PATCHWORK SOUL - NEW MEDIUM

by Spark the Barkivist

DIRECT SEQUEL TO "PATCHWORK SOUL" — A few months later. A family of monsters and their little human kid try to start life anew beyond the confines of a giant mountain. Maybe they find something. Maybe they lose something. Time flows ever onwards, but sometimes it goes sideways, and it's heavier than they thought.

68. (it's blank)

(it's blank) chapter 68

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When Sans awoke, he couldn't make a sound. Took him a groggy, puzzled moment to figure out why. His soul was off-key. Great, he thought, dying and he couldn't even complain about it. He snickered silently and lay back, arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling of Papyrus's room. Welp, talking wasn't really something he needed to do to find his kid siblings, anyway. And his hands worked just fine. He guessed he must've been a lot closer to that encroaching zero than he'd hoped.

.

He probably could have gotten up, but he lay there with a big dumb grin, slow tears rolling down the side of his face and onto the pillow. Kiddo was okay. So was Az. Despite everything, his soul swelled and he felt— what was it? Relieved? Happy? Like a cool, refreshing breeze flowed over him.

.

Finally.

.

Toriel hadn't risked herself for nothing.

.

Over on the desk, near the computer and a strange cube, Papyrus had pads of paper and binders full of his puzzle notes. When Sans worked up the energy to stand, he grabbed one of the blank notepads and a thick, blue marker. Good enough. He'd make sure to print big.

.

He grabbed his black hoodie with the faded bone print and the blue spot on the front and ambled downstairs to take a look around. It was quiet. Papyrus was in the kitchen. Time? Looked to be around seven in the morning. That was way too early. But, he guessed, he didn't actually have all that much time, did he? Maybe it was for the best.

.

He flopped down on the couch and took note of what he'd seen in his dream, scribbling awkwardly on the paper laid across his knee. His kids were safe, somewhere unfathomably far away; at a loss of how to actually get home. That wasn't exactly best case scenario but, to be honest, it was way better than he'd dared to hope for.

.

He wondered what they could do for them from here. If just blasting magic into the void wasn't enough, maybe there was something else to act as that beacon? Maybe more mods on the NOCTURNE would do it. Or, maybe he could get another message to the kid in a dream, if that way was open to him now.

.

That shadowy guy though— sis said it was Gaster. He wasn't sure how that was possible, but he guessed since that other Papyrus from their extremely pointy dream had been a real person, there must be something to it. That opened up a multiverse of possibilities. It sickened his soul and he was pretty sure it was something they shouldn't be tampering with. Had the thing from the void that knocked him out really ripped up so much? Or maybe there was some other hole out there? Or maybe, for people attuned to time and that endless, black space, traversing between realities really wasn't that hard. He hoped that wasn't the case. He didn't want his kiddo to come home and have to keep dealing with crap like this from then on.

.

That wasn't all, though. Another version of Gaster that could traverse the void— and one that was antagonistic— sent a shiver up Sans's spine. He guessed that was a little consistent with the dream his father had had where he was the one fighting the kid. But if this Gaster was someone else, why had the guy been so worried about Sans? Did he have a son that looked the same, somewhere out there? It was a lot to think about.

.

Sans sighed and folded his notes, leaning back into the couch. He wondered what the kid had meant when she said that Gaster was trapped in ice. He guessed she'd had to battle him. He wondered if that was their dad's dream. Couldn't be she'd had to deal with more than one of those guys, could it? If he fought anything like their father did, he didn't envy her one bit. But, she had defeated a God of Hyperdeath using the power of love and friendship. She may have hated real fighting, but she was a strong and resourceful little nerd. He couldn't help the worry, but he was sure she'd be okay, especially with said God of Hyperdeath at her side.

.

"Sans?" Papyrus came out of the kitchen, pulling off a set of bright red oven mitts. "You're up early! How are you feeling today?"

Well, it wasn't so bad, really. He stuck his thumb up. Papyrus leaned over him, peering down inquisitively. He tilted his head.

"Are you sure? You feel all… wonky?" he said tentatively.

Sans shrugged and smiled tepidly.

"Well. What do you want for breakfast?" he asked. "I'll make you whatever you want!"

He shrugged again. Papyrus folded his arms and pouted.

"Come on, brother, you've been doing a lot of work, actually!" he said. "As such, I think that'd earned you at least one breakfast request! So! What'll it be?"

Not a yes, no, or maybe question. Dang. Sans lazily reached for the notepad he'd brought. "Whtevr u make is good bro" he said.

.

Papyrus squinted, puzzled. He put his hand against his soul. "Wait a second. Do…? Oh! Is the thing that happened with dad happening to you?! Did you lose your voice?!"

Sans stuck his thumb up. Papyrus's jaw dropped. He smacked his palms against the side of his head and cawed loudly.

"Saaaaans! Nyeeehhh! You are really not having a good time of it, are you?" he asked. "I'm sorry. Well! Let me feed you a delicious, nutritious breakfast of special spaghetti and ketchup sauce aaannnnd I'll wake dad up, too, he might have more of those tiny helpful cakes!"

"Thx" Sans grinned.

.

Papyrus flashed him a bright, reassuring smile, and hurried back into the kitchen. "Let me just make sure this doesn't boil over! Throw something if you need me!"

Sans smiled fondly. He tore a sheet of paper off from the pad, drew a heart on it, and folded it into an airplane. He chucked it into the kitchen and was rewarded by a surprised yelp.

"NYEH! SANS, WHAT—?! …Oh! SIGH. I love you, too," he said.

Sans snickered silently.

.

Cutlery clattering into the sink and the low bubble of water provided a cookery soundtrack. Little beeps sounded from the oven as a timer was set.

"So, aside from that mess," Papyrus said, "mom mentioned she was doing dream magic on you again last night. Do you think that has anything to do with this?"

That'd be a good out, but Sans didn't think so. He sent another paper airplane— "n"

"You're not even going to write full words?" his brother asked dryly.

Sans snickered to himself again. Papyrus poked his head out of the kitchen.

"Well, did it work?"

.

Sans grinned and stuck his thumb up. Papyrus gawked.

"WHAT?! It DID?! Were you going to mention that?!"

Again, the short skeleton stuck his thumb up.

"You better have! But… BUT! Isn't that…?! Wait!" He bounded back over to him and sat down. "So you…?! You actually saw Crabapple Kid?!"

Sans nodded. Papyrus gasped loudly and beamed, his eyes glimmering. He grabbed his brother around the shoulders and squished him close.

"Nyeeeeh! I'm so happy for you! That's absolutely fantastic! Finally! Something worked, didn't it?! What changed?!"

Sans wasn't sure how to answer that— it was Toriel's business, he figured. He smiled sideways and handed his brother the notes he'd written. Papyrus unfolded them quickly and his eyes rushed over the scribbly words.

.

"What. What?! WHAT?!" He looked at Sans with his jaw agape. "This is a… a joke, right?! A… very weird and not-funny-at-all joke?!"

Sans stuck his thumb down. Papyrus wheezed out a sigh and put a hand to his head.

"So they're being hunted down by Evil Dad?!" he said shrilly. "Why would he…? Why would any version—?! That's his own kid, isn't it?!"

"might not be in another world" Sans said.

"That's incredibly depressing, brother," Papyrus said, pouting. "Ugh, I hate that I had to learn about alternate dimensions through my own mysterious sister getting dunked on by a spooky Evil Dad."

"she won 2 b fair" Sans said.

"Yes I know but imagine having to fight an Evil Dad, that'd be awful! Both for the bones and also emotionally! I would feel horrible if an Evil Dad attacked me for whatever reason!"

Sans sighed. "u right"

"Of course I'm right. Oh." He grimaced. "I just had a horrible thought. There better not be an Evil Me out there helping our Evil Dad or I'm going to be extremely upset."

Sans grinned sideways. Somehow, he doubted it.

.

Papyrus sighed heavily. He got to his feet just as the timer sounded. "Then, before I continue, I'm getting dad," he said. "Plus!" He winked. "I have something really special planned for us today. I hope you'll come with me when I drag mom and dad to Waterfall later."

Sans stuck his thumb up. His brother beamed.

"You will not regret it!" Papyrus bounded into the kitchen. He pranced upstairs just a moment later, knocked on the mysterious middle door, then hurried inside.

.

Gaster had holed up in there after dragging himself home in the wee hours of the morning. He'd tried to be so quiet, but Papyrus noticed, of course. It was a strange thought, but the boy realized he'd never actually been in this room before as soon as he took a good look at it.

.

Despite the comfortable-looking cot, Gaster sat on floor on top of an ancient carpet. His back was to the door; he faced a shrine that held a small statue of a dog instead. Papyrus tilted his head.

"Dad?" He edged closer. "Are you awake?"

"I am." Gaster's voice was quiet. He turned his head. His irises still shone orange and purple. He patted a space beside him. "Join me, if you'd like."

"Oh, um, actually I…! Wait. Is that the rug from…?" He squinted. "From… your…" A memory forced itself up from shadows and into Papyrus's head. A small castle? Out in the woods, in the middle of nowhere. Exploring the shelves. A damaged throne. A burned handprint on a door. How on earth had he gotten to such a place? "Oh! It's from your old house, right? But I guess it was more of a castle than a house, wasn't it?"

"It was," Gaster said. He carefully ran his fingers across the carpet's fibres. "I… feel quite lucky that it was there."

.

Papyrus racked his mind, but he came up with nothing until he took a seat beside his father and felt a telltale hum of magic through his bones. For some reason, his thoughts were a little clearer at its touch. The essence of a monster lingered here.

"Oh. OH!" Papyrus's eyes went wide. "This became your mom's special item, didn't it? That is lucky."

"Much better than the floorboards, or I might have pried them up," Gaster said with a weak laugh. He sighed, but a faint smile crossed his face. "She would have appreciated a meditation spot, I think."

The younger skeleton's brow furrowed with sympathy. "You miss her."

"Always. It's funny, isn't it? How a parent's influence lingers, even if your time with them happens to be short. For good or for bad, I guess."

Papyrus looked at his father with quiet bemusement for a few seconds. "Did something make you think of her more just now?"

"…Ah. You've seen right through me, as usual," Gaster admitted. "It's my eyes. My left was the same blue as hers. But now it's…" He gritted his teeth for a moment before he leaned back, rubbing his blackened hand over his fractured skull. "It's harder to look at than I thought it would be. Ah well, there's nothing to be done about it."

"It might go back though, right?" Papyrus said. "It could, couldn't it? It's possible. What Sans said, about Crabapple Kid? About turning time back? Maybe that'll change it."

"Either way," the old skeleton said, "it's alright. I still see it in Sans."

.

Gaster got to his feet and carefully touched the dog statuette. "Anyway. I've done enough moping," he said. "This room is unusual, isn't it? I remember we had a figure like this. These dogs would sometimes come to train with my mother and the Knights at our home. They'd switch the figures out all the time. Sometimes, they'd bury them in the field. My mother found that hilarious, for some reason." He smiled fondly. "We were hardly together for even one percent of my life, and yet I still wonder what she would have done in plenty of situations. Like this one, for example, with everything that's been happening."

"Yes, it's… incredibly strange and weird and just a teeny tiny bit scary," Papyrus said, standing up and brushing his pants off. "How old were you when you had to leave?"

"Eight or just newly nine, I think," he said.

"What an interesting coincidence! Same for me, actually! But! Luckily, I had Sans. You had King Uncle Asgore after a little while, right? So you weren't alone for too long, were you?"

.

Gaster whirled, eyes wide. "You… what?"

"You what what?" Papyrus asked. "Oh! When you exploded. I was also eight. That's really interesting that we have that in common, right?"

His father stared at him blankly for a few, heavy seconds, before he marched over to him and pulled him into a hug.

"Paps, I'm so sorry," he said, his voice croaking. "I never meant—"

"I know! I know, I know." Papyrus hugged him tight. "Don't worry!"

"If I could have stayed—"

"You needed to make Crabapple Kid. Even if you didn't know that," the boy said reassuringly. He pulled back, holding his father's shoulders and grinning brightly. "Plus! Really. Despite all his laziness and terrible jokes, Sans did a good job. I'm proof of that, don't you think?"

"Of course he did, but—"

"And speaking of Sans! Heeeee needs some help, actually," Papyrus said, "which is why I came up here, though it was a nice chat and I hope you don't push yourself too hard after all that crazy void stuff, and I'd love to hear more about grandma sometime!"

"Wh…? Wait, what happened?" Gaster asked quickly.

"The same thing that happened to you with the offkeys," Papyrus said. "And I was wondering if you had any more of those cakes Doctor Alphys made that we could make him eat."

.

Gaster's eyes flickered. He thumped Papyrus on the shoulder and raced off in a tizzy.

.

By the time Papyrus followed him out of the room, Gaster was already downstairs, shoving little prepackaged cakes into Sans's hands.

"When did this start?! What changed?" Gaster demanded. "Why didn't you tell me right away?!"

Sans chucked his notes at his father with an amused grin on his face and slowly unwrapped a cake as the older skeleton began to read. Within a few seconds—

"…You two did what?!" Gaster barked.

Sans tapped the page again and Gaster grumbled in Creatlach as he went back to it.

"Overall, I think it's a good thing," Papyrus hurried down the stairs and levelled a finger at his brother. "Sans, eat at least two of those. I'll finish up with breakfast. And please try not to get yanked out of time and space again while I'm not looking."

Sans stuck his thumb up and he tossed one of the cakes into his mouth.

.

"Wait, you…" Gaster's head shot up and he stared at Sans, wide-eyed. "You… saw her? You talked to her?"

"…Talked is, uh…" Sans's voice was rough and weak, and he coughed into his fist. "Whew. Weird. Talked is kinda exaggeratin', but yeah."

"You should not have risked it," his father said, his brow furrowed with worry. "But I… I'm glad it worked. That must've been such a relief."

"Don't even have words for it." Sans winked. "Probably won't again in a couple minutes, either."

"That bad?" Gaster leaned in and pressed the side of his head against Sans's chest. He pulled back with his frown even deeper than before. "That bad." He grimaced, but took a long, deep breath. "Alright. Next step?"

Sans tapped his paper again. "S'in there. Alphys's right. Lighthouse, beacon, whatever. They seem to be able to, uh, look for us? Guess it takes time on their end, too."

"Right. Dead on. That'd make sense. Our detection augment on the NOCTURNE is perceivable by our instruments because… we programmed it. If they're not able to actually hear it and know what it is, there's no way… They'd need something they can easily recognize." Gaster delved back into the papers again. "Or maybe something twinned? It could be that… we do need to rely on how your soul is linked to hers, somehow." After a few moments, his teeth parted and he let out a low, breathy hiss.

Sans bristled, eyes wide with surprise. "Haven't heard that in a while."

"You're telling me… some abomination…? With my form…?" His head jerked up. "How is Suzy? Did she have any side effects?"

"She's fine. Just a bit spooked," Sans assured her.

"And Toriel? I…" Gaster rubbed his skull and got to his feet. "Hang on a moment."

.

He raced upstairs and disappeared into Toriel's room just as Papyrus came out of the kitchen with two plates of freshly-sauced pasta.

"Did I just hear him hiss?" he asked as he passed a dish to his brother. "Wow. He must've been extremely spooked."

"Yeah." Sans took a forkful of noodles— it followed opera cake pretty strangely, but he wasn't about to complain about a meal he didn't even have to get up for.

.

Toriel's door opened— the groggy goat woman bundled in plum-coloured robe emerged, her arm out as she shepherded Gaster back out into the hall.

"It's alright," she said. "I feel fine."

"Did you take a reading?" Gaster asked.

"Yes, hun."

"May I see it?"

"Yeeesss, hun." Toriel shielded a yawn behind her hand and passed her phone over to him.

Gaster squinted at the screen. "Is it recent?"

"After midnight."

The skeleton sighed and held her shoulder to pause her in her tracks, and then pressed the phone against her chest. "I have to compare. I hope you're aware of just how dangerous this was."

"Of course. But, in fact, I don't believe it was very dangerous at all," she said with a sly smile. "Not with our son doing the calculations."

Gaster's mouth pulled into an unamused line. "Still."

.

"Hello mom, good morning!" Papyrus said brightly. "Would you like some pasta for breakfast?"

"Sounds lovely." Her ears pricked and her eyes refocussed on Sans. She smiled. "So? How did it go?"

Sans stuck his thumb up. Toriel beamed and rushed past Gaster and down the stairs to swoop the short skeleton into a hug.

"See? You were strong enough for that," she said quietly as she nuzzled her snout against his head.

"Barely," he rasped as he tried to put his plate aside on the couch.

"Your voice…!"

"What, somethin' wrong with it?" he joked.

Toriel blew out a sigh and smooched him on the forehead. "Take it easy, my child." She allowed him a seat back on the couch and squished in beside him, keeping her hand on his head to pulse healing magic through his bones.

.

Papyrus brought another plate pasta for Toriel just as Gaster came downstairs with a resigned look on his face.

"It's fine," he said.

"As I said." She smiled fondly. "I do appreciate your concern, though." She turned to Sans. "It was hardly anything, isn't that right?"

"Mostly true," he agreed.

Gaster kneaded his temples.

.

"Excellent! Glad that's all resolved," Papyrus said. "So, what do we do now? Do you have a thing you absolutely must do this morning? Because I have a thing I think would be quite nice that you all would enjoy, but especially you, mom."

"Oh?" Toriel tilted her head.

"We'll have to figure out how exactly to give our missing kids something to follow back home," Gaster said. "Projecting magic of a certain kind seems to at least register on our instruments, but…" His eyes darted over to Sans. "…That's not something we can sustain, for now."

"Hm. We could, uh…" Sans had to cough and his voice faltered. He reached for his notepad. "had smal luck w time machine b4. could try that somehow?"

"True," Gaster said as he fished in his pockets. "Is it still having issues, though? If I recall, that's what Alphys was working on."

"tru" Sans frowned thoughtfully and was about to begin writing again when a shiver rattled his whole body and his head swam.

Toriel instantly put her arms around him and Gaster darted forward. He pulled another small, packaged cake out and undid the wrapper.

"Here," he said, passing it to his son. "Are you alright? I'm afraid that's my last one."

Sans nodded. He put the cake in his mouth and pointed at Papyrus. Gaster turned quickly.

"Ah! I'm sorry, Paps, what were you saying?"

.

"If Sans is too sick, maybe it can wait," Papyrus said as he unwrapped his scarf.

Sans stuck his thumb down, though his bones still rattled. His brother gently draped the scarf around his neck.

"Are you sure?" Papyrus asked, raising his brow.

Sans stuck his thumb up. He pointed at the scarf and Papyrus waved a hand and scoffed.

"If you're shivering that hard, you clearly need it more than I do," he said.

"Wait, what is it, Paps?" Gaster asked.

"Ah, yes! I would really love for us to go to Waterfall, honestly," he said. "I made a new friend there and I really think you all should meet her." He turned to Toriel with a bashful smile. "Oh, and just to not blindside you, mom, you should know, her name is Minerva."

"M…? Minerva?" Toriel's eyes widened and the fur on her neck stood on end. "Wh…? Wh-What a coincidence, I once knew—"

"Oh, it's not a coincidence at all!" Papyrus said quickly. "I mean, me meeting her may have been but it also may have been a small wish on a dog orb, but either way, I know for a fact that she would love to see you. And! Since I'm sure we have to go visit Alphys anyway for more medicine cakes and whatever else to do with Sans's mysterious machine, it's right on the way there! What do you think?"

.

Toriel had frozen up, a perturbed, wide-eyed statue. She squeezed Sans like he was a comfort creature. Gaster put his hand on hers.

"Tori, I know it may not be easy, but—"

Toriel got to her feet, lifting Sans up with her. "When can we leave?"

"Right now!" Papyrus beamed. "You will not regret this!"

xXxXx

After putting on his cool new riding jacket and leaving a note of explanation on Undyne's face, Papyrus gladly lead the others straight into Waterfall, chattering the whole way. Sans's voice still hadn't returned, but the short skeleton wasn't bothered. He was happy to let his brother fill most of the air.

.

Toriel —who had changed into her violet and white robe before they left— exuded stress. She didn't talk much as they walked, but kept up a very brisk pace. Sans was half-worried she might run Papyrus over by accident.

.

Gaster, too, seemed perturbed, but for an entirely different reason, presumably related to some soul experiments that Sans hadn't even been alive for. Plus, another human from the past showing up… Lucky that so far it was two of the peaceful kids who got chucked back into reality. Sans hoped the world would only give them two out of six and leave it at that, because there was one for sure that nobody was keen on dealing with a second time.

.

He wasn't sure if he'd met anyone from the past yet. Seemed like Flambé might be from the future, though, so that was pretty interesting even if her joint had usurped Grillby's.

.

When they came to a door in the wall beside Gerson's shop, Papyrus held out his hand to get them to wait, and then quickly rapped his knuckles against it.

"Helllooooo? Minerva? It's your cool and tall pal, the great Papyrus, here!" he called through. "I hope it hasn't been too long! Are you home?"

.

Silence. Toriel bit her lip and leaned forward a little. Gaster put his hand on her shoulder and she grabbed his arm tight with nervous fingers. Her ears perked at the sound of a strange, distant clunk.

.

The heavy door cracked open and a gemstone eye peeked out of a dark room beyond. Papyrus grinned and waved.

"Oh! Papyrus," Minerva said brightly.

"Hello! I brought my family this time like I said I would, I hope that's alright!"

"Of course! It's good to see you! Yes, please, let yourselves in," she said quickly. She backed away from the door, vanishing into the shadows of her home.

Papyrus beamed, looking back at the others. Though their parents seemed rattled, Sans stuck his thumb up.

.

Papyrus dragged the door back, unveiling the familiar messiness that was Minerva's living room. A small white dog's pointed ears stuck out from the half-open drawer of a cabinet off to the side. Beakers on the table glimmered with an assortment of multicoloured, magical lights and the artefact-based notes on the walls had increased twofold. Minerva herself had drawn backwards towards her kitchen door, holding her walking staff in one hand as she pushed her hood back. She put it aside against the wall as she paused to tie her long hair back.

"I hope it hasn't been a very long time," Papyrus said.

"About two weeks," she said. "You?"

"A few days," he said. "Hm! Not consistent at all, is it?"

"No, I guess not! I…" She froze, her dark eyes widening.

.

Toriel had ducked inside the cavern home, her form blocking the doorway. The whites of her eyes gleamed in the low light. Her paws trembled. "Minerva?"

"Torie—" Minerva's words were cut short as the large monster swept her into a hug. She laughed weakly and grasped her lightly. "I-It's good to see you again."

"I can't believe it." Toriel pulled back, cupping the woman's cheek gently, a warm smile spreading across her face. "Oh, my dear. You've grown."

"Funny what years do, hm?" The human chuckled. "You look exactly the same." She wiped her eyes beneath her glasses. "Papyrus mentioned you were… But I almost didn't expect…" She shook her head. "Oh! Um. Please, sit down. Would you like some tea, or—"

"We don't need anything, dear girl," Toriel said. "Though I would love to speak with you a while."

"Of course," Minerva said. Her eyes darted to the side and she drew back with an embarrassed smile on her face. "Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ignore you two."

.

Gaster and Sans lingered near the doorway. The elder skeleton straightened up and looked the human down with a mixture of awe and shame on his face. He dipped forward slightly.

"It's… nice to finally meet you in the open," he said.

Sans raised his hand and shot her a tired grin. Papyrus bounded over and thumped his father hard on the shoulder.

"This is my dad! Gaster! But I think you said you knew him already a little bit, right?"

"We've met." Minerva smiled sheepishly. "Though I… presented myself a bit more as a hermit researcher. I'm sorry for not being honest but, well, you know how it is."

"Don't apologize at all," he said. "I hope… things are not… I mean." He rubbed his skull. "Are you doing alright?"

"As well as I can be." She put her hands up. "Please don't worry about me."

"As you might have suspected," Gaster said quickly. "I am… I was. Well aware that you are a human. So if anything… comes up? That I may help with? Please don't be a stranger."

"Oh, but won't that…?" Minerva frowned thoughtfully and looked at Papyrus. "If I didn't do that already, wouldn't that disrupt time?"

"We have no idea," Papyrus said. "We don't even know if your time is the same past as our time or a totally different version that's just super similar. Right, Sans?" He looked at his brother.

Sans could only shrug in reply.

.

Minerva perked up. "So this must be your brother, right?"

"Yes! This is! Sans! My incredibly short and lethargic brother," Papyrus said. "Unfortunately, he has lost his voice at the moment but if he had not, I'm sure he'd have already asked you to tell us owl about yourself."

Sans beamed and flicked finger guns Papyrus's way and Papyrus rolled his eyes. Minerva tilted her head to the side.

"You wouldn't happen to have the offkeys, would you?" she asked the shorter skeleton.

He stuck his thumb up. She frowned sympathetically.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "I've heard of that. Are you…? I mean…"

"He's not falling down," Papyrus assured her quickly. "He can't do that. He is very weird. Which is very lucky in this case! Right?"

Toriel gritted her teeth, but Gaster puffed himself up and put a hand on Papyrus's shoulder.

"That's true, it's very unusual."

Sans grinned and shrugged.

"Well, then, please stay for tea," Minerva said. "I insist."

"We don't wish to impose," Toriel replied quickly.

The human laughed. "No, no, not at all. I just pulled a full tea set out of the water a few days ago, but the only guest that comes in here is Gerson. It'd be a nice excuse to use the whole thing."

"And that reminds me! I brought you this!" Papyrus whipped out a large plastic tub filled with immaculately sauced pasta. "Specialty spaghetti and sauce made by Master Chef Papyrus! Which is me."

"Oh, uh. Thank you." She carefully accepted the tub. "You made this yourself?"

"The whole thing from scratch!" Papyrus said proudly.

Minerva smiled. "I'll be happy to try it." She gestured back to the kitchen. "Come on, take a seat if you like."

.

Gaster froze. Papyrus shot him a confused look. Toriel followed the human regardless.

"My, what a lovely place you've set up here," she said. She paused and turned to see most of the skeletons weren't following. She nodded her head towards the kitchen.

Gaster cautiously pointed a finger at himself. Toriel nodded insistently and reached out a hand for him. As soon as he was within reach, she put a sturdy paw on his shoulder and smiled, her eyes gleaming. She pulled him forward to join them.

.

Sans hung back, his gaze running over the walls. For being out of time, Minerva's home seemed pretty stable— he hardly saw any fragments of time here at all. The arcane diagrams plastered around the room that were based on that simple, red orb Papyrus carried around were fascinating. Sans caught sight of that little white dog snoring in the drawer and plucked him up. Instantly, the pooch licked him across the face. He snorted and mussed up the little beast's fur, then put him back on the ground. The dog did a big stretch, then bounded into the kitchen. Though his fingers were still shaking a little, Sans scribbled a note to his brother, wadded it up, and tossed it at him. Papyrus caught it without even looking at it.

.

"…Minerva?" Papyrus asked, peeking into the kitchen. "My brother likes your artefact notes and is wondering if he can take some pictures of them?"

"Oh! Of course, go ahead," she replied.

Sans grinned.

"He says thank you!" Papyrus said. He rushed back to Sans and bent over. "…Did you see something exceptionally interesting or suspicious?"

Sans wasn't sure. He shrugged. But, his sis had been in some red orb, hadn't she? It could be nothing— just the dream's way of displaying their disconnect— but maybe it was a sign some powerful dog out there was giving her a hand. That'd be pretty funny. She always loved dogs.

.

Papyrus squinted and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I seeee… Maybe that red in your dream has something to do with it, hm?"

Sans looked at him and raised his eyebrow.

"What?" Papyrus scoffed. "I know you've been thinking about it since you woke up!"

He wasn't wrong. Sans took out his phone, but that wobble in his fingers was a killer. Papyrus pouted for a moment and took it from him to do it instead. When he passed it back, he took off a glove and put his hand against Sans's skull with a glow of healing amber shining through his fingers. A shiver rattled the boy's spine.

"Shit!" He groaned at himself and wilted. "Nyeh… Sorry for the cursed word."

Sans snickered.

"Don't make fun! It keeps invading my mouth!" Papyrus said. "It's just, you're… extremely cold. Way more than usual. Should I find you another extra jacket?"

Sans shook his head.

.

"Boys?" Toriel called. "Come. Sit down with us."

Papyrus shot a look at his brother. Sans raised his brows.

"If she wants us there…" Papyrus said quietly. He cracked a smile. "I think it's going well."

Sans patted him on the shoulder.

.

In the kitchen, a round table with fold-down legs was already set up with six small saucers laid out on mismatched placemats. Gaster sat, looking a little awkward but a lot less disturbed than before. Toriel was in the process of pulling out some large, ceramic jars from a low shelf and putting them out on the countertop. Minerva stood by her slightly-too-large kettle were it bubbled on the stove with a flicker of Toriel's flame beneath it. Papyrus hurried to join her.

"I have to apologize, new friend: I couldn't bring the mysterious orb out into the sunlight yet," he said. "It's just been raining and raining and…! Anyway, I will definitely do it as soon as I hear that it's clear up there."

"Oh!" She laughed fondly. "Papyrus, don't worry so much," she assured him, patting him on the shoulder. "I appreciate it. Really. But there's time. I'm in no rush."

"Sorry, but what was that?" Gaster asked curiously.

"The orb!" Papyrus pulled out the shiny, red artefact and the white dog instantly flopped itself over his shoulder, waggling its little paws. The skeleton ignored it except for the keep the object just beyond its reach. "Minerva found out that it projects almost like a magic circle when you shine a light through it. And because of that, maybe if we take it out into the sun, it might do something interesting!"

"Oh. That's clever," Gaster said, eyes brightening. "We could try today. Feel free to come along, if you'd like."

"I can't, unfortunately," Minerva said. "Leaving Waterfall… isn't an option. And Papyrus and I did do a little experiment: leaving my home doesn't seem to connect to your time, for whatever reason."

"…Like Asgore's," Toriel said quietly. She gently put a hand on Minerva's shoulder. "…Why can you not leave Waterfall?"

.

Minerva smiled from the side of her mouth. "It's, ah… My condition," she said. "It doesn't seem to matter how warmly I dress, my body can't withstand temperatures of Snowdin anymore. Or Hotland, for that matter."

"Is… that why you never returned?" Toriel asked. "You would have been more than welcome."

"One of the reasons," the human said. She opened one of the jars and pulled out some red peppers. She put them inside a metal tea strainer. "I… Well. Didn't want to lead others back to you, at first, but then I actually… almost drowned. In the black lake."

"You what?" Toriel said, aghast.

"I was rescued, of course!" she said. "I used to consider myself a great swimmer. So, at the time, you know, I was young; I was more embarrassed than anything. But… recovery took a while and, by the time I did, going back through the cold wasn't an option."

"I'm so sorry," Toriel said quietly. "I… I should have searched for you."

Minerva paused, wide-eyed. "You couldn't leave. That's what you said, wasn't it?"

"I…" She flinched. "I… could not. But I—"

"Then, please. Don't worry about all that. It was so long ago. Besides, I was very hidden. If it'd been anywhere within even the first five years, I doubt you'd have found me." She grabbed a couple things more from a different jar to add to the strainer and then looked back at Sans. "I'm adding a few spell-boosters to your cup. We can see if it helps."

Sans stuck his thumb up just as his father seized him in blue magic and plunked him onto a chair. Sans took out his notepad and wrote, then held up the sheet.

"so how's it been chillin dwn here with a bunch of weird monsters?"

Minerva squinted. "How's…? Oh! Honestly, I… I'm not sure how my life would have gone if I hadn't fallen, but… even with all the running and hiding, looking back now, I'm not sure I would have done anything differently." She gestured to the kitchen around them. "I have my own space. A few good friends. All the magic I could ever study. The darkness can be… a bit much, sometimes, but for the most part, it's been good. Better this than being stuck in a hospital forever, I think."

Sans stuck his thumb up. Asking how she'd even gotten to the mountain crossed his mind, but that was probably too personal.

.

As soon as Minerva had nothing in her hands, Toriel grabbed her into a hug again. The human wilted. It was easy to look like a child, snug in the big monster's arms.

.

When the kettle boiled, Toriel poured the water into a large, mottled blue-and-white teapot and helped Minerva carry the cups over. They poured Sans's first and passed it to him.

"Let me know if it helps," Minerva said.

The skeleton stuck his thumb up and chugged half of it. Papyrus gratefully accepted another cup. The way the surface was laced with uneven, golden lines gave him pause.

.

"Whew. Helped," Sans croaked.

Minerva stalled in her tracks, eyes wide, and let out a laugh. "Oh! Sorry. Hah. I didn't expect a voice like that."

"Almost as low as I am to the ground, huh?" Sans said with a wink. He took another swig. "That's, uh… Unpleasant. But thanks. Preciate it."

"Mix and match ingredients, unfortunately," she said as she sat down.

"Could I bother you for a list?" Gaster asked. "We keep running low on one thing or another."

"Of course," Minerva said. "Toriel, please, take a seat."

"Are you sure?" she asked. "This must be quite heavy."

"Don't worry, I can handle it," she assured her. She leaned up, and though her hands shook, she seized the teapot and poured a cup for Gaster, and then for Toriel. As she passed them around, the little dog popped his head up at a seat. Minerva scoffed in amusement and poured him a cup, too.

He immediately dunked his whole face into it, lapping the liquid with great speed.

.

"That teapot's really nice," Papyrus said. "The cups, too! I'm surprised they didn't get all smashed up into tiny pieces."

Minerva smiled brightly. "Oh, but they did." She ran her finger along the surface of the final cup. "See these golden lines? It's melted coins. I did this myself."

"It's lovely," Toriel said as she sat close beside her.

"Wowie, so you…?" Papyrus's eyes went wide. "You… fixed these yourself."

She nodded, then carefully poured the final cup of tea for herself. "It's an art form that comes from an island far to the east. It became popular all over the surface a long while back. It's called kintsugi. You repair and outline the flaws in another material. To show its history as a part of the object." A small smile crossed her face. "As if it being broken is nothing to be ashamed of. I've always liked it."

"It's very nice," Gaster agreed. He cut his eyes at Sans. "I think we know a little lizard who would enjoy something like that."

"True," he said. His eyes turned on his brother but he was stalled by his expression— eyes blank and a little misty, thumb pressed hard against the back of his opposite hand. "Uh. Bro? Doin' okay?"

.

Papyrus jolted. He quickly hopped to his feet, rattling the table. "I just…! Remembered! That I have to go to the bathroom!" He headed straight for the door. "Have fun, you five, I will be back momentarily!"

Gaster blinked. "Bathroom…?"

"Is he alright?" Minerva asked worriedly.

Sans got to his feet. "Yeah. I'll go get 'im."

.

Sans slipped out after his brother and into the darkness of Waterfall. That bright amber soul was easy to hear and Sans found him just a little ways down the tunnel, staring intently at a blank corner of wall.

"Uh. Paps?" Sans asked.

"I'm so sorry," he said. He turned, his eyes shining; tears pouring down his face. "I didn't want to be a mess in front of everyone! Some tears got in my eyes."

"Whoa. Uh. Dude, what happened?"

"I… I was just filled with emotions all of a sudden, seeing that… cup?" He gritted his teeth and waved his hands as if to pull words from the air. He quickly wiped his eyes on his glove. "I remember a cup like that."

"Okay," Sans said, brows raised.

"It had a red heart on it. I fixed it with… Wiiiiithh… Nyeehhh." He held the side of his head. "We put it together, together. And you can still see the cracks but I liked fixing it with her! It was like a puzzle."

"Paps," Sans said gently.

"But that's not all, it reminded me of souls! I think… both of theirs? But especially… Asriel? I think?!" He put his hand to his chest. "His soul, it sometimes had lines like that… kintsugi. Just like that." He closed his eyes. "H-Hers was… like stars. His was like… that. Right?"

.

The short skeleton stared at his brother, feeling his voice fail him again. He sighed and dragged Papyrus into a hug, patting him on the back gently. Strange what could trigger his mind. Still, he was grateful. He bonked his brow against his brother's. Papyrus accepted it gladly, relaxing for just a moment before straightening up again.

"Thank you," he said. He wiped his face again. "I'm sorry about that."

Sans gave him a dry look. Papyrus laughed.

"I know, I know. I just hope I didn't make it extremely awkward."

The short skeleton shrugged. Papyrus scoffed and waved his hand at him.

"Oh well, whatever, it's not the end of the world. Anyway!" His face brightened. "I… I kind of liked remembering that!"

Sans gave him two thumbs up. His brother grinned.

"I was right, wasn't I?!"

Of course he was. Papyrus cackled with triumph.

"Okay! We! Are! Getting somewhere! More slowly than I would like, but still." He scooped Sans off the stone under his arms. "Alright, let's get back in there before I become even more suspicious than I just did."

.

The skeletons burst back into Minerva's place to Gaster having taken over half the table with some magic diagrams and Minerva nodding along, penciling in small notes as she did. Toriel smiled fondly, but she looked tired.

"My, you two were gone a while," she said.

"Were we?!" Papyrus demanded. He gasped and bonked himself in the forehead as he put Sans back in a chair. "Aah, of course, the out of sync timeline things! I'm sorry, I shouldn't have run out! Also, I am perfectly okay, by the way, I just, uh…"

Sans pointed at his own eye. Papyrus nodded hurriedly.

"Right! I had to wash something out of my eye socket, so nobody panic! Anyway, how long was it?"

"A little over an hour, I'd say," Toriel said. "Glad to hear it was nothing serious, my child."

"Nyeh! Sorry about that again!"

.

"Don't worry," Minerva assured him. "Your father and I were discussing the barrier. It's a shame there wasn't another way around it, but it's fascinating."

"Speaking of," Gaster said quickly. "I really do need to thank you. Preemptively."

"Honestly, that it helped is enough, strange as that might sound," she assured him.

"Ah. For that too, actually, but there was something else," he said. "My daughter. There was… an incident. With a theft of the human souls. The creature that took them… attacked her with them. But you helped to protect her during that time. Thank you."

Minerva's eyes went wide. "I…" She smiled. "I'm very glad to hear that."

"What creature was that?" Toriel asked worriedly.

"It was a mess. We can go into it a little later," Gaster said. "Sans, would you…?"

Sans pointed at his mouth. His father frowned.

"Again?"

Sans smiled and shrugged. Toriel got up from her seat and went to take his teacup.

"That might be just a tad more urgent," she said with the lilt of a tease in her voice.

xXxXx

Toriel had a lot of questions, and Minerva was happy to answer— about her life, research; anything. Two teapots later and, though the human seemed to want to host for longer, she was growing sore and lethargic and the magic food had little effect. Sans knew the feeling. Toriel spent a little time to inject her with some healing magic. The others had things to do, but she'd stay for while longer, she decided.

.

As the skeletons left and Toriel set about cleaning the clutter from the kitchen, Minerva pulled Papyrus aside near her desk in the main room.

"Before you go. How are you?" she asked.

"How am I? I'm perfectly okay!" he said. "Why? Do I not look perfectly okay?"

"You were stressed last time we spoke," she said. "I… didn't want to ask you in front of your parents. But. Has it resolved, or…?"

"Oh. That. No, we're still working on it," he said. "Don't worry! We're on our way to work more on it right after this! I'm sure it'll go well. It's a lot to do, but I'm… I'm sure."

Minerva tilted her head. "And when you left, you looked… a bit upset."

"Aah! My face betrayed me," he grumbled. "Sigh. It wasn't… It was just a memory I didn't know I had coming up from nowhere. It's okay."

The woman nodded. She rubbed his arm. "You're doing very well."

"I know. But still." He folded his arms. "And now with Sans all… Well. I'll figure it out."

.

Minerva's brow furrowed. She offered him a hug and he gladly embraced her. She patted his back warmly and, after a moment, the boy sunk.

"You will," she assured him. "I'll see you again later, alright?"

"Yes! Yes, of course," he said.

She drew back and held his shoulders. "Also. Thank you. For bringing your family to visit me. Tell them they're welcome back any time."

"I will!" he assured her. "And I'm going to put the weird red orb in the sun for you. I promise. I'll be back with it as soon as I can."

"Keep it low on your list," she said. "But I'll be excited to see it."

He nodded and saluted before bounding towards the door to join Sans, who lingered right at the threshold and waved with two fingers. Minerva raised her hand in return.

"Alright! I'll see you later!" Papyrus called. "Hopefully today my time and within a week your time!"

The woman chuckled. She waved to them as Papyrus did, grinning widely until he vanished to her in the strange interstice in time between doorway and cavern.

.

It had barely been any time at all out in their part of the world. Gaster meticulously recorded the discrepancies as Sans, draped over his brother's shoulders, squinted through shards of time on their way to the lab.

.

Back and forth. Home to lab and lab to home and back again. Maybe a stop in New Home just to switch it up a little. Sans was getting a little dizzy even thinking about it. Or, maybe he was just dizzy anyway. What number was he at, he wondered. If only he could bring it up the same way Mettaton did with the count of his very long and ever increasing legs.

.

A spider or centipede Mettaton was not what greeted them in the lab, to Sans's simultaneous relief and disappointment. Instead, the three skeletons thoroughly startled the pale human man who was walking back and forth across the floor, scrubbing damp hair with a pink and blue MewMew towel.

"Aah! You guys—!"

"Aah, yes, us guys!" Papyrus said. "Hello again, friend!"

"Er. Hey, Papyrus," Boyd said. "S'that Sans?"

"Indeed it is!"

"Human," Gaster said, his eyes flickering. "How are you feeling?"

"Uh. I'm alright." Boyd jabbed his thumb into his chest. "Did a number on me yesterday, but I feel like I slept it off pretty good."

"Good. I'm very glad to hear that," Gaster said.

"Sure. Uh. How 'bout you?" he said. "I heard some, uh… weird stuff."

"Oh, it was a mess!" Papyrus said, thumping his father on the back. "He scared the dust right out our bones— most of us, anyway. Not me, of course. But so far, everything's been going faaaaairly smoothly despite that. Right?"

"I… Uh. I'd say so," the older skeleton said.

"Also, human, how do you suddenly have hair?" Papyrus said, squinting curiously.

Boyd could only shrug. "Oh. Right. If you're lookin' for the Doctor, she's down, uh… Same level the shower's on. She's workin' on something kinda loud, though, so you might have to yell at 'er."

"Perfect! Excellent! Thank you!" Papyrus said, heading straight for the elevator, toting his brother along with him.

.

Gaster paused before the human, though, his bright eyes boring into him. Boyd bristled.

"Yeah?"

"If anything changes," Gaster said, "have Asgore call me. I don't want to repay your help with medical neglect."

"Oh! Ah. Hey. Don't worry 'bout it," he said. "If I faint, I'm sure he'll give ya a call"

Gaster dipped his head before moving off to join his sons.

.

Alphys was indeed downstairs, making enough noise that they found her right away in an offshoot room that had several sinks and a slot in the floor where a few specialized medical tables could be raised from. Large chunks of scrap metal sparking with lemon-yellow magic hovered around the lizard as she leaned over a table just her height that was enchanted with pale blue. She worked on some superheated small parts with a magic blowtorch, the fiery light gleaming intensely around her and across a pair of goggles she had strapped over her eyes.

.

Papyrus was about to call out to her, but Gaster put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head. Instead, his magic called up some shimmering, phantasm hands that floated over to Alphys and waved at her. She looked up slightly, switched her torch off, and then turned around with a smile. She pulled up her goggles to rest them on her brow.

"H-Hey guys," she said. "Good morning! What, um…?"

"Hello, Doctor!" Papyrus set Sans down.

The short skeleton put one hand to his head as he wobbled on his feet for a second, but then stuck his thumb up and grinned.

"Um. S-Sans, are you okay?" she asked.

"He's got the offkeys, unfortunately," Gaster said.

"What?! N-No!" Alphys rushed to grab Sans's shoulders. "And?! How long?! What happened?! Are you—?!"

Sans squished her cheeks. She sighed and gave him a hug so tight his spine popped and then pulled back, gritting her teeth.

"Okay. Oooookay. Okay. Breathe, Alphys. What d-do you guys need?"

"Opera cakes," Gaster said. "I'm out."

"Oh! Duh! Of course." She pointed through the door. "The m-machine's upstairs n-near my, um, night table. T-Take it with you."

.

Sans strolled around her, eyeing the newly soldered-together pieces in shapes that were very familiar to him. He passed her a quick note. "blueprints worked out yea?"

"Oh! Y-Yeah! Yeah, they were great," she said

"You could read them?" Papyrus teased.

"…Their handwritings are comparable," Gaster said quietly.

"least most of mine's in english" Sans winked.

"Pff. Listen," Gaster said, pointing a finger at him. "That's… completely fair." He snuck in closer to peer over Alphys's work, eyes lingering over the more complex mechanisms she had been working on. "Is that solid, untarnished ore? Where did you get that?"

"The human h-had a weapon with him that I was allowed to, um, m-melt down," she said with a smile. "After this it should be just, u-um, some of those capsules left to work out of crystal, I th-think and your machine should be good to go again, Sans."

.

Sans's eyes brightened. He stuck his thumb up and held up a new paper. "u better slep tho"

"I slept last night, I p-promise," she assured him. "I just need maaaaybe an hour or so m-more on this."

"That's perfect timing!" Papyrus said. "Beeeecause. He. Just. Talked to Crabapple Kid."

"He…? Nani?!" Alphys barked. "He WHAT?!"

Sans snickered and waved his hands and her to get her to lower the volume. She shoved him gently.

"H-How the hell did you…?!" She gasped loudly. "Wait, that wasn't what you a-and her Majesty were doing last n-night?!"

In leu of an answer, Sans merely shoved his notes at her. She snatched them away and read them at super-speed.

"Y-You're crazy," she said quietly. "Oh my god. Oh my god." Her jaw fell open. "G-G-Gaster?!" She looked up, eyes wide, and fumbled for words for a few seconds before simply breathing out, "H-Holy c-c-crap."

"I feel much the same," Gaster said.

"I think we all did," Papyrus agreed.

"I n-need to s-sit down."

"I think we all had to do that, too."

.

Leaving the parts for now, they took Alphys to another room and recapped everything as much as they could, new ideas included. Once she shook off her shock, the lizard was intrigued. Trying to guide the time machine to instead reach a specific person sounded promising. It still needed a few repairs, though that could be done soon, and unlike trying to formulate some beacon (perhaps through attempting to infuse material with void magic) they already had a precedent of Sans's machine actually functioning. Plus, she theorized, if Sans was already involved, his sister would undoubtedly recognize his magic compared to the sound of an unfamiliar spell.

.

It all sounded pretty good. Sans just wasn't sure if he could stay upright for that long.

.

After a while, he started getting dizzy again, with shattered fragments of different lighting conditions and the movements of amalgamates long-gone streaking across his vision. His father sent him and Papyrus home with a few of the machine parts that were completed, which Sans couldn't really complain about. His bones were aching a little more than they had been.

.

Home felt better. For some reason, things didn't move as much in the garage as they did elsewhere. Maybe that was because of the time machine itself, but he didn't really know.

.

As Papyrus rushed inside the house for a moment to check on Undyne and Suzy, Sans set up Alphys's white box to start pumping out a couple opera cakes and flipped up one of the inner compartments of his time machine to start replacing the parts. He had almost forgotten about those extra jackets and sweatshirts he'd started stashing on the seat. There was also that blue scarf with the moon on it. He took off his brother's, folding it into a neat square and putting it off to the side, and used the blue one instead so he could at least give the red one back. He pulled the hood of his black, bone-print hoodie up to stave off the unusual chill, too.

.

He fiddled with a couple wires and pulled busted components out of their sockets to replace them with Alphys's much better craftsmanship. Kinda made him wish he'd asked her to help him build the original version. It might not have been as wrecked as it was now if he had.

.

His thoughts drifted back to his sister. That note she'd left had been enough to at least see a little of the past. But he wasn't sure exactly what to pick now to ram it towards her, if that was even what needed to be done. He also wasn't sure if he'd have enough in him to push the machine into action.

.

He imagined some big dumb dramatic scenario— using the last of his determination to throw the machine out there, only to fall to dust just as he got back. He smirked to himself. He'd probably do that if he had to, if he were honest. He didn't matter; those kids did. As long as they came back, anything that happened to him wasn't permanent. Kid was strong enough that even some timeless Sans dust stuck in the seat of a time machine could be turned backwards. Sure, it wasn't comfortable to think about, but if that was his only shot, then—

.

Sans blinked. Why was he looking up at the ceiling? He rubbed the top of his head. Must've fainted. Good thing his hoodie'd cushioned his fall a bit, or that mighta been a real pain in the neck. He snickered tiredly.

.

"Saaaaans?!" Papyrus called from outside.

The door burst open and Sans shuddered as a cool chill passed over him.

"GASP!" His brother was over him in an instant, lifting him up into his arms. "SANS!"

Sans stuck his thumb up.

"Oh my god, what happened? I knew I felt you fall! Are you okay?!"

Again, Sans stuck his thumb up. Papyrus pouted.

"What the heck is going on?" he asked.

Sans shrugged. His brother's frown deepened. Sans smiled sideways and pointed at Papyrus's scarf.

"Oh! You got your own?" Papyrus gently sat Sans up and reached out for it. "Well that's… good. But. SANS!" He quickly draped it around his neck and scowled at the shorter skeleton. "Don't deflect! I'm serious."

.

A deep, cold sinking feeling hit Sans's soul. He grinned anyway and reached into his pocket for his notepad. It wasn't there— was a little ways across the floor where it must've fallen from his pocket when he toppled backwards. Instead, he drew a weak, flickering set of three Z's in the air with blue magic.

"I know. Of course. You're tired, but…" Papyrus frowned. "No. Brother. This is more than just that."

Sans tilted his head, shamelessly pretending like he didn't get it while calling himself garbage inside his head.

"Please don't lie," Papyrus said. "I'm worried! I wouldn't be pushing if I wasn't worried, you know that!"

Sans's brow furrowed. He was really pushing it. Of course Papyrus was worried. Of course he knew, even if he hadn't drawn the conclusion to its, well, conclusion. He put his hand over that red scar in his bones. It was still warm. The charade had to be about up, right?

.

Papyrus frowned deeply. "Sans, look, there's… There's something wrong with you! I know there is. More than you've said," he insisted. "Your soul hurts all the time, I know there's something wrong with your eyes; you can't even talk consistently anymore! Sans, come on. You need… Please. Please, tell me, what's really happening to you? You know, don't you?"

Despite feeling like total trash, Sans smiled sideways, pointed to his mouth, and then shrugged. Papyrus rolled his eyes and slammed his notepad and pen down in front of him. Though Sans took the pen, he hesitated. His first instinct was to say he was fine. His brother's eyes began to glow softly and he grimaced.

.

Papyrus grabbed his shoulders tightly. "Tell me the truth." There was a shrill desperation in his voice. "We're brothers! You're supposed to be able to tell me anything." He slumped forward, putting his head down. "For once, just… Please."

Sans sighed. He was right. Always was. He rubbed Papyrus's head. His brother pulled back enough to give him room. Sans began to write.

"i'm d"

Papyrus grabbed his hand, stopping him. When he looked up with a puzzled frown, he was taken aback to see tears streaming down his brother's face. He reached up worriedly, only to have Papyrus crush him into a hug, rattling faintly, his soul burning against his.

.

Sans sighed. He held his brother tight and patted the back of his head. Clever kid only needed the one letter to know what was going down. He'd probably guessed it a while ago but didn't want to believe it. Sans let his weakened soul leak out apologetic sympathy.

"You can't…" Papyrus croaked.

It was true. Sorry. Things'd be okay, whatever happened.

"No. You're not allowed," he grumbled. "We're always supposed to be together. W-We are NOT going from four down to one, that's c-completely unacceptable!"

Sans chuckled. Sure was. It was going to be fine. Had to be. He patted Papyrus's shoulder and the younger skeleton began to weep in earnest. Heartbroken wasn't a strong enough word. Sans put his brow against his brother's head and held him for as long as he needed.

.

When Papyrus finally pulled back, wiping his face on the back of his hand, Sans looked up at him questioningly. Papyrus nodded.

"I… I'm going to be fine. Because y-you're going to be fine. I'm going to make sure. That. You will be. Totally fine." He sniffled. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Sans raised his brow. Papyrus folded his arms and pouted. The short skeleton laughed tiredly.

"hate 2 cause u stress" he said.

"Is this not something I can stress about?!" Papyrus asked.

"itll b undone when the kids come home"

"Yes, but—!"

Sans tapped his message a few times for emphasis. When Papyrus didn't look convinced, he flinched and wrote again.

"ive died like 1000 times dude, its ok i know how it is, its not 2 bad 4 me" He smiled sideways. "just wan ok thats all"

"How can you be okay with that?!" Papyrus yelped. "How can you expect ME to be okay with that?!"

Sans shrugged. His brother huffed and grabbed both of his hands.

.

"This time machine thing… It's dangerous, right? Can I go with you?" he asked.

Sans shook his head. Not a chance. It'd crumble him to dust.

"Then promise you'll come back," he said.

He couldn't promise that. He kept a straight face and nodded. Karmic balance of lies went back to where it had sat a few minutes ago. Papyrus's expression softened and he bumped his brow against his brother's for just a moment.

"I know you're probably just saying that, but you're going to at least make an effort, right?"

Sans grinned and winked. Papyrus scoffed.

"You're impossible." He picked him up under his arms and then slung him over his shoulder, then grabbed Alphys's magic box in the other hand. "I know you're not hungry, but I'm making you food! Come on, and don't you dare complain."

.

Sans grinned. Of course, he couldn't complain if he wanted to.