Notes: Due to other projects and just general living life stuff, I won't be able to update this story as frequently. This might be the last update for a while. Thank you to everyone who has read this story so far. Hope your day goes well.


Chapter 11

Our Little Secret

IRL

[I LOVE YOU JAMES!]

James saw the Frisk dialogue box, as well as the message in all caps, and knew that it was Amber. It had to be text to speech or something, but no matter how that message was delivered, he knew it was his sister.

On the screen, he saw the little Frisk sprite hop up and down on the small device Sans had been holding. The animation was actually rather comical, but James had no idea what this meant. Why would the kidnapper program Amber's sprite to break his stuff and/or overpower him?

James didn't get any more text boxes from the scene, but he did see the battle screen appear. Now he was looking at the Sans fight, but instead of his impressive first attack, James saw Sans do the attack from the spare option where he instantly kills the player, followed by gaster blasters for good measure.

The Game Over screen appeared, and Sans's dialogue at the bottom read [nope, not today. you've been ghosted.]

James didn't quite understand. Why program a battle scene? Why insta-kill Frisk? Was this the killer's way of saying he killed Amber?

The next scene that popped up was a familiar one, with the ghost sprite walking around Snowdin as if everything was fine.

James cried for what felt like the hundredth time since all of this started. He was sure he finally understood what happened. The killer was torturing him with a digital recreation of Amber's death. Sure, the real world method wasn't shown, but it didn't need to be. It showed Amber trying to fight back, proclaiming her love for her brother, and then being killed by "Sans" before a ghost appears in Snowdin.

James tried to make a text box appear. He wanted to type to the killer, wanted to curse him out, ask for answers, or just…something. The text box wouldn't appear however, no matter what James did. He was left alone with the emptiness and the questions he felt would never be answered. He was left to wonder…

Could he have changed things?


Snowdin

Amber snuck around to the back of the shopping district, behind the dumpster at Grillby's, and into the tunnels that led from one end of Snowdin to the other. From there, she went to a familiar house and snuck around to the back. If she was going to stop Sans from getting her brother, then she would have to figure out where his secret room was.

The back door was locked. Yeah, that seemed about right. This was probably the room. With few options to pick the lock, she threw her sheet over the doorknob so she could covertly use her pocket stick to jam into the keyhole. Her pseudo-burglar exploits took several minutes, and Amber was worried someone would notice her, but somehow she managed to open the door without being detected.

Once inside, she found the yellow communication device easily. It was in a drawer, the same one from before. She was so grateful that the device wasn't something Sans carried on his person. That would've made this so much more difficult.

She didn't take the time to smash the contraption there, but she knew she needed to get rid of it. So, she stuffed it in her inventory pocket and left.

Now that she had the device securely in her possession, it felt safer to walk to Waterfall and save her progress on that little determination star. She was barely breathing as she quickly and quietly walked home.

Once she was back behind the rushing waterfall, she decided she was going to spend the next few hours painstakingly tearing the device apart. Then, she would scatter the pieces all over the map. After all, that was how most video games handled these things. Just turn it into a scavenger hunt, only this time she would scatter it to so many places that no one, especially not that lazybones Sans, would ever be able to find it.


Sans stood outside Grillby's for a couple hours, wondering where Amber was. She was the next monster on his list of females to talk to. He knew her schedule, since he practically designed it for her, so her not showing up when expected was a little strange.

Finally, after waiting longer than he should have in this cold weather, Sans decided to go into Grillby's by himself to get some food and a bottle of soda. He could always try to find Amber tomorrow.

For now, he checked to see which monsters in the bar might be someone he needed to talk to. Dogamy and Dogaressa were at a table sharing a family size bowl of kibble, but Sans already knew Dogaressa's littermates. None of them were the anomaly, so chatting her up was a waste of time.

He also saw Shyren huddled in the corner sipping on a pink drink of some kind. He knew she had an older sister, but that sister was already dead; fallen down a long time ago. They had no other brothers or sisters. So, she wasn't going to be helpful either. So far every lead was a dead end.

With nothing better to do, Sans took his usual place at the bar and ordered a combo meal. He yawned and pulled out his notebook, checking it for anything unusual. Unfortunately for him, he found more than he expected.

According to his notebook, the last timeline lasted an extra day beyond this one. The notes were also longer than usual…

this is it. i found her! amber is the anomaly's sister. also, not really a ghost. human in disguise. huh, a disguise within a disguise…i should try that sometime. maybe for the next costume party i get invited to. heh heh heh. anomaly's name is james. soon i will kill it. soon we will be free from this nightmare. soon…

Well, obviously that version of Sans failed, or at least got reset before he could succeed. Why did the timeline reset this time? Did the anomaly betray him? Clearly there wasn't another mass killing in that timeline, or else Sans would have written about it. That being said, Sans could have died since he didn't have time to write more.

Then there was the question of Amber. The previous Sans mentioned finding Amber, and the true nature of her form, but nothing else of note. Did he capture her? Did she cooperate? Did she kill him? If she was a human, then naturally she would be stronger than almost any monster alive.

Also, was the previous Sans right about her being the sister, and not the anomaly? If the James creature reset the timeline, then Amber wouldn't know what Sans was doing, but if Amber herself could reset time, then she might-

"SAAAANNNSS!" Papyrus suddenly screamed, running into Grillby's like a maniac, "OH MY GOD! SANS! I WAS SO WORRIED ABOUT YOU!"

"Papyrus, chill," Sans said placatingly, "And don't yell. Monsters are tryin' to have a good time here. What's wrong?"

"I thought you di- Uh, I mean, you are getting even lazier than usual!" Papyrus snapped, slightly flustered, "You left the door open!"

"Which door?" Sans asked, confused.

"You know, the door…" Papyrus replied conspiratorially.

Sans's eye sockets went black when he heard that. He knew exactly which door Papyrus was referring to, the one that Sans never forgot to lock. The door to his workshop…the door that contained the broken time machine…the door that held all of his secrets.

"When did you notice this?" Sans asked quietly, still in shock.

"Just now," Papyrus told him, "We need to get home, now!"

Sans, wasting no time, yanked a small pile of gold out of his pocket, slammed it on the bar for his tab, and ran out of the restaurant behind Papyrus.

When they arrived at their house, snow was already wafting into the open workshop door, intruding on a space that was normally pristine. Papyrus shot Sans a worried look, which Sans returned in kind.

"I don't think Flowey could do this," Papyrus speculated, "He doesn't have hands, so picking a lock is really hard for him. He's strong, but not strong enough for your security measures."

Sans checked the security camera first thing, while Papyrus closed the door and loitered behind his older brother. Sans could see on the outside cameras a very familiar looking ghost- No, not a ghost. A familiar looking human. The cameras traced her steps as she picked the lock, went straight for the drawer with the communication device, and stole it without a second thought.

"No…" Sans breathed, horrified.

"Amber did this?" Papyrus asked, sounding hurt, "What did she take, brother?"

"Everything."


Waterfall

Amber sat on the edge of the water and watched a tiny yellow bird fly around happily. The water glowed a bright vibrant blue, making the weeds growing within appear as little more than black silhouettes.

She had just dumped the last piece of the communicator into the water. She knew she should've probably gone further to throw the pieces away in less convenient places, but she heard from some weird horse/fish thing that the next area was incredibly hot. Yeah…no thanks.

The sounds in Waterfall were, admittedly, a little eerie. Compared to Snowdin, this place didn't feel as lived in. There were definitely monsters around, but something about this place seemed very lonely. It didn't help that every conversation in this place seemed to be preserved within these strange blue flowers that grew all over the place.

Every time she touched a flower, she would hear the words of monsters that walked by this place. Some wished upon the crystals on the ceiling for their freedom. Some spoke sweet nothings to their lovers. One guy just explained echo flowers. Every conversation felt special, though Amber wasn't sure why she cared. After all, she didn't know any of these people.

As she turned to her left, she saw an echo flower that she hadn't seen before. Curious, she touched the petals to see what it would say.

"Nyeh heh heh! I sure can't wait to capture a human!" The flower echoed, clearly Papyrus's voice, "Wait, there's one right now!"

"What the-?" Amber raised an eyebrow at that.

The flower then shook, and the petals turned yellow while a creepily familiar face stared back at her!

"Flowey!" Amber shouted angrily, "Dude, what are you doing here?"

"It's a free underground, more or less," Flowey replied, his fangs bared, "So, why did you reset this time? Fall off a bridge? Yell at a villager while working your dead-end job? Oh, oh, maybe you died to Jerry! Hahahaha!"

"Who the heck is Jerry?" Amber asked irritably, "No, you know what? I don't care. Go away!"

"Not tired of the monsters yet?" Flowey asked mockingly, "Come on! You have so much power here, and yet you do nothing with it! It's so…annoying. Just snap once, and you'll never go back. Come on, I dare you! Just kill one monster. Maybe even someone who deserves it."

"Eh, go photosynthesize somewhere else, creep," Amber dismissed him.

"What about King Asgore?" Flowey suggested, "He's killed six humans already, and he wouldn't hesitate to kill you if he thought you were helpless. He's evil. He deserves to die. Just kill him, and your problems are over. I'll even help you do it, just to prove I'm not such a bad guy. What do you say?"

"Hm…" Amber looked thoughtful for a moment, and then said, "I think…you should stick to doing bad impressions of Papyrus. This whole evil mastermind thing doesn't really suit you. You're just not…subtle enough."

"So you're really just gonna sit there and do nothing?" Flowey asked incredulously, "Come on! You could have anything in the world! Just tell me! What do you want? What will make you get off your butt and do something?!"

"Why do you care?" Amber snapped.

"Because seeing you do nothing is boring!" Flowey yelled in frustration, "I haven't had anything new down here in ages, and then you finally show up, and you're less active than skele-bummer's pet rock! Just do something!"

"I did do something. Too bad you missed it," Amber taunted him.

"What about saving the underground? Getting everyone up to the surface?" Flowey offered in desperation, "You can be the big hero and everyone will love you. You've got the power to save everyone from their suffering. If you don't hate the monsters, then maybe you like them enough to help them escape."

"So, me sitting here like a lump on a log really bothers you, huh?" Amber asked.

"More than you can know…" Flowey growled.

"Okay then, it's settled," Amber nodded and stood up, "I'm gonna go home and take a nap."

Flowey growled loudly as Amber walked past him, chuckling to herself. Unwilling to accept this new status quo, Flowey dove back into the ground and popped up in front of Amber as she walked.

"What if I killed you?" Flowey asked viciously, "I know you'll reset, but I can kill you over and over again, and I'll remember everything. I remember how many resets you've done. I can make your life miserable."

"Yeah, well I can make your life end," Amber pointed out, "That's where this conversation went last time, remember? Oh, of course you remember! You remember everything, right?"

"Wow…you almost sounded evil there for a second," Flowey commented, slightly impressed, "So, there is some darkness hiding in you! Come on, let it out! Let out that dangerous killer just waiting to sprout!"

"I'm not evil, I just watch a lot of TV," Amber dismissed, "Besides, I'm probably just remembering what I said to Sans to get him to kill me before the last reset."

"Whoa, whoa, wait!" Flowey suddenly shouted, "Sans? You let Papyrus's stupid garbage brother know about you? Oh, man! You're gonna have like a bajillion resets now! Hee hee hee!"

"What do you mean?" Amber asked, actually listening now.

"I don't know how he does it, but once Sans learns things about you, he doesn't forget," Flowey explained, smirking all the while, "He's powerful, and he cheats. I've never seen anyone cheat in a battle like him before. He's caused me my fair share of resets, and makes it harder for me to roam freely in the underground. Every time he sees me, he just…knows somehow. Like, if he never sees me, he'll never suspect anything, but once he sees me…he knows."

"So…he'll remember that I'm human?" Amber asked, a feeling of dread creeping up on her.

"Human is the least of your worries," Flowey clarified with glee, "He'll know you're…special. That you're a bit more…determined than everyone else. You can say goodbye to your job, your money, and your chances of living a normal life now. You told him who you are, and now…he'll never let you forget it. Hee hee hee hee! Thanks, Amber! This is exactly the entertainment I was looking for!"

With that Flowey went back into the ground, disappearing and leaving Amber alone with her creeping thoughts.

She shook when she realized Flowey was probably right. She would never be able to live a peaceful life if Sans was around. She stopped his evil plan of killing her brother, and if he couldn't get to James, then he would probably settle for her instead. She had to find a way to evade his notice, before he found her again.


Snowdin

"So Amber is a…human?" Papyrus asked softly.

"Human ain't even the half of it," Sans tried to explain, "Look, some of this gets pretty technical, but…don't talk to her again. Ever. She's very, very dangerous. She stole a device that could've stopped the time loops. That likely means she wants them to keep happening. Why she wants that, I can't say."

"Amber wouldn't hurt me! We're friends!" Papyrus tried to defend her, "At least, I think we're friends. She doesn't like Flowey, but I'm sure it's all a misunderstanding! I can bridge the gap between them, and everyone will be happy!"

"Bro, I don't think that's a good idea," Sans sighed tiredly, "Humans are dangerous enough just as they are, but Amber's powers are far beyond…Papyrus, I think…I think she's…starting and stopping time."

"So? You do that all the time," Papyrus shrugged.

"No, not like teleportation," Sans tried to explain, "I mean like…like, picture it like an old video tape. When you wanna watch it again, you rewind it. When you wanna hold it in place, you pause. When you like where it is, you press play. This…Amber creature is playing back time the way someone plays back a tape, except she can do different things to make the tape play differently. Well, to be honest, I don't know if it's really her doing it, but she remembers the resets. That much is obvious."

"So…those feelings where I feel like I've met someone before or did something before? That's what that is?" Papyrus asked.

"Yeah bro, that's what it is," Sans confirmed, "You can't tell anyone else what I told you though, okay? If Amber finds out we know, she will kill us. Do you understand? We can only talk about this with each other, okay?"

"Why would Amber kill us just for knowing she has superpowers?" Papyrus asked pitifully, "I would like her anyway. I would still be her friend! She doesn't have to kill anything! We can all be good friends and everyone can be happy!"

"It doesn't care!" Sans suddenly lost his temper, "Pap…it doesn't care. It's not a being with feelings like ours. Amber is not a monster. She's not even a human. I don't know what that thing is, but I know what it's capable of. I know what her kind is capable of. This has to stay our little secret, okay bro? If we're going to survive, then we can't let it know what we know. Understand?"

In truth, Papyrus didn't understand, not completely. What he did know however was that Sans was shaken up about this. He'd never seen his brother so unnerved before in his life. He also feared for his brother's safety. He knew Sans had low HP, and he knew if Amber truly was dangerous then Sans shouldn't go anywhere near her. He had to protect his brother, no matter what.

"Don't worry, brother. This is our secret," Papyrus said solemnly.

Sans sighed in relief.

"Thanks, Pap."

"Of course, Sans," Papyrus nodded, "Now, why don't we go into the kitchen and eat? I made rotini tonight!"

"Eh, I think I'm gonna go to back to Grillby's," Sans shrugged.

"Again!? Come on, Sans!" Papyrus yelled.

Sans teleported away before Papyrus could stop him, leaving him alone in the house. Papyrus, seeing Sans was gone, unclenched his fists; adopting a more stoic demeanor. He knew Sans wouldn't stick around if it meant eating more poorly cooked pasta.

"Don't worry, brother," Papyrus said to himself, "It's our little secret. I won't let anyone hurt you…"

Papyrus then pulled out his phone and searched through the phone numbers. He would have to dial every one he didn't recognize until he found the right one, but then he would have what he needed.

If Amber was as powerful as Sans said, then Papyrus knew he would have to proceed with caution.