For a horrible moment, I couldn't move. I couldn't think. I couldn't breathe. they're here. the human is actually here, it isn't a dream, it isn't a dream! this is real! To my mind-numbing horror, I suddenly felt strongly compelled to go greet the child. I felt my feet start moving. It was as if I wasn't in control. My soul fluttered frantically. Distantly, too late, I realized there was a log in my path. My foot came down a little too hard in just the wrong place. The branch shattered. The human whirled, but I had already teleported back into the cover of the trees. A huge, eager smile lit up their face. they know i'm here. At that thought, the spell broke.

no, no, no! i won't go! no! Images flashed before my eyes. I knew what was going to happen. I couldn't let them meet.I could faintly make out the far-off sound of Papyrus's boots in the snow coming closer. NO! Suddenly, from within me, I felt something snap. I took a split second to pinpoint the sound—a twinge of pain flashed through my left eye socket—then I flung myself through space.

The shortcut opened up right above Papyrus. I dropped like a stone, slamming into him and tackling him to the ground. There was a stunned pause.

"S… SANS?!" Papyrus stuttered, baffled. "WHAT ON EARTH—"

"hush!" I shushed urgently. "papyrus, we need to get out of here, now! quick, before they come!"

"BEFORE WHO COMES?" Papyrus asked in bewilderment as I tried to pull him to his feet.

"we gotta get out of here, today. we should get undyne, she'll know what to do, and we gotta tell the townspeople to hide, and—"

Suddenly, Papyrus gasped. My soul sank, and I got the feeling equivalent to the sensation of all the blood draining from my face and my mouth going dry, despite me having neither blood nor spit. Slowly, I turned to look at what Papyrus was staring at. There, standing stiffly in the snow, was the human.

Choppy, nearly black, dark brown hair fluttered in the wind about their neck, occasionally flitting across the child's face. But they didn't bother to brush it away. Their shirt was black with a single, thick band of orange across the torso. Black leggings led down to old brown boots, the tops of which were sprinkled with dust. They no longer held the knife openly, but I could faintly see its outline beneath their clothes. Their eyes… were red. Yet, that wasn't what concerned me. What concerned me was the fact that I could see the color at all; I felt that they shouldn't be open so wide.

There was a thick silence.

"SANS," Papyrus whispered, "WHAT IS THAT?" I couldn't conceal the sharp chill that ran down my spine and shivered.

"imagine it's a rock," I replied, dodging his question, still trying to pull him away. "i'll explain later when we're safe—"

"OH! OH MY GOODNESS!" Papyrus suddenly exclaimed, bouncing to his feet and pointing boldly. "SANS, IT'S A HUMAN!" Papyrus seemed to be waiting for a response from either me or the child. None came. "HUMAN!" he exclaimed, "PREPARE YOURSELF! FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL CAPTURE YOU! MY PUZZLES SHALL HAVE YOU BEFUDDLED! YOU WILL BE UNABLE TO MATCH MY WIT! I WILL AMAZE YOU WITH MY TRAPS! MY JAPES! AND MY UNMATCHABLE COOKING!" well, you've got one thing right, paps, I thought distractedly. Papyrus wasn't done. "YOU WILL SOON BE MINE! AND I SHALL BE PART OF THE ROYAL GUARD! NYEH! CONTINUE… IF YOU DARE! NYEH HEH HEH HEH!" And with that, Papyrus dashed away, doubtless to complicate his puzzles.

The whole time, the child kept a straight face and a still stance. Nothing changed. I stood frozen, a sinking feeling settling over me. The child started walking forward.

"…and you don't even bat an—" I stopped myself. Where were these words coming from? I had no desire to talk to this creature!

I took a step back. A spark of pain popped in my mind and my hand went to my head. Surprised, the child paused, then smirked. Stepping past me, they followed after Papyrus. After a moment, I regained my senses and teleported after my brother, desperate to stop this before things could get worse. The day just went downhill from there.

Nothing Papyrus did or said seemed to have any effect on the kid. Puzzle after puzzle without progress. Every time, the human would simply walk through it before Papyrus had a chance to explain. His confused and dejected looks were hard to bear. Finally, I couldn't take it. As they passed by me, I reached out an arm and stopped them.

"i'll be straight forward with you. my brother'd really like to see a human… so it'd really help me out… if you kept pretending to be—wait. no." The kid gave me a confused glance. I grabbed the front of their shirt and pushed them against a tree. "you know what? it'd be a heck of a lot better if you just stayed away from him! i'm warning you, i—"

Suddenly, unbelievable pain exploded in my head. Gasping, I dropped to my knees, hands clawing at my tightly shut left eye socket. what's going on? what's going on?! i can't see! Sensing movement, I tried to force myself to look up. I couldn't. Then, to my horror, I felt soft hair brush against my skull. My soul iced over as the human leaned down, whispering in my ear—

"If you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of my way." It was the first time they had spoken. Their voice was like honey, yet there was a deadly bite in the words, too. "Anyway, I'll always win in the end... Serif."

At the name "Serif," my entire being shivered. Something was desperately wrong. Fresh pain coated my senses, and I moaned quietly despite my best efforts. The child snickered, turned, and stalked off, leaving me crumpled in the snow. After a few minutes, the pain started to subside. Stumbling to my feet, I gazed numbly ahead.

I had to find Papyrus.