Hello guys :D Sorry for the delay! I'm back at the university and my schedule is difficult actually. But here goes chapter 14 ! We're already at the middle of the story. Things are going to be worst and worst from now on eheheh.

Chapter 14 : Unexpected events

"Sans!"

A loud growling could be heard from the pile of blankets on the bed.

"Sans, wake up now! It's already late!"

A big mass fell on his pelvis. He kicked it away, irritated. The annoyance slipped back on the ground.

"Well, you asked for it."

Papyrus suddenly screamed with a high pitched and very loud voice continuously. Sans finally moved in his sheets, growling with discontentment. He tried to hide under the comfortable fluffy blue blanket that had welcomed him since the beginning of the night. Unfortunately, that didn't stop his little brother. Papyrus blocked his hands and pulled the blanket off of him, still screaming next to his head. In despair, the skeleton threw his pillow at his brother's face. Papyrus dodged it easily.

"Dammit, Papyrus! I'm awake already! Stop!" growled Sans, now forced to open his eye sockets.

Pulled out of his restful sleep, the skeleton sighed loudly before lifting his head to give his brother hell with his eyes. The tiny skeleton had climbed back on the bed and was looking at him, arms crossed, straddled on his femur, determined to not let him fall asleep again. There was nothing else Sans could do but accept his defeat. Bedtime was over.

"Asgore help me, I'm being assaulted by the sleep police. I'm under a-rest my general?"

"Sans! Stop that! You know I hate your puns! You need to wake up, we have a mission!"

"No, thank you, I'm good here."

"It's from King Asgore!" Papyrus insisted, shaking his ribcage to make sure he had his attention. "He asked Charlie to pick up mushrooms in the woods for the Queen. Undyne and I are going to help and… And it would be nice if you came too. You know, in case there's… uh… dogs or something. I don't like dogs. They're always mean to me."

"Is my baby brother scared of the big bad wolf?" Sans teased him.

"I'm not! I fear nothing!" his brother reacted immediately. "I'm just asking for reinforcement. We would be much faster if we're all going. We're leaving in fifteen minutes. Don't you dare fall asleep or I… or I'll throw you in the snow by the window!" he threatened him with a surprisingly deep voice.

Then he smiled like nothing ever happened and disappeared in the corridor, screaming after Charlie and Undyne. Sans got up lazily and stretched like a cat. It was almost midday already. Good news was that his father didn't bother him this morning, which meant he wasn't using him today. It was good enough to make him smile. He put his pink slippers on and dragged himself to the bathroom to get washed and changed.

He definitely looked better than the previous day. The marks of the days he spent outside were less and less visible. On the outside at least. The inside was still a work in progress. As long as he felt well enough to act like everything was alright for Papyrus, it didn't really matter. On the other hand, he was not sure he would react nicely to another interview with his dad today. He just wanted to spend some time with his brother.

He put a clean T-shirt and trousers on, then slipped his blue jacket on, freshly washed by Toriel. The Queen managed to fix all the scratches and holes in it, it was almost like new. He finished by hanging his blue scarf around his neck and he was ready to go. When he opened the door, Papyrus was bawling his name downstairs. Sans ran to catch up.

Papyrus was wearing a big new orange coat with a long red scarf that fell near his knees. He was wrapping Undyne's neck with a similar green scarf that was already covering half of her face. Asgore was watching over them from the nice chair where he was reading some official report, amused. Charlie brought back three big baskets to carry the mushrooms. They gave one to Undyne and one to his little brother. The kid hesitated, looking at Sans, but the skeleton said he was too big for that anyway, so the human kept it.

"Where are the four of you going again?" suddenly asked the King with a surprisingly alarmed voice.

"We're going to help our human friend to pick up mushrooms in the woods!" answered Papyrus proudly, excited.

Sans frowned when panic transformed the King's face. He seemed to be the only one who had noticed it. Unfortunately, before he had a chance to ask him what was wrong, Papyrus opened the door on Gaster. He looked as surprised as the King. The royal scientist stared at the children, one after the other, then he growled, frustrated by something. He shared a look with the King, that answered with a weird hand sign. Sans felt uneasy. Something was off, he could tell, but what?

"Dad!" shouted Papyrus happily, hanging himself to his waist. "We're going… we… You..."

The scientist unhooked him coldly and walked to the King without even a look in his direction. The deception that appeared on his little brother's face broke Sans' heart. His father had never shown a big interest for him, but never like that before. It was like Papyrus was some sort of unwanted dog, and he was still too young to see it. Sans clenched his fists, angry, then took his brother's hand to comfort him. Was Gaster even realising Papyrus was looking for an apology for all the times he acted like that with him? He didn't deserve him.

Upset, Sans decided to take the events in head and lead the children outside. He put a gentle hand on Papyrus' head and showed him the door. The young skeleton smiled back, and dragged Undyne behind him. The children left the house together and walked towards the rest of the camp.

It was strange. He was not sure if it was because of what happened between his father and the King, but it seemed like everyone they crossed were watching them, and more especially the Royal Guards. The three other kids didn't seem to notice, so Sans just assumed it was in his head. However, that feeling that something bad was about to happen didn't left him before they passed the barricades to join the woods near the camp.

"Sans, are you listening to me?"

The skeleton focused back on his little brother. Hands on the hips, he looked upset about something. Sans scratched his head nervously with a sorry smile. He hadn't listened to a word he just said. Papyrus sighed.

"Anyway, as I was saying, we are going to split up so we can work faster. Charlie and me are going east, Undyne and you are going west, and we'll come back right here in an hour. I am very certain Charlie and I will pick up more mushrooms than the two of you. After all, the great Papyrus is better in anything he does! Nyeh eh eh!"

He grabbed Charlie's hand and dragged them to the left part of the woods. Sans watched them leave nervously. He didn't like the idea of letting him alone with the human, but Undyne didn't let him think more. The fish lady caught his arm and forced him to run behind her, just as eager to win than his brother. She was a competitor too.

If he had to be honest, Sans didn't do much. The little girl ripped the mushrooms of the ground at the speed of light and threw them in the basket Sans was holding. Once a zone was cleared, she ran a little further away and the skeleton followed her, not so much enthusiastic.

He felt like the forest was trying to suffocate him. Uneasy, he kept thinking about the talk the King and his dad had before they left. Should he have stayed to make sure he was not going to put their life at risk? Why were they both looking so upset about them going with the human?

Suddenly, his chest brutally hurt. Sans screamed painfully and doubled over in shock. He fell crudely on his side, holding his soul. It was hurting him so badly! But why? He didn't do anything! A loud shout made him and Undyne jump. It was Charlie. The realisation stroked him violently. It was not his pain. It was Papyrus. He just took a very bad amount of damages.

In utter panic, Sans forced himself to get up and ran towards the screams, abandoning the basket behind. Undyne followed him without question, scared to be left alone.

"Papyrus! Papyrus, are you alright?" he ran out of breath.

He rushed to the part of the forest where the human and his brother were supposed to be. Papyrus was here, held by Charlie. The small skeleton seemed in shock, shaking and crying, but he didn't seem that hurt. Maybe a little stunned.

"What just happened?" asked Sans, his voice trembling because of adrenaline.

"No wait!" shout Charlie. "Don't come near! We were walking when Papyrus hit an invisible wall and got pushed back."

Sans didn't listen. In two steps, he was right next to Papyrus, palping his body to make sure there was no wound. His brother pushed his hands, growling. It was a good sign, that meant he was not so bad. The older one let him snap out of shock and walked to the "invisible wall" Charlie just described. He stretched out his arm, a long bone in hand and stepped forward until he felt a resistance. Electric cracklings could be heard where the bone was touching, revealing a thin psychic magic shield circling them entirely. Everyone could go in, but no one could go out. They all ran into a trap face first.

The skeleton stayed silent, aware the children were waiting for him to say something. He needed to think of something fast. If he showed he was scared, they were all going to panic. He took a deep breath, then slowly turned to face the children.

"Please all stay behind me." he said with a calm voice. "Something is wrong."

He created a circle of high blue bones around them, as a shield, just to make sure no projectiles could hurt them directly. Undyne's small hand slid in his, nervous. Papyrus also hide behind his big brother, suddenly fearful. They waited long minutes like this, jumping at every noise of the forest.

But then, footsteps could be heard all around them. Several royal guards came out from the bushes, weapons in hand pointing towards them. They looked as surprised as the children, like something in their plan didn't go as planned. Sans linked their face to Asgore and Gaster. There was definitely something they were hiding. What had his father done this time?

Two frail arms circled Sans at his waist. Papyrus, scared, hid his face in his brother's jacket. The recent trauma of what happened in the cave was stronger than ever. Sans never thought the betrayal could come of his own species. But here they were. The skeleton could feel Undyne and Charlie's fear too. He tried to control how scared he was too. The soldiers walked their way, slowly circling them. Trapped inside the forcefield, they had no escape anyway.

"Please deliver the human to us and everything is going to be fine." asked a dog lady in black armour with a cold voice. "We have no plans to hurt any of you, so please don't make this difficult, tiny skeleton."

"Why do you want them?" answered Sans, defensive.

"None of your business."

One of the guards stepped forward. Sans threw a bone towards him. The reptile creature dodged it easily, but hissed at him, angry. The skeleton perfectly knew he stood no chance facing them, but he couldn't just give them the human. Even if he didn't like them, he didn't need to be a genius to understand that what they were going to do to them was bad. Papyrus would never forgive him if they killed his friend right in front of him because of his choice.

There was only one way to escape this hell : trying a new teleportation. If he could just teleport everyone near the camp, maybe they would have enough time to run to the queen. She said she wanted to help. His father maybe managed to corrupt the King, but Toriel showed him she didn't trust Gaster either. It was time to use it to his advantage. He didn't have any other choice anyway.

He was not sure he could teleport by himself, but there was no other way now. He held his brother hands closer, then turned to Charlie and Undyne.

"Hold on to me and don't let go under any circumstances."

The children nodded. The dog lady didn't like that.

"You are circled." she reminded them, alert. "There's nothing you can do. Please give us the human or you will regret it, you little shit."

Sans concentrated and tried to visualise the royal house. He activated his magic. A blue aura appeared around him, and then they disappeared in a flash in a concert of raging screams.

When Sans opened his eye sockets again, out of breath, the children were in the middle of Toriel's living room. The Queen, shocked, was watching them, her teacup in hand. She put the drink away and walked to them, just in time to catch Sans, panting after the miracle he just did. Papyrus, scared, immediately cried in his arms, relieved. They survived again. But for how long were they going to play with fire again?

"It's alright, bro. It's over, they're gone." Sans pat his brother's head to comfort him.

"Why did they want Charlie?" asked Undyne, still shaking. "Did… Did we do something wrong?"

Toriel sat down next to her. Before everything else, she put a hand on Sans chest so her magic could restore his only health point. Sans thanked her shyly, then looked at Charlie. Next to Toriel, their face was totally shut down. They stayed silent, their empty mushroom basket in their hands.

"My children, please explain to me what happened." Toriel asked, worried. "You are all looking terrified."

"Royal guards attacked us in the woods." answered Sans. "They… They wanted the human. I… I think it's because of my dad."

Toriel didn't answer, but she looked angrier. However, Sans knew it was not against them. She was clearly on their side. Both Gaster and Asgore were going to have a bad time. Somehow, it comforted the skeleton.

Suddenly, Papyrus gasped in horror. He threw himself in front of Toriel and busted in tears, completely panicked.

"I'm so sorry, miss Toriel! We… We forgot the mushrooms!" he cried, deeply affected by this tragic loss. "You will not be able to make soup tonight!"

"Oh, Papyrus…" she said, gently petting his head. "It is alright. The essential is that you are all safe here. Please come with me. I'm taking you back to your room, you need to rest. I'll… I'll talk with my husband and the royal scientist about what happened, do not worry."

The goat lady stood up and took Papyrus in her arms, still inconsolable about the terrible fate of the mushrooms. Undyne helped Sans stand up, still weak, then they followed her. Charlie walked behind them, still silent.