Chapter eight:
Toriel smiles in greeting at Sans who approaches the couch. "What are you doing up?" She asks gently.
Sans just lightly shrugs keeping his hands hidden in his pockets. "Couldn't sleep." He tries to pass it off.
"Here. Come sit with me." Toriel pats the spot beside her and Sans comes over climbing next to her. "Maybe a little relaxation and Tv will help."
"Yeah…" Sans's eyes watch the Tv for a little bit as Toriel watches him.
Toriel has seen this type of attitude before.
Sans is actually saying 'I had a nightmare and I don't want to be alone. I saw you were awake so I thought I'd come here instead of waking up Papyrus.'.
She doesn't mind at all and smiles gently.
The two turn hearing another approach this time it's Papyrus who is holding a pillow and he is of course in his pyjamas unlike Sans.
"Can Papyrus join the couch party too?" Papyrus inquires not really looking at them.
"Of course." Toriel nods and gets an idea knowing that both of the boys have had nightmares. "I think I have an idea."
The two glance to her not sure what she is going to offer as an idea.
"A blanket fort!" Toriel tells them and Papyrus slightly perks up.
"Good idea." Papyrus nods. "A fort of safety."
"That sounds good." Sans agrees especially after hearing his brothers comment.
Luckily there was a bunch of pillows and blankets stored nearby so they got to building using the light of the Tv as the light to help build it.
"This should go here."
"What about this?"
"What about here?"
"Yes! That will look great!"
Finally it's built and all three of them are inside of it. There are stacks of pillows on either side to hold the one large blanket draped over the top. The three monsters are sharing the other big blanket and each having a pillow being held in their laps; As Sans and Papyrus lean against Toriel who is the middle.
"There we go. Much better." Toriel comments with a smile. "A fort of safety has successfully been built."
"Safe away from…" Papyrus's eyes shift around nervously and he leans a little more against Toriel. "Shadows in the darkness stalking all around you."
"Not even the darkest of shadows can reach us here." Toriel assures him moving her left hand up since he's on the side and gently rubs Papyrus's skull comfortingly. "Is there something you need to get off your mind?" Her gaze also glances to Sans as both kind of look away. "It's really okay to speak about it." She gently encourages. "And I promise I won't tell anyone okay?"
There is a moment or two of silence then Toriel glances to Papyrus who speaks up looking to the Tv with half open eyes.
"There were shadows lurking around and it seems like no matter how far you run or hide the shadow always find you…" Papyrus shivers in fright closing his eyes tightly causing Toriel rubbing the top of his arm that her hand had been resting on from when she put it around the tall skeleton.
Sans shifts closer and Toriel turns to him putting an arm around him as well though he hasn't seemed to have looked to her yet.
"Shadowy monster ready to get you." Papyrus clutches his pillow a little tightly as does Sans as Toriel glances from one to the other noticing this. "That want to hurt you."
"Not caring about what they do." Sans joins in speaking almost quietly.
Toriel allows the two to just talk while quietly listening them, as she doesn't plan on even asking questions, to allow the two to talk about whatever they are ready to share. She knows that it is the best method to help out.
"Chasing after you and hunting you down just wanting to hurt you. Loud and scary." Papyrus slightly curls up but Toriel keeps rubbing his arm to silently comfort him as she also has started doing the same thing to Sans.
"Almost like it wants to try to destroy you and everything about you." Sans continues and the two begin to go back and forth speaking after the other one finishes.
"Attacking you until you're badly damaged with it only being worse when you fight back."
"Yelling and always being upset no matter what you do."
"Hearing the footsteps come down the hall from where you're hiding and feeling terror surge through your soul."
"Hating even the fact that you are even alive."
"Telling you that no one loves you and that no ever will love you."
"Taunting and threating you."
"Making you say lies and make up stories."
"Telling you that you ruined everything especially their entire life."
"Blaming you for things you didn't even do and lashing out when you try to tell them that it wasn't you."
"Appearing even in the middle of the night to give you damage."
"Being able to hear the cries and screams as they hurt another."
"Making you hope that maybe if you let them get it out then they'll change for the better and stop doing that."
"Leaving you with terrifying nightmares of being unable to run from a darkness that wishes death upon you."
"Sometimes refusing to allow you food and making you scared to defy their wishes for you."
"Entering the place with a strange smell stuck to them especially on their breath that sometimes is overpowering."
"Looming over you menacingly enjoying your fear in them."
"Feeling powerful and saying that they can do whatever they want because they have every right to do so and that makes you just have to accept such a thing."
"Telling you no one would even stop them anyways."
"Telling you that no one actually cares about you anyways."
"Saying that they wish that you would just go and die."
"Making you fear even the sound of their voice."
"Making you wonder if they're going to hurt someone who will end up not getting up ever again."
"Taunting you and brutally attacking you if you try to stand up against them unless you get lucky and it's a good day or that their feeling a little nice that day."
"Not caring how badly they damage you and only stopping when they feel like it."
The two surprise Toriel a little when they both speak in unison at this point. "Just like the monster we were supposed to call father." The two stop and slightly glance to each other having realized that they had both spoken that together at the same time.
Toriel starts to worry that this might cause the two to close up for now to wait another time, before allowing her to know more about the pain that had been inflicted upon them by their so called father.