You wake up with tears streaming down your cheeks. You were dreaming about Chara and Asriel playing together in the flowers with beaming smiles on their faces, serene, happy. You think it's the first time you've had a good dream in ages. Without opening your eyes you wipe at your face.

From your aching muscles you realise that you're still sitting in the hall. You can hear Sans' steady breathing, still sleeping soundly. His head has shifted to your lap. You finally force your eyelids open and notice that it's still somewhat dark inside, giving you the impression that it's really early in the morning. You look down at the small skeleton snoozing on you.

He's got his jacket's fur-lined hood over his head, one hand pulling down on it so that it's over his closed eye sockets. The other arm is underneath his head, stretched out over your leg. His body is curled up into a ball. One of his pink slippers is somewhere down the hall, the sock on that same foot skidded down until it's almost off his foot as well. He looks adorable. You feel like it'd be a crime to move him.

You've slept in this position in colder and harder floors for years. It's not like a couple more hours will kill you. You go to lay a hand on Sans' arm when he starts moving, making you freeze in place. He turns over to his other side so that he's facing your stomach and inhales deeply, one hand grabbing at your shirt and tugging it down slightly.

"Ss… Star…" He mumbles. Is he dreaming about you? The thought creates a fuzzy feeling in your chest and you swear you see his soft expression lighten up with a small smile.

There's the clicking sound of a door opening and you look over to see Papyrus stepping out of his room. He opens his mouth to speak when he spots you and you put a finger to your lips in a hushing motion, pointing to Sans. He nods his head, gesturing a zipper over his teeth and you smile at him, amusement twinkling in your eyes.

Quietly, the lanky skeleton makes his way over to the both of you. He starts signing as not to wake his brother, asking you why you were sleeping in there and not in the room. You simply shrug in response. When he asks how you're feeling you sign a quick 'good'. He tells you that he's got work and you nod, moving your hands to wish him a good day. Who knew that what Frisk taught you would come in handy so soon? You inwardly chuckle, trying not to move too much or make any noise. Shortly after you hear the front door shut as Papyrus leaves.

You feel like you could stay like this forever, watching Sans slumber peacefully, despite the fact that even if he looks like he's nuzzled up to you comfortably he's still technically sleeping on the floor. He seems content. You're glad that the numbness from last night has left you, replaced by a tranquillity that you relish in. Enjoying the small things… It might be the best lesson you learned from all your years of suffering. A nice meal when food was scarce, a few hours of rest when torture was daily, a new dawn when you thought the one before would be your last…

"Hey…" Your head snaps to the end of the hall and your eyes widen as you stare at what's in front of you. Your gaze drifts to your lap. Yep, Sans is still there, asleep. So how can he be at the end of the hall as well? "Why am I here? Well um…"

You blink at the Sans that's standing there looking at you expectantly, rubbing his skull with one eye closed, his signature grin plastered on his face. He looks basically the same, but in a strange way. There are subtle differences. His face, his clothes (is that a lab coat?), his voice, and you could swear he was a little shorter as well.

"I don't know if you know this but…" The doppelganger continues. "It's Papyrus' birthday today… He really wants you to be there." His expression falls just seconds later. "Yeah, of course, you're busy." The look of disappointment in his eyes could break your heart. "I should've known better than to come back here. I'll see you tomorrow… or something…"

He starts walking away and you want to reach out, make him smile genuinely instead of that fake grin that couldn't fool someone who was really looking. Just as he disappears from sight you feel Sans, the one whose head is on your legs, start to shift. He sits up with a small gasp, his eyes opening suddenly.

It takes him a moment to realise where he is, his expression is one of exhausted annoyance, but when he sees your face, his lights up a little. He turns so that he's facing you, sitting on his ankles. You look at him with your brows furrowed in concern and confusion. "Morning… Did I fall asleep waiting for you?" You nod. "Heh, sorry. Why didn't you wake me up to go to bed?"

You shrug your shoulders just like you did when Papyrus asked you the similar question. "I didn't really feel like talking then and you seemed like you were sleeping alright so I just sat next to you."

"Okay…" He rubs the sleep off his face. "Are you alright? You look off."

You think about whether you want to tell Sans what you saw. However, before you can decide on anything your mouth is already spewing the words out. "Depends. Is there a logical explanation as to why I would see what I'm almost certain was a younger version of you talking to me while you were still sleeping?" You blurt out.

His eyes narrow for a moment before sighing. "Did that me happen to talk about Pap's birthday?" You nod wordlessly and he groans. "You must be getting more in tune with my soul, starting to catch glimpses of my dreams. I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Although I should probably tell you that it happened the night before too." He goes to say something but you keep talking before he can. "Yes I lied, but you looked like you just needed some quiet."

"Yeah… thank you. What did you see that night then?" He asks apprehensively.

"Nothing, just heard voices, yours and someone else's. I guess it was the same person you were so disappointed in?" He confirms this. "May I at least ask why you were screaming so much?"

"I was in pain." He mumbles looking away. He did mention that in the small exchange.

"Okay. You can tell me whenever you're ready." You say. He lets out a breath that he didn't even know he was holding, grateful that you don't want to push into his dreams, or memories rather. You only caught a few things of his past when your souls melded, this didn't seem to be part of what you saw. You briefly wonder what he saw of your own past and you feel a coldness in the pit of your stomach.

"You look awful." He mutters looking into your eyes. You raise one eyebrow at him.

"Gee, thanks…" You mumble sarcastically with a hint of a smile tugging at a corner of your mouth.

"No, I didn't mean it like that, sorry." He grins at you sheepishly. "You look sore, is what I actually intended to say."

"Nothing I'm not used to." Sans' eyes seem to soften with compassion.

"You really should've woken me up. We could've gone to bed." He scratches at the back of his skull.

"Hey, don't worry about me, I'm okay. Besides, you looked awfully comfortable this morning, it would have been a sin to wake you up." Your eyes drift to the end of the hall and you smile. "You're missing a slipper by the way."

Sans stares down at his feet and then to the lone slipper. "How did that happen?"

You spring to your feet. "Beats me." You chuckle slightly and offer him a hand to help him up.

He sits to adjust the sock on his foot and takes it, stopping you before you can leave by wrapping his arms around your waist from behind. "Alphys called yesterday. She wanted to know if you were alright. I told her what happened and she asked me to tell you that she and Undyne are both sorry for your loss."

There's a weight in your chest where your soul rests. It feels heavy again. You take a deep breath and rest your hands on top of his. "I just hope it was the right thing to do…" His grip on you tightens before he places his teeth on your cheek in a soft kiss, not saying anything. He honestly doesn't know what he could say at a moment like this.

After a few minutes of silence you go through a morning routine you've never had before. It's definitely something you could get used to. When you're done with that you walk to the kitchen where Sans has made you two some scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast.

"We should start on your training. You're going to have to learn how to channel your magic safely, don't want you to get hurt because of me." He says as you eat.

"How is it because of you?"

"It's because of my soul's magic that yours is unbalanced."

You hum. "It was my doing." You say nonchalantly. "This is really good." You point to the food on your plate, making him grin at your appreciation.

"It's got to be the simplest thing to cook, ever."

"Doesn't stop it being tasty." You point out and he laughs quietly.

"Sure thing sweetheart." You nearly choke on your food when you feel your soul fluttering at the pet name and his brow bone lifts as he eyes you with mirth. "Oh you like that do you?" Of course he'd feel that. Blood crawls up to your cheeks and you curse the fact that you can't stop it. "Aww, no need to be embarrassed about it, babe." He draws out the last word, his smirk widening when your face burns brighter.

He laughs at your embarrassment and you want to throw something at him but can't find anything but cutlery and eggs. So of course you throw egg at his face. Waste of good food. But so damn worth it. It only makes him laugh harder though. At least you tried…

You huff and cross your arms over your chest childishly. "You look so cute when you're flustered." He says through chuckles causing you to roll your eyes at him despite the corners of your lips twitching slightly.

"So how is my training going to be?" You ask to divert the attention off of this topic.

"First and foremost we need to find somewhere isolated where we won't be bothered. Or bother anyone…"

You go through the places you've been to in town in your head. None of them seem to fit that description. Sans is doing the same in his own mind and coming up short. The only area that you know of that's empty of souls right now would be the village. But neither you, nor the small skeleton sitting in front of you mention it.

"I'll call Undyne and see if we can use her backyard. She wrecks the place training with Pap anyway, plus Alphys can take a look at you without having to come over."

"Sounds like a plan." He looks through his phone and hits some buttons.

A few short words later and he hangs up. "Good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?" You shrug. "Okay, so good news is she's okay with it. Bad news is she wants to see what you're capable of. Alphys blabbed about your increased magic."

"Then you better be a damn good teacher. Don't want to accidentally kill my new friends." You try to pull off a joking tone but the crack in your voice betrays you.

"Sushi rolls for dinner isn't a bad idea." He returns in an attempt to cheer you up. You giggle slightly and he smiles at his success. "Don't worry though, I'm sure she'll understand that you need to get a good handle of this first."

He extends his hand out and you take it hesitantly. Suddenly you're no longer in the kitchen but at the back of Undyne and Alphys' house. "You can teleport again."

"Yeah, nothing like a couple good night's sleep. Well, mostly anyway. Plus it's not far, and only one passenger."

You hold your hands behind your back and swing from side to side, feeling anxiousness rise up to your throat. You're really apprehensive about this, all the possible bad outcomes playing in the back of your head. So much death… Your breathing starts to get uneven and ragged. Sans squeezes your hand, which he's still holding.

"Okay, that's definitely not going to help. You have to calm yourself."

You take a few deep breaths. It feels like the first times all over again. The feeling of being trapped, out of control, unstable. "It's hard to breathe." You tell him.

"I know. Think of happier things, like…" He thinks for a moment. "Like when we first kissed." He suggests. You let your thoughts drift to that exact time and you feel yourself smiling, your soul settling with a glint of joy. "See? It's not so hard." He grins at you. "When you feel overwhelmed try to focus on something that makes you happy. I know it's not easy but you have to try."

"Okay, I think I'm ready."

"Good." Sans steps away from you slightly, both for his safety and yours. "Now you'll have to tap into your magic so we can assess what you can deal with."

You nod and take a deep and calming breath before focusing on the magic in your soul. But as soon as you try to lure it out you feel an excruciating pain in your head, right behind your left eye. You curl up into yourself, letting out a cry and holding your head between your hands. Sans is at your side in a flash, trying to figure out what's wrong. You stop trying to reach for your power and it subsides, leaving a light throbbing in its wake.

"That's worse than I thought." He mumbles rubbing your arm. "It looks just like…" His voice fades, his sentence left unfinished. "I'm sorry, you're going to have to do it again for me. I need to check something."

You stare at him with disbelief. "Is that safe?"

"I'll make sure you're fine don't worry."

"I meant for you." His eye sockets widen with slight surprise.

"Yeah… You're the one in pain and you're concerned for me?" He shakes his head. "You're something else."

You sigh and wait for him to return to his previous position but he doesn't move. "Aren't you…"

"I need to be next to you to see what I want."

"Okay now I'm even more worried for your well-being." He gives you a look that shows you he isn't going anywhere until you do what he's asking.

Biting at your bottom lip you tap into your soul again, the sharp sting returning just as intense, causing you to squeeze your eyes shut. When you try to hide your head once again, you feel skeletal hands holding it up. "Hold on just a bit longer." You hold your breath to push through the pain. His thumbs pry your left eye open and you see his features twisted into a mix of worry and guilt, your vision seems blurry. "You can stop." You exhale finally as he lets you close your eye once again.

"Did you see what you wanted?" You ask, the pounding in the back of your head remaining.

"Yes. No wonder you can't control it. It's my magic you're using." You force your eyelids up and stare at him confused.

"What?" Is all you can manage to formulate.

"Your left eye was glowing blue instead of your usual red. You're showing the exact same reactions I did when I got it." He offers as an explanation, but you're still just as lost. "Huh, I wonder if that's why I'm dreaming about that time lately…" He mumbles more to himself than to you in particular.

"Let me get this straight, you're telling me, my soul's integrating your magic with my own?"

"Yeah, actually that's a pretty accurate description. And you're nowhere near used to my magic."

"You said their nature was similar." You close your eyes once again, the dull throb making it hard to focus.

"Similar nature, entirely different structure." If that made any sort of sense to him, it sure didn't to you. "My magic is special. Enhanced scientifically. Painful to control at first. I'm sorry you have to go through this…"

"Does this god awful headache ever stop?" You inquire frustrated, feeling like you could collapse anytime now.

"In time your body gets used to it." He leads you somewhere you can sit down for a while. "This could mean that you could maybe use some of my special attacks… Like Gaster blasters…" There's a hint of excitement in his voice. "I should introduce you."

"Sorry, what blasters? Introduce? You're not making a lick of sense right now." You hear a strange noise and when you open your eyes to figure out the source you crawl backwards. "Holy… What the hell is that?"

In front of you floats a gigantic skull, eye sockets flooding with a fiery and intense blue light, much like the one leaking out of Sans' left eye, with large and sharp teeth that look like they can tear you apart with ease. It stood taller than Sans, larger than even both of you put together. It was like a dead dragon's skull. But it looked very much alive. And like it was grinning at you…

"This is a Gaster blaster, one of my bigger ones. They're weapons with minds of their own, but it'll play nice." Sans eyes the… creature… shooting it a glare and it looks like it rolls its eyes at him. "They like to break things if I let them roam around freely. Little bastards."

"Little isn't quite the word I'd use in this situation…" Astonishment seeps through your words.

"Heh, guess you're right. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to summon one of these babies though? It's adorable when it wants to be." He pats the blaster on the snout and it emits an almost purr like noise, leaning into his hand. You can't help but smile at the scene. He seems to have a bond with this being.

"Why are they called Gaster blasters?" Sans' gaze goes from the skull to you and then back to the skull, filled with sorrow, and he shrugs, not giving you any kind of an answer.

"Welp, time for you to go back, buddy." He snaps his fingers and it disappears into thin air.

You just sit there, amazed by the thing you just saw, and filled with both curiosity and a glimmer of desire to be able to do it as well. After getting past the quite scary and menacing outside, it did seem somewhat friendly… kind of. But Sans liked it, and it seemed to like him back. Maybe it'd like you too. Sort of like a pet? Your soul shakes with excitement and you forget all about the throbbing in your head.

"Do you think they'd listen to me if I managed to summon them? Would they trust me like they do you? What exactly are they for? Where do you keep them?"

"Wow, too many questions at once. Glad to know you're into them though." He grins and sits down next to you. "Let's see, yes, yes, they shoot magic beams out of their mouth and I'm not sure where they go."

"You don't know where you keep them? What if they're lonely? Or somewhere horrible?"

"Hey, they're weapons, not monsters or anything, they just happen to act like them. Sort of like artificial intelligence. With a little bit of temperament added to the mix." The look you give him must not have satisfied him because Sans keeps going on an attempt to ease your worries. "They're not activated unless my magic's flowing through them, so it's like they don't even know they're gone."

That makes you feel slightly better about it. "Okay… Now that you know why I can't control my magic anymore, what am I supposed to do?" You stare down at your hands, fidgeting slightly.

"Your soul is trying to merge both my magic and yours together, but since you don't know how to handle mine it's flowing out involuntarily. I'll teach you how it works so that you can contain it."

There's a bubble of fear forming in your chest. "Alphys said the human body can't handle such levels of magic… What if I can't take it? Sans I'm scared…"

Phalanges wrap around your fingers and teeth press to your cheek gently. "Monsters aren't made to handle determination, and I'm still here…" You glance at his face, dazed by his words. "That's how my magic was enhanced. With determination from a human soul." He confesses, his pupils sliding away from your face.

Your soul fills with sorrow as you realise that you have even more in common than you thought. You were both lab rats. The circumstances of his situation are unknown to you, but the fact of the matter is still there, so blaringly obvious you feel like an idiot for not seeing it sooner. His scars were just the same as your own.

"I didn't know…"

"No one did. Except Alphys when she got those readings. And now I told you." His grip on your hand tightens and he grits his teeth. "I was ashamed. I subjected myself to those experiments. I didn't think of the consequences. I just wanted to be stronger. For Papyrus… I was his older brother, I was supposed to protect him, but I only had one HP, and I wasn't even great with magic. If anything were to ever happen because I was too weak to protect him I wouldn't be able to live with myself." He hides his face in his hands. "And even then I watched him die over and over again. Even with all this power, I was still powerless to save him. Even when I killed Chara as soon as he stepped out of the ruins, he would always reset, come back to kill him and everyone else. And I had to live with the memory of each time because of the determination inside me."

The mention of Chara provokes a sting in your chest, the grief of his loss still fresh. Sans flinches from your pain, feeling it in his soul, and stops talking. You both sit in silence for a long time. One of your arms drapes around his back and you lean into him, rubbing his arm softly, trying to comfort him. It couldn't have been easy for him to admit these feelings, reopen these old wounds. They are memories of a time he'd rather forget. So you do your best to just be here for him while he attempts to regain his composure. You want be a good friend, a good person, a good soulmate.

You want to help him tame his demons the way he's aiding you with yours. You're determined to show him how to forgive himself for his mistakes, hoping that will atone for yours.

NOTE: Not sure if this is great but I've been drowning in school work and I still wanted to put something out, hope you enjoyed it just the same :)

Thank you for reading and leave any feedback you may have, please :P