.)
"WELL, I'M GLAD WE DON'T HAVE DELIVERY SERVICES YET!" Papyrus said. "YOU'D BE SO LAZY THAT YOU'D NEVER LEAVE THE HOUSE!"
"heh. maybe. well, human food sounds like an interesting sensation but i'm sure i could stomach that," Sans said with a wink. "'course, i don't have an actual stomach but. y'know." His gaze wandered back to the television and he shrugged. "haven't really left the monster living district too much other than my job. maybe all of us can go out to try human food with tori sometime."
Frisk grinned back at him and Papyrus shifted so they all had enough room on their sofa, and the three watched as the night stretched on. Eventually Papyrus went to bed, Sans reading him some of the human children's books he had recently found and Frisk and Papyrus listening with excitement as a magician battled dragons and fought in valiant battles. The lights were turned off upstairs, and the two that preferred the couch to their bedrooms went back downstairs with pillows and blankets tucked under their arms.
Frisk curled up on the couch, noticing with half-closed eyes that Sans' face was dimly lit by his phone as he watched something. They shifted, pulling their hands out from under the warm blanket.
(What're you looking at?) Frisk asked curiously, sitting back up to turn on the lamp.
Sans looked up, frowning. "nothing, kiddo. just checking to make sure no one seriously got hurt at the concert again."
Frisk moved, shifting so they could go look over Sans' shoulder. Once again they saw the human children get attacked, the Astigmatisms flinging their bodies against the ground as their bodies took the hit and blood dripped from their (luckily) shallow wounds.
Frisk frowned. Why did something feel off? It was like something in this picture was missing. Something like…
Frisk's hand wandered up to their chest and they concentrated, their red SOUL appearing with a ding. Sans paused the video, looking up at Frisk questioningly. In monster culture, summoning one's SOUL meant either the desire for battle or openness, a way to prove one was literally wearing their heart on their sleeve while talking about delicate matters.
Frisk raised their gaze to meet Sans', swallowing as their throat suddenly felt dry and uncomfortable. (Sans… why didn't the humans at the concert's SOULS come out when they were attacked?) Frisk asked quietly. (They were just… their bodies were shoved almost, and they got hurt. Why am I different?)
Sans blinked, clicking his phone shut and stuffing it back into his pocket. "i... i dunno," he muttered, staring at Frisk contemplatively. His eyes darted down to their SOUL and his grin tilted down a bit. "now that i think about it… huh. that's something new. every other human before definitely had a SOUL come out of their body."
(Oh.) Frisk tapped their chin thoughtfully, glancing out the window. (Tomorrow's Saturday, right? Can we go visit Gaster to ask him?)
"ugh. him? again?" Sans grumbled. "ya visited him last month, kiddo."
(Saaaans…)
"fine, fine. it might be important information to have, at any rate."
Frisk grinned, pulling the blanket back up and around their shoulders. (...It's different than I thought it would be,) they signed after a moment. (Coming to the surface, I mean.)
Sans studied them, his eyes white orbs in the dark room. "yeah," he agreed quietly. "it is."
He reached his hand out and the lamp clicked off with a small flare of blue magic.
.
Frisk ran on ahead of Sans, disappearing into the dark shadow of the mountain and stepping through the bed of yellow flowers. Sans trailed them at a distance, hands stuffed into his pockets and eyes flicking around the room as he carefully kept watch on their surroundings.
The two got into the elevator together, the doors sliding shut with a dinging sound. Frisk was relieved that Gaster had moved to the Lab; it was much closer than his secret room in Waterfall, and the River Monster didn't have to ferry them back and forth all the time.
As they stepped off of the elevator, Sans close behind them, they could feel their scalp prickle as eyes watched them from somewhere. Frisk paused and glanced around. Was Gaster already here?
Sans also stopped, examining the area. "what is it, kiddo?" He asked softly. "he here?"
(I don't know.) Frisk frowned but resumed walking, the heat making their sweater feel unneeded in this environment. (Do you have your entrance card?)
"yup." Sans produced his old identification, swiping it in the doorway and stepping back to let the doors slide open. "let's just get this over with, huh?"
[Ah.] The inside of the Lab was darker than usual, and Frisk could just barely see the tall form of W. D. Gaster stooping over the table in the middle of the room. [Visitors.]
Sans flicked on the light without replying, and Frisk waved at the ghostly skeleton. (Hi, Gaster!)
[What is the purpose to this excursion?] Gaster inquired, drifting over to Frisk. [I do not believe it is because one of the anomalies has caused any trouble; I confronted one of the two yesterday after I noticed a slight shift in their behavior.]
(Confronted…?) Frisk blinked and shook their head. (I'm not sure what you mean by that, but I wanted to ask you about human SOULS.)
[It must be serious if Sans is in the same room as me,] Gaster dryly observed. [Are you having any issues with HP or something?]
(No- I mean, yes.) Frisk summoned their SOUL and Sans tensed, eyes darting between Frisk and Gaster. (It still- My SOUL still comes out of my body.)
[That's normal.]
(No, it's not! Even when attacked, other humans don't have their SOULS come out at all! Mine comes out whenever my emotions shift now. Is something wrong? Why am I different?) Frisk signed rapidly.
Gaster raised one eyebrow, studying Frisk for a moment. [May I?] He asked, gesturing at their SOUL. Frisk nodded, and Sans suddenly stepped forwards, putting himself in between the two.
"whoah. kiddo, i don't think that's a good idea," Sans warned, eyeing Gaster warily.
[I shall not harm them, Sans. If I wanted to do so, I would have done that one of the last times they were down here.]
Frisk gently poked Sans' back. (It's fine,) they signed. (I'm aware of the risks, Sans.)
Sans stared down at them, expression unreadable, before he shifted and stepped to the side, tracking Gaster's every movement with his eyes.
Gaster reached forwards again, his hands carefully taking hold of Frisk's SOUL. Frisk shivered; it felt like an icy breeze all over their skin at Gaster's touch.
Gaster examined the SOUL, careful to keep it away from his chest area so he wouldn't absorb it by accident. [Hmm. I have never examined a human's SOUL before they died before,] he commented, going silent again as he gazed at Frisk's SOUL, too focused to say anything else.
"well?" Sans finally muttered as minutes ticked by. He grimaced, shifting from one foot to another as he tried to keep his calm exterior while talking to Gaster. "g, i know you get kinda, uh, wrapped up in your projects but i need to get the kid home before it's too dark."
Gaster's eyes flicked up to Sans' face for a moment before he nodded. [I am aware.] Gaster turned and released the red heart, the SOUL instantly shooting back into Frisk's chest and vanishing. [I think I see what it is.]
(You do?)
[Radiation levels, Frisk.] Gaster tilted his head, clasping his two floating hands behind his back as he paced, a shadow shifting from one side to the other. [Magic creates certain levels of it, normally perfectly harmless. Monsters are creatures made of magic, so we don't even notice it. Originally, this type of magic residue dissipated into the stratosphere or spread to help plants grow and returned to the earth, but when the barrier went up all of that magic residue became trapped. Anyone who stepped into the Underground instantly was bathed in it, until the barrier was released three months ago.]
Frisk's eyes widened. (You mean my SOUL wasn't supposed to behave like this.)
[No. Human SOULS, back when I and the rest of the monsters roamed the Surface prior to the Fall, came out during combat but that was all since they were only exposed to some magic from us monsters. Yours comes out much more frequently due to the high levels of concentration you were exposed to. In addition, the RESETS… might have increased the level of effects you received.]
Sans frowned, resting one hand on Frisk's shoulder as his brow furrowed. "is that dangerous for them?"
[It shouldn't be. The only danger for Frisk is it is easier for a human to be killed while their SOUL is exposed… but they are also extraordinarily more powerful than the average human as a result.] Gaster's mouth quirked up in a grin. [No. The main danger that came with this exposure has already passed.]
Frisk swallowed, throat dry. (And… that was…?)
Gaster watched their hands, shrugging slightly. [You never noticed how peculiar it was that only children traversed the Underground?] Sans and Frisk exchanged confused looks, and Gaster smirked. [All humans who had older SOULS that could not survive their abrupt expulsion from their body at that age did not survive their fall down here. They instantly died from the strain placed on their SOULS, and they did not have HP to allow them to survive their ill-fated plummet.]
Frisk stepped backwards, hands tightening. (How many?) They signed. (How many humans total died, Gaster?)
Gaster turned away, drifting back to his studies. [At least thirty,] he murmured as he motioned for Frisk and Sans to show themselves out. [Someone had to go looking for the missing children, after all…]
.
.
.
((The good news: my computer is fixed! Good as new.
The bad news: It got reset. So it's literally good as new. That's right, you heard me. Hard drive got corrupted 'n stuff, lost all of my files and everything. (And no, the irony of the situation is not lost on me.)
Sans made sure I understood very well how getting everything reset without my choice felt. Darn it all, you sneaky skeleton. I'm going back to pacifist runs. I've learned my lesson here lol.
Anyways. Flowey and Chara will be coming and going in their narration, if you haven't noticed, but don't worry. They should be coming back next chapter. Also, exams start this week for me and continue for an entire month (bleh) so I'll be pretty busy. Just a heads up~))