The following days were tough- although moods remained, for the most part, high. Frisk took their job seriously, although they were aware that the other humans almost certainly wouldn't; so they tried to keep their work to being behind the scenes as much as possible. The first major hurdle came when, through combined efforts, a meeting with the mayor of the closest town was granted. Who was going was... A bit of a problem.

Asgore posed an intimidating figure- but he was the king, and it would raise more problems than it would solve if he didn't go. Frisk figured that meant Toriel shouldn't- although she was less of an imposing figure than Asgore, and seemed to be more on the ball, the pair of them together would unnerve the humans meeting monsters for the first time enough to worry Frisk. That was leaving aside Toriel's anger towards Asgore, which wouldn't really help sell them as a peaceful race.
Papyrus was adamant that he should go; Frisk was convinced that he shouldn't, but the difficulty was in convincing him of that. They eventually managed to placate him by saying that the humans would be very worried about meeting monsters for the first time, and that they'd be completely overwhelmed by meeting someone as cool as him. He seemed to accept that- begrudgingly.
Undyne, likewise, wanted to go- but as hotheaded as she was, Frisk didn't think that was a good idea, either. She, however, wanted to "defend" them- a compromise was reached, that she would only go as far as she could while staying out of sight, and would keep Papyrus' phone with her. She was even less happy with missing the meeting than Papyrus was- but she went along with it, to Frisk's relief.

Mettaton was easy to persuade, simply by pointing out the truth- this was about diplomacy, not showmanship. When Frisk asked him to keep Papyrus company, to stop the skeleton feeling left out, he seemed thrilled to "give back to his fans", so that decided that.

That left Frisk with a bit of a conundrum. Working out who shouldn't go was easier than working out who should. They had a visible leader in Asgore, but he wasn't an approachable figure due to his size nor did he seem, Frisk thought, particularly savvy or able (or even willing) to manipulate a situation when it needed. This being the first meeting, they needed to put their best foot forwards.

Alphys had been... Conspicuously absent when the discussions of the meeting started. She'd been doing great work with planning, especially working to figure out how to use their phones above ground and connect to human internet- although it was unlikely that that was entirely altruistic. She certainly had no interest in going to the meeting, but she was small and unintimidating, approachable, and a talented scientist. Frisk told her how she represented many things that would help the humans accept the monsters as being worthy of living alongside and was the face of their technological capability. Through careful flattery, gentle encouragement, and reassurances that she probably wouldn't have to speak much unless it was about science, she was finally won over- even going so far as to scrub her best labcoat.

Frisk still wasn't happy about it, though. They knew they personally wouldn't have any pull with adults in positions of authority. They needed someone smart; someone who wouldn't bluster and throw their weight around, but would see and step in if something seemed wrong.
They needed Sans. Frisk didn't like it. Taking a skeleton along to meet humans- especially one who they had never seen dress in anything other than a hoodie and long shorts- didn't seem like a great first impression, but nobody else fit the bill. Beyond his usual sarcasm and occasional joke he hadn't given any input at all to the plans, but Frisk wondered afterwards if he'd expected this outcome. He certainly didn't seem surprised when Frisk brought it up, and even interrupted them explaining why to ask if they were sure. He seemed satisfied when they said they were.

Toriel took it on herself to help by trying to find Frisk better clothes to wear- and even had a quiet word with Sans about his clothes when Frisk mentioned their concerns (something neither of them ever mentioned to the human). What they had was limited, but Mettaton helped her out with alterations and sewing. By the end of it, they had a plain long-sleeved shirt and better trousers- and, on the day, Sans showed up with an almost-smart jacket and trousers as well. He considered himself well-rewarded for the effort when Frisk's worried face turned into a grin.

They were picked up outside of the town by a large, unmarked car. The driver, a woman in a black suit, seemed genuinely surprised- and very uncomfortable- that the letters had been telling the truth about monsters. Sans nudged Frisk and nodded to her hip- although her jacket was long enough to conceal it, she appeared armed. It was likely the man sitting next to her was too.

The back section was separated by a dark, bulletproof screen. They climbed in- the back was spacious, with a row of seats facing both forwards and backwards. The king was slumped, seated facing the back of the car, his head down to stop his horns from scraping the ceiling, although that didn't stop him from trying to look out the window as best he could, muttering about how fascinating it all was or trying to get them all to look at something that had already passed the window. Frisk whispered to Alphys that they'd been through much tougher than this together- which seemed to help her remember how to breathe properly- and Sans was much, much more interested in the humans nearby. Every time Frisk looked at him, they were glad they had brought him. His calm and composure helped their own worries subside, especially when he turned his grin on them.

They were meeting in an office building near the edge of town that had been emptied out for the day. The journey wracked Frisk's nerves, but it wasn't too long before more suited men opened the car door to let them out. Alphys nearly fell onto Frisk as she hopped to the pavement, and Asgore almost had to crawl out. The driver led them into the building, where they were joined by another pair, a man and a woman. Once these two joined the group, Frisk noticed Sans staying very close to them- close enough that his elbow was touching their arm, and they tried to take comfort from it, rather than worry about being surrounded. They were all led up stairs, along corridors, and into a room with a large desk at the end. An older woman wearing a heavy chain and an expensive-looking suit was behind it, flanked by two more bodyguards. She had to be the mayor. To her credit, Frisk thought, she managed to squash her display of surprise fairly quickly.

"Ah," she said. "I admit, I was expecting this all to be an elaborate prank, even after the coin I was sent. I am Mayor Eastaugh. I assume you are King Asgore...?" His outfit clearly gave him away, but Frisk thought that she probably would have turned to him regardless, due to his size and bearing. He beamed and nodded.
"Yes, I am indeed, and this is our ambassador, Frisk. They're the one who helped me write to you."
Her eyes narrowed as she levelled her gaze on Frisk. "A child?"
"F-Frisk is th-the only reason we're free!" Alphys burst out, causing all four of them to look at her in surprise. "Th-they know m-more about monsters than- than any other human!"
Asgore cleared his throat, pulling himself to his full height. "Hem. Indeed- I may be king, but Frisk is indeed the best one to help us integrate into human society. This is- er, was- the Royal Scientist, Alphys, and this is... Sans."
"A... A skeleton?" The mayor looked a little unnerved.
"Yup. Sans the skeleton." He put out his hand and Frisk winced and squeaked- but as the Mayor reluctantly shook his hand, there was no noise. He'd decided to forego the pranks. He placed his hand on Frisk's shoulder to reassure them as the Mayor then shook their hand; then Alphys', and finally Asgore's.
"Well. Well, then. This is, you must understand, all very... Well, it's not something one has any experience to help with, you see." It appeared Sans had managed to throw her thoroughly off guard.
"Yes, I understand," Asgore said. "The war was, after all, so very long ago- it was your ancestors, not you. We know that and come with only peaceful intentions."
"Oh, well- I mean, the war- that you speak of- we don't exactly see it as history. It's legend, it's... I mean, before I got the letters, I had no idea that monsters actually resided under Mt. Ebott." She shifted uncomfortably. "Oh, ah- can I get you anything to drink? Tea, coffee?"
Frisk glanced at Asgore. "Ah, yes," he said. "That reminds me." He reached inside his cloak- the bodyguards all shifted position in reaction- and pulled out a wooden box. "As a gift, I brought our own special tea. And, if it's quite all right, I would like some of that."
"Oh, um... It's not in tea bags," Frisk said, causing the mayor to look at them as though they had forgotten they were present. "It's just leaves, but if you don't have a tea strainer you can just put, um... about half a teaspoon in the cup. I'd like some too, please."
"I- very well, thank you." Eastaugh hesitantly took the box from Asgore and handed it to the nearest bodyguard. "Get each of them a cup of... this, and I'll just have coffee."
"Oh, didn't you want to try it?" Asgore asked. Frisk winced. They knew the gesture was symbolic, but the king apparently didn't grasp human paranoia. "It's really very good."
"I- oh, um. Well. Okay, yes, one for me as well, then," Eastaugh stammered. Frisk heard Sans snigger to himself and elbowed him. He elbowed them back. The Mayor, thankfully, was walking back to sit behind the desk and didn't notice.

That set the tone for the rest of the meeting. Every time the mayor tried to get the upper hand in the conversation, either Asgore's innocent questions or Sans' sly comments left her confused, flustered, or embarrassed. Alphys barely spoke- except for one rather long ramble about the monsters' technology and research, which left the mayor utterly stunned. This was brought to a head when she mentioned that there was a lot of red tape to get through before she could allow them to settle on the slopes of Mt. Ebott. Between Asgore's genuine confusion as to why- especially when they were already there- and Sans' pointed queries about the mountain's reputation and the importance of the first meeting, the mayor ended up so flustered she told them they could "have" the mountain. They even managed to get her to try her tea, despite her clear concerns about what it actually was- at which point Frisk wondered if Sans was just seeing how much he could push her. When they left, Frisk was trying to hide their relief and Asgore didn't hide his happiness, commenting on how "that went exceedingly well, did it not?"

The news that the humans knew and accepted that they were building their own home on the mountain bolstered the confidence of the monsters when they returned; and amidst the gleeful planning, Frisk found Sans standing with Papyrus, Undyne and Alphys. The scientist was talking about the meeting; Papyrus and Undyne seemed content with not being there now that it seemed to have been a lot of diplomatic boring talking, and Sans was just... Watching. Frisk pulled his sleeve to get his attention.
"Hey, bucko. What's up?"
"I, um. Thank you. That was why I wanted you there."
"Oh? Why's that?"
"You know why!" Frisk frowned at Sans' amused expression.
"Maybe I don't, buddy. Maybe I need you to tell me."
Frisk sighed. "You managed to throw her off guard. You read the situation, and you... made things... better for us."
"'Us', huh? You a monster too now, Frisk?" The question stunned the human, and they stared at him, wide-eyed, before dropping their gaze, red-faced and stammering.
"I- I- n-no, I... I guess I'm-"
"Hey, kid." Sans turned properly away from Papyrus, Alphys and Undyne, still talking together about the meeting, using his own body to hide their conversation. Frisk stayed quiet, blinking back tears, before a bony hand lifted their chin. His face was still in it's perpetual grin but the corners seemed a little less... upturned. "I didn't mean it like that." His voice was quiet and serious. "You're no monster, but you're one of us. You should know that by now, kiddo. You belong with us."

You belong with us. Frisk blinked hard, trying to fight back the tears that were making their vision swim. "R-really?"
"Really. If you haven't figured that out by now I don't know how else to tell you it, kid."

The tears spilled down Frisk's cheeks; they tried to wipe them away on their sleeves but they flooded out, too fast for their attempts to do anything. You belong with us. They gave Sans a crooked, shaky smile through their tears.
"Th-thank you."
"Nah, seems like we should be thanking you." He looked around at the bustling activity. "For a lot."

He was taken by surprise when Frisk hugged him. The child's shoulders shook and Sans wrapped his arms around them, letting them just... get it all out. It was a couple of minutes before their tears slowed enough for them to speak.
"Nobody ever... told me I belong. I've... I've never had a place. I... So just let me thank you, okay, Sans, I wouldn't have made it this far without you. You were always there, just... Turning up to watch over me."
"Heh. You noticed, huh?"
"It made me... believe I could do it."
"Huh. Maybe that was all we needed." Frisk nodded against his chest, before pulling back, wiping their eyes.

"I, uh, got you wet."
"Nah, don't worry about it kiddo." Sans squeezed Frisk's shoulder. "And... Thanks."
"What!" Papyrus suddenly appeared, peering over Sans' head. "Why are you crying Frisk? You should not be crying? I, am here!"
Frisk giggled, wiping the rest of their tears away. "Yeah... I know. I'm only crying because... I'm happy."
"You are so happy I am here that you're crying?"
"Well- well, yeah. Thank you for being my friend, Papyrus."

Undyne and Alphys appeared at Papyrus' side. "Hey, punk, we're your friends too! Where's our thanks?!"
"See, kid?" Sans said quietly. Frisk beamed.

You belong with us.