#noffy's writing

[noffy96]

Unexpected Joy

Fandom: FNAF

Ship: Sun/Moon

Chapters: 1/2 (in progress)

Rating: Teen

Words

Fic summary:

But quickly stepping back as heard the now familiar sounds of springs and his boyfriend landed in front of him. And he reached out to steady him even though it was completely unnecessary

“What happened?”

Sun asked the second he got a look at his face.

“Monty happened”

He grumbled as they walked back into the living space of their room. Sun let them over to the couch where he sank into with a large sigh.

or

Sun had been shutting down their internal communication all day, Moon wondered why that could be. Only to get distracted by Sun himself, and then Monty. Hopefully, he can get the answer by the end of the day.

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He liked to claim that he knew his solar counterpart very well. Having shared a headspace will do that. But he would like to think it was simply because he knew how his boyfriend ticked. And there was definitely something going on.  But he couldn’t pinpoint what. 

Even though they didn’t share the same body anymore. They were still able to communicate with each other internally. He didn’t know who had made that decision as none of the other glamrocks could. But he was immensely grateful. It made running the daycare easier at the very least. 

That and beating their friends during game nights. Sun might say it was cheating. But if it bothered him he would shut down communications completely. So far he had only done it once. And it was to prove he could really do it on his own. 

And he did, and what a glorious night that was. 

But back to the current situation. They were cleaning up after the daycare had closed. Sun was scrubbing down, the tables of any, glue, paint and marker stains. While he went through and over all the play structures. Taking out balls from the ball pit, small toys, wrappers and all sorts of other things the kids had left behind. 

He didn’t know how the kids managed to take so much stuff in there. Even more impressive was what he would find on top. Like the plastic ball pit balls made sense. The kids threw them at each other all the time. No wonder some of them launched all the way to the top.

He picked up a single walkie-talkie.  He turned it over a couple of times. As he walked to the edge of the play struckter calling down to Sun as he didn't respond the the internal message. 

He would it found it more worrying if Sun had been doing anything else than scrubbing the table while humming the daycare’s theme. It had been like that all day. For some reason, his internal messages seemed to not get to Sun somewhere after playtime.  

Sun turned it back on every time he let him know. And he seemed apologetic. Maybe he was turning it off without realising it. He wasn’t overly worried. If it kept happening he would make note of it. And maybe he should encourage Sun to go to parts and service. 

But Sun could simply been making a surprise and subconsciously not want him to see. Accidentally Turned off the communication entirely. That seemed to be what it was last time. But Sun didn’t carry the same nerves around as the last time he planned a surprise. That’s why he was finding it a bit strange. 

Sun finally looked up when he heard him. 

“Something wrong Moony? Is there something broken up there?”  

His boyfriend asked worryingly and frowning slightly. He loved the new faceplate on both of them. It certainly made Sunny as expressive as he had always sounded in their head. 

“No, but do you know if one of the kids lost a walkie-talkie?” 

Sun's eyes brightened with relief.  

“Yes, Danny did. He only found one, did you find the other one?” 

“Yeah, it was up here” 

“What?! How did it get there? Oh no, you don’t think they climbed the structure do you!” 

He jumped down, landing on the soft mats below and walked over to his partner. Softly grabbing his shoulders before he could worry himself into a spiral. 

“We would have noticed that Sunbeam. And you most certainly would have put them in time-out. I think another kid might have taken it. And then shoved it through one of the net holes at the top” 

Sun's knuckles knocked together anxiously a few times. Before taking a deep breath

“You’re right…You...are right indeed. Silly me.” 

He moved one up to cup the corner of Sun's face. The rays retracted as he did. 

“Hey, you are just worried about our little stars, Nothing wrong with that. I’ll just drop this off at Lost and Found when I do my security round. It will be right back with him in no time.” 

Sun nodded leaning into his hand for a second, then stepping away. 

“Good thinking, But I gotta clean up still. I think someone snuck in a permanent marker again” 

He petted his partner's shoulder in sympathy and went to the security desk. Leaving the small toy at the edge so he wouldn’t forget it later tonight. Before hopping up on the desk to sit crosslegged on it.  Staring at his boyfriend who continued to clean. 

After a few minutes of just staring at his lover. Sun looked up, rays spinning for a moment as he caught his gaze and then huffed annoyed. 

“If you are done, you can just help you know” 

He dragged his eyes down his partner's body, giving away exactly what he had been staring at before. 

“And miss the show. Why would I?”

He let his voicebox drop to its lowest setting. Just to see the beautiful pink blush graze Sunny’s face plate. It was very fun to fluster his partner. 

Sun turned the rag in his hands over a couple of times. As he looked away. He saw it slowly morph into a mischievous little smirk. 

"If you really want a show…"

Sun rose to his full height, slowly making his way towards him.  And he let out a deep breath so that his fans wouldn't start up.

Sun's fingers were trailing along all the plastic tables as he walked closer. 

"I could give you one if you want. "

There was likely a small blush on his face. He could reach inside himself and find the manual overrides. But what fun was in that? Sun was allowed to know if he did a good job riling him up. 

"When have you known me to say no to that?"

Sun chuckled at his statement and came closer. Planting his hands next to his hips. Caging him in. He leaned back a little bit to keep his whole faceplate in his view. Surprised, but not unwelcomed.

"Well. If I was finished. I could start now…" Sun bends forward. Leaving a lingering kiss on his burning cheek. 

"But since you don't want to help"

He growled, warping his arms around his partner's middle. Preventing him from moving back as he intended

"That's a dirty trick Sunbeam, you mischievous little shit"

Sun tutted.

"Language "

And then leaned forward. Closing the gap between their faceplates. Their silicone mouths slid together perfectly. Feeling the warmth of Sun's body beneath his own hands was one of his favourite sensations.  Sun’s hands went from beside him to holding his hips, pressing in further and making him lean backwards. 

He let out a soft groan extending his claws and teasing across the seam of the two coloured halfs of Sun’s bare waist before slipping beneath his shirt. Sun’s mouth left his own bending down future to mouth at his neck beam instead. 

He let out a soft laugh, trying to not get too distracted. Sun had an ace up his sleeve somewhere. He just knows it. It wasn’t like him to drop the cleaning in its entirety for some hot making out. He’d tried that before and failed miserably. 

it ended with Sun not kissing him for the rest of the day which sucked. Even if the next day more than made up for it. He was convinced Sun just loved riling him up sometimes. He couldn’t blame him. He did the same thing. 

He was yanked from his thoughts when the hands around his hips shifted up to his waist. Sun's fingers felt hot against his bare endo. He wanted to look down and see. He loved seeing their colours contrast against each other. But Sun being at his neck prevented him from doing that. 

He let his claws scratch lightly at his lover's back. Grinning he felt his lover shiver but Sun didn’t pull away. Then the hold on his hips changed, till it was teasing, and light. Fluttering quickly, he wasn’t able to scramble away before the Laugh escaped his voice box. 

His boyfriend grinned against his neck as he continued to mercilessly tickle him. He tried to squirm away but his legs had locked up. 

“I’ll stop if you’ll help me Moony~” 

He shook his head, his laughter not dying down. He managed to open an eye between his shaky breaths to see his partner's cat-like grin. Sun was enjoying himself quite a lot with this.  

He threw his head back with another round of laughter. 

He saw their tether called for it, and it quickly came down, Trying to make a getaway. He didn’t account for Sun to grab the hook as it came down. Stopping it from attaching. While the hand that had been poking and his side went up towards the newly summoned attachment ring on his back. 

The finger traced around the ring. It was way more sensitive than he had realised. The old ones had been sturdy. Annoying if someone pulled on it, it’s why he was glad that these new ones now stayed hidden when not using them. But he hadn’t noticed the increased sensitivity. 

But Sun clearly had and was using it to his advantage. As he let out wheezes of laughter. 

“Okay…okay. I surrender. Fuck..stop!” 

The hand immediately dropped and he heard the cable fly back to the ceiling. Sun pulled away. But he hopped off after him, keeping close as he brought him down into another kiss. It was very awkward because he was still wheezing. But as he let go Sun looked happily dazed. And still too smug for his own good. 

“Fuck you” 

Sun rolled his eyes at his words, hand raising to his face, then tugging his cap over his eyes

“Get to cleaning Moony~” 

His partner said in a sing-songy voice as he rightened his hat, Then noticed Sun leaning in close enough to whisper. 

“But if you keep up the language you won’t get a show at all” 

Sun moved away, and he wasn’t giving his partner the satisfaction of seeing his blushing face. Grabbing the rag Sun had left with some sanitiser and went to the table he had been scrubbing before. 

There was still a little bit of a green washed-out stain on the table. The kind that looked like you went over it with cleaning product a dozen times. And just….stays. But he started scrubbing at it anyway.  It did fade a bit more. Enough that he was happy with it. So when he stood back up to see if Sun was finished. 

Only to see him sitting on the desk like he hand. Smirk high on his face, and giving a little wave. Eyelights changed to the white of their old faceplate so he couldn’t tell where he was looking 

“You little…” 

He stalked back over to his boyfriend, who didn’t even flinch as he slammed his hands on the desk, in an exact mirror of their previous position. No, he seemed pretty content with the lazy spin of his rays.

“ what is it Moony~?  You can take a break but I can’t?” 

Sun straightened his spine, making him still have to look up. Instead of caging sun in like he wanted to, and as his glare increased sun’s smile only grew. Was this what he had been planning? Had his counterpart tried to think of different ways to rile him up?  

He leaned closer as he squinted his eyes. Barely an inch between their faceplates. But Sun kept his faceplate static, not giving anything away except for amusement. 

“I should watch you clean more often Moonbeam, Maybe then I understand why you can’t take your gaze off me.”  

It looked like Sun was gonna say more, but he covered his faceplate with his own and tugged at the other’s hips. Sun let out a squeak instead. And he slipped a tongue past his partner's surprised open mouth. Hopefully distracting him enough so that he would just forget he could speak with just his voicebox. 

Hands quickly warped around his waist, making the large hands almost completely circle the thin frame. And it made his fans make an embarrassing loud sound. Sun let out an interested hum in response 

But then with a loud bang, the doors of the daycare flew open. 

“Hey! Moonman you ready for patrol my dude!” 

The gator stared at both of them, still by the desks warped up in each other. He was pretty sure some fluids that came from Sun’s tongue were dripping over his faceplate. 

“Uh…did I interrupt something, what is with the death glares” 

Monty asked sheepishly. 

“Yes”  

Both of them growled. And he quickly spun his head back to face Sun who was still glaring at the gator. Sun was the first to step back if their PDA went on slightly too long. Never shying away from giving and receiving kisses. But it was clear that some parts of their relationship he wanted to keep private.

He didn’t mind, but it made Sun agreeing with him all the more perplexing. Add that to the list of odd things happening today. 

Monty huffed angrily before pointing at him 

“You said it was fine I would come along, so don’t back out now. I thought you told the kids it aint cool to break promises” 

He sighed deeply, finally wiping his mouth with his wrist. He had indeed promised. The gator had wanted to see what his job was like. Arguing that it’s the one job he never got to see. Also, Monty could handle himself if a threat showed up. He hadn’t been too fond of the idea at first.

But the green giant had shown genuine interest. And he eventually relented and promised that he could come along during one of his patrols. Can’t believe he forgot, but Sun could be very distracting.  So with a sigh, he said 

“I did promise…” 

He trailed off as he caught Sun’s expression falling. Still has his lights set to white. He wondered if he wasn’t turning them back to blue on purpose. 

He placed a quick kiss on his partner's cheek and whispered a soft apology before stepping back.  

“Chin up Sunshine, I’ll be back before you know it” 

There was a soft chuckle and even without the lights turned on he could tell his boyfriend rolled his eyes at him. 

“Yeah, yeah. Love you Moonbeam, see ya soon. I’ll finish cleaning” 

He swiped the almost forgotten walkie-talkie off the desk and passed the gator out the still-open doors

“Let’s go, “ 

Monty’s tail thumped happily and his heavy footsteps trailed behind him. 

“Bye Sunman! Thank you for letting me borrow your boyfriend. See you at games night Friday” 

He could hear the chimes from the bells from Sun’s wrist as they were waved out. With an excited shout of. 

“Have fun you two!” 

“We will, this is gonna be awesome!” 

Monty shouted back, and he shook his head with a fond smile.

Once they were out of the daycare area, his eyes flickered to a darker red as he started his security protocol. 

“You know…I thought you two would have more unique nicknames for each other” 

He stilled and turned his neck 180 degrees to look at the gator, who stumbled back for a second.  

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

He asked slowly, and the giant crocodile made a swallowing sound 

“Just…Sunshine? Moonbeam?  Seem pretty standard nicknames. I think most of us even have called you two a variant of those.  Dunno you two seem like the type to have a more unique nickname for each other with how you two are always hanging over each other”  

He was taken aback by the honest answer. He hadn’t really thought about it much. But now that Monty had brought it up. Well..he was right. He had heard Chica use Sunbeam at least once or twice. And everyone had called Sun, Sunshine at least once.  

The girls used Moonpie for him to tease him. And of course Moonman with the gator. Even Moony and Sunny weren’t unique as the kids used those often.  

He wrecked his brain but couldn’t find a single one that one of the others hadn’t also called them. Monty must have noticed the shift in his expression 

“Shit sorry man, I didn’t mean…Like it’s fine if you two like those nicknames…You don’t have to...And I am sure Sun doesn’t “  

It was clear the gator was struggling to find the words, he held up his hand and Monty fell silent

“It's…okay, I know you didn’t mean anything by it….just something to think about I suppose…thank you” 

Monty awkwardly scratched the back of his head 

“Yeah…no problem Moonman…So where do we go first?” 

It was clear Monty wanted to try and steer away from what he had just done. And so he went with it. He pushed the thoughts aside for later. This night was just getting started. 

A few hours later. He just stomped through the hallway to their rooms. He had to find Sun and explain all this utter ridiculousness. 

He wasn’t in their living space, and he checked their bedroom surprised he wasn’t there either. 

“Moon?! That you?!” 

The sound came from the daycare still, and he furrowed his brows. What was Sun still doing out on the floor? And he stepped out onto the balcony. 

But quickly stepping back as heard the now familiar sounds of springs and his boyfriend landed in front of him. And he reached out to steady him even though it was completely unnecessary 

“What happened?”  

Sun asked the second he got a look at his face

“Monty happened” 

He grumbled as they walked back into the living space of their room. Sun let them over to the couch where he sank into with a large sigh. 

“Did he not behave himself during parol? “

Sun asked as he settled beside him. One hand came up to gently rub at his shoulder and arm. Making him relax more. 

“Uugh No. It wasn't that. He just managed to send my protocols into a frenzy”

Sun hummed placing a kiss to the side of his head. Protocol going into overdrive was never fun. Everyone knew that, it could leave you exhausted on many levels. 

“Didn't you two go over the protocols? He was always listening so intently. I am kinda surprised he would make a mistake like that.”

He sighed deeply tipping his head to the side and dropping it to Sun’s shoulder. Who shifted to wrap his arm around his shoulders, and he fell further into his boyfriend's warm hold.

“It wasn't my security protocols…..it was the naptime protocols he activated”

Suns fans stopped for a second. And beneath him, his lover's chest started moving with suppressed giggles. 

“What did he do?”

Sun asked voice filled with curiosity and mirth. He felt some of his servos heating up again as he thought back on it. 

“Apparently he decided to join me while being on 17% power. But didn't tell me until he dropped to 12% when I noticed him becoming slower and sluggish “

Sun's free hand came up to his mouth to hide his growing grin. 

“Oh…oh no that IS bad. But I feel like it's not the end. Is it Moonbeam”

He sighed dramatically tipping his head back to look up at his boyfriend.

“Of course not. First I just send him to his green room. With firm instructions to stay put”

The shaky laughter beneath him became harse and he felt his foul mood slipping away slowly.

“Let me guess he didn't stay put”

He rolled out of Sun's arm. And started to move his arms around to emphasise the craziness of the next part 

“Of course not. First, he decided to follow me. Then tried to hide from me when I noticed and I had to give chase until he nearly fell into one of the ponds at Gator Golf. That I had to drag the struggle idiot all the way back to rockstar row. Where my protocols drove up into an even higher frenzy cause he dropped to 3%” 

Sun was laughing unabashedly. Wiping non-existent tears from his eyes

“Oh. Oh please tell me. You had to swaddle him like a burrito to stay put”

He felt a proud grin grow on his face. Struggling with the big gator hadn't been fun at the moment. But the result surely was, and he sent a picture he made through their internal systems to Sun. Who doubled over in laughter once he got it.

It was a good picture. You could still clearly see Monty struggling to get out of the tight blankets. Only able to see his head and one claw in the sea of blankets. And a cord ran back to his wall so he could charge.

“Had to stick Freddy and Bonnie on him to make sure he wouldn't leave again.”

Sun's laughter was finally dying down. 

“The group chat is gonna be full of pictures tomorrow morning I bet”

He chuckled as well. 

“Most likely”

Sun got up and stretched himself. He followed his partner's movement as he walked through their space

“Well…serves him right for interrupting us“

He felt his cheeks heat slightly. But Sun continued without missing a beat. 

“But did something else happen? You seem a bit more out of sorts than just the protocols and Monty acting up”

He chuckled weakly 

“Nothing slips past you. Does it Sunshine”

Sun's smile got wider at the praise.

“Nope. So you wanna tell me what's wrong”

He shrugged.

“Nothing wrong Monty just mentioned something as the shift started, and I can't stop thinking about it.”

Sun hummed,

“Still talking around it I see”

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

“You are one to talk, our internal communication is closed off again”

He informed his partner and Sun who had kept moving around unable to keep still. Seemed to lock up for a brief second. Before turning his body back around to face him with a little too-wide smile 

“You got me there Moony”

Both of them stared each other down. For a few seconds. Before Sun raised his hands as if surrendering.

“Well…fair is fair I suppose” 

he said with a smile but he noticed a slight Nervous twitch in his hands. 

“Remember little Claire? I noticed her sitting alone during playtime today. So I wondered if she was okay. Luckily she had just gotten absorbed into this flower book she had gotten from her grandmother.”

He smiled, knowing the small girl well

“Of course I do, she always wants to look at the pictures of flowers we have in the story books if there are any”

Suns smile grew

“She does! And she wanted to tell me about the latest flower she read before playing. And I realised it sounded very familiar”

Sun's eyes narrowed and suddenly it felt like he was pinned in place.

“H-how so?”

He asked nervously, eyes stuck looking at his partner. Who only smiled wider. 

The bells on his boyfriend's wrist made a soft jingle. But it felt incredibly loud.

“Well…This flower is quite sturdy. Seeing it would certainly spark a smile to anyone. “

Sun was stepping closer with every word spoken. The words getting buttery smooth. A tremble went through him, Sun rarely got so intense and he desperately tried to figure out what flower he was being compared to, to warrant such an action.

Moonflower was out, it was quite too delicate. Probably not a rose either.

Another step closer, still keeping up with that warm smile. 

“Its seeds can be used for many things. Just like you are more than just a daycare bot. And it's known for following the sun around. Always trying to face it.”

His cheeks were incredibly warm at the small call out. He knew that he always kept looking towards his lover, trying not to let him out of his gaze for too long if they were in the same room. It still was so unreal to him, that he just could do that now, just look over and there he was. No longer confined to his head. The other Glamrocks had teased him about it. But he hadn’t thought Sunny had noticed.

Sun was just a step away. His fans were getting louder. Not knowing what to do is compared to something as soft and approachable as a flower. 

He was the scary one, the creepy one. The one that caused all the problems in the past, …not the Pretty approachable one like Sunny. 

His mind was quickly Deleting flowers from his list of what it could be. Even if he grew slightly scared of the answer.

Which answer deemed Sun good enough for him? He is t sure he could handle the answer.

Sun's hands placed themselves next to his hips. Caging him in for a second time that day. Voice dropping to a hushed whisper.

“It's also known for being so very tall”

His eyes widened. It could only be one thing. But no…no Sun wouldn't compare him to… 

He wouldn't.

His blush was bright enough that it almost reflected of Sun's cheeks as he leaned closer. Their foreheads almost touching.

His boyfriend's smile was fond of a little teasing. 

“Yeah…I see you have figured it out.” 

He wanted to shake his head but he felt locked in place as a gentle kiss was placed in the middle of his faceplate. As Sun's smile winded.

“Yeah…I quite enjoy having my own beautiful sunflower ”

His fans started blasting at the frenzy that left him in. He had been correct but it still left him utterly unprepared for actually hearing the word pass his lover’s mouth. The pumps in his chest were making worrying clicks with how hard they were going. 

He scrambled up and pressed his faceplate against his partners. It wasn't gentle or sweet. Just a mad dash forward to try and expel everything he felt. 

Because….that was a nickname used for Sun. He was sure he heard it being used by one of the kids. He had never used it. It was one that he just didn't feel like it fit.

But now Sun was calling him that. Comparing him to something that beautiful. So closely resembling himself. Something delicate and sweet. Yet strong and unyielding in it’s own way

It was doing things to his feelings. As his hands scrambled for purpose against Sun's shoulders, who was trying to steady himself. 

Clearly caught off guard by his actions.

Sun pulled back looking at him worringly. And he dipped his head low. So he couldn't see his lover's face feeling embarrassed for reacting like that over some simple teasing nickname. 

“Moony?”

He trembled lightly. And he heard a worrying coo. Hands rubbing up and down his arms. 

“What’s wrong…Moon? Did I?...” Sun trailed off.

He shook his head. Trying to get his voicebox back under control as it felt filled with static Blinking hard when soft silicone-covered fingers brushed against the bottom of his faceplate gently encouraging him to look back up.

And slowly he did. When he saw his boyfriend's worried gaze all he wanted to do was apologise and make it go away. 

Sun’s rays moved slowly…left to right. Then the solar animatronics eyes widened. And he leaned closer and softly. So very softly he whispered.

“You like that….don't you…Sunflower? “

He reached up and tugged his hat over his eyes. But didn't pull away and he could hear 

Sun's relieved laugh. He was tugged off the couch into Sun's warm embrace, as they sank to the floor.

“You do!? Oh, Moony! That's so cute!! “

He let out a suffering groan still not looking at his boyfriend. Hiding in the darkness of his hat as he was pulled against his lover's chest.

Several kisses were placed against the side of his faceplate.

“No… no Moony don't hide. You are allowed to like it”

He let out another groan. And Sun chuckled sweetly kissing whatever part of his faceplate he could reach. 

Long fingers were running gente patterns across his back making him slowly melt into putty in his arms.

Sun's face nudges against his own right where his audio receivers were.

“My Sunflower “

He let out another suffering sigh and buried his burning face more into his lover's chest. Sun chuckled softly but let him hide. One hand continuing the comforting patterns on his back. While the other gently scratched the back of his faceplate. 

They sat like that for a few minutes. Slowly his raging fans slowed down. But it still felt like his blushing feature was turned to its highest setting. And he was desperately searching for the manual controls.

“Hey…Moon?”

He glanced up from where he was hiding but Sun was staring straight ahead looking thoughtfully. He let out a hum to let him know he heard him

“ I was kinda afraid of calling you a silly nickname…but just…it fits you so well. The best I hoped for was maybe a surprised laugh. And a thank you.. so the fact you like it so much.”

Sun slowly turned his head down. The smile on his face was fond and genuine. 

“Makes me really happy. “

It felt like he just got shot with electricity in the best kind of way. 

“You like just seeing me embarrassed for once”

Two hands grabbed his face and forced him to look up. The grip turned gentle like he was holding something precious 

“No, not at all Moon. I like how happy it makes you. Your face has been stuck in this happy smile since I first uttered it”

His eyes flickered and he realised Sun was right. It had been. He went to tug at his hat once more but Sun stopped him. Gently holding his wrist. Bringing his hand over to kiss it gently as if to soothe him.

Fuck he was flustered. Cause even that simple action was making his insides stir like crazy

“If you don't want me to call you tha-”

“No!”

He cut him off. Sun's face went from surprise to a gentle smile as his own mouth shut with a click. Embarrassed by his small outburst.

Sun's thumb started tracing patterns along his cheek.

“Then I won't stop. But if you want it to be more private…no questions asked”

He gave a nod. He wasn't sure if he could handle himself if Sun called him that in front of anyone.

He got a gentle kiss and then. Got pulled into a hug. Two arms warping around his torso as Sun tugged his chin over his shoulder and squeezed him gently

“Thank you, Sunshine”

He muttered still feeling embarrassed of getting so worked up over a silly little nickname.

“No problem. Moonbeam”

He gently warped his own arms around his lover. Holding him gently. As all his systems slowly calmed down. Once it felt like static wasn't running through all his wires he asked softly.

“Have you been planning on trying to find a way to call me his nickname the whole day?”

Sun laughed sounding embarrassed himself. 

“Yeah….I really didn't notice I kept shutting our communication off. I swear. I just…I didn't wanna blurt it out at random and make you think I was making fun of you or something”

He gently moved his hands up and down the exposed endo of Sun's back. 

“I don't think I would have thought that”

He muttered and Sun let out a little whine

“I just didn't wanna risk it. And then after cleaning, I had such a good set up and then Monty had to come in and ruin it”

If they hadn't been sitting on the floor he is sure Sun would have stomped his foot a little in frustration. Now only his rays made a fast annoyed whirl as he huffed.

He thought back on their little interaction. Remember that he cut Sun off with a kiss at the end. Did he plan on calling him the new name then?

“Kinda glad he did…dunno how I would react if he came in after you would have called me that”

Sun's arms squeezed him gently.

“Yeah….this is much better.”

He laughed in response. Placing a soft kiss against Sun’s shoulder. 

“Were you really worried I would react badly”

Sun shifted beneath him, voice dropping to a whisper.

“You don't like it when people underestimate you and treat you as if you're delicate. And I thought that comparing you to a flower…even A strong one..might insult you somehow”

He gently squeezed his boyfriend. Turning his head to kiss one of his rays gently. 

“I think if it was anyone else I would hate it. “

He muttered earnestly He let out a large gust of air through his fans. Voice box straining with barely contained static and continued. 

“I like it when YOU see me as soft. Especially after everything I did to you with the virus.”

He buried his face further into Sun's shoulder. Who had fallen silent, panic was setting in fearing he said a bit too much. But he kept going. 

“I like being your sunflower”

It kinda felt weird to say. But Sun's fans started blasting beneath him and the gentle hold turned crushing. Sun's voicebox let out a sound of overwhelming static. Before a cracking whisper came out

“You are”

The panic fell away with relief. And Sun slowly pulled back to look at him with eyes shining with unshed tears. He gently rubbed at his rays and his boyfriend just laughed helplessly.

Tipping his face plate forward their foreheads brushed gently. As they looked deeply into each other's eyes.

“My Sunflower”

Sun breathed it out. And as his face started to flush once more. He tried to parse through all the layered feelings. But the only way he could return it was to tip his head further up into a soft kiss.

Their eyes held contact for a moment longer before they both closed them. And just enjoyed the soft kiss. Letting time pass by them without a worry. As hands gently pressed them as close as they could get.

After several minutes they pulled apart. And he glanced aside for a second trying to fight to embarrassment trying to claw its way back. 

But it was fine. Sun didn't mind his sappier side. He knew that. Still sometimes hard to fight against it. 

“So you gonna tell me, what Monty said that had you so out of sorts,”

Sun asked, clearly trying to give him a way out. So his overheating servos could cool down a little. He couldn't help but laugh.

Sun looked surprised and he couldn't blame him. And he could feel his own grin settle on his faceplate

“He mentioned he was surprised that we didn't really have unique nicknames for each other. And while it didn't bother me at first. It just kinda stuck with me. Cause you’re special to me…and I wanted to call you a name that reflects that And for you to do the same in return. But now”

He indicated his hand around and Sun started laughing softly.

“Okay….that's funny timing-wise. “

He chuckled again.  Gently kissed his partner’s nose just because he could.

“It is.”

They locked eyes again, and his voice dropped to a whisper.

“Now I just have to find a name for you, that makes you feel even half of the things. This new one does for me. “Sun's cheeks dusted a soft pink. 

“I’ll look forward to what you'll come up with “

His finger trailed soft patterns across the back of Sun’s rays. 

“Mmm don't think Moonflower would work. Don't wanna copy you anyway. Feels cheap”

Sun’s cheeks darkened further. But was clearly more amused than overwhelmed.

“You are gonna throw all the nicknames at me now? Aren't you?”

He winked at his partner.

“Honey, you know I am”

Sun barked out a single laugh. Rolling his eyes. 

“If you think you’ll find one like that. I won't stop you Moonbeam. “

It was clear Sun thought it wouldn't work and honestly he didn't think so either. But the teasing would be fun. 

“Now…Sunflower”

And just. like that he was blushing again and paying full attention to his boyfriend.

“I think I promised you a show…let's get to it”

[sand-shark]

Especially for Noffy-chan (@noffy96)

Art to her work “Maid for service”

Надеюсь вы уже прочитали эту работу и оценили труды моей подруги. Если нет, то бегом читать, ведь это невероятно круто✨

Кстати, кому интересно, как я это рисовала, то у меня есть тайм-лапс видео

[noffy96]

Sun/Moon Fic

Chapter two is here! I had so much fun writing this one. This might be the quickest i ever updated a fic? Maybe. I am not sure. But we are here for it XD

Our first day together Apart .

Word count: 7724

Chapter 2/4 (Complete)

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter Summary:

The first thing he did when he was woken back up was call for Moon in their shared headspace. Only to be met with utter silence. Not even the prompt of ‘rest mode don't disturb’ appeared. 

He called a second time still being met with utter silence. He was about to call a third time when he remembered. They were supposed to be separated now…is that why it was so quiet? 

Or

Sun is the first one to wake up, He learns to work with his new body and then waits anxiously for Moon.

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

The first thing he did when he was woken back up was call for Moon in their shared headspace. Only to be met with utter silence. Not even the prompt of ‘rest mode don't disturb’ appeared. 

He called a second time still being met with utter silence. He was about to call a third time when he remembered. They were supposed to be separated now…is that why it was so quiet? 

He poked at his code for several more minutes. But could find nothing. Not a single trace of Moon was left.

He needed answers and he wanted them fast. Was his love okay? Did they succeed? Did they…

He shut down those thoughts. He had to focus and find out. So he activated the LED’s of his eyes. Only for it to stay utterly dark. He tried to move his head. But he felt restricted. Like he couldn't move the rest of his body.

“Raise your eyelids Sun” 

The voice was familiar, but the instructions were not. He had no eyelids. But tried searching for a code for them anyway. Anything If it could get him closer to seeing Moon. 

There was indeed a system for eyelid movement. And as they slowly raised he was greeted by the low light of one of the Parts and Services Cylinders. 

He was lying on the chair at a diagonal angle. And he could see through the glass to the other side 

There was his regular tech Diana…she was staring near the mic with a patient smile. He heard over the intercom as she started speaking. 

“Excellent! How are you feeling so far?”

“How's Moon?” 

It was rude to ignore a question but he had to know. Was he okay? Was he alive? Was he turned off? Did….did he get destroyed….? His voice had sounded a bit off, but this was more important 

Diana’s smile was patient. 

“He should just be waking up as well. Alex is working on him. Just got a text from them that they were turning him on for the first time as well. “

He let out a gasp

“So … it worked? “

Diana's smile grew.

“Everything is looking that way. Don't wanna text them and risk distracting them. So let's quickly go through all your checks. And I could send you on your way. That way you’d be done at the same time and could leave together “

He nodded excitedly. Oh yes! He would love that. Then they could go back to the daycare and he could fuss and look at Moon all he wanted. 

So the sooner he was out of here the better. Nothing against Diana she had been wonderful on every occasion. But he still didn't like this place. 

Diana could tell and never seemed to take any offense and did everything in her power to make his stays go as smoothly as possible. With both her and Moon's help. He had least stopped fearing coming here. 

Alex had the same effect on Moon. And he was glad there was someone Moon trusted with his upgrades after everything that happened with the virus.

His voice still sounded a bit off to him, He just couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was. But maybe they would test that later?  

“So Sun. Tell me. How is your vision? Any interference anywhere?”

He scanned around the place. Now that he was a bit calmer. He noticed something immediately.

“It's better than before! There are no black bars in my vision anymore!!”

He was indeed seeing so much clearer. Everything was one continuous image. No lines cutting across it at all. 

“Wait…what do you mean Sun?”

“You know…the black bars from before? Several horizontal stripes broke up my vision. It's just one image now! Oh, I don't gotta keep moving to see everything!”

He wanted to move his hands but found that he still couldn't meanwhile Diana looked shocked

“Sun why had you never told me that before?!  That shouldn't have been the case at all!

He titled his head slightly

“But it has always been like that?” 

Diana wiped her hand across her face. 

“You mean to tell me, your vision has always been broken?” 

There was a faint throb in his chest.  

“I guess so? I didn’t know those lines weren’t supposed to be there” 

He said apologetically.   

“No...no Sun, you are fine. Just another write-up about the previous staff. The more evidence the better, just wish it wasn’t at the expense of you guys. But let’s keep going. So can you blink super fast a couple of times, and check if there are any glitches”

“Sure thing”  

He did as told, and reported no problems than he was to hold his gaze in every direction for a while and Diana clapped happily 

“And that is the last, your eyes are working perfectly! Now moving on to your mouth. Can you lower your smile into a neutral expression for me?” 

He stared blankly through the glass at the tech. 

“Can I do what?” 

“Your faceplate can move now Sun. And I need to see if it can do most of the expressions listed.” 

He searched for his code, and indeed he found the controls for his faceplate. Before there had been just controls for turning his eyes on, And a separate set to control his rays as well. They had become so second nature to him, that he didn’t have to think about using them most of the time. He just did. But suddenly there were so many more controls. 

Several little motors to contort his face. But he had still no idea what he looked like. It took a couple of tries but one corner of his mouth managed to turn down. As he was struggling with finding the other side. He heard Diana say 

“Maybe, it would go easier if you could see your face, here let me find a mirror for you” 

His eyes suddenly shot up at those words 

“NO!” 

Diana stumbled back, almost falling over, She turned around, seeming to answer to someone before turning back, and he felt a small amount of guilt come over him for scaring her. 

“I...I...please I don’t want to see just yet…I wanna…with Moon…I mean...if I could…I can do it without…please don’t “  

He started stumbling over his words, and a familiar sensation of embarrassment came to him. Vents started up in an effort to keep him cool as he felt himself heat up. 

Diana went from shocked to smiling as she came back to the mic. 

“It’s okay, Remember, we are never doing anything you don’t want to unless it will impact safety. But it’s good that I can check off your high voice range as working as well as the blushing feature”  

“I-i can-” 

He started but Diana interrupted him. 

“Please keep working on controlling your face, the faster you get it, the sooner you get to see Moon”  

There was a teasing hint in her voice, But she was right and decided to not think about what was just said. Also ignoring the fact that his voice hadn't sounded like his own at all And decided to go back to focusing on what part of his code, was activating what part of his face. 

It took a long while to go through all the expressions for the test, and the longer he was at it the easier it became. It wasn’t natural just yet. And he had a tendency to go back to his little too-wide smile that his old faceplate had rested in. But Diana assured him that if he practiced a couple of times in front of a mirror. It should all come easily. 

The last thing he was told to do was stick his tongue out. And his eyes widened. He had a tongue now! And he quickly did so. Curling it slightly upward so hoped he could see it. It was longer than any human tongue he had ever seen, and also bright orange. 

He wondered how it was hidden behind his faceplate. As far as he knew of the blueprints he had seen. It was still just a flat disk? 

But he decided that he had all week to find out that particular mystery. Diana even told him he should be able to taste things now! He questioned why and apparently it came with an identifying index. So if kids started handing things out, he could now check the food for stuff other kids might be allergic to. 

He was just happy he would actually be able to taste some of the cookies the children tried to give him, instead of pretending to eat and then the cookie crumbling on the floor as he smashed against his static smile and made a mess. It always made the children laugh. So it wasn’t too bothersome. Just..the mess he rather not deal with. 

As he retracted his tongue, he decided to bring up what had been bothering him for a bit now 

“Ah….Diana?  My voice…it sounds…different?” 

He didn't know how else to explain it. 

“That could be, we had to give you a brand new voice box after all. Comes with the new body. Not that we could have used your old one. It was broken anyway.” 

He tilted his head again.  

“When did that happen? I really tried to not blow it out!”

He fretted, going back on his memories before they got here. He didn’t do anything that required him to raise his voice

“No Sun…it has always been broken. Moon’s got stuck with the soft rasp, and you got stuck the high end with the light cracks. But since it worked fine for both of you and you were getting a new body anyway. It was decided not to replace it, just like the old LED's for your eyelights” 

He stared at her through the window once more

“Oh, you didn’t know that either! “ 

He shook his head. 

“Oh Sun, I am sorry, I clearly need to ask better questions. But yeah, your voice settings are right now set to the default setting for sun models. But you could adjust the pitch. I recommend not doing that just yet. We need you to work using basic functions for a while. But I’ll let you know as soon as you can. If you still want to then of course “ 

He gave a nod, 

“Thank you, it’s….a bit strange, sometimes it feels like my voice…but sometimes..it’s a bit too low? I might just need to get used to it” 

Diana nodded understandingly 

“I get it, Like I said, I will let you know when you would be allowed to change it. But you probably stuck with this for a couple of days”  

With that, the discussion was over and they moved on to his rays. First, he had to try to spin them, after that retract and then extend them again. Next, he was asked to move each one individually. He had always had some amount of control over them, but not this much! He had been able to make them shorter. But not completely retract. Probably because Moony’s faceplate had been in the way. 

He had great fun with it for a while. As Dianna had to step away, to go give him control back over the rest of his body. He noticed it the instant he got it back. As he moved himself slightly forward. Luckily not enough to fall out of the chair. But he did move his hands in front of him to steady himself. And now that he saw them, he couldn’t help but stare at them.  

There were sleeves covering his upper arms and the elbow joint. He still wore ribbons around his wrist, but they did a better job covering the joint at his wrist. His fingers were still long, but they were no longer just metal. 

They seemed to be covered in a soft yellowish silicone. And as he grabbed onto his arm he noticed that both his hand and arm had a little give. Also, he sensed way more than just touch. The tips of his fingers were colder than his palm. He could also feel texture now. And not just the input that he was holding onto something. His sleeve was soft, and the ribbons were silky and kept gliding through his fingers. 

He heard Diana laugh when she returned in front of the glass.

“I take it that the touch sensors are working”

He nodded eagerly as he went to touch his face. Feeling the slight rise of cheeks, the way his mouth was shaped in a surprised gasp, instead of a smile. He could feel the teeth and he giggled as he bit his finger lightly just to feel that pressure. And he downright squealed as felt it as he changed his expressions First smiling, then frowning,  raising only one corner of his mouth. Then the other.

The edge of his mouth felt a bit strange  It seemed he didn't have lips…but the silicone would be able to cover all the teeth. Giving the impression of a closed smile at least. Should he still call it lips then? He'll figure it out at some point. 

As he traced his hands across the center of his face he came across a split. where one-half of his face was raised a bit higher. And he smiled as he traced the familiar crescent moon shape that was in the center of his faceplate. 

So they kept that part of their old design. And he could feel his cheeks rise as he gained a broad grin. Before quickly moving his hands to feel along his rays.

Diana left him to his exploring. Occasionally popping in with a question. But soon she let out a soft cough 

“So Sun, ready to start moving around?” 

“Oh, yes, yes! Ready as ever!” 

“Wonderfull, you should have full control back. First I am gonna lower the table back to horizontal, then you can sit and stand up. And don’t be shy to hold on to the table if you need to. I imagine all the controls are still a bit hard to find. Take your time okay?” 

He nodded and gave Diana two thumbs up. He swallowed a small yelp as the table started moving backward, his fingers drumming onto on his chest as he waited. He also now noticed that there was a light movement there.

“Uh…Diana? My chest keeps moving. “  

“hmmn..Oh yes, you got simulated breathing now! Should help with calming exercises and putting kids to sleep”  

Diana’s voice sounded over the intercom, his rays swayed slightly. As he processed the information. He was apparently mulling it over a bit longer than he thought as Diana’s voice came again

“Whenever you are ready Sun” 

Sitting up went easy, he was surprised that it went so silently. Not hearing any of the soft clicks he normally did when moving. But new body and all, His smile grew as he noticed his pants were still the same as they had always had been, But his feet seemed to be a bit shorter than before, something was also seemingly holding his shoe in place at the side. So they were no longer glued on then? 

He swung his legs off to the side only for his torso to keep facing forward. He heard Diana cover a snort. 

“Oh…Full ball joints?” He questioned 

He found his controls again and spun his torso a full three sixty degrees.  

“Correct! I all of your joints are now”

He settled so he was facing normally and tried the joint of his neck, being able to fully turn it like an owl, and letting out a giggle before turning back. He decided to see if he could do the same with his elbows and knees later. As he moved his wrists in different rotations as well.

They had always been very flexible, They had to be if they ever needed to crawl into the play structures. But this would make the whole process so much easier. He must keep in mind not to contort himself into strange shapes and scare the kids. But he was sure he was gonna try all kinds of silly poses when it was just him and Moon. Just trying to one-up each other. 

Oh, he wondered how Moon was doing at this point. Was he also finding joy in discovering his new body? He hoped it was going just as well for him. Moon would love this flexibility. And the new face plate. He wondered if they changed their colours slightly.  His arms certainly looked like they were a brighter yellow. Would his be a different shade of blue? 

He cut off his rambling thoughts. As much as he wanted to continue thinking about his partner. He had to continue on, That way he wouldn’t keep spiraling about what if’s. He would actually be able to see him! 

He placed his hands beside himself. Felt the colder metal beneath his new fingers. And slowly stood up.  Finding his balance was easy. And shortly thereafter he even took his first step. Walking to the edge of the cylinder, and then turned around walked without any problems to the other side. 

It seemed these controls had been the exact same as before so it didn’t take long to master at all. So he walked to stand in front of the glass staring at his favorite tech. 

“All good, No problems, nor glitches, or errors anywhere!  Does it look good from your end?” 

Diana was wearing the biggest grin he had ever seen.  

“It does Sun, I have no further tests for you today. Just one more scan and that’s it. You’ll be free to go” 

His hands flew to his mouth

“Really! “ 

Dianna nodded happily. 

“Could you be a dear and plug yourself in? It’s a new cable but your port is in the same position” 

He nodded and rushed back over to the chair. Watching a cable come down, he grabbed it with both hands and smiling as he filed away the new texture. And brought the cable to the back of his head. It attached with a click and he the area around it warmed up a tiny amount. 

He stood there swaying slightly making sure that the cable was kept in place

“Do…do you need me to do anything?” 

It took a while but Diana came over again.  

“No, just gotta let this run, it will take five more minutes maximum. Okay?” 

“Sure” 

He decided to trail his fingers along his arms again, categorizing the new sensations in different folders in his mind. He wondered if Moon would feel the same. Would he also be soft now? Would he run hotter or colder? Would he have a shirt now too? Would it feel any different than his own? 

He brought his hands down, as they brushed against his pants, noticing immediately they were a different material. And classifying the new sensation as well. But he also noticed. That even though these looked like his old pants. They were definitely newer ones. For one these had pockets now! 

He bounced a bit excitedly. And noticed a strange sensation in his legs. He did it again. It was familiar in a way. It felt kinda how it used to feel as he tried pushing his rays back in, in his old body…before the spring bounced them back. 

“Diana…are there?…are there springs in my legs?” 

There was some static before Diana's voice came back. 

“There are! They wanted you to have another way to get up to the balcony, in case the wire  malfunctions” 

He frowned slightly 

“Isn’t that why we have the hidden door in the theatre?” 

Dianna laughed 

“Also yes, but that is mostly for maintenance workers. This is for when you are in the daycare during working hours. You could call the wire, but if you don’t wanna risk children climbing on top of you, you could now use the springs to jump all the way up to the balcony instead. They are also very shock-resistant! So you could practice new ways to jump out as well! I believe you are the only one with them, I think they gave Moon a different feature? But you have to ask him what that is gonna be, I only really worked with your new body in dept.” 

He nodded along with her explanation. His smile grew as she brought Moon up. Something unique they could both show each other?! Oh, This was just getting better and better. 

He would need to find a perfect moment to show him. Or should he just tell him outright? 

He wasn’t sure. There were so many things that would need to be done anyway. But first, he just gotta see what Moon looks like now. These last few minutes were taken ages! He just wanted to see his Moon already! 

There was a quiet ding, and he stood up straight. 

“That’s it Sun! You can unplug now, and I’ll open the cylinder” 

He gave a little dazed nod. And carefully removed the cable. He was still holding it when the sound of the door opening came through his audio respirators..

He started at it…this was it huh? His first step forward was hesitant. But he slowly inched himself forward. Holding onto the edge of the door frame.

Diana never hurried him along. unlike past workers who sometimes basically shoved him out of there. While still dazed and confused from all the updates they had done. 

His chest rose with a simulated breath and he stepped out. And couldn't help but return Diana's smiling face. 

“You did wonderfully as always Sun. So last a few things before I let you go,” 

She gestures at him to follow her to her desk. He stood there swaying slightly as she rummaged through some papers. And then picked up a document, and went over to a page with what looked like a schedule on it. 

“According to this…I will see you again…Next Friday. That's in five days. Nothing long, more of a scan to see if everything is working as it should. And answer any questions you'll come across with the new body “

He nodded. Sounded good, 

“Do you know when?”

“Between 10 and 11. There is a staff meeting before, so depends on how long that goes. You and Moon will probably be called together”

That relaxed him somewhat. The thought of coming down here alone didn't sit right with him.

“The second thing is your Manual. Fazzbear didn't want to install it into your memory right away. Something about it being an external file, and maybe risking viruses again? I think that is just crappy higher-up talk. So I am gonna print you yours. Because it never states you can't have access to it. It's gonna take a little while longer to print. You can wait in the hallway for Moon. But wait till I get that for you before you two leave alright?“

His rays spun excitingly. He would actually get acces to his own manual! And not in the roundabout way Moon had gotten to it last time. He at first hadn't liked it, that Moon had basically stolen it. But as their updates slowed he hadn't been more grateful as it meant they could do basic repairs on themselves

The more they could avoid parts and service back in those days the better. He stared at the door

“Is…Moon?”

He asked carefully. Diana picked her phone up. 

“Mmmnn. Got no message from Alex yet. So probably not yet. But it shouldn't be long. “

He gave a shaky nod

“Okay…and thank you for everything “

Diana's smile was gentle

“Anytime Sun. Now shoo. I am sure Moon would love for you to be the first thing he runs into”

He straightened eagerly and did what he was told. Cause she was right, Moon would be! He quickly made for the doors and stepped into the hallway. 

He moved away from the door so he wasn't blocking it…but now what? 

He just had to wait. He stared at the other set of double doors. The second part and service room. It was built shortly after the new staff had arrived. Seven main animatronics, a hundred staff and cleaning bots, and just one workstation. They called the old staff insane. 

Moon was behind those doors. He knocked his knuckles together. Moon was so close…he could go in and check…but he wouldn't want to disturb Alex. What if something went wrong?!. 

He glanced down the tunnel instead. It was very empty, he just saw the wheels of a security staff bot roll out of sight. He slowly started pacing back and forth. He sometimes saw a human staff worker appear further down to hall. To go through the Plex more easily with all the construction likely still around. He waved if he noticed them.

But he was mostly lost in his own thoughts as the minutes kept ticking on. Why was it taking so much longer? Was something wrong? If something had been Diana would have gotten a notice…wouldn't she? She wouldn't send him out here to wait for nothing. 

What if the virus was back?! What if being placed into a new body reactivated it. And Moon was stuck again. But this time he wouldn't be there to comfort him. Or-

He slapped his cheeks a couple of times. No! No! No! he was gonna be okay! He had to be okay. 

They promised each other they'd be okay

Moon was gonna walk through that door any second now!

…

…

…

“Argh!”  

He groaned out loudly. Pacing once more. The bells around his wrist jingled loudly as he kept wringing his hands together. 

He was being ridiculous. He knows he was. But he didn't like this. He never handled being completely on his own partially well. And then he had been forced to be, to protect both himself and Moon. After the virus was gone…there wasn't a lot of time he was ever truly alone. 

He was either with Moon. The kids, the Glamrocks, or the staff. No longer locked in the daycare to just entertain himself. 

But that made any time he was alone so much harder. He tucked on his rays but quickly stopped as it hurt a lot more than it used to do. 

Okay, focus! He just had to focus! He is fine. He didn't want Moon to walk into him being an anxious mess. He was gonna think something was wrong when there wasn't!

He stopped once more standing in the middle of the hallway. He just had to occupy himself for a bit. Maybe count tiles or something. 

Yeah…yeah that could work. Which tiles? Floor? Ceiling? Wall? 

Before he could decide he noticed something else on the walls he hadn't before. He didn't pay a lot of attention here. As he rather just be out as soon as he could. 

But it was definitely updated since last time. On the wall between the two doors to the different parts and service rooms. Where posters of the main band. They seemed newer, as they still held a glossy finish. 

One poster for each member:  Freddy, Chica, Monty, Roxy. 

He had seen these everywhere of course. But these seemed to all have been signed by their respective animatronics. It made him smile seeing everyone's handwriting. They even had little messages thanking the staff. It was nice

He carefully looked at each one…only to turn around and notice four more posters. One was of Glamrock Bonnie. And it wasn't one of his old ones. It was a new one for when he would be fixed  It didn't have a name signed yet. But he had a feeling it would be as soon as he was here. Just waiting for those last parts to arrive. Oh, why did the previous shipment have to become lost? He should have been with them already! 

But next to it was what surprised him. Not the one of DJ Musician. But the large signature did make him smile. No, it was, the posters of himself and Moon. One for them each. It wasn't the posters that hung in their daycare and advertised their candy. 

Where are these…their own new posters?  They weren't signed either. He never really had to sign anything. Except his own drawings. Would…would he be allowed to sign this? 

He felt a warm throb in his chest. He warped one arm around himself. He kinda wished they had taken the plushies with them. He would have been able to hold the Moon plush for comfort…and not try and hug himself. 

His eyes slid to Moon’s poster. Trying to spot all the differences with the old poster. Then there was a loud clang. Like something had fallen from the room Moon was in. followed by loud thuds. He jumped back as those loud thuds came closer. 

Just as he faced the door, it flew open.

Moon was standing there. 

Starry pants, a blue and white colour scheme, red eyes, and a nightcap on top of his head. The little bell gave a quiet jingle as it came to a stop. Everything was still there. The same…yet shinier, newer. 

They stood there frozen Moon's hand resting on the door. Red eyes scanned him up and down. His own was not able to move from Moon's face. It was like all his programming just had stopped. Grounded to a halt in an instant.

All that was happening instead was that his head was playing Moon's name on a loop. Suddenly a thought broke through. What if he isn't real?…what if it's an illusion? He started raising his hand. 

But Moon was quicker. Moon had shaken himself out of his stupor and took off again. Racing towards him. 

So fast he barely was able to register he was gone from the door. Cause the next second two arms had wrapped around his waist and lifted him up into the air. 

His own hands landed on his partner's shoulders. Feeling the soft fabric underneath as he held on as he was spun around with a happy shout of.

“Sun! You’re okay!”

He nodded happily, legs kicking excitedly as laughs were leaving both of their voice boxes.

“Yes! Yes oh, Moon! So are you!”

Moon was laughing still. He never heard it so happy. His whole voice was sounding clearer, it was so beautiful! 

“Your voice! It's fixed! Oh, you sound so wonderful Moony!”

“Me?! You as well! Sunny you look so good. The blue eyes really are pretty, I see why you missed them so much “

He felt himself flush with a happy giggle. They had stopped spinning but Moon was still holding him up. Swaying them back and forth. 

“Me? What about you? They kept you looking handsome as ever!”

Moon chuckled

“Flattery will get you everywhere Sunshine “

He laughed louder. As he stared down at the most important thing In his life. He let go of one of Moon’s shoulders. And brought the hand to his cheek. It flushed a bit under his touch. 

And he let out a happy gasp as he felt the heat of it. Stroking over his cheek happily, Moon nuzzles into it further. He couldn't hold back the happy cooing noise. 

As he let go Moon slowly lowered him back to the ground.. 

“Your turn Moony!”

He didn't give his partner any time to react as he quickly warped his own arms around Moon’s waist and lifted him up. 

“Sun?!” 

But he didn't sound upset, not at all. No, it sounded like he was completely pleased with the situation at hand. He started spinning them around as well. 

“What?! Can't handle my affection Moonlight! Cause this is just the beginning!”

Moon went from laughing to cackling. Hands holding onto both shoulders tightly and he welcomed the hard press of fingers. 

He was holding Moon!. Actually, really holding him! Not a plushy, not their blankets pretending it was the other as they protected each other throughout their mindscape. He was physically holding him. And Moon was laughing, and moving beneath his arms. Alive and well. 

Fingers were tracing along his rays as Moon's voice calmed down as he stopped their spinning. 

“I'll handle anything you throw at me Sunlight” 

His partner's voice was filled with affection as his own face got cupped. Now it was his turn to blush and it made Moon chuckle. And he slowly started trembling as the reality started to hit him. 

“Sunny. What’s wro-oh”

He quickly put Moon down and pressed close, warping his partner into a hug. 

Their first hug. 

Pressing his face into his shoulder. Closing his eyes tightly. 

“We’re okay…. actually okay, I am so happy Moon…so so happy but also…” 

He let out a laugh. It was filled with static and it felt like he was holding back tears. Was he able to cry now? He never asked, and he squeezed him tighter. 

Moon's hands quickly came up to his back. Squeezing him just as tight. Not letting go at all. Then slowly the hands started rubbing up and down his back. Warming him up and calming him down.

“Me too, Sun. So...so happy. I got you…the scary part is over and done. We’re Together now “

Moon turned his faceplate and he felt a kiss along one of his rays and retracted them extended one by one in a quick circle as he giggled

His own hands couldn't stop moving as well. Trailing all along Moon’s back. As he pressed their entire fronts closer together. 

“Hey, Sun?”

“Mmm?”

Moon kissed another one of his rays before continuing.

“The first thing I did was try to call for you”

He couldn't help the small bark of laughter that came out of his voicebox. Before Moon would think he was being mocked he whispered

“So did I”

Moon laughed softly as well.

They kept hugging for a while, seemed neither of them wanted to be the first one to break it. Eventually…he just wanted to see Moon’s face again. So he pulled back enough so he could see him again. Moon did the same. Both slowly turning to face each other. 

There was barely any space between them. And both of them reached a hand up to hold each other's faceplates. His rays retracted to give Moon's hand room. 

He turned his partner's face so he could give the white crescent side of his face a kiss. Then staring into those happy red eyes. 

Moving his own face to his love’s guiding hand and got a kiss on his raised cheek. 

He kissed between Moon’s eyes. He got a kiss on the forehead. And they kept going like that. Just sharing kisses back and forth 

Eventually, they pulled away with giggles letting their foreheads rest together. Eyes going towards each other's mouth.

“Connected”

A robotic voice like one of the staff bots sounded from inside his head. And both of them pulled back sharply. 

What was that?!? Where had that come from? What was -

‘ Hello? ’ 

He heard Moon's voice from inside his head. If a bit filtered like he was speaking through a phone

He brought a hand to the side of his faceplate. Staring wide at his lunar counterpart. 

‘ Moon?! ’

‘ Sun!? ’

They stared at each other, his hands covering his open mouth. Moon’s mouth was opening and closing

“Did…we…can you?! - “

‘ hear me? ’. He finished inside their head

And he nodded as he heard Moon’s voice echo inside of himself. 

“Yes!” He squealed 

‘I can! ’

It wasn't the same as having Moon in his head. It was clear he could only send his voice over. And not everything he was thinking and feeling. But they still could communicate like before! 

He was bouncing in place, and Moon's red iris had tripled in size. The bottom part of his face was trembling. 

“Oh, Moon! Moony this is so wonderful. Oh, I wonder how far we can be apart before it stops working? But we can test that later! later!, later! I am not letting you go anytime soon!”  

He brought his partner close again. Who still seemed a bit in shock. As he stumbled forward at his actions. 

“Ah! Moon!”

Moon grabbed onto his arms to steady himself and not fall face-first into the floor.

“Okay...I'm okay...just...”

He trailed off. His eyes were now fixed on where he was holding his arm. He looked down as well. The motors in his chest began working faster seeing the white and blue against the yellow silicone of his own body. 

The grip loosened, and slowly Moon’s hand traveled further down his arm. He could hear Moon’s fans blasting his own slowly staring up as well. The only sounds besides the soft jingle of the bell on Moon’s wrist. 

Moon's fingers came to his own ribbon-covered wrist. Thumb stroking over the silly silky fabric once, twice… And then continued on as the fingers skated across his palm and it felt like he had gotten a static shock.

Just the tips of his fingers…

As they stared his other hand snaked around Moon's waist, again pulling him close as Moon's arm circled around his lower back. Their sides basically pressed together as much as they could be. So why did that motion on his palm feel so much more intimate? 

Slowly their fingers interlinked. Hands resting together palm to palm. And he had to make a whole new folder for just these sensations. Moon’s hand was slightly cooler than his own. His whole body seemed to be. 

His fingers had been really smooth. But that is probably because their bodies are still brand new. He squeezed the hand softly. And he got the same soft squeeze in return. 

“Your fingers aren't claws anymore”

He observed. Moon chuckled faceplate landing against his shoulder. And they both kept looking down their bodies at their held hands.  

“Well…not exactly “

Moon squeezed his hand again but kept the tight grip. And slowly he felt the nails extend and dig lightly into his hand before retreating once again.

“Retractable claws!” 

He whispered, amazed.

Moon nodded. And in response he nuzzled what counted as their nose against Moon's forehead, also feeling the soft fur of his hat. 

They were holding hands! And basically cuddling. And even though Moon was colder than him it still felt so incredibly warm. He wanted to keep covering his partner's face in kisses. 

He also really wanted to kiss Moon properly! Press their smiles together, and feel their new faceplates heat up. Actually, experience all those rushing emotions. 

Not as before that when he opened his eyes all he saw was air. Or being so tangled in his code that he couldn't feel anything. But Diana could be back any second. And he didn't wanna risk being interrupted. 

No, their first kiss should be something more special. And as much as wanted to…it should not be in the dark halls next to part and service. He looked down at Moon’s eyes. 

The new eyes were less intense than the bright red eyes from their old body had been. He just knew he was gonna get endlessly distracted by them in the future anyway. 

His gaze dropped down to his partner's mouth. It was set in a lazy smile. Perfectly content to be held as he did. The perfect picture of a nap attended. 

Gaze flickering up only to see Moon staring at his own mouth before their eyes met. He heard Moon ask softly in their head

‘ later ?’

He nodded carefully so as not to disturb this perfect position they got themselves into. 

‘ alone? Daycare? ’ 

He asked in return. And Moon nodded as well. Seems they were on the same page. He left a longer kiss on Moon’s forehead. Only pulling away because suddenly there was a loud noise followed by: 

“Moon! You fucker! You better still be there!”

The doors flew open again as an angry Alex stepped through. The smaller human was panting heavily. 

“Language!” 

“Language~” 

He knew Moon was just saying it to rile Alex up more. As Moon was just as bad when it came to curses…unless it was during actual work hours. 

Moon is very serious about taking good care of their little stars. And that includes swearing. He tries to let Moon off the hook when he swears outside of their work hours…but his own programming more often than not catches him off guard. 

Scolding Moon before he actually realized what he had said. 

Alex huffed, and Moon just leaned further into him which he had no problem with. He was enjoying a cuddly Moon. It was the best feeling in the world.

“Good to see you up and running to Sunny-.”

He saw Moon's eyes narrow at the use of the nickname, and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it himself. But Alex continued on regardless

“But Moon here knocked over several trays with bolts and other parts over in his rush to see you. Not to mention, that I hadn't finished talking to him yet”

He felt his cheeks colour and his smile grow as Moon shrugged.

“You should have known what you set in motion by telling me that”

He started rocking Moony faster.

“You really did?. Oh, that's so sweet of you Moonlight! “ 

He nuzzled the top of his head again and Moon let out a helpless giggle.

“But you should apologize as well”

“Mmm nah”

“Moony!”

Alex crossed his arms but was looking a lot less annoyed. Diana came out of the other room. Looking a bit more frazzled than when he had left. 

“Oh, don't you two look cute.” 

She smiled happily some of the tension leaving her. 

“Thank you~”

Both of them said and Alex sighed

“Yeah, yeah. You two are adorable. But now, Moon. The thing I wanted to say is. That while you free to leave…you two can't return to your room just yet”

His rays spun, and the hand that wasn't holding Moon’s was absentmindedly rubbing up and down Moon’s back again. 

“Was it not supposed to be finished?”

He questioned worryingly…they never had to use the power stations before and he rather not spend a night in those.

“Oh, it is. They are just moving in the last of the furniture. Should be no more than an hour or two. We'll send a message as soon as they are done“

Both of them sighed with relief. 

“Oh Diana, you got my manual?”

He asked remembering why he was asked to wait as well. And He felt Moon perk up at those words. But she shook her head.

“A paper got stuck as the ink ran out and it caused a whole mess. Gotta start it again. As parts were just unreadable. And Moon’s manual needs printing as well. It should be in your room at the end of the day.”

He hummed and Alex huffed 

“That's what you also missed. Yes, you get access to your manual” 

Moon looked absolutely giddy at the news, and Alex raised his hand. 

“Just… look guys I know you both share pretty much anything. And this is just my advice. But all the new manuals have a… section at the end of them. It is not necessarily Fazzbear-approved. But it was mostly written by the new staff here. And it is all legit, just more catered to the fact that everyone here has gotten..."” 

Alex waved his hand around

“Sentient?”

 Moon supplied

“Yeah…just. Okay, those parts of the manual can be very personal...I know you two literally shared a brain so there are probably not many secrets. But still. Just for the first time. Read that part on your own. If you decide to share. Great. But yeah…my advice”

He felt himself frown. He wouldn't know what there was that he wouldn't wanna share with Moon. But he was surprised when Dianna piped up.

“I second that. No rules against sharing. Just...I think you better make an informed decision if you read it on your own first”

He nodded hesitantly. And Moon did the same.

“Anything else? Or are we free to go now?”

Alex looked thoughtfully for a second then. 

“Just have read through the base part of the manual before Friday…but I think that's it? Unless you got something”

Alex turned towards his coworker and Diana shrugged. 

“Don't think s- “ she got interrupted by a buzz and quickly checked her phone. Suddenly her grin grew as she showed Alex the text who also gained a smile

“Well” - she continued and he eyed her wearily.

“You two should head to the west arcade”

He shared a glance with Moon, who looked just as confused

“Why?”

He asked, not that he was opposed to go see the DJ, it had been a while. But this instruction out of basically nowhere had him weary. 

Both their grins got bigger

“You’ll see, now off you go. There will be a hoard of cleanbots that need updates coming soon. So leave before they flood the tunnels”

They were making shooing motions at them. Moon Freed himself from where he had cuddled into his side.

“We get it, we get it. We’ll scram.”

And he was tugged along by his still-held hand. He waved at the two of them 

“BYE! And thank you for taking care of us. “ 

Moon gave a little Salut. Before slowly speeding up more and more.

Soon both of them were rushing down the maintenance tunnels. Dashing like mad. Hands still clasped together. Laughing like madmen. It felt good. Letting out all that nervous energy that had been building inside of him. It was like it was all rushing out now. Free to do as he pleased and both of them relished in the opportunity. 

They nearly crashed into the wall. As they reached the doors. And maybe they spend some long minutes right there,  splattering kisses all across each other's faces again. Just a giggly and happy mess of new emotions. 

Before stepping out, and making their way to the west arcade.

[noffy96]

My first Afterdeath fic

So decided to try my hand at some afterdeath for a change. Had this idea a while ago, but it was slow going to get made. But i am very proud of the result. Hope you all enjoy as well.

also shortest story not made for a event in while, seems i can write under 6000 words XD

Take a break.

Word count: 3,833

Chapter 1/1

Summary:

He tried to move his wings, but his back felt so heavy. Then the scythe slid out of his hands and clattered loudly to the floor. He stumbled after it trying to catch it, but instead, he fell forward. He expected to hit the ground. But landed on something soft instead. What was that? He didn’t own any carpets…? It also didn’t feel like his bed.

He tried to move up but his head was screaming at him to stop. To just lay down in this warmth and take a rest. Something touched the back of his head, his hood had been blown back. It felt familiar.. and warm...

Or

Reaper overworks himself and collapses after accidentally teleporting to the save screen.

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He came to a staggering stop and stared at the pulsing soul in front of him. The guy had been stubborn and strong. Types like him usually were. He reached for the soul, and could still feel it cry out. Even with no physical form left, it tried to fight. Strong for a simple monster soul. He wiped the blood off his face with his sleeve.

And did his best to send a calming presence, as well as sorrow and regret through his magic. He didn’t blame any soul for fighting, for trying to live that bit longer. No, but it didn’t make his job any easier. He summoned his scythe and cut through the white pulsing soul and it faded away. He hoped the young soul could find some rest.

He staggered forward, catching himself on the handle of his weapon. His wings dragged on the floor, at some point it had simply become too tiresome to keep them hidden in the ether. He was exhausted, he had to fight the last ten souls he had to reap. Each one fought back harder than the last, and before that, he had an entire universe full of souls that he had to reap after Error had gotten a hold of the universe and destroyed it. So many confused and lost souls, and not having enough time to give the full comfort he wanted to give. He hasn’t been home or visited his love for a long while.

That is what he gets for slacking off. He pushed himself uprighting with a flap of his wings. Summoning his clipboard from the ether, the ringing of the souls calling for him became louder in his skull the second he touched it. He didn’t know who decided to make that a good idea. To amplify the sound of souls calling for death the second he touched it. Like he couldn’t hear them on a daily basis. And it was making the headache he was having worse.

He bet it was Asgore’s idea, just to torture him. He tried to get it removed, for his brothers' sake. But none of the other gods were willing to help them…or shall he say, weren’t willing to go against Asgore, They were willing to help his baby brother any way they could. And he was thankful for that. He could care less what they thought of him. He got everything he wanted, in the form of an angry, grumpy little skeleton. If only he could get him out of that bleak dark world, and he be perfectly happy.

He leaned against his scythe and squinted at the list, trying to read the swirling words. Next stop…a Horrortale universe. That was probably gonna be another fight. He hoped he could catch this one unaware, but he doubted it. They are too alert for their own good sometimes.

He held his head as a shot of pain went through his head, clutching the clipboard to his front so it wouldn’t drop to the floor. The cries were getting louder, did that stupid destroyer kill another universe?!. He was never gonna see Geno again at this rate.

He grumbled and went to put away his list of names when he saw streaks of blue were now on the paper.

How did those get there? His free hand went to his chest. And felt that his robe was kinda wet, he looked down to see that his chest was a darker black than the rest, and the brown rope holding it together was stained as well.

Oh….he was bleeding…

Okay, he’d go home and change robes then, he doesn’t need another reason for those horror monsters to spot him. He rubbed at his tired face accidentally leaving blood streaks all over.

Great.

Fuck it, he was tired. He didn’t really have time to change. But if he doesn’t his next job may take longer with how many horror monsters would be able to sniff him, so Asgore can suck it. And hey, maybe he can spot his brother. This way he can find a way to apologize for all the times he made the younger cover for him.

With a sigh, he straightened himself and began to think of home. The place he wouldn’t be judged, where he and his brother could be themselves. Where he could relax, on a warm couch and not think about the ringing in his skull that signaled that his work would never be truly done. Warm hands massaging away the pain. The quiet of the darkness.

He teleported, and his whole vision swam. And his none existing eyelights went out, leaving the void sockets even darker. He summoned his scythe again, and the staff of it landed on the ground with a loud chunk, echoing loudly in the room, making his ears ring.

He was sure, he heard something else, but all he could focus on was to keep standing. Wait.. Why was he standing…? He could float?! That will take the weight off his back.

He tried to move his wings, but his back felt so heavy. Then the scythe slid out of his hands and clattered loudly to the floor. He stumbled after it trying to catch it, but instead, he fell forward. He expected to hit the ground. But landed on something soft instead. What was that? He didn’t own any carpets…? It also didn’t feel like his bed.

He tried to move up but his head was screaming at him to stop. To just lay down in this warmth and take a rest. Something touched the back of his head, his hood had been blown back. It felt familiar.. and warm..

“Don’t..move Reaps…”

“Geno?” he wasn’t sure if he spoke it, or only thought it, as darkness consumed him. Worried about his partner, how was he out of the save screen…that should kill him.

It felt like he was swimming in that worry for a while, darkness clinging to him, and trying to keep him under wraps. At some point early on, the ringing in his head got softer. And a warmth spread slowly through him, dragging him back to sleep.

When it finally spat him out at the other end, he was feeling better, but no less tired. But something was stroking his skull gently, and holding him in place. And he had to know what happened to Geno. So he opened his eyes, only to find that it was still dark, but this darkness was familiar.

“How did I…?” he murmured confusedly.

“Reaps..?”

He looked up to see the worried face of his boyfriend.

“You’re awake..”

The relief in the other's voice made something clench in his own chest. He had never meant, to make him worry in any way. He tried to lift his arm, it felt like lead, but he managed to cup his love's face anyway.

“Hey…Darling, “

He wanted to flirt, make the other fluster, maybe give a teasing wink. Geno would get huffy. But he’d know he was alright.

A kiss was placed on top of his head. He must look terrible if the other gave him affection so readily without making a fuss. Closing his eyes he leaned into the gesture, eyes fluttering open as the other pulled away.

“What happened Reaps?”

Fingers were stroking along his skull again, keeping the ringing in his head far away.

“Dunno was just trying to get home…”

Geno’s one good eye narrowed.

“Someone tried to attack you when you made a portal? Those cowards..”

He blinked up confused,

“What.?” He didn't use a portal? He only used that when bringing someone along. Otherwise, he just teleported.

“I’ll find whoever did this to you reaps, and then they wished they could have had death instead “

Geno continued to rant, and his soul got filled to the brim with affection for this small monster trying to defend a god. And he partly didn’t wanna correct him, but he also didn’t want the other to look for an attacker that wasn’t even there.

“No..no love..nobody attacked me…well no one, that I wasn’t reaping,”

Geno’s still frowned, apparently not satisfied.

“Then what?”

He closed his eyes, his head was still pounding. His ribs were also starting to ache terribly. There was probably a crack in them considering the bleeding. Now that he thought back to it it was a bit embarrassing what had happened. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Trying to think of a way to phrase it, without sounding like a total idiot and for Geno to throw him off.

“Reaper?”

“It’s nothing…”

He mumbled. He regretted it as soon as he said it. And he felt the hands around him tighten harshly.

“Nothing?! NOTHING?!. You suddenly appeared into the safe screen covered in blood, and just collapsing and you call it nothing?! “

He shrank back into his hood.

“I...I didn’t mean”

“You didn't mean what reaper?! Do you have any idea how fucking scared I was? You just…collapsed. You were walking for fucks sake! I just managed to catch you. You could have cracked your skull open, and then what? What was I supposed to do then? There is nothing here to help you!”

He didn’t answer, there was not much he could say that would make this okay. Then something wet his face and he looked back up into Geno’s eye to see he was crying

Tears falling from his eye onto his own face

“I was scared you big dumb bird brain. Stupid fucking asshole… really scared”

His love shoulders shook, and for a moment all he could do was stare wide-eyed up. As more tears fell onto his face. He scrambled to sit up and turn around. Softly holding onto Geno’s upper arms.

“Fuck..Geno..No..sorry. I am so sorry. I just…I knew you would get mad at me when I told you what happened..and..fuck I didn’t mean to scare you. I really had no idea it looked so bad. I never wanted to scare you like that. Ever my love. “

He rubbed Geno’s arms softly up and down. Even though all he wanted to do was warp his lover up in his arms. But Geno might just punch him in the gut for that move. Geno glared up at him. And he hangs his head

“Yeah…stupid I know. I’ll tell you what really happened. Promise!..Just..I am so sorry.”

They sat there for a while, Him slowly stroking Geno’s arms up and down. While Geno still glared at him. Tears flowed from his eye But slowly got a hold of himself.

Eventually, Geno pulled back, backing into the corner of the couch, wiping at his face

“Talk”

He nodded settling against the opposite corner, with a groan. Now that he wasn’t as worried about his love he could feel all the aches and pains coming back. Then hissed as his crooked wing got folded in between himself and the cushion on his side. Grubling as he had to tug it free, as it felt too heavy to move on its own.

He glanced back over to Geno. Who still looked quite put out, but seemed to have softened at watching him struggle. Eye glancing towards his front, he wondered if it was stained with blood still. He sighed deeply and decided to start talking.

“I think…I think I might have just passed out from overworking?” He felt a flush come over his face

“I just…I hadn't had any time to eat or drink in days. Much less rest, so…”

He trailed off as Geno had come closer looking worried again.

“What do you mean with?… You haven’t rested?”

He blinked his sockets a couple of times

“Like I said, I just haven’t really rested. I didn’t sleep at all since I last saw you. I think I had one snack..maybe? Just has been going from one soul to the next. I had such a backlog and I didn't wanna burden Grim with it, he has already done it so often and…”

He trailed off as Geno’s hands wrapped around his own again. A complicated look on his face.

“You had one snack…and no sleep…in the entire month that I haven't seen you?”

He blinked his sockets a couple of times, He knew that it had been a while since he had returned. But a month?! He was usually faster than that. But then again, normally he didn’t have such a backlog.

He really had been throwing things on the back burner for a while.

“I guess so” He gave a bit of a helpless shrug.

“You guess so?” Geno’s gaze and voice hardened. And he swallowed thickly having the feeling he messed up somehow. Even if he didn’t know why.

“....Yes…?” He said hesitantly

Geno let go of his hands suddenly to grab at his arms pulling him back across the couch. His wings flapped a couple of times in confusion. Having not expected the action at all, he was quickly maneuvered to lie down across the couch once more. His head was in Geno's lap and was feeling surprisingly soft... Staring up at his boyfriend with wide eyes. As Geno’s arms surrounded him. Essentially trapping him.

One of his wings was crookedly smushed between them, the other spread out to the floor. He tried, to sit up, but was stopped at every move

“G-geno? Love? “

“You are not going anywhere!”

Geno said quietly and angrily. Tears had sprung up in his eye once more.

“You are taking a break, you are gonna eat. And rest. Until you are at full strength again, and not a moment sooner do you hear me!”

He stared at his boyfriend for a couple of seconds. His love seemed to take that as consent. Geno pulled out his phone and started texting someone.

“Wait…Gen…As much as I want to…I can’t let Grimm do all the work. That’s not…”

His boyfriend shut him up by covering his mouth with his hand and pushing him back down. His eyesocket narrowed, and he swallowed thickly. Trying to fight the blush that was coming up at being manhandled.

“You don’t get a say in this after you stopped taking care of yourself for a month”

He gently took hold of his love wrist trying to pry his love hand off. He used more and more force until he could eventually do so.

“Geno..Honey, Babe. I love you, But I am immortal. Literal god of death. I can’t die. I don’t need to sleep or eat. You won’t get rid of me that easily”

He tried to give his boyfriend a reassuring smile. But Geno's look told him he was not impressed.

“I did believe you, if you didn’t just show up, bleeding all over, passing out, while trying to get home. Seriously how do you mess that up if no one attacked you”

And his face flushed for an entirely different reason. He remembered what he had been thinking about. And his face felt like it was on fire. Geno seemed surprised at his sudden shyness. his hand retracting further. A very light flush appeared on his own face.

“W-what’s that look for..”

Telling the truth would probably fluster his boyfriend to the point that he was probably getting shoved off his lap again. But lying….or at least withholding it. He shouldn’t do that twice. So averting his gaze he mumbled.

“Cause I started to think of you as my home…”

It was barely audible. But he could still hear Geno gasp. He did a quick glance upward. To see that Geno’s entire face was blushing red. He had the feeling his own was entirely flushed blue as well.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, to his surprise, he was not being shoved off. Normally even his serenest of compliments got a huff and a shove out of his prickly boyfriend. But not this time. He couldn’t tell why, maybe because he was hurt. But he would take this rare display. But what surprised him more was the moment he felt a kiss on his cheek. Making him turn his head to completely face his boyfriend again. To get a second kiss on his teeth.

A hand came to cradle his face. As their magic sparked gently, he let his eyes slip shut. His own arms came up to hold onto Geno’s hovering form above him. As he returned the soft kiss.

Slow kisses weren’t really either of their styles. But… This was nice, Really nice. He could stay like this for a long time he thought. In this gentle hold. He couldn’t help the gasp as Geno squeezed him a bit tighter.

Surprised to feel Geno’s tongue slip past his teeth. But it wasn’t hungry, or searching. Nor was it trying to send him over the edge. Or trying to overtake him. It was a gentle lazy, curious slide against his own formed tongue. As he was slowly pushed back further into couch cushions.

For several minutes they continued to kiss like that. Like nothing else mattered. It made him feel utterly loved. It was very nice. Not that he hadn’t known that Geno loved him. But…

Yeah…they should slow down more often.

The kiss came to an end, when eventually, in their slight shifting it felt like multiple feathers were gonna be pulled out of his wings. And he couldn’t help the sudden yelp as he pulled away with a flinch. Opening his eyes he only just noticed his other wing had come above them, hiding them both further away from any onlookers. Not that the save screen had any other occupants. They stared at each other. Both their faces still flushed, as they were panting softly. Geno shifted, and he opened his mouth. Probably gonna ask if he was okay.

But it made his already folded wing pull on more loose feathers, and he let out another hiss. And he muttered before his lover could ask.

“Can you free my wing please, my love?”

Geno’s eyes winded sitting back up.

“Shit, of course…”

And he let out a sigh of relief as with his boyfriend's help it was pulled free. His other wing fell back tiredly to the floor. As if it had been held up by strings and they were suddenly cut off.

Geno looked at them with concern

“You really… ain't letting me leave?…are you?”

Geno shook his head, still staring at the wing he had just freed. Fingertips tracing at the upper arch making him shiver slightly.

“Texted your brother already, you ain't getting your clipboard back for a while…So no reaping for you. He is gonna drop by later, to check on you”

He hummed, Guilt still churning in his chest. He didn’t like it. But he also knows when he has lost. There wasn’t much he could do against the combined forces of his brother and lover. Besides he scared the living daylights out of his love already. Maybe he should take some measures to ensure it won’t happen again.

And his brother coming to check on him, wouldn’t be the first. Man, he was gonna need to find some other way to repay him it seems.

“When was the last time you groomed them”

He blinked open his eyes. Now that he had decided there was nothing left for him to go to. All the fight had left his body. The exhausting catching up to him again, and he took a moment to parse the question.

“Dunno…” he mumbled, Eyes drooping again as Geno began to softly card his hands through his wings. Righting a few in the process. “Two months ago… I think…maybe longer..”

“You should take better care of them…”

“Was busy. “ He mumbled, his face turning towards his love nuzzling into the soft ecto body summoned below him. Was Geno trying to make him more comfortable so he wasn’t lying on bones? That was a sweet thought

“All that time grooming is time I can spend with you…my job calls me away far too often to worry too much about that”

Geno’s hands stilled, and he smiled. Pretty sure his lover was once again flushed that pretty red. He could open his eyes and check. But instead, he turned to his side, curling further into Geno.

Who spluttered a bit but didn’t push him off, so he warped his tired arms around his boyfriend's middle, burring further into him. Mumbling

“Can you keep touching them?”

Geno’s ministrations had stopped in his wiggling about. But the fingers quickly returned. Feeling them gently strike down the entire length. Sometimes fingers scratch a bit across the bones and ecto keeping the feathers in place. Making him let out a soft noise and leave a soft kiss…wherever his head was resting against his love's body.

Then the other went back to slowly fixing the strew feathers. Pulling away loose once that got stuck in the mess. Sometimes shaking them gently, and he heard and felt dirt and grime falling out of them.

“I’ll give you a proper grooming later…”

Geno’s voice was soft, and he might not have picked it up at all. If all he was focussed on was the feeling of those hands in his wings, and his lovers breathing. A blush crept back up his face. He hid his face further into what he realized now was Geno’s stomach.

“You don’t have to.”

He mumbled. He could do it on his own. He just didn’t like it.

The hands in his wings stilled, and he let out a confused hum, only to get a kiss on the side of his skull again. Where his love breathed

“I want to..”

It made him shiver.

“Just like you wanna pamper and love me. I want to do the same, so let me return the favor for once”

He squeezed Geno again and gave another nod. There was another kiss placed against his skull. Then his hood was tugged a bit further around him as if to protect him from the cold. Hand returning to their soft ministrations.

It made relaxing easy. Yeah, his ribs were probably busted, and still ached and hurt like hell. He might need Grimm to take him to Life to heal the crack. There was still a loud ringing in his head. Trying to call him to work. But with every stroke on his back. The sound drifted future and further away. He could close his eyes for a few minutes.

And within one deep breath and the next. He was asleep. Warped in a cocoon of his boyfriend's love. Feeling that for once, no one was about to get him. He was somewhere where he was, well and truly safe. He was home.

[noffy96]

My second Sun/Moon fic

A follow-up to my other sun/moon fic. Sun and moon finally get their own separate bodies.

Our first day together Apart .

Word count: 4,905 

Chapter 1/4 (Complete)

Next Chapter

Summary:

A soft laugh came up from somewhere deep inside his voice box. He wondered how much of his thoughts he had spoken out, or maybe just thought loud enough for his counterpart to hear. It didn’t matter. He was here.

“M-morning…sunshine”

The warmth around him shifted slightly like Sun had pulled back.

“Oh…Moonbeam”

He could hear the worry laced into the voice in his mind. He tried to send something reassuring back, but it felt disingenuous. Seemed he fell apart at the end anyway. He had wanted to be strong enough for both of them

Or

Sun and Moon finally get their new bodies, and this is how they spend those first few hours together

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He clutched the plushies closer to his chest. Scanning over the empty room once more. The red lights of his eyes made the chipped yellow paint almost look orange. He had suspected that their last night here would be uncomfortable, now that their whole room was empty. But more than uncomfortable, he was bored. He tried going into rest mode. But it turned out. Doing so standing up was a lot harder than lying down.

They had done it in the past. Before they had made their makeshift bed. Created from all the torn-up pillows and blankets that had been destroyed in the daycare and would get thrown away otherwise. Also, they didn’t have the sentience back then that they do now. Maybe that is part of why it was easier back then. But now all their stuff was in boxes. Off in the hallway connecting to the hidden door in the theatre, ready for them to unpack again after…everything.

He checked their charge. Eighty percent and at least another hour before Sun would wake up. Two hours before they were going down to Parts and Service. For the last time, as the same animatronic.

They knew it was coming for a couple of months, but the exact date, maybe not. But they had been slowly updating their systems to get to this moment. His fans let out a big whirl.

He shook his head, he…they had been thinking about it enough. Sun had worried so much he almost made a permanent groove in their floor with all the pacing back and forth he did. As he tried to keep his hands on his love's shoulders And talk through all his anxieties.

He adjusted the Sun Plush in his arms. Making extra sure it was properly cuddled up to his own plushy. Fingers tracing patterns over both of them for a while. He wondered what that was gonna feel like…hugging Sunny

He had hugged the little stars that had come to the daycare. But hugging a small human would be different than hugging a metal animatronic that was the same height as you. Or at least he hoped they be the same height still.

The early blueprints had at least made it seem that way. But he knew more than anyone that things could get messed up anywhere. As long as they both are okay. He didn’t care what he was gonna look like.

Sun was gonna look amazing though. He was sure of it. Their new techs seemed really excited for them. Talking about new faceplates, sensors, and battery upgrades.

That last one was the reason their room was now empty. The new bodies wouldn’t be able to use their current charging cables. So their room was getting renovated, while they were getting separated.

A lot of things in the Pizzaplex were getting a huge upgrade. Monthly golf was getting a few extra courses. They were adding an extra room to Rockstar Row so that hopefully Bonnie could return when he was finished. Some new signs for several shops. They were even expanding one of the maintenance tunnels so that DJs could get from the west arcade to the main stage and even hold a show there once in a while. And everyone was so happy for the big guy to be able to move around. Even if it was just one room. They were gonna hold a party the first chance they'd get.

But all that renovating meant that the Pizzaplex was gonna be closed for two weeks. And about half of that he and Sun would be out of it as they were getting separated. It was apparently a very delicate world to separate two sentient AIs.

That was not something he was surprised by. But the fact that the new techs took it into account. Was a good sign these new people knew what they were doing. Instead of the crew they had for years, that let them get into a state where he was able to contract a virus at all.

He clenched his fist. Trying to breathe through his emotions. It was because of those people he had lost so much. That he gave into his worst impulses. And amplified his worst fears. He became so terrible to his partner. The one being in the world that understood him.

He shook his head again, the bell of his cap chiming softly. It was fine now. It was because of Sun that they were still around. That he didn’t do anything to any of their little stars. While had managed to contain the virus all to himself so Sun didn’t get hurt. Sun had protected him in return by making sure he wouldn’t ever do something he would never forgive himself for.

He squeezed the Sun's doll's hand. He loved his partner so much, and he was excited to finally be able to tell that to his face.

As nervous as he was that this was happening, he was just as excited. Finally after all this time. He would be able to see Sun. Actually, see him. Looking at him through the mirror was great. But it wasn’t the same.

He couldn’t see it if he flustered Sun and caused his rays to spin. He could feel it. But not see. Unless they were in front of a mirror. And even then, it probably looked different. He doesn’t know what Sun looks like, doubled over in laughter because of a stupid pun he said at the perfect time. Or how he looks when he is trying to calm a kid down. Or does silly dances to make them feel better. He did feel the warmth spread through their chest. The little tingling of sensations of the rays swaying. The way Sun’s AI just beamed with pride and love. But he couldn’t see it.

Now that he thought about it, he thinks that was something he was gonna miss the most. The way he was able to feel Sun’s emotions. The warmth, the security. The love. Just everything. Always there, never far away.

He’d be on his own again. No Sun in his head to reassure him he wasn’t losing his mind again. No more that constant feeling of that warm buzz whenever Sun laughed in their headspace. That the moment he could spiral, Sun was just a breath away. That if Sun was in danger. His protocols would activate and he would be able to protect him and the little stars in their care.

It would be a whole new thing to worry about. He would do his best. He could only do his best. He wasn’t gonna give fazzbear any reason to scrap them. They have gotten too close. No matter what the new staff said, he couldn’t help but feel there would still be people around at the top. Trying to wash away what happened.

And the moment they get out of line. They'll be reduced to nothing. Turned off, never to be turned on again. And those thoughts terrified him too deep in his core. So much so that it made several of his motors skip a beat or two He let out another harsh breath and leaned more into the corner he was staying in.

He tried to stop thinking about it. It wouldn’t do either of them any good if he started spiraling at this point. Sun would probably be all jittery when he woke up. He would need to be level-headed to talk him down it. So that everything would go as smoothly as possible.

His fans kicked up another notch. He was fine. He was gonna be fine. THEY were gonna be fine. They had been told what would happen. How it would happen. And what to expect when they woke up.

And the new staff hadn’t lied to them so far. All their new upgrades went exactly how they said. And when they encounter a small bug or glitch. They were even listened to. But still. They hadn’t had an upgrade this big. Since they got the security updates and after that…came the virus

He started at his hands, His fingers sharper than Suns. It had taken a while to get used to them. The amount of balloons he accidentally popped in that first week of having them. Or getting stuck in the fabric of their little stars' clothes. It had been. A lot. But he learned he could do so much with them. Even if it had taken time. And it turns out he quite likes the security side of their job. The patrolling at night was nice and relaxing. And even if someone sneaked in.

Well, that was just a fun game of cat and mouse. And it felt good to know he was able to protect everybody. Even if nobody noticed it at the time.

He shook his head. He could partially hear Sunny voice scolding him. It hadn’t been that the glamrocks had hated them or not noticed and appreciated what he had done. They had been told not to interact and disturb his patrol. Stay out of his way.

And during the day. It wasn’t like they could stop doing their job. And Sunny hadn’t been allowed to leave the daycare at all. His hand went to his throat. Even though the shock collar had never gone off. The fact it had been there at all was scary enough. The new workers seemed so shocked when they told them. And the first thing they did was remove it. It helped him trust these new people.

The shock collar had seemed like a warning. Step out of line and it will go off. Sun had been terrified it might have gone off as he broke a rule. He also had been to…once upon a time. Then that virus made him more reckless. He had tried to understand the code that was trying to take control of them. And while he hadn’t been able to do anything to stop it. He had learned a lot. Finding loopholes in the rules. And just skirting the rules he found silly

It had been fun, testing the limit of what they could do. Going into the arcade after a patrol to play some of the games they never had a chance to. Even if it had made Sun panic inside their head.

He had ignored his panicked rambling, just happy to do something for himself for once. Eventually, when no repercussions came, Sun started cheering him on instead. It might not have been the nicest way to have gone about it. But they hadn’t been that close at the time, even if he could feel himself start to change. Sun had noticed too. The fact that he had, was one of the reasons he had fallen so hard for his solar counterpart as he did.

That and Sun was just objectively cute. He could see no one truly hating his other half. He was a literal ray of sunshine. Unlike himself, while he loved his job taking care of the kids, was in comparison a lot meaner.

And the virus hadn’t helped, whatever good reputation he had had. Almost thrown away by how manic and scary he had started to act. As even the smallest of broken rules could set him off. It had him see actual red. It had crawled into his code and hurt and tried to burst out. It had changed him on some level. He had always been mischievous. But he found it a lot more fun to scare people nowadays. Especially the older kids who thought they were getting too old for the daycare.

Sometimes a good scare seemed to work better, than just sternly telling some kids to behave. Over, and over, and over again.

Would some of their personality change with this update? It shouldn’t as it was just getting a new body. But what if it did? What if by separating them? They would lose the part of themselves that made them love each other.

He shook his head, that was outrageous. Downright impossible. He knew that. And yet. He looked down at the plushies in his arms. The grins on them, that just like their own never-changing faceplates. Where stuck with their one emotion.

Lately, all feelings had gotten so big. And they both lacked room to express themselves. Drivers for sensors that weren't there. Code still evolving as their sentience did. But with this new body, they should be able to now. But they could hate it. Hate it so much that they'll annoy each other to death. Or what if what he found endearing now would become grating?

He never wants to make Sunny feel bad about himself in any way. Too many of the staff and parents already did that. He'd never forgive himself if he became another voice adding to that.

But what if Sun changed?… What if he lost him? Not in the way that Sun wouldn't turn on again. But slowly they'll drift apart again. That Sun realized that what he had felt hadn't been love after all.

It was a miracle Sun still liked him after the virus. The fact that he was loved by his solar counterpart. Was a wonder in and of itself He wouldn't be able to go back to their old relationship. He had longed for Sun. Even trapped as he was. That Sun had been safe. Was reason enough to keep fighting the virus.

He wasn't about to lose it all again. The thought was terrifying him.

“Moony!”

His visual feed sprang back to life.

He had crouched down at some point. Arms wrapped tightly around himself. The plushie's being squeezed into his chest. Nails slightly digging into his upper arms leaving thin withe scratches into the paint.

His voice box was letting out static sounds of simulated breathing. He tried to reset it. Tried to get everything back under control. It felt like his code had screeched to a halt. And yet at the same time was processing twice as fast.

There was a warm sensation across his entire front.

Sun

Sun was hugging him from within their shared mind. Or at least trying to. His chest mostly felt kinda warm, and something was on his back. But he couldn't tell if that were supposed to be Sun's hands or arms.

Projecting sensations was awkward and weird. But Sun was there. Trying his hardest to send the sensations across. He wondered how long Sun had been awake. How many times had he called to him, and he just didn’t hear it? Just too lost inside his own head

He couldn't see anything. He was just staring across their blank room. His red eyes lit the place. As he slowly realized Sun had switched to murmuring sweet reassures in their mind. He tilted his head slightly as he let that warm voice coax over him.

“I’ve got you okay, Moonlight. We are gonna be okay. We'll be together every step of the way. You will not lose me”

A soft laugh came up from somewhere deep inside his voice box. He wondered how much of his thoughts he had spoken out, or maybe just thought loud enough for his counterpart to hear. It didn’t matter. He was here.

“M-morning…sunshine”

The warmth around him shifted slightly like Sun had pulled back.

“Oh…Moonbeam”

He could hear the worry laced into the voice in his mind. He tried to send something reassuring back, but it felt disingenuous. Seemed he fell apart at the end anyway. He had wanted to be strong enough for both of them

But look at him. He was still jittering all over from his own induced spiral. He shut down his eyes. Trying to reset everything back into working order. But he was interrupted as he felt warm fluttering sensations all over the top of his faceplate.

Sun was leaving fleeting kisses. His own arms reached up as If to hold him. Only encountering air.

Sun wasn't there he knew. He had seen Sun do this so many times. He never had himself. And if felt crushing. To long for that comforting touch and not able to fully feel it.

Did Sun feel this every time he spiraled? How did he deal with that crushing longing? His nails dug further into his arm where he was holding it. Just trying to feel that phantom sensation realized.

“Hey…No...No…Moonie. It is okay. Don't damage your pretty casing. It’s gonna be alright. We'll be together the whole time. Just like you've been telling me. “

Sun was probably trying to hold him tighter. Instead. It just kinda felt like he was pressed more around him. And it made another glitched laugh come from his voice box. With his software still all scrambled, and hearing Sun’s worried voice. He spoke something he had wanted to say for a while but didn’t dare cause he didn’t want to worry Sun further.

“I’m scared….I am so fucking scared Sun”

He heard Sun softly gasp in his mind. Yet that surrounding heat didn't pull away. It seemed to only increase. He wondered what it would feel like. He would likely be squeezed to death. It would be kind of nice honestly.

“Moon…”

It sounded so heartbroken. It made him shiver. The metal of their exoskeleton slides together. Making a harsh sound as it ground together. The next words tumbling out of his mouth without his permission

“I can't lose you again”

He whispered. And there was a terrible shameful feeling crawling all over him. He was supposed to be the stronger one. He had been holding Sun through every part of this. Even as his own fears started to build. It would be okay though, cause the promised outcome was something they had both been longing for. They had agreed to this. It just…now that it was here, really happening.

The thought that he could lose the one he loved more than anything. It was making his wires twist. Felt like cables were in all the wrong ports. Because he couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t control a thing. He had to leave his fate in the hands of humans. That could just so easily have lied to them again. Done everything to get them to comply.

It was funny. Normally Sun was the one that would worry themselves sick. Thinking of the worst outcomes. And when those had solutions somehow came up with ten more. He had talked with him about every single one. Why this was a good idea. Why he could trust the new people? Everything.

Yet now all that logic had flow out the window. The only thought that ran through his code was that he be all on his own again. Something trying to hurt him, something trying to hurt Sun.

They’d promise each other they would never let that happen again.

And now they were trusting their entire beings over to some humans, just so they could finally be their own separate bots.

“Moondrop…I….”

Sun's voice sounded staticky, the same way he did as he was upset. and his music box in their chest comes to life, letting out a few awful distorted sounds. The closed thing he could get to a sob.

“My precious Moonlight. I know you're scared….I am too… I am so…f-....fu-…fu-....Oh, come on!”

He let out a small giggle. Sunny trying to get over the profanity filter for his sake was so endearing. Of all the things to almost make the sunny animatronic try and break it. It of course would be to reassure him.

He could almost see the pout on his partner's face. His nails slowly let go of his exoskeleton as he tried to stifle the giggle trying to come up at hearing his partner's adorable frustrated noises. Suddenly such a silly normal thing, in this insane hurricane of emotions.

“Oh hush Moon, it ain't funny. I am trying to be sincere here!”

He laughed a bit louder, the warmth soothing some of the cold fear that had threatened to consume him

“I know Sunshine…Thank you”

He felt something warm at the bottom of his faceplate. Like Sun was trying to make him look up. It surprised him so much that he jolted back into their visual feed. Only to still see their blank walls.

Was Sun trying to cup his face?

“What I was trying to say. Is that's okay to be scared. Of course, you’re scared! They are gonna go into the core of our beings. And mess with it to separate us. It's invasive, weird, and scary. “

Sun stopped for a moment. And he could feel that anxiety that he had felt coming from his partner these last few months. But especially the last week. Just skyrocket before tempering down again.

“But! But…but…we are not alone this time. It's not just you…or just me going in. We'll be together. Every step. And it's not like last time when no one knows what's happening. The Glamrocks are looking out for us as well now! And! And! All their new big upgrades went fine, right? We can do this. Just as long as we are together. We can do anything Even facing the scariest decision of our lives”

He states into the space where his partner is. The fear wasn't gone. No not by a long shot. But it didn't feel like he was suspended outside his code anymore. Like one wrong step could make him fall apart.

“You’re right. You are absolutely right Sunny “

He felt his counterpart fluster slightly at the genuine praise. Slowly his body felt like it was his own again.

“Thank you…”

He felt Sun shake his head

“No need. Happy to be able to help you for once “

He reached up again. To where he assumed Sun's face would be. It still hurt he wasn't actually touching anything. But he didn't care how silly this looked, it made him feel closer to his other half. And that was most important right now

“ You’ve always done that. “

Sun's rays weren't able to spin in his code. But he could feel them wanting to from behind their faceplate where they were hidden in their little housings.

“Kiss me…please.”

He asked desperately, Wanting that sensation. That feeling of closeness. Sun let out an eager sound. And then he felt that warmth that was so familiar against his ever-present smile.

He stared into the space where he thought Sun’s face would be. Thinking of his faceplate pressed right up against his own. The similar design made it so every part of their face would be touching in some odd way.

But it would feel so good. And he would hold onto his partner's faceplate. His rays probably having been retracted slightly to give his hands some room. His own face threatening to spin in place but held there in gentle hands. And the warmth it was given now. He wished he could blush so Sun could see what this was doing to him

He wished he could change his expression and see what the humans liked about sliding lips together. Then the sensation stopped

He leaned forward, before slowly slumping over as he lost control over the body. And it was Sun's time to take control.

“Whoo…oh ow!”

Sun caught their slumping body just in time. But he scrambled as he heard the yelp of pain. Quickly cutting into their visual feed. Trying to see what might have hurt them. Even though he was still quite scrambled from the sudden switch.

He felt the cord unplug from the back of their head. They had been fully charged.

“You okay Sunshine?”

Sun slowly rose up and rubbed the back of his head

“Yeah… just…tugged a little”

He felt Sun stare around the room. Knuckles knocking together. His own anxieties clearly showing. Before bending down and picking up the fallen down plushies.

“Well….it's time to go…isn't it?”

Both of them were still highly strung up. But he gave a nod. Wrapping his code as much as he could around Suns. Trying to tug at all the sensors for touch that he could reach. So Sun would know he was right there.

Sun walked to the door, into the hidden hallway that led to the theatre. There were all the boxes with their stuff, things they thought to keep for when their new room was finished and could decorate again.

Sun walked to the one open box. And gingerly and carefully put the two plushies inside. Stroking both tenderly before closing it. And taping it shut. So hopefully, truly no one would touch their belongings.

Sun's hands rested on the edge of the box. And he was standing still. Not even swaying in place. The distinct lack of bell sounds.

“ Together.. “

He whispered to Sun. Holding on tighter.

“Together still”

Sun whispered with a nod.

“Forever”.

He promised. And he felt Sun's fluster Happy response as his rays spun. The daycare animatronic slowly made his way out of the daycare to the maintenance tunnels

All the while both of them kept whispering to each other. That they were gonna be fine, they’d gonna be together. And that they loved each other.

So busy with their internal monologue. They were shocked when Sun almost bumped into someone. He shook himself out of their calming mantra. Surprised to see the star of the Plex himself

Freddy

“There you are Sundrop”

He said with a friendly smile as Sun took a step back.

“F-freddy?! “

He noticed something shift behind the big bear and pointed it out to his solar counterpart. Who looked past the big animatronic and see

Everyone

Everyone was here

“What? What are you all doing here?”

Sun asked, surprised

“We here to wish you luck of course!”

Chica chirped happily. And a different kind of warmth filled their entire system. The other three nodded.

“Yeah. It ain't every day. Someone gets this big an upgrade..so we thought it would be nice for you and Moonman to not be alone” Monthly proclaimed proudly and for once he didn’t snort at the silly nickname. For once it felt kinda sweet.

“And besides we gotta make clear to those maintenance people. That they better not mess up one of our friends”

Roxy cracked her knuckles as she said it. Monty agreed with her as Chica started to whisper something about no violence against the workers. Which Roxanne waved off. Freddy came up and took a gentle hold of Sun’s shoulders.

“The two of you are not on your own anymore. We'll help in any way we can. And are excitedly waiting to see the both of you in a week's time”

Sun's rays were spinning widely even though he was not in control. His music box let out a few notes from their chest. He hadn't expected them to show up. He knew they cared now but this. This he had never expected.

“Everyone…I…no we…thank you so much”

Sun finally said happily.

The doors behind the Glamrocks opened. Behind them appeared their familiar regular mechanic who didn't seem surprised to see everyone here

“So…we all ready to go”

Sun froze up. And he himself wasn't much better. Both of them tried to calm each other down in their shared mind. The others seemed to pick up on their frozen state.

“ I think they need a bit of encouragement “

Chica offered. Coming over to them where Freddy was still holding onto Sun's arms

“I think it's time for one last group hug!”

And then threw herself at Sun and Freddy hugging them both

“heck yeah. Good idea”

Mothy bounted closer and warped his strong arms around them and Roxy joined in from the other side.

Sun let out a surprise gasp. He had not yet been in the middle of a cuddle pile unlike he had been that one time after that one fight they had had. He felt the phantom of it now. And wrapped as close to Sun as he could so he would notice everyone.

Sun was shaking. But he could feel it The happiness crawled through all of their wires. Sun deserved to feel this happy more often. And he made a mental note to see if he could get group hugs to happen more for his partner as well. And he also felt Sun saving this memory in their special folder. Where no employee could access it.

After a couple of minutes. Sun was let go by the others. Though he didn't loosen his own hold. He wasn’t gonna let go. He was gonna stay pressed up against Sunny until they were getting shut down. The mechanic was still patiently waiting.

“A-again..t-thank you. Everyone”

Sun turned to the human

“Ready”

They got some last reassurance clasps on the back and followed the human inside. He kept close as Sun was instructed into the giant metal cylinder. Kept a hold of his code as they were strapped in, pulling into the big computer.

The last thing they sent across before they were shut down was.

“I love you Sundrop”

“And I love you Moondrop”

Next Chapter

[noffy96]

Sun/Moon Fic

Chapter three is here! ( the first of the 3 stories i finished last week XD ) I had a lot of fun writing it. So hope you all enjoy it to

Our first day together Apart .

Chapter Word count: 6577

Chapter 3/4 (Complete)

Previous Chapter Next Chapter

Chapter Summary:

With a small smile, he briefly reached further back pulling the tail of Moon's hat over his shoulder, before gently holding his face again.

“This...finally feels right, no…more than that it feels perfect.” He softly whispered

To his own amusement, he saw Moon's cheeks start to glow in a lovely brighter shade of red. Before he felt and saw him shake with silent laughter.

“Perfect… huh?”

Or

Sun and Moon make their way to the West Arcade. And get a little distracted on the way. But once they arrive what surprise would be waiting for them there

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He was humming along with the song that was playing over the speakers. Rays swaying with every bouncing step. His and Moony’s clasped hands swung back and forth. The fact that they could do that now. That he could feel Moon. Actually, feel him. It still didn’t feel real to him. So he wasn't gonna let go if he could help it.

He felt a small tug on his arm. He had stopped again to look at one of the large signs

“I thought you said you weren't gonna look at every sign”

His counterpart's tone was fond. And he couldn't help the feeling of slight embarrassment. Scratching at his cheek with his free hand. As it had indeed been the tenth sign they stopped at.

“Sorry, Moony. It's just…. everything is so “

He looked around again. He couldn't explain how much better his vision was. He just had to stare at everything. He thought the signs looked pretty before. But now…? He was able to absorb so much more detail. He kept saving images, scared he was gonna lose this again.

Just, everything was brighter. He had more depth. And when they had run through the shadowy tunnels he could just see just as well.

He had never been able to see well in the dark. He had been made to work in the light. Only when tapping into Moony’s feed when he had been in control had he been able to see. But then again. Moon had several different night filters.

Moon's vision was also better. The light wasn't washing everything out anymore he had said. But unlike him, Moony's vision hadn't been broken. Just outdated.

Moon's hand squeezed his own. And he realized he had fallen silent again as he stared at Moon.

Because wasn't he a sight to behold. The fact that he was here in front of him made his rays spin every time he caught a glimpse of him again. When he wasn’t looking all around, He was looking at Moon.

One corner of Moon's mouth tugged up. He wasn't sure If that was on purpose or if Moon was also still getting to know the controls of his new body. But it looked good on him anyway.

“We done staring at El Chip for now?”

He giggled and nodded. Stepping closer as they continued onward towards the west arcade. Making sure their shoulders brushed every once in a while. And Moon was doing the same. Pushing back into his space. It was nice and close. They were passing the gift shop next to the arcade when he saw something.

“Moony!”

His eyes widened and he rushed inside. Moon stumbling along as he was dragged by the hand.

“What? Sun?”

He dragged them past several shelves. Eyes locked on what looked like the Daycares logo.

“Sun?! What did you..? Slow down!”

Moon continued to argue, but his voice stuttered out as he too saw their daycare logo, and they came to a stop in front of the large shelf. A big advertisement saying ‘New Products’ right next to it. And both of them stared at it.

He knew they sold merchandise of the daycare. He had seen it Most of it was in the gift shop just outside the main play area. He owned some of the plushies which they sold.

He had been the one to take them up to their room. Surprising Moon with them. And unlike most of their stuff. Those two plushies hadn't been broken. No. He had taken them up to their room the day they arrived.

They might not have been able to share cuddles. But the plushies could. They had helped with their communication a lot when Moon had gotten back online after the virus. And where one of their most treasured items.

But this shelf. It held more than the simple plushies and the Sundrop and Moondrop candies.

There were shirts with their likeness on them. As well as hats and bags and all the other things you expect. There was also a headband that resembled his rays. And nightcaps like Moony’s.

They even had sleeping masks! But also…the new posters he had seen downstairs.

“They made new ones”

Moon whispered and he nodded. Everything on this was brand new. He can't remember the last time the daycare got a merch update. But most important was what was sitting on the table right in the center. Their new plushies. They were thicker than the previous generation had been. More in line with the plushies of the glamrocks. Like they were now also part of the set.

He took a step forward to gently caress the side of a Moon plush. It felt soft. But with a giggly feeling he realised. Not as satisfying as the real Moon’s fingers still locked between his own.

“I think they look good…what do you think?”

He turned to face Moon whose gaze was stuck to the top shelf.

“Moon?”

He asked following his gaze only to gasp. There, on the top shelf. Where some action figures of them. It was the both of them, back to back in the same poses as the statues in the daycare. But painted in their likeness instead of gold.

Moon reached up, carefully taking one off the shelf. Inspecting it from all sides.

“I don't think this this is meant for little kids “ he whispered.

He nodded in agreement. And it brought a strange feeling to his chest. Almost everything that had been ever made of them was meant for kids. To be played with, not to be displayed. But this…this is

“We…we have a collectible..as if…we are part of a larger set of…”

He started speculating out loud and Moon nodded, the bell of his hat chiming softly as he looked up. Both of them stared at each other before he slowly started dragging Moon with him to another shelf where he knew they kept the Glamrock figurines. He had to know…if they fitted in.

Moon stayed quiet, taking careful hold of the figure as he quickly scouted the shelves.

“There!”

Moon’s gaze followed his outstretched arm toward a shelf with different figures. They came to a stop before it. Slowly Moon placed the one he was holding between a Freddy and Roxy one.

“Looks like it fits right in “

Moon's voice was wavering slightly. And the pumps of his own chest were doubling up.

“Yeah it does”

He held on tighter to Moon's hand as he felt a tremble go through his body. They were no longer seen as just the daycare bots it seemed. Slowly…very slowly. They were getting to be part of the group.

He turned to Moon, his grin nearly splitting his face. Moon still staring disbelievingly at the shelf. And seeing that look between happy and shocked. Well, he couldn't help himself. And leaned forward to kiss his partner's cheek.

Moon quickly snapped his head back. His free hand trailed over where he had just kissed. And it made him chuckle.

“Come on Moony, we gotta go”

Moon crossed his arms, giving him an unimpressed look.

“I am not the one that dragged us in here”

He giggled, as he started tugging Moon along again.

“But you didn't stop me eith-”

He cut himself off coming to a stop. His love almost knocked into him.

“Sun? Hey, is something wrong?”

A few paces in front were some changing rooms for any customer wanting to try on the shirts. And right next to it…was a large mirror against the wall.

He must have walked straight passed it earlier. But now…there was an opportunity here. He still hadn't seen himself…and it would be the first time seeing them together.

His rays were spinning at just the thought. Frozen in place. There was a cold hand on his cheek directing his gaze back to a worried-looking Moon. Making his rays do another spin as his cheeks gained a soft flush.

“Sunlight, what got you so nervous?”

He tried to get his voicebox to work. But the hand on his face was distracting. Just as the soft tone of Moon's voice was sending shivers down his endoskeleton.

He glanced towards the mirror.

“I..mmm want…see”

Moon tilted his head to the side following his gaze. Moon’s red iris widened slightly as his gaze locked on the mirror. And he swore he could hear his partner's fans starting up.

“You wanna look at us…together?”

Moony might not be in his head anymore but it was like he had been able to read his mind just as effectively. And he hurriedly nodded.

Moon's answering laugh was soft. Making his already heated cheeks burn brighter. But that was nothing compared to how they felt as Moon leaned forward to kiss one of them. And he actually let out a puff of steam at the action. Moon gave another fond soft laugh as he pulled away.

Before stepping forward and he was the one being dragged along. He kept his gaze firmly on Moon as they navigated their way towards the mirror.

He was shaking pretty hard by the time they reached it. What if he hated what he saw? Moony was so pretty and handsome-looking. What if standing next to him made him look ridiculous?

Somewhere in the far reaches of his mind, he knew that was ludicrous. But right now he was not being rational. Moon's hand trailed up his arm till it warped around him. Pulling him into a hug.

His own arm immediately did the same. Pressing as close as possible. Moon's other hand went from his cheek to his rays gently tracing them from where they had retracted into their housings.

“You are gonna love how you look” Moon whispered.

Red eyes gentle and kind. Like he could see all the fears playing behind his own eyes.

“It's gonna feel a little strange, but you will. I just know.”

He nodded. His grip tightened and straightened himself. Closing his eyes and started slowly counting down slowly stepping away from his lover and facing the mirror.

Maybe he lingered on zero for an extra second. But when he felt another soft squeeze of Moon’s fingers. It filled him with some newfound confidence.

Opening his eyelids he stared into his own surprised blue eyes. He had been told they were fixed, Moon even called them pretty. But it was still a surprise to see them.

More importantly. He wasn't smiling. His mouth was open in slight surprise and he brought his hand that wasn't holding onto Moon still. To his face.

Tracing it along the silicone of his jaw cheeks everything. Putting visuals to the sensations from when he was doing the same in Parts and Service.

But his thoughts screeched to a halt. As Moon stepped closer arms came up just under his own and crossed across his stomach as he was pulled gently against his boyfriend's chest.

He saw his rays give way for his partner to rest his head over his shoulder. And Moon took the opportunity gladly.

And he couldn't help but stare at the both of them. They were actually standing together. He could see everything that he was doing. What Moon was doing. What they both were doing! It felt so surreal

Moon was smiling happily, rocking them gently in place. And not only could he feel his cheeks heat up. He saw the slight pink flush on the plating in his cheeks as well.

Slowly he rested one hand across the two in his stomach. His other hand reached up to gently run his fingers across Moon's face. Enjoying the feeling of silicone, and the warmth of his blush.

With a small smile, he briefly reached further back pulling the tail of Moon's hat over his shoulder, before gently holding his face again.

“This...finally feels right, no…more than that it feels perfect.” He softly whispered

To his own amusement, he saw Moon's cheeks start to glow in a lovely brighter shade of red. Before he felt and saw him shake with silent laughter.

“Perfect… huh?”

He hummed in affirmation, gently squeezing the silicone fingers beneath his own as he leaned further into the hug. So focused on those eyes that looked like he was the only thing worth looking at.

He wasn't surprised to see that they were the same height. Made being held all the sweeter. He saw why Moon liked it so much when he held him back in the basement. He didn’t wanna let go. He wanted to stay this close forever.

He raked his eyes over both the forms again. Their colors stood out nicely against each other. The blue and white of moon’s arms across his chest. His yellow fingers against Moon's face. He loved seeing this, he thought back to before having known to ever even the thought of being separated had been suggested.

Before they even were a thing. He had thought he could just live with just having Moon back. And yes, if he had to choose between Moon living inside him once more or no Moon and all. He knew he would have Moon inside of his head again in a heartbeat.

But this. Actually seeing him. Actually touching him. It was fulfilling an ache so deep he didn't know he had. The only thing he missed was the warmth that the Moon's feelings had always given off.

But as his face was titled up slightly and Moon left a lingering kiss just above his eye. He decided that sacrificing that meant everything if they could keep doing more of that.

The rays not resting against Moon were slowly rising in and out of their casings. His partner kept on leaving kisses against his faceplate.

He started to giggle in response.

“Moony! That tickles!”

It didn't really, but the outpouring of affection of his lunar counterpart was leaving him all kinds of flustered. A happy kind, he might squirm, but he didn’t plan on pulling away.

Moon's smile turned sharper and they made eye contact in the mirror.

“Now, it is perfect”

He let out another flustered giggle. Rotating his neck to face Moon in full. And also so that they could keep their hug going. Gently tipping the top of their faceplates together.

“Yeah, you are right, well…maybe one more thing could make it even better…”

His eyes dropped to Moony's mouth for a second. And even this close he could see the flush on Moon’s face get darker.

Both their fans were making soft whirring sounds. Their eyes fell nearly shut, as they leaned closer. Foreheads touching, then noses then…

An alarm sounded and a bright light shined in their direction. It startled them both so much that they jumped apart. Letting go of each other for the first time since they got reunited.

They stared at the entrance where a security bot lowered their flashlight. Let out the alert sound again. Turned to its right. Flashed his light, turning back to them. Flashing his light once more. Before repeating those steps a few more times

“Shit, fuck right, we get it, we get it. We’re coming”

Moon shouted at him. The bot nodded and rolled away.

Right….they were supposed to go to the west arcade. They were probably wondering why they were running late and asked security to look for them.

Moon was looking away grumbling under his breath and he pressed his hands against his face. Feeling the scorching heat beneath the new sensors. His chest motors still pumping in overdrive. As his rays had retracted.

They had almost kissed. They had said to wait until they got back to the daycare. But it had been so perfect! But now…he could feel himself pout under his hands.

“Come on, let's go…I doubt he is gonna leave us alone for long”

He nodded against his hands taking a deep breath. Glancing at his partner briefly before pressing his hands over his eyes again. Moon was still looking away. Look thoroughly pissed off. His hands stuffed in his pockets.

“Yeah…we…we shouldn't leave them waiting”

He mumbled. Whoever them was anyway Neither of them made a move to start walking. He was surprised he had kinda expected Moon to start stomping ahead after his last statement.

What was he waiting for?

“I am…”

Moon started but trailed off and it made him look up. Peeking between his fingers. And Moon looked less angry and more uncomfortable.

“I am not angry AT you….”

He trailed off once more still not meeting his eyes

“Just…at”

Soon let out a frustrated grunt and pointed at where the security bot was a few seconds ago.

His hands dropped from his face, cheeks still felt like they were glowing. His knuckles knocked against each other a few times as he swayed a bit in place.

“Yeah…I…I know.”

Moon glanced at him and looked sceptical bouncing on his feet uncomfortably. And he took a deeper breath. It slowed down his fans finally.

“Sorry, sorry…just still a bit…”

He waved his arm around as he searched for the words

“Rattled?”

Moon supplied and he chuckled slowly meeting Moon's gaze full-on again.

“That's one word for it”

He said with a loped smile that Moon returned before holding out his hand

“Let's get going Sunbeam”

His fans started up again as his rays spun happily as he took Moon's hand.

“Right! Lead the way!”

Moon chuckled before slowly pulling him out of the gift shop. And as he was pulled along by his lunar counterpart. He felt himself start to smile again.

The gift shop is right next to the Fazzcade. But the construction workers had left a couple of forklifts so they had to take the long way. By going down the turned-off escalator.

As they reached the bottom, They silently agreed to start racing again. Both of them took off towards the next one over so they could run back upstairs again. So fast, Until they were sprinting down the atrium once again. It made the giddiness from before return.

He loved the sound of Two sets of footsteps echoing around them. The loud jingling of their bells. And soon their laughter followed again.

Until finally they came to a stop in front of the doors of the west arcade. Clutching the hand he was holding. He patted down his pants, adjusted the ribbons on his wrists, flattened his new shirt, and resetted his voicebox, so it hopefully still sounded like he should. He was slowly getting used to it. But it still felt slightly off.

He glanced to his side to see that Moon had been doing the same. And was now fixing his hat before glancing back at him.

“Ready?”

With another squeeze of their hands, they stepped into the elevator entrance and pressed the Freddy-shaped button. Moon's hand held his tighter as it roared to life and brought them up.

It was because he was holding on tightly to Moon's hand that he wasn't doing his usual knocking his knuckles together. He was excited to meet the DJ. But he wondered who else was there.

Diana said they’d be waiting. Where it the Mini’s? It was likely they were gonna be there. But maybe the Glamrocks? But he doubts they have the time.

He didn't get much time to think as the door slid open they stepped out finding it surprisingly dark. They cautiously moved forward towards the golden statues of the Glamrocks.

But they saw no one. Moon gently tugged on his hand dragging him in the direction of DJ’s main booth.

‘They said the west arcade…right. I don't wanna wake DJ if he is asleep’

He spoke to Moon using their new shared connection so that if he was indeed in rest mode, there was no chance of him waking up

‘they did’

As they stepped onto the dance floor to cross it the lights turned on. The Daycares theme started blasting from the speakers. And all the Glamrocks jumped out from behind the booth

“Surprise!”

They all screamed in unison. And he stared at them slack-jawed.

“Congratulations on your new bodies Boys!

Chica chirped happily. And he let out a flustered laugh.

“You two look damm fine”

Monty bellowed. Jumping from the platform and landing on the floor with a big thumb.

“Montgomery Gator, please be careful with my dancefloor”

DJ’s deep voice said sternly. The big gator sheepishly rubbed his neck.

“As sorry my dude. Got excited”

The other bots were clambering down the booth. Chica reaching them first. Stopping right in front of him and grabbing his wrist pulling them up.

“Oh they really went all out on you two, didn't they?! You are so expressive now Sunshine!”

He giggled her excitement was infectious. And he bounced along.

“I know! I can finally frown! Can you believe it?!”

From the corner of his eye, he saw Monty also complimenting Moon. Moon's face was smug yet flushed from the praise.

He staggered forward half a step as Roxanne clapped his back. With her own approval. And both of them did a little show off of their new bodies for their friends.

Showing off their flexibility. Their new clothes. The way his rays and faces now moved. And everyone was a perfect audience.

It was fun being the center of attention. Moon even called the cable down and did some tricks with his newfound flexibility.

It was also how they found out, that the rings for attaching the cable now retracted into his back. Moon's clothes have an almost hidden gap where it would appear.

But this would mean No more kids trying to pull it. Which would be a blessing on their endoskeletons. He noticed he could call the tether still as well. But he didn't wanna take away from Moon's moment.

Besides his boyfriend was amazing to look at. His love always had the better control of their cable. And when he was still in their head as Moon flew around it always felt so much more freeing than when he did it himself.

“Sundrop, do you know if they gave either of you any other new features”

Freddy asked gently. After Moon stopped his short performance.

“Well, I don't know about Moony. But I certainly got something. But I hadn't had the time to test it. But I think i got enough space here to try it “

He felt a mischievous little smile come across his face.

“What the hell are you waiting for? Show us!”

Roxanne cheered.

“I was planning on. Can you give me some space? “

Moon hadn't detached himself from their cable yet. But moved out of the way. Hovering right next to DJ. Who folded his arms. And changed the sound on the speaker to some drums.

He bounced a couple of times. Feeling the springs in his legs. After a few bounces, he started a short run. Then using the pistons and springs to jump. Quickly soaring, that was way higher than he ever jumped and it made him laugh.

As gravity took him again. He quickly curled up to tumble twice before landing square on his feet. Arms outstretched.

“Holy sh-” Monty was elbowed by Freddy cutting off his swear. Chica was shouting wildly while Roxanne whistled.

But Moon’s impressed fond look was the best reaction of all. Then his grin shifted.

‘Stay right where you are Sunbeam’

Moon's voice echoed inside his head. And his own grin broadened. Moon quickly jumped down, doing a little summersault of his own. Detaching the cable as he reached the ground.

Cartwheeling his way over. Before jumping up himself. He didn't get the same height he got. Not even half of it. But that didn’t matter, he got high enough.

Seeing what he was doing. He crouches down just enough for Moon to place his hands on top of his before straightening once more. Their fingers clenching together in their hold.

Moon doing the handstand on top of him. He tilted his head up with a laugh. As Moon cackled happily.

“Wait how did they?!”

Monty tail was wagging on the floor.

“That's very impressive indeed. I bet the kids would love that”

Freddy's calm voice cut through as well.

But he only had eyes for the bot above him. They both let go of one arm and he shifted to stand on one leg to strike an even more impressive pose. Beaming at their audience, who clapped and cheered for them.

Once they were holding hands securely once more. He thought of another fun idea.

‘Think you could handle a switch Moonbeam?’

‘of course. Will you allow me to scare them a bit?’

He glanced back at the other bots. DJ gave them a thumbs up. The other four still staring at them in disbelief.

‘go for it’

He felt Moon shift his weight and he moved with him. And while he had full control. He knew that it looked.like.they were losing their balance.

“You two stuck or something? “ Roxanne asked

Moon wobbled a bit swaying back and forth. Head turned away so the others couldn’t see his big grin. But he could see it and the joy was infectious. He looked straight up. Probably making it seem like he was paying extra attention. But not in the way others thought. He moved with the momentum.

“Guys! you guys should look out!”

Chica clucked worryingly.

“We could help you if you need assistance”

Freddy offered worriedly and it sounded like he stood up and came closer

‘now’

Moon announced. And he Swayed him backward as fast as he could. Making it look like he fell off. But their hands were still locked together. And using the springs in his legs. He kicked off the second Moon's feet had hit the ground kicking himself upright.

So now they were in a perfect mirrored position of their previous pose. Both laughed manically at the Glamrocks' shocked faces. As they rotated their heads to face them.

“Did You guys really think Sun would drop me? “

He giggled holding on a bit tighter as Moon walked closer to the others. Kicking his legs back and forth excitedly. Moon not even swaying with the motions.

“Or Moon wouldn't know his own limits?”

He found great pleasure in the wide-eyed stares and amazed faces of their friends.

“You two are jesters all right, scaring us half to death”

Monty grumbled. He let go of one of Moon’s hands to knock at his chest.

“We are quite sturdy as well. A little fall won't hurt either of us. We gotta protect the little ones “

He held Moon's hand again. Who after a soft squeeze then slowly crouched down. So he could swing his legs back down safely. And with a few rotations of his many new joints was standing upright on the ground again.

“Something wrong?”

Moon asked looking at Roxy, who was looking between them with an odd expression. His own hand came to rest across Moon's lower back. Trying not to grin harder as he felt him lean into the hold.

She waves her hand dismissively. Flipping her hair back.

“Nah, just curious. You guys never done any of that together right?”

He cocked his head to the side confused.

“How would we even before today?”

She frowned.

“Yeah, I get that. Not what I meant. More like. It's impressive how well coordinated and performed that was. Like you two knew each other strengths exactly. Like you’ve been doing it for years. Like no wonder, you two are such good partners. Makes a girl jealous”

He felt his face flush and his rays spin quickly. As Roxy called them partners

“Ah..miss Roxy… thank you so much. Yes. Yes. I am really happy we are too”

He was rambling a bit nervously holding Moon a bit closer who was fighting his own blush it seemed.

Partners.

He called Moon his partner in his head. But he just realized. He hadn't really called him that to his face. Not yet at least…had he ever? Had he ever called him that where he could hear?

Or boyfriend…or any other title! He had told him he loved him at the very least. But never a title…it wasn’t really needed being in each other's head. He could feel how his counterpart felt about him. But it still felt wrong, they had been together for over three months. And they really never did? How…

Then with a start, he realized something else…in the few hours since they had gotten their bodies. He hadn’t even said ‘I love you’ to him yet. Had he forgotten in all the chaos and rush of actually seeing Moon? Had Moon said it? He wasn’t sure, but Moon looked so wonderful and lovely. And he had hugged him and spun him around and how could you blame him for forgetting!

But He should. He absolutely should. But not now?! Not with everyone watching them so intently. But it was so very nice to hear that they seemed made for each other.

“Roxanne is right, but now I ask. Is everyone ready to get this party started?”

DJ cut in. Luckily this prevents them from answering the others any further.

“Party?!”

Both Moon and he exclaimed. And the others laughed.

“Of course, this is gonna be a party. Did you two think we just wanted to talk? This is a celebration!”

Freddy walked behind them placing a hand on their shoulders and pulling the both of them into a quick hug.

“Hell yeah, it is! Let's Rock and Roll”

Monty bellowed grabbing his hand and pulling him out of Freddy’s, and Moon’s grip as the music started. Pulling him into a dance.

He was disoriented for a minute or so. Before just letting himself go and dancing with the gator. Chica soon joined them both. While Roxanne and Freddy started dancing with Moon. Twirling the lunar bot between the both of them.

And they continued on like that for several songs. Changed with whom he was dancing with several times.

But when Chica tried to pull him onto the dancefloor for the fifth time he waved her off.

“No no, why don't you dance with Roxanne! Let me watch for a minute!”

He spun her around pushing her direction of the wolf who eagerly pulled her along. And he rested against the booth with a sigh.

His eyes quickly found Moon who seemed to be in some sort of dance battle with Monty that Freddy was keeping score of.

“You alright there Sunbeam?”

He glanced back and turned to Dj’s giant face

“Never better. Thank you so much for providing your arcade for us.”

There was a deep chuckle on one of Dj’s giant hands came down to gently pet him.

“Anything for my two favorite comets.”

He laughed at the compliment.

“Oh, that reminds me!”

He leaned forward to hug the DJ's giant face. And he felt the gentle hand pressing him closer

“And with that, I hugged everyone!. Prepare for more of those!”

“Always welcome. You and Moon are free to visit anytime. “

He nodded leaning against him.

“We know that. But we probably gonna take it easy after this. As fun as all of this is. I still can't quite believe it. I think I need a day to just…process all this ”

There was another deep chuckle.

“I’m sure Moon feels the same. Everyone just wanted to make you two’s first night back special”

His rays spun again. Giggling happily.

“It is. It really is! It's almost perfect”

“Almost huh, do I need to step up my game? I only give the best parties. I won't do with almost perfect”

He glanced at Moon who was now laughing at the gator who seemed to be trying to demand a rematch as Roxy and Chica came over to watch the comotion those two caused.

“You are doing everything perfectly. Just wanna dance with Moony. Hadn't had the change just yet. So unless you can make that happen?”

He looked up hopefully.

“You could just ask him”

The giant bot told him with a snort.

“He is having fun right now! I don't wanna interrupt!”

DJ shakes his head fondly.

“Wanna help to do some sound effects for the next song?”

He brightens up. Almost jumping up on the platform.

“Yes please!”

DJ lifted him up. And he had a lot of fun pressing random sound effects at different moments. His own grin widened any time it made any of the other bots below laugh. Moon had stepped aside for a moment and seemed to talk to Freddy. And he waved at them as their eyes met.

Shortly after DJ even let him mix some songs. He wasn't the greatest at it but it was fun. Then DJ even let him control the lights table! There were so many buttons! He let one follow Moon around when he was on the dancefloor. Switching between yellow and blue.

He made Monty angry by giving him any color other than green. And the one time he did. Roxanne and Moon quickly crowded him blocking out his colour with their own. Starting a chase. That lasted several more songs.

Eventually, he was lowered back to the ground

“Thank you so much, DJ!”

He got another pet and he turned around to get back to dancing when he was faced with Moon. His rays spinning around excitedly at seeing his happy grin. And more importantly, his held-out hand.

“Wanna dance?”

He nodded so hard quickly grasping the outstretched hand and was pulled closer. Moon's other hand landed on his hip. Pulling him close enough to quickly kiss him between the eyes.

During their first dance, Moon took the lead. Pulling and guiding him through the space. The second song was a faster, salsa-like song. And now It was him pulling his lunar counterpart along. Never once it felt like Moon's gaze was leaving him as they slipped from one song to the next. Changing who led every time, Sometimes Midway through the songs.

Enjoying the fluttering feeling of hands across his arms, back shoulders, and everywhere else. Sometimes they got the others involved. But now they had come together it seemed impossible to break them apart again.

The last song of the night was a slower one to wind them down. And he and Moon were just locked in an embrace laughing and swaying side to side. Spinning slowly.

Coming down from their flustered high. Moon's body was warm against his own. Seems the dancing had warmed up his internal temperature. And it was so lovely to hold. He could hear his fans roaring. Feel the plating shift underneath the new shirt.

One of Moon's hands came up and was gently rubbing one of his rays. And it caused a whole new kind of fluttering sensations he had never experienced before. He wanted to stay here forever. He wanted to press closer. He wanted to leave kisses all over his beautiful face. He wanted just to kiss him fully and so many more things.

He didn't think the others would make a big deal out of it. If he did any of those things. But no. Not now, he gotta be patient. He will make it perfect.

But he could do something else. So when the song ended he pulled out of the embrace. Lifted Moon's hand to his mouth and kissed it.

“Thanks for the dance Moony”

There was a beautiful blush covering his boyfriend's cheeks. But they were snapped out of their world as they heard Chica running towards them

“Sunbeam, Moonpie. That was so much fun. We should do these parties more often”

She screamed happily as she pulled both of them into a hug. Which he gladly returned.

“Doing so would be fun yes”.

Moon stated while making eye contact with him making his rays do another flustered rotation..

“We should indeed. If it's okay with DJ of course”

Freddy said turning towards the giant spider-like animatronic.

“As long as I am not left the one cleaning.”

He chuckled good-heartedly.

“Of course, we wouldn't wanna do that to you, my friend”.

Freddy reassured him, and he nodded as he freed himself from Chica’s hold and asked

“Right! Right, it would be awful to leave a mess behind. Do you need our help with clean up?”

“Hell no,” Roxy came over and put him in a headlock that made him giggle

“You two are the guest of honor. No clean-up duty for you two. Besides your guys' room changed yes? You should go check on that”

Oh my god. He almost had completely forgotten. Quickly checking his messages and saw they had gotten the okay from Alex to go to their room almost an hour ago.

Moon freed himself from Chica as well and with the cable floated up to DJ. To face him fully.

“You sure about that. This is your space We really don't mind”

DJ, waved him off.

“It's quite alright. I got four sets of hands helping me out. I think they can manage. “

He smiled as Dj’s hand came to gently pet Moony and he saw him briefly hug it back

“But thank you little comet. But I think you two should go before the lights go out. Wouldn't want to be stuck navigating the construction in the dark if you hadn't come across.it during the day yet.”

He had freed himself from Roxanne and held his partner's hand again the second he came down.

“If everyone is sure. Than okay. We'll be off! Thank you all so much. It was really fun,”

He said bouncing along with Moon's movements

“It was. Truly “

Moon agreed and Everyone smiled at them.

“The pleasure was all ours Sundrop and Moondrop”

Freddy said and they waved at all of them ready to leave. When suddenly Monty bellowed

“Wait we forgot something!”

They stopped and turned around, as the gator came towards them. And pulled them into another hug lifting them both off the ground.

“Group hug!”

The others soon joined. Even DJ warped his hand around them. And the gesture almost made tears spring in his new eyes. Locking his gaze.with Moon who looked equally affected. They returned the hug.

Before they were placed back on the ground. And with a warbled voice the both of them said their thanks. As they stepped back into the elevator taking them down to the atrium.

Waving at their friends until the doors closed. And the machine rumbled alive. He felt himself start to shake.

“Sun..?”

Moon's voice was strained. Looking as close to crying as he felt. And he gave a shaky nod. He waited for the elevator to stop moving and they stepped out. And as soon as they did they both fell into a tight hug. With warbled laughter.

Things were going okay. They were not isolated anymore. It was so hard to believe. But he was replaying the last few hours in fast forward.

It had. And at this point, this entire day was gonna be saved into his special folder. They slowly pulled apart.

“Ready to head to our room?”

Moon asked softly and he nodded tightening his grip on his boyfriend. He was ready to see their home.

“Let's go”

[noffy96]

Kustard kid fic

Decided to add something to my 'Back Home' Series. Red is panicking about seeing his young son battle.

that was the whole premise. hope you all enjoy

Also Nicecreamguy/Burgerpants are here. Finally getting into this part of the story as well.

First Encounters

Word count: 6,210

Chapter 1/1

Summary:

He had to suppress another chuckle. It’s kinda funny their fight was basically seeing which of their parents was better. Also, it was kinda sweet to hear what they found cool about each of them.

“That’s it! I challenge you to a duel!” The young cat monster declared

“I accept!” Nova quickly answered with no hesitation

He felt himself freeze, as he heard those words, the grin dropping from his face as he stared at the two kids.

or

The first time a monster has a monster battle is very important. Battels is how you show affection between friends. With friendly magic attacks Their son was now at the age where he and his classmates would have them. Red had expected to hear his happy son’s ramblings about it…not see it happen. And he isn’t quite sure how to feel…seeing his 5-year-old fight

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He stepped out of the shortcut about a block away from the school. Slowly meandering his way towards the crowd of parents picking up their children. He looked through the crowd if he spotted Sansy.

Nova would hopefully be thrilled that he was here to pick him up as well. He wondered what he had got up today. It was a Friday, so that meant free picking of activities. Which also meant, one of three things. Nova had gotten to play with the Sandbox, so his clothes needed to be washed. He did some painting again..which also meant the clothes needed to be washed. Or he played tag with the other children…

Well, it basically meant that Friday was the day that his son came out very messy and in need of a shower. But also with a big grin on his face, and maybe even a project he had worked on. And he was excited to see what it was this time.

He finally saw Sans leaning on the fence of the playground around the school talking with Napstablook. The smile on his face came a bit easier, and some tension melted away, stepping up beside his husband, wrapping an arm around him.

The collar around his own neck let out a pleasant hum, as he nodded towards the shy ghost. Who had seen him do this enough times, that he only turned a tiny bit transparent, instead of up and disappearing completely.

And he tuned into their conversation.

“Sooo….yeaaah.. We hope… we can get Dawn…enrolled… next year.”

“Yeah, I think it will be fine pal,” Sans responded.

“And if for some reason it doesn't work out, look for me at Grillby's on Wednesdays, Me and Red still have some stuff for when we were looking into clubs for Nova”

Blooky nodded happily

“Thank…youuu….you really are…kind….you…still play…trombone…at Grilby’s?”

His mate laughed.

“The whole reason I am there,”

then leaned forward to the shy ghost

“And if you and Shyren even wanna perform, just say the word,”

The shy ghost turned more transparent

“Ohh….nooo… I dunno.. I have to go….my friend….meeting…nice..to see you…Bye, Sans…Bye Red”

He raised his other arm and waved, as Napstablook floated towards the school, where a teacher seemed to be waiting for him.

“So, him and Shyren settling down after Mettanton's next tour?” he asked his husband who had crossed his arms to lean more on the fence.

“Looks like it, don’t wanna be touring all over, with their kid growing up. They want them to have friends”

He nodded. Nova was starting to make his own friends, and it was a joy to see. These would be people that he chose himself. And not. Happenstance cause they are the only couple of their age group around the block. Or within their parents' friends circle with kids which weren't many. But people his own age he could relate to and hang with. Still limited to a small class size of course but more choices than he ever had

He had heard all kinds of names come and go these first few weeks. But not yet a consistent name. Nova seemed to play with someone new every day, and he was happy to see that his son was so social. Even as it made nerves crawl at his spine sometimes.

Sans gave a short soft squeeze at his spine. Right. Nothing to worry about.

“I never get why, he is so nervous about performing at the bar, they perform for millions with Mettaton” he continued their conversation instead. Gesturing towards where Napstablook had disappeared

Sans shrugged, leaning more against him.

“Maybe it’s cause it is filled with familiar faces”

He let out a hum.

“So, how come you so early?”

The other asked while leaning over to peck his cheek.

“The workers installing the new airco for the server room came early. So we shut down so that they could start. And then we could hopefully get everything back online today instead of tomorrow”

Sans hummed.

“ Will That be your job later?”

He shook his head

“Nah, it’s Frank’s, only on call in case something goes wrong”

Sans straightened himself. And they both noticed the small heads of the children in front of the windows. He noticed children sitting next to the window peeking outside every now and then, looking for their parents instead of paying attention. It made his heart grin. He had barely any memories of going to school himself. He was sure that he did at some point, but mostly it had been Gaster teaching him.

He wouldn’t have stood for being distracted, He saw one kid stare at him through the window. Probably staring at his prosthetic arm, He leaned more on the fence bringing it more into view. Slowly swaying it back and forth. Seeing the kid follow it with his eyes. Then the kid snapped his head back. Looks like he was caught by the teacher.

Sans chuckled,

“You shouldn’t distract them”

He shrugged in response

“Not my fault, they think my arm is cool looking”

“Fair enough”

There was a brief silence, then was filled by the gentle buzz of other parents' conversations that he half paid attention to.

“By the way, Is Blue still coming over later? “ he asked remembering suddenly

“As far as I know, yes “

“So Taco’s tonight?”

“Unless our brothers bring leftovers, yes.”

“Sweet, it’s been a while”

It really had been. Blue had been back in underswap for a while. Having missed some bestie time with his Alphys. Stretch had certainly missed his younger brother. And Edge and Pap had been very busy between work and the twins. It helped of course that Stretch stayed home. But two young monsters that started to develop their magic? It had been hard with just one. The guy deserved some relaxation

“Probably means Nova gotta bath twice today”

“Wow, it would be the lowest record, we’ve set in months, Ow..Hey!”

His husband had shoved him out of his personal space

“Behave you”

He gave a gentle shove back. His lover rolled his eyes at him, as they got interrupted by the school bell.

They both straightened themselves and walked closer to the gate, waiting for their son. More and more children walked by. And as the minutes ticked on…he was slowly growing more worried

“I think I saw some of his classmates…”

He pointed out.

“Yeah…he might still be inside?” Sans stated but it came out more of a confused question

Why tho…? went through his mind

There were still quite a few people around…but most were parents with older kids.

“One more minute..and then we check?”

He asked, sticking his hands in his hoodie and Sans gave a nod of agreement Nova probably got talking with a classmate..it happened last time he was late. They were both probably worrying about nothing. But maybe he got in trouble with the teacher?

“Okay,...let’s go”

He gave a nod and followed behind Sans. Slowly they made their way through the hallways, some of the older kids running by. As their son's classroom came into sight, at the door was Toriel taking to two other adults. A blue bunny monster and an orange cat monster.

Oh, that is the guy that sold the Nicecreams. And the guy that used to sell the burgers at MTT resort back underground. At least…he looked like a grown-up version of that kid from his dimension. And unlike Stretch and Blues Home. Most lookalikes were pretty one-to-one here.

Toriel turned to face us

“Oh, Sans, Red, good to see you both”

She greeted the both of them with a warm smile, She didn’t seem to be panicking so that was a good sign. Nova was likely still here. But he also knew the boss monster poker face could be really good.

“Hey, Tori, Nova hasn’t shown up yet, is he still here”

Sans asked her with an air of familiarity that some people found rude to speak with the former queen. No matter how long it has been or how she insists that people act casually.

The boss monster gave a nod, and he felt his own chest ease

“Yes he is, I made him help clean up, as he and Roman have been getting into some spats all day”

The Nicecream guy smiled apologetically

“I am so sorry for the trouble miss Toriel”

She turned to the other pair of parents with the same patient smile.

“Oh don’t be dear, It’s a good teaching moment, and your kids aren't the first, and won’t certainly be the last,”

“What made them start fighting?”

He asked her. As far as he knows. Nova hadn’t gotten into any fights before today. Well nothing more than what could have been resolved at the end of the day Toriel made a sound between a sigh and a chuckle

“Roman was convinced someone had stepped on his cape. Nova pointed out it actually got stuck between some bags. And basically been a back and forth ever since, nobody could back up either one of them”

The orange monster nudged his partner.

“Told you the cape was a bad idea”

The blue one rolled his eyes in response. They got interrupted by shouting coming from the classroom they stood in front of.

“No, I AM not!”

That was their son's voice.

“Yes you are, you are just jealous!”

Came a different child's voice

“Noooo!”

“Yess!"

They all glanced inside as Toriel sighed, and stated the rather obvious.

“They are it again”

The five of them walked into the classroom. And in the center of the room were the two children. Nova seemed to have thrown a rag on the ground, the sleeves of his dark purple hoodie a bit wet from cleaning. Across him was a blue-haired cat monster. Who was wearing what looked like a handmade prince costume. Complete with a handmade paper crown and a toy sword. And of course, as indicated before. There was a bright red cape strapped to his shoulders

Toriel stepped forward and spoke up using her teacher's voice.

“Boy’s, this doesn’t look like cleaning”

Both boys crossed their arms and looked embarrassed.

“But miss Toriel.” Nova started

“No Nova, It doesn’t matter who started it, you were supposed to work together”

Nova crossed his arms again and sent a glare to the side. His eyes looked back every once in a while like Sans also does when he is frustrated.

“I am not working together with someone who calls me a poopyhead” he muttered

And the other kid let out a loud gasp

“Well, I am not working with someone who calls me a dumdum!”

He puffed out his chest as he turned away. Nova turned back in response All of them tried to hold back some giggles at their children's small argument and childish insults. As Nova turned back around angrily. Getting right back to the argument

“Well, maybe you should listen to Miss Toriel. So I don't need to repeat it"

“And last time I checked, you aren’t Miss Toriel so I don’t gotta listen to you”

The blue monster stuck out his tongue

“Yeah you do, I am older!” Nova argued

“I am taller!” Roman responded

“My pops is friends with Miss Toriel” Nova pointed at Sans who could only shake his head in amusement

“Well my dad makes ice cream, which is way better” The child waved his arms toward the blue bunny monster next to them

“Kids” Toriel spoke up. Trying to cut in between their arguments. But both kept going

“My dad has a cool robotic arm,” Nova said pointing at him

“My papa wrote Mettaton's best play!” The blue-haired child said pointing at the orange one of his two fathers

“My dad's a better fighter!”

“My dad taught me how to fight!”

“Pops did too!”

“Oh yeah! Bet you are bad at it!”

“nu-uh!“

“Ye-ah!”

“Children, please” Toriel sighed impatiently

He had to suppress another chuckle. It’s kinda funny their fight was basically seeing which of their parents was better. Also, it was kinda sweet to hear what they found cool about each of them.

“That’s it! I challenge you to a duel!” The young cat monster declared

“I accept!” Nova quickly answered with no hesitation

He felt himself freeze, as he heard those words, the grin dropping from his face as he stared at the two kids. Beside him, the Nicecreamguy stepped forward.

“Roman come now, there is no need for that"

"Actually I think it's a great idea!" Toriel said. And everyone in the room turned to gape at her.

“You mean that Miss Toriel? "

The young cat monster asked, stars seeming to fill his eyes

“of course my child, I think it would be a good opportunity for the both of you"

Toriel said while continuing to smile kindly. Meanwhile, the feelings of dread didn't subside The young cat monster let out a small cheer and then pointed at Nova with a sneer.

"You will taste my crushing defeat, you foul beast"

Foul beast!?! What kind of language was that? No monster called another one a beast unless they wanted to be like the humans that still tried to drive them back underground. He was shocked at the kid's language but was even more surprised when Nova only rolled his eyes. Was this kind of behavior normal?!

Then the orange cat monster that stood next to him spoke up gruffly

"Roman! That was not very princely of you. Was it now?…you know better. What does a prince do?"

The kid's ears flattened and suddenly looked quite embarrassed. And inwardly he sighed as he felt Sans settle a hand on the low of his back.

"Always be kind, even when fighting you don't go for the same tactics as the villain"

The monster next to him nodded. While the blue-haired one let out a chuckle in between font and tired. Like this was something they had to deal with regularly

His eyes flicked between the kid and his parents. As he took in the uniform of the orange guy. It was of one of the employees of the theatre. And he started back at the child's costume. And it all just clicked

The kid was not a bully. Just a theater kid with the flair of the dramatic.

He looked at the kid again. The young child was probably just parroting what he heard from plays and movies Not yet fully realizing what all the things he said could mean. Luckily Nova didn't seem bothered by the name calling so he could let it slide.

"Tori, don't like to be the skeptical one. But you are sure this is safe?" Sans spoke up beside him as they all looked back up at the boss monster who simply clapped her hands together delighted.

"More than my good friend, I wouldn't suggest it, if it wasn't. But the classroom is hardly the place for a friendly battle. Let us go outside "

The grown-ups gave some skeptical looks all around and followed the two excited kids and boss monster outside to the outdoor field.

Toriel grabbed a stick from the ground and drew two lines in the sand. And directed both children behind one each. And both took their position, bouncing excitedly.

Toriel stood in the middle overlooking the would-be battlefield, addressing them all.

“Okay, I am laying out the rules. And if they are broken that means you have lost the duel. Understand boys?"

"Yes miss Toriel,” both boys said.

He shifted uneasily, as Toriel had herded the four of them behind her. A good view, but not one that could easily interfere with the battle. He could feel the nervous energy around them. He trusted this Toriel. She was kind and had taught many kids over the years. She knew what she was doing. Didn't mean he had to like it.

“First. We are only using magic attacks. No objects are to be picked up and thrown or any form of physical contact. Only throwing magic attacks Am I clear?".

Both boys nodded.

'We are just going for one point. So focus on dodging each other's patterns. So the first hit wins."

Nova nodded again. But slowly the other kid raised his hand.

"We…we are only trying to get a hit in…and not like…not take hp off right?"

He fidgets in place. Ears flicking back and forth.

"Because… I don't wanna … " the boy trailed off looking worried.

He gave a half smile, seemed he really misjudged that kid at first glance, man he was getting rusty. Or he was doing the overprotective parent thing again. Likely the latter.

But his son's response kinda shocked him

"What? Suddenly afraid to hurt me!? " Nova slapped his own chest. "Don't you dare underestimate me! I am sturdy!"

Sans sighed beside him. And he himself let out a little hopeless laugh. Sans seemed intent on speaking up. When Roman cut him off.

"We all know you got the lowest hp in our class! You may be a meanie but I don’t wanna send you to the hospital!"

The kid genuinely looked distressed. And it made something awkward stir in his chest. He knew how Nova felt about his low hp. He also hated what people thought of he, or sans for that matter were fragile for their single hp.

But it also soothed him that this kid was looking out for Nova. Probably aware of how much damage an attack could actually do and what that could mean. It was a rare trait to find, especially in kids.

The Nicecreamguy leaned over and nervously asked Sans.

"Sorry to ask like this…but how much hp, DOES he have?"

He turned to glare at the tall bunny. But was surprised by Sans strong hold on his spine and answering honestly before he could tell him to mind his own damm business.

"Five….and Roman?"

To his surprise, the blue guy let out a sigh of what seemed relief. While the orange cat looked mildly horrified.

"Thank goodness. The highest damage Ro can do is three. Then I ain't too worried and Roman sits at eighteen"

Wow…pretty high for a kid that age, he thought as the blue guy's partner stuttered.

"five…just five…? That's…"

He cut him off with a growl

"More than we thought he would ever have"

The cat's jaw clicked shut. And to his surprise, the bunny chuckled

"Don't worry Cal. If Sans could handle Papyrus's teenage energy with less hp than that. Then I am sure his son can too"

The orange monster stared between his own husband and Sans with wide eyes. And Sans gave a hearty chuckle

"Not just Paps. I remember you and your siblings chugging a few attacks my way back then as well Felix"

“Sucks to be the oldest.”

"Oi, you weren't the youngest either." Sans accused him and the blue bunny shrugged.

"Not the oldest either. So your brother got younger sibling solidarity"

The two of them gave each other what seemed a fist bump of understanding. While he and the orange guy just gave each other a look of mutual confusion.

He had personally never hanged with the bunny's back when he still was in Underfell. But then again. There had been a lot more territorial spats between the bunnies and dogs. Long before he and his brother ever arrived in Snowdin.

Here the two groups of monsters seemed to get along. At least from what he could tell when he visited Sans at Grilby's for his jig. But the dogs seemed to invite every and anyone into their game nights anyway.

They all looked up when Toriel coughed loudly.

“If the audience would be silent, we are about to begin.”

The woman had a small grin that told him that she was enjoying telling them off. Especially as the two kids snickered as well. It seemed the boss monster had managed to settle the situation between the kids as well as they had been talking.

Toriel turned fully back around.

“Any more questions?”

Both kids shook their heads and steadied themselves.

“Begin”

The soft pressure of a battle starting began to fill the air. And Nova had the first move, it surprised him for half a second before realizing it had been Roman who challenged him and not the other way around. Nova took a deep breath. Placing his hand on the ground, and summoning three small bones in a line sending them towards Roman.

He gave a proud groin as the summoned attacks held. And watched as the cat’s eyes widened but managed to jump over them easily. Responding with a simple round magic bullet most kids learn early on. It didn’t have a lot of speed so Nova stepped out of the way easily as well.

He was feeling a weird combination of tension and calm. He had the feeling he had to be looking everywhere. That everyone here was a threat, and could any second. Would step in and interrupt the battle. Making it much more dangerous.

He never really got used to the turn-based system they had here. But at the same time. Seeing how small and weak the kids' attacks still were. Made him ease. It was like seeing Nova roughhousing with kids in the neighborhood the first few times. Nervewerking sure. But you slowly learn when the play fighting stays that way or turns into actual fights.

A couple of turns passed like that. Both kids easily avoid each other's attacks. Both only used small white bullets. After Nova’s first attack. He wondered if Nova had tried to imitate their ‘strongest attack first’ strategy from stories he must have heard from his Uncles at this point.

It was Roman’s turn again. Who was looking at his paws frustrated. Beside him, he saw the blue Bunny’s arm rise up. Before being quickly halted, by his orange-haired partner.

“He gotta do it himself, Felix. No hints”

“Right…Right, sorry..”

Sans's hand had migrated from his spine to around his hips during the battle but was now warming itself inside his hoodie pocket right now. Where his own clenched fist was hidden.

He gave a quick glance at his husband, but when he felt the hand move in the limited space his grin turned up a grad.

Seemed the Blue guy next to them wasn’t the only one who was having trouble keeping down the hints. As he slowly intertwined their fingers together to stop the hand signs at all.

Roman let out a grow of frustration as he shot off another pattern of bullets. They were a bit more erratic As the frustrations messed with his aim. Nova managed to dodge out of the way of all of them, but only just so. The last one had nearly hit him. He stood still just in time for it to fly past him.

He felt his own soul almost jump out of his chest as he saw it nearly hit his son in the side. But somehow managed to not move an inch forward even though he really wanted to. Nova panted a few times with a scared look in his eyes. But then a grin overtook his face that reminded him of his own.

Nova was having fun.

Nova was having his first actual battle, and he was clearly having the time of his life.

“Almost Got me. But it aint good enough! Prepare yourself!” Nova Declared.

He took a deep breath. And Nova’s eye flashed for a second. Which made his soul thrum anxiously and excitedly. Nova spread his arms beside him and summoned two really big bones taller that were than himself. One on each end of the battlefield only leaving space in the middle to pass through. But it was smaller than Roman could fit.

Sweat was breaking out of his son's face. Struggling to keep the bones summoned. Then with all his might, he swung his arms forward making them move towards the blue cat boy. Nova was shivering as he did it. And they were not moving quickly at all. But Roman had nowhere to run. Unless he wanted it to count as fleeing

The kid's eyes looked scared for a brief moment. The parents beside them trembling with probably the same feelings of wanting to step in and interrupt. But then the young boy's eyes filled with determination. And what surprised everyone he ran towards the moving bones.

“Roman?!” The blue-haired father of the boy suddenly exclaimed in panic

“What is he?!” Sans muttered worriedly.

All of them had taken a step forward. But where stopped when Toriel had held her arm out. Making them all pause. He saw the young cat monster near the gap, Surprised that Nova didn’t let the wall fall at all. Out of exhaustion, surprise, or both. No, he was shaking badly. But he kept the attack up. Heels digging into the ground. His other eye started blazing as well with the magic input. Giving up a dark-blue nearly purple glow.

Roman got closer and closer. Then he jumped and twisted his body a bit. But then…Roman just…squeezed through the widest part near the top. His body seemed to morph into just a little so that he could slip through easily. He landed on all four of his limbs before standing up with a smile. His Crown has flown off in his sprint.

Beside him, he heard a loud groan and grew worried as the tall bunny fell to his knees hand over his heart.

“Shoot…right..he’s part cat..how do I keep forgetting”

His partner laughed at him. But it had been filled with anxiety. “Dunno babe, you’ve seen him slip through tighter spaces.”

“Uugh, kindly shut up love.” the taller one said as he got back up. Still shaking lightly

His own arms were trembling. But that exchange made him grin a bit. It seems the four of them were way more terrified then. The children and the teacher in front of them.

He stared back at the battle. Both boys were panting, and also slightly shaking. The end of the battle was approaching.

“My-My…My TURN!”

Roman said in between pants. Holding his hands together. Exclaiming a shout of triumph as he suddenly held something round and white in his hands. Seemingly having conjured his own attack this time. instead of the standard bullet.

"Take this!"

The blue cat threw whatever he had made. It was a bit powdery, and flakes were falling off.

“Huh..wait what?!” the kid seemed suddenly confused. Under what Roman had just thrown, patches of ice were forming where the flakes were landing.

But it mattered little as Roman was of course now closer than he had been before. Nova had no way of avoiding the incoming snowball and threw his hands up instinctively. Making a small bone appear and it was sent hurling towards Roman as well.

“Ah!"

"No!"

Nova hadn’t been quick enough to catch the snowball and it hit him square in the face making him fall backwards. At the same time, the young cat tried to step away from the accidentally thrown bone, slipped on his own ice landing face-first into the dirt.

The feeling of a battle stopped as they both hit the ground. All four of them quickly rushed forward. But before any words were spoken by the adults

Nova had sat back up with wide star eyes, looking towards his fallen-over opponent.

“Dude you can make snow?!”

The cat monster was slowly getting up but slipped again. Falling into the dirt again, with a little groan.

“Ow…ye-yeah?”

They all stood still as Nova quickly got up and rushed over to Roman to steady him as he got up a second time. There was some dirt stuck to his fur, but he seemed fine

“That is so cool! You can have a snowball fight every day!”

The Cat boy grinned.

“Me?! What about you?! How did you make that huge attack?! Darwin is always bragging about making the biggest construct but that was way cooler! Why have you never shown it before?! “

“That was my first time doing it” Their son exclaimed proudly.

“No way!? I don’t believe you” Roman was gaping

Nova scratched the back of his head sheepishly

“I haven’t. Truly. My uncle has been trying to teach me how to make this like…Really tall bone. Just like he can. That is part of his. ‘Super cool regular attack’ But I never managed anything bigger than my leg. Let alone two! But you got me really fired up with that wild attack pattern! I just had to try!”

He let out a shaky laugh. A few seconds ago they had been at each other's throats but now they were both gushing about each other's moves. Toriel was smiling satisfied.

Right… battles were meant to forge bonds of friendships. Not like where he was from. Where everything was kill or be killed. Isn’t that why his Edge and he still sparred regularly? They might say it’s because no one else could keep up with their style of fighting. But that was just not true. It was their own form of bonding. Even if it left a lot more bruises than anything the kids here could come up with.

Nova got rid of some of the dirt on top of Roman's head.

"Also look at all this ice!", Nova pointed behind them. Continuing on excitedly "I don't think I ever saw you do that in class?"

"That has never happened before. I didn't know that. Could happen" The boy stared at the small patches of ice

"Never?"

"Never" he shook his head to confirm

"So cool!" Nova muttered. And the other boy flushed proudly.

Nova had wiped away the last of the dirt and now seemed to be absentmindedly playing with the kids' ears. Clearly finding them interesting

“I didn’t hurt you? Did I? I didn’t mean to throw that last attack!”

The young cat's ear twisted, leaning slightly into the light petting he received happily... And shook his head

“No not at all!” then seemed to pause for a moment and said with a huge toothy grin. “I’m sturdy”

Both kids burst out laughing, holding each other up through their giggles.

Toriel walked towards them and gently grasped both their shoulders. And knelt between them.

“You both did very well, I hope this has settled everything”

Both boys nodded excitedly.

“Then it is time for both of you to head home, don't you two say”

He smiled as Nova, locked eyes with them. Stars in his eyes. Clearly very eager to start gushing about what just happened.

“Uh…Nova..wait..please”

They all looked at the small cat monster, whose ears flattened as all eyes landed on him when he spoke. He clearly was surprised that everyone looked but he took a step forward and addressed their son.

“Uh…I’m…I’m sorry for calling you names all day. I just….well..” He bristled and shrugged

“Dunno…I was really convinced someone had stepped on the cape…And thought you were suggesting I was dumb. But you are pretty cool. So..yeah...Sorry..”

It was quiet around them for a couple of seconds. Before Nova rushed forward and enveloped the other monster in a hug.

“I’m sorry too. You aren't dumb. I was just trying to help. And didn't want anyone getting accused of something they didn't do”

The young cat looked happy, then guilty, and then happy again

“Hey…how about next week we play together!” He said as Nova pulled out of the hug, keeping a hold of Nova’s shoulders.

“Yeah! That be awesome! I would love to see you make that snow up close!”

“Sure!, but then you gotta try and make another big bone wall!”

“Deal!”

Both kids stepped fully out of the hug and shook hands like they just made a business deal instead of a playdate.

Before both let go and ran towards their parents. And he couldn’t help but smile at his son’s beaming face.

“Dad, Pops! Did you see how big that attack was? It was almost as big as Uncle Paps! “

It hadn’t been. But he wasn’t gonna burst that bubble. Sans chuckled picking up their excited child. And nuzzling his skull affectionately

“It sure was, little star”

He gave Nova a firm affectioned rub on his back

“Well done Starburst, Also excellent evading skills. Have you been practicing when we weren't looking”

Nova nodded.

“I let Selene and Solis throw cushions at me and avoided them!”

Oh boy…so that is why the twins were giving their parents such a hard time. He and Sans shared a look that went over their son’s head. Seemed they needed to have a conversation with their kid in the future about not Involving his younger cousins in training when they haven’t even learned to summon to control magic yet.

“I can’t wait to tell everyone! We are gonna see them this weekend right?!”

Nova swung his head between the two of them. Trying to see who would answer. Still bursting with energy that only a five-year-old can have.

He gave his son a smile

“Well, your uncle Blue is coming home early so-”

“YAy~!”

His son's cheering cut him off causing him to chuckle. Nova loved family nights, but most of all surprise family nights. And after a day like this, he was sure, his son was gonna talk everyone's ear off the second he had the chance.

They turned to face the other small family. Roman was being held against the blue bunny’s hip, much the same as Nova was. The young boy also still smiling ear to ear.

“It was nice to see you again Sans. I am sure this isn't gonna be the last” The blue bunny said with a smile.

Sans laughed,

“No, I think not. We’ll come by the shop sometime.”

Both boy's eyes widened

“Really!”

“Promise?!”

Both of them exclaimed. He sighed at the kids' enthusiasm. And he answered

“Sure, Well buy you something as a treat for an amazing fight from both of you”

The orange cat scoffed. As the kids gushed excitedly

“You might wanna make it a treat, but this one ain't gonna let you pay, and make it his own treat instead.” He pointed his thumb at his husband. Then he tried to soothe Roman's excited wriggling so he wouldn't fall out of his father's arms.

“Callied…please” The Nicecreamguy rolled his eyes.

“What I AM, right? Ain't I Felix?"

“That isn't the reason and you know it” the blue-haired guy sighed again.

“Still right you ain't gonna let them pay. Are I?"

His partner didn't deny it.

He liked the rough orange guy he decided The guy seemed fun from everything he heard him say today. Plus he respects a guy that didn’t mind calling people out on their shit. Be it good-natured or otherwise.

They all waved and said their goodbye Nova finally grew tired in Sans's hold, leaning against his chest sleepily. Not surprising with how much magic he had used. Especially for that last attack.

As Sans stood still just outside the gate. So he could hold him a bit more securely around his hip. While he tugged his son’s hoodie a bit more around him. As he slowly dozed off. Giving his skull a brief kiss. Meeting Sans's eyes for a second.

“Yeah…yeah, I know he’s fine. Not even a single hp was taken off. “

He mumbled at the unasked question

“I ain't judging you Dear. I nearly ran in myself a couple of times”

He eyed his mate again, who raised him a single browbone. Trying to dare and contradict him

“It didn’t show Sweetheart, probably for the best…for his sake”

Nova let out a soft grumble and then snoozed on.

“Probably, wouldn’t have wanted to interrupt that”

No…it was a good thing for their son to learn and fight his own battles. Friendly or otherwise. Knowing that in the future could handle himself. Even if I did now it had happened in a controlled environment. Still hard to stand there and do nothing the entire time.

He nodded. And they walked home.

Seeing his son fight had been nerve-wracking. Downright bone-chilling and made his soul give out nearly five times. But he was also damm proud he had seen it. The smile on his son’s face. The way he was now lying so satisfied in their arms. How neither He nor the young cat monster had cared who had won in the end. Both were just excited that they had been allowed to have a friendly battle at all. It all made him just that more thankful that he could have these moments.go, witness.

Little did they know then. That they hadn’t just watched their son’s first fight. They also had seen him make his very best friend

[noffy96]

Kustard Mer Au~

Finally, the direct sequel to 'Can't Stay'. I really loved writing the first, and i hope people will like this second part. And I am hoping to keep updating it in the future!

The Return.

Word count: 9,356

Chapter 1/1

Summary:

It was his move then.

He took a sip. The beer was nice and cold. Perfect with the weather they were having. Better to wash away their junk food.

Instead of leaning back this time. This time he tipped himself towards Red. Landing onto Reds side.

It obviously shocked him. But he adjusted quickly enough. Arm wrapping around him once more. As he still wore his own grin. Not looking up he spoke up

"So when are you gonna tell me we are on a date?"

Red froze beside him, his mouth falling open and he could feel the hot puffs of air on his neck.

or

Sans returns to the Island and Red. They talk about seeing if they can get a relationship between them to work. Now that the secret is out. And he is living back home in the ocean. A direct sequel to 'Can't Stay'

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He swam a little loop around a school of fish coming his way. And it made his hammering soul beat even faster. Papyrus might have been right to tease him, that he was acting like a teenager going out for their first date.

And yes he was equal parts excited as he had been nervous. He really hoped they could work something out. Going back home did make it clear he couldn’t just. Up and leave. There had been so much to do, after his year-long absence. It was a small miracle he was able to leave at all.

But Papyrus said he would cover for him, and he trusted no one more than his brother. And it was awesome to see him again after all this time. It had kept him distracted for a good while. Hearing all the wild stories he had gotten up to on his world trip. And his brother hung to his every word when he told him about Red. But it was also when the overthinking began. There were times when the nerves were getting to him.

Afraid that Red might have grown mad at him again. Now that the shock of discovering each other's secret had worn off. Not that he had been able to contact him and check…not that he would have. He is too stubborn for his own good. One of the reasons they really should talk.

There was also a part of him, that hoped that they talked about something else. But knowing the both of them. He kinda doubted it. For now, he hoped they would come to a better solution of meeting each other, that would keep both their families safe as well as contact each other.

Cause as amazing as it was that Red was also a Mer like him. The look of fear that had crossed his face as he realized he had jumped into the ocean. It was kinda haunting him.

But now he was on his way to see him. He had woken up far before the sun had begun to rise. That was weird enough, that his brother, who he sometimes swore only slept for an hour. Had been surprised to see him moving around their little grotto.

He had not been desperate enough to leave early. But he had rechecked everything for his small journey multiple times. Then with nothing else to do, he started to rearrange his part of the grotto. For a second he even debated picking up the hunting nets they always argued over. But no, he couldn’t break tradition, he just moved it an inch more to the left than normal.

Eventually, Papyrus decided the only way to calm him down was to start wrestling with him. And yeah it had gotten rid of the restless energy and the nagging voices in his brain. Hopefully, he could be his lazy ass self when he was with Red again.

He had seen the proud shine in his brother's eyes. And he just knew he would be in for some painful fraternal pestering when he returned. Considering the years of him doing the same, Papyrus earned it. He could still his brother's loud voice calling after him to

“Have fun with your boyfriend and see you tomorrow”

He felt his face flush blue at the words, shaking his head as finally saw the island appearing in the distance. He flicked his tail and sped up. Enjoying the feeling of the water rushing by him. Weaving, dodging, and looping around multiple obstacles just to get there faster.

Until he reached the rocks that were the base of his old island home. For a moment he stopped, touching the rock. It had only been a month. But somehow it felt much longer, yet shorter than that. He glanced up and saw distorted globs of green that were from a tree hanging over the edge.

Then he swam down towards the cave. Hand gliding softly against the familiar stone wall beside him. He felt his soul rate speed up as he felt the familiar slightly faster current at the cave entrance.

He remembered when he had entered with Red clinging to his back. Hands digging into his back trying not to show how afraid he had been. And all he could have focused on was getting Red out of the water as soon as he could. Somewhere where he could safely transform back.

He briefly wondered if he would get answers about why he was so afraid today. But then he squashed that thought. He didn’t want to bring it up if he could help it. And while learning his secret explained part of it. Together with the vague comments that had been made throughout their friendship. It had opened so many new questions. Questions that could wait, and didn’t need answering this second.

The fact that Red had trusted him enough to show him despite his fear was not something he would take lightly. He would listen to Red whenever he was ready, his curiosities be dammed. Even if he never got to see Red’s Mer form again. He is fine with that.

He surfaced with a gasp, then launched into a coughing fit. He had momentarily forgotten how to breathe with his lungs. After a few more rough coughs he got it under control. And he looked around the cave.

It looked the same as it always had. He reached the edge and took his time to listen to see if nothing was coming near. Then lifted himself out of the water with a big huff. He took great care to not scrape his side fins against the harsh rocks. As he crawled to the hidden corner of the gave.

Only to freeze when he lifted the rock that normally had hidden his towels and set of extra clothes.

Because there was nothing there.

Fuck! He had lent them to Red after he fell into the ocean. And since he immediately went home afterward he didn’t restock. Fuck! Didn’t even think of it when he and his brother went to gather the rest of his stuff.

He sat there perplexed. Fuck what was he supposed to do now?!. He could hardly wait to dry up, and even if he did. What then?! Walk around naked on the island?! That was not something he could do!

They had arranged to meet at the bar. Might there be a way to signal him from the water before he reached there? If he could get his attention from his car! But shit! there were likely other people. It would be right to the entrance of the town where a lot of tourists take pictures. Not a fucking safe idea.

He heard something scrape against the stone ground. Combined with the sound of ragged breathing. Fuck a person!? NOW!?. He glanced at the water. Too far away, a shadow appeared from the cafe opening. Instead, he gathered up his tail and curled as close to the corner as he could manage.

Knowing that you could only see around it if you stood at the water's edge. There was the sound of another grunt, and then something heavy hit the floor.

Fuck, Just his luck.

Of course, now would be the time for people to stumble upon his little hiding space. When he could really not use it. He had to create a distraction, and then find a way to get to Red. Fuck this was already going horribly.

He looked around, there was not much in this tight little corner, Except some small pebbles. He grabbed what he could, it was better than nothing. The person who arrived was oddly quiet.

Had this person stumbled onto this cave before? Had he just been lucky all this fucking time? He tried to glance and check, but he knew he would likely be spotted. He had to create a distraction somehow. He glanced at the pebbles in his hand and concentrated.

He used his magic to hopefully as subtly as possible drop a couple of them at the other end of the water, luring whoever was near away far enough for him to dive in. He heard the sound of rough boots hitting the floor. They seemed to be moving towards him!

His soul was pounding in his chest, coiling in tight ready to lash out. And hit whoever was near in the face with his tail if it came down to it. He could still escape. Then he would figure out how to get to Red. he wasn’t gonna give up on him he wasn’t

“Sansy?”

Wait…that was

“Sansy…that you?”

The words were whispered almost hesitantly,

He took a big breath and glanced around the corner. Only to slump in relief to see Red standing there.

“Fuck, Asshole what are you doing here?! You almost scared me to death! I thought we were meant to meet at Pub!”

Red rolled his eyes

“Yeah, but I realized I hadn’t brought your clothes back yet, so that would mean you didn’t have any”

He felt his face flush, cause of course that is exactly what happened

Red walked over to the bag he dropped at the entrance and pulled out a towel, shorts, a T-shirt, and some slippers. And he crawled out of the corner before his tail started to cramp. Smoothing out some of his scales in the process. Red handed him the small pile of clothes with a smug grin. And the annoyance must be visible on his face cause Red’s grin just got sharper. Oh, how he wished he could push his friend into the water as revenge. It’s because he knew how much he feared it that he didn’t

But he had a feeling Red knew that too. So instead he just quietly dressed himself as quickly as he could. While Red wandered back over to his bag rummaging through it.

He slowly used to wall to stand up and wobbled over towards him as he got used to the legs again. And he was handed a soda bottle

“To wash away the salt taste”

Red grunted and he had to abort a huff of laughter at the gesture. He took the offered bottle and decided to take only a couple of sips and then handed it back. As Red put his bag back on.

“Ready to go?” Red said clearly wanting to be away from the water's edge if he could help it.

Sans gave a nod and followed Red out of the cave and couldn’t help the small smile as the sun beat down on his face again. It was slightly overcast, but not terribly so.

With some difficulty, they got from the hidden path to the cave to one of the small trails around the island. Slippers weren’t the best footwear for climbing across some rocks but he managed anyway.

After taking an almost hidden sidepath they reached a cliffside with a bench that was looking out over the ocean. He looked down for a moment, some motorboats were speeding by below. The water was rougher here than on the other side of the island. He had liked this place and had visited many times in the past. Sometimes alone, sometimes with Red. It was a perfect place to talk, and not be overheard.

His grin quirked further up, as Red sat down spreading his legs obnoxiously. Somehow he took up half the space despite his small frame. He decided to do the same letting their knees brush together. Red eyed him from the side of his eye, but only let out what could be classified as an amused huff.

He closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth and the soft breeze. Trying to figure out a way to get this talk started.

“How is your brother?” Red rasped

While that was indeed as good of a place to start as any

“A manic ball of energy, “ Red snorted a laugh and he chuckled as well as he continued on.

“But good, It's nice to see him again after all this time, He must have gotten into a few scuffles, cause he got a couple more nicks and marks on his body. But mostly he is just rambling about everything he did. It’s awesome”

He was smiling fondly, he couldn’t help it. He was really proud of Papyrus going off on his own.

“Tell me a story then, I am curious”

He glanced at Red who was also wearing a lazy grin, and he felt his soul ease. Seems Red, was also not eager to get into the big topics right away. But this is what he liked doing with Red anyway. That somehow easy way of communicating that happened between them. That genuine interest. Fuck, he had missed him.

He grinned and tipped his head up looking at the leaves above them.

“Well…it ain't a story…but I think he got a Crush”

“On a scale of one to ten how bad?”

“Solid eight, he met this mer on his travels named Blue, They traveled together for a few months. And just. .” He let out a sigh “ I never heard him talk about anyone like this. Well maybe Mettaton but that doesn’t count “

“Hold on!” Red sat up straight and pointed a finger at his face

“You told me your brother never left your home city, which I am thinking now meant never left the ocean? So how the fuck does he know Mettaton?!”

He let out a startling laugh.

“Found some merchandise near a dumping side. he became obsessed with it. Also for a long while some fisherman kept blasting it from their boats. You don’t wanna know how many times I had to drag him back down, because he was getting too close for my liking”

Red laughed loudly

“Is that a trait shared with little brothers?!, Edge was doing the same when we first started living here. Always sneaking off to try and sneak into the club where they were playing his music. Honestly, we where enough hot water as it was, without the bouncer chasing down”

He burst out laughing.

“Fuck, it must be a shared trait then. But yeah. All he can talk about is this new mer. Apparently, he even convinced Paps to go on land a couple of times when they traveled together. When I tried to ask about how that was he turned quite red in the face.”

He snickered as he recalled Pap's face. Red was chuckling as well.

“Sounds like when Edge first got his crush on Stretch. He was trying so hard to hide it, but it was so obvious. To everyone but Stretch of course”

He continued to snicker

“Do I need to be happy that I only met them after they started dating?”

“Definitely”

Both of them laughed loudly before it slowly trickled out.

“So this Blue guy? Did he come as well? Or is he visiting later or something”

He shook his head.

“From what I understand, Blue will keep traveling. Apparently, he lost his family somehow and is trying to find them. Has been searching for years if I understand Papyrus correctly. “

“Oof that’s…that’s rough”

Red frowned, and he bet that they thought the same thing, that if it was their brothers being taken. Would they do the same.

“Yeah, But Papyrus kinda offered that if he ever needs it. That he could stay with us. So he might be coming but. If or when is a bit…up in the air”

There was a silence as they stared over the water, eyes being drawn to the small motorboats sailing past before disappearing around the cliffs as they further circled the island

“Difficult guy to get a crush on…”

He gave a hum. He was unsure of how this was gonna unfold himself. He didn’t want his brother to get hurt by longing for someone whom he could barely see. For someone who would always have a bigger purpose maybe.

But he also didn’t want to be meddling too much in his life not more than he had. For now, he just keeps an eye on how Paps is feeling.

“Wait a sec…”

He looked to the side to see Red staring at him

“Something the matter?”

“No not exactly, it’s more…I could be wrong, it’s been a long time. But….”

Red scrunched his eyes clearly struggling to find the words he was looking for.

“Fuck, what were they called…Overseerers? ..are they still a thing?”

That was a title he hadn’t heard in a long while and seemed to confirm his suspicion that Red hadn’t returned to the ocean after he and his brother made landfall however many years ago that was.

“Guardians is what we call them nowadays…”

Red seemed relief that he got what he meant

“Okay..but…if you want to invite someone to stay in the territory under its protection…you need their permission, right? You can’t just invite someone to stay long-term. Unless you meet with them right?”

He gave a nod,

“That is true under most circumstances yes. But Papyrus knows he has that kind of permission”

Red’s eyes widened looking slightly scared

“But wait. How did he ask permission if he was gone?! Is he like? Friends with them or something?! But even then, that be a huge ass gamble! Your brother might get hurt because of this. You should really-”

He raised his hand before Red could go list all the things he could do to fix it. And dread filled him. Knowing they were gonna step into their serious talk within the next few seconds

“I assure you, he can”

“Isn’t there like a whole, ceremony thing of having to meet the overseer? That was how it was when I was still” Red swallowed thickly and moved on

“And you couldn’t just casually swim up to an overseer. That is asking for retaliation”

With a sigh he said

“Considering he told me everything, And I have no intention of sending Blue away when he does come over. Nor do I have any reason for hurting my brother…or anyone that comes with such a simple request really”

It was quiet for a couple of seconds. Then his t-shirt was grabbed and he was pulled closer as Red stared at him angrily

“Are you fucking telling me!? You! Are the overseer?!”

He had expected the reaction and leveled his friend with an even look. Not reacting to his anger at all.

"Yes, got a problem with it"

Red’s red eyes stared him down. Like he trying to see if he was bullshitting him. Then to his own surprise a grin split on Red's face.

"Fuck me, you really are something Sansy,"

He could feel a light flush forming on his face. The way Red's voice dropped was sending chills down his spine in the best of ways.

"W-what?"

Red's grin got sharper, pushing himself closer, towering slightly over him. Their foreheads touching. He was definitely blushing at this point.

"You always put up the harmless act, you even got me fooled there buddy. But…to be an overseer. You must be one of the strongest around. I knew I liked you for a reason"

He let out a dry laugh. Okay, that tidbit of knowledge was going over far better than he ever expected.

He didn't really think his role as guardian was that impressive. But well…there was also a reason it hadn't been taken from him in all these years.

Red's grin stayed. Looked like he just won the biggest prize ever and it made him swallow thickly. Red pulled away slightly as his gaze dropped to his mouth.

Then he noticed one corner quirking up. And before he could react. Red was leaning forward again. But he didn't get a kiss like he thought.

No instead, Red's mouth brushed his cheek. Surprisingly soft and gentle. Then lingering just above him, their hot breath fanning over his face.

He let out a questioning sound. Which made Red laugh. And he pulled back with a shit-eating grin. Sitting back against the bench staring over the horizon again.

He started at him.

Oh

Oh, that fucking asshole.

He couldn't help the grin himself. Letting out a few flustered chuckles before settling back into his lazy sprawl. If a bit closer to Red than before

So this is how it was gonna be? Then two could play that game. Red had laid his arm over the back of the bench. As he had sprawled again. And he very subtly leaned into it.

He saw the look of surprise pass over Red's face and a quick glance. He gave his own grin as Their eyes met briefly..

Oh yes….the game was on.

Red let out a sigh as the arm dropped from the bench to around his shoulders.

"That explains why staying wasn’t really an option for you though"

Red Murray looking a bit sad. And he gave a nod. It was. He had duties back home.

"The fact that I could make a deal with the neighbor guardians so I could leave for a year. Is already… a lot. That's built on years of trust. And even then I had to regularly check back"

Red nodded. " I always wondered where you went…but then most things I found for communication are a total no-go then, as most of them use a tracking signal.."

He sighed helplessly

"Anything that might track…it ain't … good. Too many lives are at stake. What had you found?"

Red waved his free hand around.

"Nothing much honestly. The thing is if you try to communicate that deep underwater. You usually try and get back out. So they track it. So they can search for it in case something goes wrong. I might be able to reverse-engineer something. But then…I don't know what I would use in its place…"

He picked at some loose thread in his shorts. It wasn't like he had many other ideas. Try and stay in touch with an actual ocean between them. It'll be hard either way they would go about it.

Of course, that would be if he decided that he would keep coming back to Red. And….he had made his decision a month ago. He would want to. He wanted to at the very least give it a fucking shot

He might have been making fun of Papyrus Crush earlier. But he had been on the receiving end of the teasing as well. Apparently, he talked a lot more gushingly about Red than he realized.

But when Papyrus had stopped his teasing to just quietly tell him that he really hoped that this hopefully new relationship would work out for him. He could feel the weight of that.

Papyrus had always wanted the best for him. But he always, always out his brother first. It's why he became a guardian in the first place. To protect him. And keep him safe.

Papyrus was coming for his title…he knew. And one day he might get it. But for now, it was still his to carry. He never thought he might get a chance at a relationship. It was part of what made him want to leave without returning last time.

But Red. Red had chased him down. Even after he had hurt him. He hadn't wanted to leave in the first place even though he knew he was gonna, he made that promise But that...that kinda sealed the deal. Even if red hadn’t been a Mer. If had jumped in after him and he had been a normal monster still. He would have given it a shot.

Because Red braced his fear for him. That he could get over himself and truly. Actually, truly give this a shot. He wouldn’t give up his role. He couldn’t not after all this time. Not to just anybody. He wasn’t gonna leave the people under his protection without someone he couldn’t a hundred percent trust

Suddenly he was cut off from his thoughts by a rumbling sound. Red let out a laugh

'You hungry Sansy?'

He chuckled lightly as he indeed realized that sound had come from him.

"Starving, honestly".

Having realized he hadn't really eaten anything since before he left. And then it had only been a little with his nerves so high.

Red removed his arm from around him. Much to his disappointment. To pull his bag up, opening and rummaging around. Pulling out a plastic container, and handing it to him.

He took it carefully. Eying it from all angles. Whatever was inside was wrapped tightly in tin foil. Trying to guess what it was.

"What ya waiting for? dig in"

Red had pulled a second container from his bag, dropping it back on the ground between them. Opening his own with a satisfying pop.

He glanced at his own container for a moment longer. Before doing the same. The tin foil packaging was slightly warm. Then he started to carefully unwrap whatever was inside surprised to find

A burger

Fuck it had been a while since he had a burger. He tried not to start salivating as the smell hit him. Glancing to the side seeing Red unwrap his own burger as well.

And then he stared in awe as Red took a bite. He had a bit of fascination with Red's mouth. Or more specifically those razor-sharp teeth. So he watched fascinated as Red opened his big Maw, that one gold tooth glistening in the sun. And watch it bite through the burger with ease. And not for the first time he wondered what Red would look like if he feasted after a hunt.

He had imagined that often even before he knew Red was a mer like him. But In the last month. He had thought about it way more…that and other places he could bite.

He quickly looked away before he could get caught. Taking a bite of the burger. He let out a Groan of satisfaction as he realized it had been covered in his favorite ketchup.

Beside him, he heard Red make a satisfied ‘heh' sound. Half between a laugh and something else. And he couldn't even be mad. The burger was just too good. It wasn't one of Grillby's burgers. It wasn't greasy enough. And normally he would complain. But the juiciness of this one was making up for it in spades.

As he wolfed down the burger, Red bent down to grab something else from his bag. Whatever it was made a hissing sound and was set next to him.

He glanced down to find a can of beer. Condense was dripping down its side. And as he watched the droplet hit the bench. Something clicked inside his brain.

Well played…seems Red had an ace up his sleeve. And it had been there before they even started. The thought made him smile.

He finished the last of his burger licking his fingers one by one. Not wanting to waste anything. Before grabbing the offered beer. Glancing over.

Red had returned to his sprawl. Legs spread wide. Arm thrown over the length of the little Bench. Sipping his own beer with a lazy sort of grin. As he watched the sky.

It was his move then.

He took a sip. The beer was nice and cold. Perfect with the weather they were having. Better to wash away their junk food.

Instead of leaning back this time. This time he tipped himself towards Red. Landing onto Reds side.

It obviously shocked him. But he adjusted quickly enough. Arm wrapping around him once more. As he still wore his own grin. Not looking up he spoke up

"So when are you gonna tell me we are on a date?"

Red froze beside him, his mouth falling open and he could feel the hot puffs of air on his neck. He recovered quickly

"What makes you think this is a d-"

"Oh please, " He cut him off "Food and alcohol, I remember you telling me that's all you needed for a good romance"

He glanced up at Red's face. Happy to see him. now trying to fight a blush.

"We did that all the time before.." Red argued though it sounded a bit weak

"Yup," he popped the p at the end. And they stayed quiet for a few seconds letting Red stir for a bit

"But you didn't usually give me, homemade food"

He glanced up. And he knew he won. Cause they both knew. That, that part was kinda of a big deal.

Red treated a lot of people. To drinks, a burger, some fries. Usually, he did it to get something he wanted.

Heck, that was how their own friendship started. Red had offered him a beer to learn about the new guy.

But something he made. Yeah, that was special. For most of their friendship, he thought Red couldn’t cook. Until Edge got sick one day. And Red was the one cooking for him. The smells had been amazing. Even if he never had tried any of it. And even when Edge could technically make his own again. Red bullied him out until he was fully recovered to the amusement of Him and Stretch

Red avoided his gaze.

"So what if it is…"

He laughed softly. It might have meant the homemade food. It might have meant the date. It didn't matter. In the end, it was all the same thing. And he didn't feel like playing anymore.

It was fun while it lasted. He gave this win to Red though. Actually planning something romantic.

Well romantic for them at least

Instead of just talking about…everything. Bit more his style too. So he turned to face his friend. Dropping his grin In favor of a smile.

"If it is…I'd ask him for a second"

Red eyes widened slightly. And he leaned forward and brought their mouths together. It started softly. As their first kisses a few months ago. Well, all Except that very first.

But it quickly turned hungry, filthy even. Red's hand came up to the back of his head. Keeping them pressed together harshly. Red's other hand was fisted into his t-shirt as he licked into his mouth.

Which, he allowed without question. Letting out a soft groan as their summoned tongues touched. Red was tasting strongly like mustard. So unlike the cherry hard candy he had tasted like last time. But just as addicting.

His hand kept stroking at Red's face. Feeling the rougher bone. The other is at Red's shoulder trying to pull him closer and closer.

They pulled away slightly. Huffing their breaths in each other faces.

Red chuckled softly

"Fuck, this is real? ain't it, sweetheart?"

He was blushing again. And he leaned closer.

"Yes, and we will make this work somehow…Promise "

Red eyes got a determined glint in them. A fiery sort of.red glow. And he leaned forward to claim.his mouth once more.

They kept making out for several minutes. Just like that. Hidden away on their little overlook. Away from anyone who would walk the path unless they knew the area.

But they forgot. Not so hidden from if you were on the sea.

"Whoo! That's hot! Keep it up!"

Both of them sprung apart at the sound. Looking down at the water a speedboat with laughing teenagers tore off.

Red threw a bone attack after them. It only made them.laugh.louder as it landed in the water. He dropped beside red again. The mood is completely gone. And Red angrily mumbled about people minding their own damm business.

But he fell quiet as he slowly intertwined his own hand with his. He gave it a squeeze. After Red stared at their hands for several seconds. Like he couldn't believe it. Squeezed back.

He swallowed thickly

“I think I have an idea, that could still keep us in contact somewhat. It is not perfect. But better than setting up meetings and hoping that we will always make those."

Red was still not speaking. Eyes still on their hands. Before letting go to his surprise. Only to warp that arm back around him and intertwine it with his other hand.

He let out a huff of surprise. Leaning more against his….boyfriend? Is that what they are now? Feels too juvenile really. The word at least.

" mmmm let's hear, better than the nothing I have"

He gave a nod.

"So let’s still make arrangements to meet. But if we know. We ain't gonna make it…we should leave a message in the cave for the other to find. Maybe where I used to leave my clothes. We can hide a stack of papers and a pen. And leave a message for the next available meeting time. I know that still leaves last-minute errors. And to drive or swim all the way to here to leave a message. Is a bit much maybe. But"

He got cut off by a kiss on the top.of.his.skull.

"It's a good solution until we find something better. One that's also safe to use"

He nodded. So that discussion was over for now at least. He glanced down at the hand that was holding his. Should they actually talk more about that too? Well … maybe in one way.

" I’ll plan the next one" he mumbled but since they were so close he knew Red heard it.

"Huh?'

"Our next date…I dunno how. But I am the one planning that one. Since you got this one"

Red's grin widened and he knew what he was gonna say before the words even left his mouth

“I never agreed to one".

He glanced back up with a grin of his own.

"You kinda did when pulling me back in for a third kiss, and a fourth, and a sixth and a -"

He was cut off by a kiss on the cheek.

"Cheeky little shit"

"Annoying asshole"

He was held just that big closer as they grinned at each other. Yeah…they were gonna be fine. New and kind of scary territory But somehow it also felt old and familiar in an odd way.

Red gained a frown slowly

"Not. That I want you to go…but. When do you need to leave?"

He gained a frown of his own. He had kinda thought he'd return tonight. But now it felt like that would be too little time spent together. As suddenly his brother's words rang in his ear. As teasing as they had been. It seems he had an answer

Slowly gaining a grin

"Well, my brother said. See you tomorrow… and I think I can leave my basic duties in His care for one day. So…." He leaned Closer

"Tomorrow afternoon? "

Red's grin grew.

"Wanna go to my place and watch shitty action films?"

His own grin came back

"Lunch and a movie. You spoil me"

Red shoved him off with a fond laugh.

"Asshole"

He hummed not denying it. they packed Red’s bag again. They turned around to walk the rest of the way back to the little town on the island. Only to see the dark overcast clouds.

It seemed a storm had been brewing on the other side of the island. He had forgotten how quickly the weather could. change here sometimes.

They gave each other a brief look, before nodding and hurriedly taking off As they made their way further down. It started to rain. First softly, making the ground more slippery. And combined with the fact he was still only wearing slippers. That didn't go well. The amount of times he almost fell on his ass where too numerous to count. Those slippers were discarded and he just carried them, after the 3rd time being stuck in the mud.

The rain started really coming down as they reached the cobblestone path that led into town. Red had his hoodie over their head trying to shield himself from the rain. But He didn’t have that luxury. The thin white t-shirt clinging to his bones. As they ran through the water-covered streets as the wind picked up. In the end, they were sprinting towards Red's beat-up truck.

It, of course, was parked in that same place it always was. Red struggles a bit with the keys, but manages to throw the door open and they clambered inside. Just as the first clap of thunder sounded.

Red cursed starting the car. "There is an extra towel in the back. But we gotta go before this storm closes the bridge."

He nodded, and quickly buckled himself. As Red sped off as fast as he dared with this weather. He managed to get the towel free as they reached the bridge. Quickly drying his face.

They were not wet enough to trigger a transformation. Not by a long shot. But doesn't mean it was comfortable or wanting to risk it. He wanted to hand Red the towel.

But Red’s eyes were focused on the road. Eye lights little pinpricks. The wind picked up splashing water here and there over the bridge. The rain was hard enough that even though they were halfway over the bridge they still couldn't see the mainland.

Red let out a shuddering breath as a wave crashed just behind them. Not big enough to be any danger of being pushed off. But it wouldn't be that way for long

Red was clearly freaking out. Hiding it much better than when he had actually been in the water. He brought a hand over to Red's knee holding it softy hoping to provide some sort of comfort.

Red's grip on the wheel Loosened a tad. But not much. He kept his hand steady. Not letting go and letting him know he was here. As the rain clattered loudly against the car. It sounded almost deafening. Another clap of thunder sounded. It was much closer than before. Then several flashes. And he saw a lightning bolt hit the water in the distance to their right.

Slowly lights from the city came into view through the thick curtain of rain. Another wave crashed behind them as they left the bridge. Seeing officers at the other side leading people away. Clearly not letting anyone cross. He pretended not the hear Red let out a sigh of relief as they turned into the city centre.

Traffic in the city was awful. With the storm. It was busier than he had ever seen it. The sound of traffic horns where everywhere. Cars were driving slowly. People were running across the sidewalks trying to find shelter. He turned to Red, giving his knee another squeeze.

Water was still dripping off his face. And he must be getting cold As he hadn’t had the chance to dry off. Heck, he was shivering lightly. The heating of the car only doing a little. And while Red's eyes weren't pinpricks anymore. He was still quite tense. Clearly, the bridge had been a bit too close for comfort.

As they came to a stop by a traffic stop. He sat up and quickly warped the, slightly damp towel around Red’s shoulders. It probably didn’t do much, but it was better than nothing. His own shirt might be clinging to his ribs still. And there was likely a puddle forming at his feet. But he was dryer than him.

Red eyed him, probably about to protest, when the cars in front of them started to move and he concentrated on the road again. He rubbed his own arm in the hope of staying warm. But not letting go of Red At this rate, it'll be at least another twenty minutes before they arrive at Red's place. If not longer.

"If you got some more questions, I can answer them now…not much else to do"

He suggested, in the hope to distract Red's thoughts a little more. Red let out a gruff hum. Both are still silent. And he thought Red wouldn't take him up on the suggestion. With how hard he was staring out the front. It was a completely different look from the lax laid-back way he usually sat in while driving. Every bone on his body was tense. Ready to spring to action.

"How….long have you been the oversee- eh I mean guardian? "

He smiled at the correction. And he had kind of expected that question back at the cliffside. But he was fine with answering it now

" I was fifteen back then. So…twelve years now"

They were in front of another red light and had been slowing down. But it felt like Red had stepped on the break a bit harder than intended with the way the flew forward.

"What?!"

He rubbed his shoulder where the seatbelt had duck in. Red had turned to face him and if he wasn't driving he was sure he would have been grabbed again.

"What?" He answered back at Red's wide-eyed stare.

"How the fuck did you get into that position that young!? And then keep it for so long!? The longest overseer I knew only had the position for three years. And there was a rumor of one going on five. But those were old guys. And giant mers. I saw you….how the actual fuck…I didn't think they would let anyone challenge that young either?!"

He chuckled dryly. Well…it wasn't that Red was wrong necessarily.

"You can when the previous one is your Dad, and he's an asshole," he said with no form of amusement

And he heard Red's mouth click shut as he murmured "Fucker had it coming, " As he remembered what it had been like back then. His father had been more obsessed with his own ego and how he was perceived than actually protecting and providing for the community.

His father had trained him. It had been brutal, and painful. Leaving him without food as he didn't meet his expectations. And had left him in a ditch somewhere far too often to count. Somehow always surprised when he returns but never pleased. But as he tried to do the same to Papyrus. Try and make him fight people several years older than him. He stepped in to protect his barely ten-year-old brother.

His dad must have thought it would be an easy win. It hadn't been. It had been the hardest and most brutal fight of his life. But as his father's body sank to the bottom of the sea. And he could feel that power of the position passes over to him.

Well, it felt like he had made the right decision. And made a promise to his brother. Who had been hiding in fear Luckily didn't see a thing. That he would keep him safe. That this place would be good for any young child. So that they didn't suffer like he did.

And he kept that. There had been challenges to his rule. But they were nothing like that first fight. At some point, his reputation proceeds him. And as he didn't extend the territory. And just generally kept to himself. Other guardians didn't bother him too much. The reef blossomed. More mer of all different species moved in. Some just stayed as part of a migration cycle. .

He had done what his dad refused to do. And he was proud of that.

He shrugged lightly.

"And as for challenges, they stopped after a while. The only one that does at this point is Paps."

Red made a chocking sound

"Wait..your brother?"

He hummed "It's green by the way"

Red's gaze snapped forward and started up before the people behind them started to honk

"But to answer yes. He isn't trying to kill me if that's what you are thinking"

He cocked his head a bit to the side. Squeezing the other's knee

"I know that is the main way most people know of how the power changes. But it really is just by defeating them. It's only that for most gardians only see death as a defeat. I don't see it like that. But doesn't mean I am gonna make it easy. He has been trying to take the posting for the last five years."

Red drummed his fingers against the wheel

"You sound proud of that"

He laughed.

"Fuck yeah I am, I am honestly looking forward to the day he does beat me. I think it means I've done my job well And the fact that he is not giving up? Honestly, it's awesome. I think he would be much better at this whole job than I am honestly. But like I said I ain't gonna make it easy for him. And he wouldn't want me to"

Red let out a gruff laugh

"Reminds me of Edge."

It was said with a proud smile. That left him feeling all kind of fuzzy.

And with that, they fell into another silence as they pulled up into Red's neighborhood. The rain hadn't let up and it didn't show any sign of stopping soon. As water seemed to be streaming down some streets. The drains doing their best to take everything away. And as they pulled up in front of the garage they sat there. Staring at the door.

"Fuck". Red muttered knowing one of them had to go through the rain again to open it

He checked the glove compartment. Checking if Red still kept the house keys there like always. Smiling as they indeed were. He grabbed them and went to open his door as he was pulled back.

Red having unbuckled himself as well

"And what do you think you doing?"

He was about to answer when Red clashed their mouths together. Surprising him. He was still staring wide-eyed. However, he didn't mind this sudden change. Until he felt the keys plucked from.his.hand.

"H-hey!"

He stuttered.

"My date, my rules. Too bad sweetheart. You sit ain't lifting a finger"

While normally he didn't mind getting too lazy. There was still a slight manic look in Red's eyes. He wasn't gonna let him deal with more fear of transforming than he had to

So he pulled Red back. And kissed him as well. He was fully aware that the same trick wouldn't work. But he had to try.

But like he expected, Red had clenched his fist tightly around the keys. And then brought it to his back so he couldn't reach it.

That's fine. He kept on kissing his…boyfriend.. really need.to.find something better to call him..Anyway. Licking at his mouth to let him in. If he couldn't get it. At least he wanted to enjoy the sloppy make-out.

They both sprung apart at the sound of the Garage doors opening. Only to see Edge near the door, being clear that he was the one who opened it. And Stretch was in the door leading into the rest of the house.

He was happy he was back in his seat by the time their faces came into few. He wasn't intent on hiding …. Whatever you call this new relationship…was. But that didn't mean he wanted Red's younger brother watching them suck face.

He got a surprised raised eyebrow from Edge. Clearly not expecting him. And Stretch waved happily after noticing him as well. The two went inside without so much as a word. As Red drove the car inside with a slightly embarrassed red tint.

If that was because of the kiss. Or that his brother felt the need to open the door with his known fears of water...or more accurately transforming into his Mer form. He couldn't tell.

As Red turned the engine off. He mumbled

"My brother knows…but Stretch still doesn't"

He gave a nod. He had expected Red to tell Edge after he given the go-ahead. Red didn’t like keeping secrets from his brother. He was surprised Stretch still didn’t know. He thought Edge might have told him Since they’ve been dating for so long. But he supposed they might not want getting the secret of their true nature out.

"As in me. Or anything" He asked for clarification, just to be safe.

"Anything"

He gave another hum.

"Well, then nothing changed. "

Red let out a huff of a laugh and got out, and he did the same. Putting the dirty muddy slippers near the door. He didn’t need to drag mud into the house in addition to the water. Luckily their little sprint through town had washed away most of the mud that had caked to his feet.

"That's true."

He answered Red’s statement. He walked towards Red. Who after closing the garage, got the bag out from where it was tossed into the backseat in their haste to get in the car. He gave a small smile quickly kissing Red's cheek as he walked past. And continued

"Well…not nothing"

Red gave him a playful shove. And they both grinned at each other. Before walking inside.

"Asshole"

"Prick"

"Dickhead

"Bastard"

He heard a long-suffering sigh as they entered the living room.

"Good to see nothing has changed at all Sans"

Edge said tiredly. And he grinned up at the taller skeleton. Who threw a towel at the both of them. He wrapped his own around his arms. Warming himself up. As Red removed his hoodie, draping it over a radiator.

"You thought I would change in a month's time. I am almost hurt Edgelord"

Red snickkered passing his brother and flopping down on the couch. And he followed suit as Edge let out another long-suffering sigh. Seeing that it was covered in towels as well. He didn’t feel too bad about it.

"You want anything to drink Sans?."

He said instead, diverging the conversation entity. And as always the good host.

"Nah I am good, thanks"

Red opened his mouth. But Edge spoke up before he could even start.

"Get your own shit you lazy ass, he is the guest. You should be doing this anyway"

Red shrugged sinking further into the couch.

"And have you yell at me for somehow doing it wrong? No thanks, boss. "

Edge bristles and Stretch laughed at the brothers' antics. Before turning to him.

"I thought you be moving back home. Permanently? Didn't think you be back so soon"

He shrugged lightly

"well…that was the plan..but".

He glanced at Red, with a half-smile

"Plans change, I ain't staying long. Going back home tomorrow. "

Stretch grinned as he clocked the glance and laid back with a huge all-knowing grin.

"I see…sad you can't stay longer. Otherwise, I would have asked for that Mario Kart rematch"

It seems Edge had caught his reaction too. Because it seemed the brothers were doing Their, having a conversation without words bit. Which seemed to end, with Red really sinking his full weight into the couch. And maybe not so subtly leaning towards him.

Seems the cat was out of the bag for this one. So he only hesitated for a moment. Before deciding fuck it...and grabbing Red's hand again. Considering Red’s grin only grew. It was the right choice to make

The taller two skeletons didn't make any comment on it. Instead just catching up on the month he had been gone. All of them were eager to hear stories about his brother.

All the while leaning more and more into Red. A couple of times. When Red was listening to one of Stretch’s wild stories. He caught Edge's gaze. He was looking hopeful and happy. But…it seemed not for himself.

And he hid the look the second Red even seemed to be moving his gaze towards him. Then glancing at his own boyfriend with a sort of hopeful desperation.

He wondered how long Edge had been desperate to tell his boyfriend about his true nature. And he studied his face, a answer to his previous thought question was answered. Edge probably didn’t tell Stretch so there would be no chance to reopen Red's old wounds.

Red hadn't told him anything. But the panic after he transformed told enough of a story. These two had completely cut themselves off from their former lives in the ocean. But it seemed Edge might still hold a fondness for it he really wished to share. He hoped he would be able to soon.

He glanced at Red again there was only a faint hint of the earlier panic left in his gaze. And he doubted he could fully remove it. But he was willing to learn. Willing to be here.

But for now, all the distractions seem to have helped. And as they all decided it was about time to get ready for bed. And the two lanky skeletons disappeared behind Edge's door.

He wasn't all that surprised to find Red's mouth on his own again. A little desperate, like he thought he might just leave right this second. He had to stop himself from making a noise as Red's hands traveled down his waist and squeezed.

Red pulled away with a smug grin, crowding into his place and pushing him further against the couch.

"What was that, sweetheart?"

He gave a glare back. Glancing up at Edge's room. Before turning back to Red who still grinned sharply.

"Shut up, and kiss me again"

"My pleasure."

And kiss they did. They probably should move this somewhere else before either one of the other skeletons came out of the room to use the bathroom or something.

But he couldn't quite care. He cared more about the mouth beneath his own. The taste of mustard was gone and again there was that faint flavor of hard cherry candy.

When Red let out a loud groan. They both pulled away panting. Then holding still making sure no one was coming before Red got off him and started dragging him to his room.

He was pushed against the door the second it closed behind them. But Red didn't kiss him again. No, he was staring straight into his eyes.

"Where you serious….about-" Red glanced away briefly refeling how nervous he actually was "Trying to make this….us work?"

He recalled his words from the cliffside conversation. He moved a hand up stroking his cheek.

"Yes…I was. "

Red gave a tiny nod and let out a shuddering breath.

"Good"

He leaned up and softly clicked their teeth together briefly. Which made Red flush more than the entire makeout had done.

"It ain't gonna be easy " he breathed out “I really can't leave much. Maybe once a month…so we are doing this long distance basically. But I am willing to fucking try okay. "

Red nodded again

" so am I." Red hadn't pulled away an inch. Both their words were whispered but it also felt like they were screaming it at each other. And he gave Redd a nod back.

The tension between. Them was thick. Both seemed to wait for something. Probably hoping the other would say it first. Eventually, he tilted his head up.

Their teeth brushed together again. And it felt suddenly easy to breathe those four scary words out

"I fucking love you".

Red's eyes widened. And he pressed forward a bit harder. But Red pulled back. Eyes like steel. Staring right down into his soul

"And I fucking love you too"

His soul seemed to decide to become a gymnast with how many summersaults it was doing.

And he dragged Red further down changing their chaste kiss to a Hungry one. Before slowly being dragged to the bed. He doubted something was gonna happen with the other two in the room next to theirs

But he had a feeling both were creative enough. To have some fun in their own right. Planning the next meeting can wait till morning. Beside for both of them. Actions were much louder than words.

[noffy96]

NicePants fic

So a first for me, not writing about skeletons, but one of my favorite other ships

This was supposed to be written for Valentines Day. But guess what it got away from me. But that's nothing new. So here we go.

Valentines Gifts

Word count: 9078 words

Summary :

The other was grinning wildly like he had done some perfect detective work. And he had figured him all out He glanced around and when he was sure no one was around, he leaned forward. Close to the others face

You know, I was planning on sharing some of it, but if you have to be a little shit, I just keep them all to myself” To his delight, the other smile grew and saw his tail doing a happy little whip “What’s this, good little Felix using bad words, what would the mothers think~”

or

The Nicecream guy, can't wait to spend the rest of this Valentine's Day, with his roommate/best friend. But after a bit of an unpleasant encounter with an admirer, Burgerpants lets something slip, that might change their relationship forever. As gifts are exchanged, will the feelings behind them as well?

-- Link here to AO3-

or continue right below the read-more line

He handed the young woman her two nicecreams, and waved her off, as she happily went to what he assumed was her boyfriend. He quickly checked his storage, he was nearly out. But he thinks he might make it to the end of his shift., happy that he had packed all the extras and then some. Despite the light chill, it seemed a lot of couples still wanted one of his nicecreams on their dates this lovely Valentine's Day.

“If you keep standing like that for too long, someone might just steal your money you know” He started smiling at the voice and quickly stood up “Hey Burgy, you’re off early”

The orange cat monster was leaning against the cart, positioned such that no one would get to his register, and a wave of fondness for his best friend came over him once again. In his arms was a giant bouquet of flowers “Yeah the director let everyone go early, so thought I keep you company” “Awe Thank you, you don’t have to stay tho…I think I'll be here a while longer”

The other just shrugged, “That’s fine, I just do some work here, if I go home I’ll probably distract myself. You got any plans for dinner?” He had to fight the blush, that wanted to come on his face.

“Not really, but I assumed neither of us wanted to cook, so bought pizza yesterday, should be in the freezer” “Fuck, you’re the best”

He laughed, and playfully hit the other's arm “Language, I don’t wanna lose customers”

The other rolled his eyes “No one here, you worrywart.” Letting the insult slide, he eyed the bouquet “so what’s with the flowers, got an admirer at the theatre?”

He kinda hated that a flame of jealousy came up as a small smile came over the others face as he stared at the flowers. Most people would describe the other as coming across as unpleasant. But then again most people still called him the same nickname he had when he still worked for the MTT resort. And not a lot of people saw this side of him, the softer side, beneath the gruffness. Part of him selfishly wanted it all for himself. But he squashed that part down hard or tried to at least.

He would be happy for his friend. No matter what. That is what he decided long ago, no matter how complicated his feelings for his roommate got. He would always and forever be his friend first.

Cal had some shitty people in his life, and he wasn’t about to become one of them.

The other faced him again. “It’s from the kids, apparently since it’s a day of love, and they love what I do for them” He lifted the flowers a little, indicating the gift he had received

He felt slightly more awful for being jealous of the gift now. Cal deserved the recognition he got, he was doing so much to help the local theatre grow. Nice to see that other people saw it as well. “It’s lovely…and very big, I’m not sure if we got a vase big enough”

The other's ears perked up excitedly. “It is, isn’t it? Apparently, all the kids picked a flower to put in, even some of the older kids that have quit came by to add to it?! ALSO, they wrote this little card! “ He was shown a little card that was tied with a glittering string around the stems, seeing several messages in different colored pens. “Not everyone was able to write…but yeah it's pretty nice. Was surprised to find it on the desk. Thought it was a secret admirer, but this was way better”

He chuckled leaning on his cart to look over more of the flowers. Now he wasn’t as clouded by jealousy, he could see the mismatch of it, that most flowers were not typically what you would find in a valentines Day bouquet. Some of them were a bit squished from travel. But it was overall a very lovely piece. “It really is, isn’t it? This big piece from someone you don’t know would be a bit…creepy I suppose”

The other looked at him like he was confused for a second. He wonders what the other found so strange to get that look. But dismissed it for now. He stretched back up “If you going to keep hanging around. I can keep it safe here if you want? “ He would hate for the other to get upset that the gift that clearly meant so much already would get destroyed.

“Maybe when we go home, I wanna keep looking at this” He gave a nod. “Sure thing, Cal”

His heart did that little flutter again when he saw the other smile at the nickname. As far as he knew, he was the only one that uses it. That even used the others first name. Cal was definitely the only one that used his, it might make Having a secret crush on your best friend turned roommate a lot harder. But he really couldn’t bring himself for the other to stop. It was nice that the other knew it…and that he used it. Even if only when they were back home.

Cal got pretty tired of the: ‘No Burgerpants and Nicecream Guy aren’t our real names, why would you think that?!’ discussion and apologies. He honestly didn’t care much either way. Having ‘Nice’ and “Guy” as a nickname wasn’t too bad. But he could see how it graded on the other. And the whole, not really bothering to get to know you was also annoying, besides he agreed that ‘Burgerpants' is quite a mean nickname. And was annoyed at Catty and Bratty for spreading it around as much as they had. But he also didn't wanna put Cal into the ‘Have to explain myself’ situation he hated so much. So he called him Bp, when they were out. Like most people currently did.

That and Burgy, cause he couldn’t help the small tease, and the small smile was something he would treasure any time he saw it. It might not be as fond of a smile as when he used the other's real name. But it was close enough for his desperate heart to be enough.

“So what about you?”

“Huh? What?”

The other raised his eyebrow at me

“So how many flowers and gifts did you get?”

“Oh…I…Well..it’s not like…”

The other laughed

“Hey buddy, for one I know how many, little old ladies come here, and you manage to charm every single one of them. So I am sure some of them handed you something and you are too nice to refuse them. Two, you are clueless when it comes to girls flirting with your gay ass, and once again you’re too nice to refuse anyone, so tell me…how much shit you got”

The other was grinning wildly like he had done some perfect detective work. And he had figured him all out He glanced around and when he was sure no one was around, he leaned forward. Close to the others face

“You know, I was planning on sharing some of it, but if you have to be a little shit, I just keep them all to myself” To his delight, the other smile grew and saw his tail doing a happy little whip “What’s this, good little Felix using bad words, what would the mothers think~”

What would they think indeed? He was quite fond of his reputation...even if it was sometimes exhausting to keep up. He adored not having to hold back around Cal. “They would never believe you if you told them”

The other shrugged “Fair…but that’s what's so fun.” He heard some steps coming up the path so he stood back up again. “You are right, but I still have a job to do, so unless you are buying~?”

Cal laughed, “Nah, I steal some at home,” He said with a wink and then pointed at the benches under the gazebo up the small hill nearby. “I’ll be over there, working on the script, get me when you're ready to go, kay”

“Always, good luck” “Thanks, I need it, the sponsors are demanding a stupid scene, so I gotta do a whole overhaul, I tell you the details later, cause it’s Bul-” But he cut himself off, as a mother a child appeared in view” “Well…you get it. Good luck buddy”

He waved and kept glancing at him till he sat down. Even when he was handling his new customer. When the little girl was happily licking at her new treat the grandmother said in a gentle tone. “That you’re boyfriend waiting for you, till you get off dear? “

He felt his face flush completely. “Oh…what..no..he is not…we are not” The old lady laughed behind her hand “Oh I am sorry, you both kept glancing at each other…so I kinda assumed. Little advice from me. Don’t wait around okay? He seems like a good boy.”

He nervously waved his hands around, praying the other wasn’t looking this way and still busy unpacking. “Yeah..well..thanks…I'll keep that in mind…Haveaniceday”

But what…Cal was starting to? He had been looking and he hadn’t noticed, must have been a mistake. “Sorry Dear, didn’t mean to fluster you so much,” “I-it’s fine..”

The woman gave a gentle smile and walked away, her daughter waving at him happily. He waved back, burying his face in his arms for a second.

This wasn’t the first time people had noticed his crush on Callied. He breathed out and glazed at the gazebo, to see the other writing with several notebooks in front of him. Cal tucked his jacket further around himself, he knew the other wouldn’t leave. But he hoped he didn’t catch a cold from sitting in the chill.

And like that time passed pretty steadily, he kept glancing at Cal. Whenever he didn’t have customers, and with it being mid-February wasn’t a lot. Even if it was busier than normal days. He happily chatted with his regulars and waved them off. Apologized when one of his more popular flavors ran out, But luckily people were understanding, if not a bit disappointed. But overall, the day was relaxing.

When the sun started to set, and he checked if he should close shop for the rest of the day, he heard a familiar sound approaching. he straightens himself for the umpteenth time in the last few minutes. He waved at the skeletons monsters, surprised when the two of them stopped in front of his cart.

He spoke with a smile to one of his old neighbors. “Papyrus, What can I help you with? Having a good run?”

Said skeleton beamed as his partner stood a few paces behind stretching. He had only met the new skeleton monster a few times, he looked a lot like Papyrus, he believed his name was Edgar? Edward? He wasn’t too sure.

“Hallo good friend, Could we get two of your sugary cold treats today?”

He gave a smile. “Of course, the usual or want to be adventurous and try something new” Papyrus had been good to him in Snowdin. The guy was obviously not a huge fan of ice cream in the cold like most living in Snowdin had been. But he had been coming back regularly. Saying stuff like ‘Other people need to try this' and ‘I believe you will get so many customers if they just try it’’ He hadn’t gotten the teasing behind the others back some people had been doing, The guy seemed to genuinely want to help.

He also was very particular with his order. Rarely if ever tried something else, and even after he did, saying he liked the flavor, never changing what his regular was. Now on the surface, he had reinvented most of his flavors But he always kept making this one, in case Papyrus wanted to come by…or those people that craved that nostalgia kick.

“Just the usual for us! And how have you been? No date this Valentine's?”

He scooped down, to get the icecreams for Papyrus. “Been doing good. The winter months are always a bit slow and no not this year.”

“Still think that is nonsense, your treats can be enjoyed year-round, people just don’t have standards. And I am sorry to hear,”

“Don’t be buddy, it’s fine.” Papyrus gave him a grin, as he continued with their small order.

“Oh, your bell is still broken I see” He nodded sadly, He had it installed when they came to the surface, it helped people know he was walking around the park, but after getting a few bumps too many, it had fallen off its hook,

“Yeah, probably gotta wait till summer before I can get that fixed, rather keep the saving in case the coolers brake you know” “Yes, prioritizing things is good, I admit I miss hearing it around the park.”

“Me too pal, And here you go,” He handed Papyrus the order “Thank you so much. Sorry we can’t stay much longer, we got plans still.”

“Actually” the other skeleton suddenly said, and he turned to face the other, sharper-boned-looking skeleton "Do you have anything honey flavored, we’re meeting a friend later, and I don’t want to leave him out"

Papyrus's grin grew even wider, which was a sight to behold, but it was undercut cause from a distance he could someone walking on heels, the slight tap, tap of it was a bit annoying. He hoped it wasn’t who he thought it was.

He didn’t lose focus and said with a sad smile. “I don’t’ The other expression stayed neutral, but he swear he could sense a hint of disappointment in his eyes. And he decided “But I got a honey syrup that, goes well with the citrus-flavored one. It only melts the ice cream faster, and I don’t know how fast you are meeting up for it to be worth it for you”

The darker glad skeleton started down the road, then at papyrus then slowly turned back “How long does it take to melt?”

He was surprised. “6 minutes, for it to begin melting, I assume your hands be fully covered in sticky goop in 15” He and Papyrus glanced at each other. Papyrus's grin broadend even wider ‘Our record is 8 minutes…but iIthink we could beat that’ Papyrus stated

The darker glad skeleton pulled out his wallet and said, “Then we take one, and pay now, and excuse our rudeness for we be running right off”

He grinned at them, as he took the payment “No problem at all,” he quickly went to grab the syrup, and kept the nicecream in the cooling for as long as possible, summoning ice to the palms of his hands to help it along. “Also a heads up sounds like a stroller is coming this way, so be careful when you two dash off”

“Impressive hearing as always Guy!, thank you for the warning” Papyrus praised “Indeed impressive” He shrugged “Long ears, and living with younger siblings, you need to know what sounds mean danger’ Both skeletons snorted ‘Tell me about it’ They said at the same time.

He glanced up at them “Ready?” They both nodded “Then here” He quickly handed them the ice cream and they took off, he waved after them and yelled ‘Have a nice day!’ with a big grin.

He glanced back at Cal to see if had noticed the whole thing. Only to see a familiar person standing next to him. Seemed he was right. Charlotte was another bunny monster, she came by often, buying stuff. And he might be dense when it came to flirting attempts from most. But even he had noticed, and trying to hint at her that he wasn’t interested didn’t seem to help. He saw the large number of flowers in her hands. And he really hoped those weren’t for him.

A stroller came into his view so he had to look away. He had been keeping his ears out, in case she came closer. But by doing so he was also able to listen in to bits of the conversation.

“...are…even …here?” Cal's response was a low grumble, and even tho it was lower than Charlotte’s voice he knew that meant ‘ none of your fucking business She continued to be passive-aggressive, and he missed a bit due to taking the young family's order. He tried to listen and work on the order, but their baby started crying. He wanted to curse in his head. But the little family of course couldn’t help it.

When he waved them off he turned back to look at his friend. Cal had a look of frustrated anger but also…also he looked kinda sad. But what he heard next made his own blood boil

“And the flowers, what are you even doing with those? They are really tacky, aren’t they? He would never fall for such a try-hard. So why are you even bothering? You should just throw that ugly shit away, here let me help”

Cal had quickly stood up, but before things could get any type of ugly. He had rounded his own cart, taking off the breaks and walking towards them, saying with a voice that hopefully sounded friendly and not like he had heard the conversation.

He hoped he pulled it off Cal was the better actor. “Hey, Burgy! You ready to go?..” He carefully didn’t address her. As he walked further up the hill, stopping just beside him, The mud and grass that were now in his wheels, was a sacrifice he was willing to make.

Charlotte looked mortified for a second. While he got a raised eyebrow from Cal, who glanced between him and looking pissed off at her. Carefully pulling the flowers to the other side so she couldn’t reach them.

“Yeah…let me just…grab my stuff..”

Charlotte let out a soft cough, probably trying to get his attention, but he ignored her and just looked at Cal instead. “Did you manage to finish your script?” Cal shook his head, quickly gathering his strewn-about papers into his bag.

“Um, excuse me…Guy?” “Oh I am sorry, I am closed for today, if you want some nicecream, you have to come back the day after tomorrow”

Charlotte's face flushed, and he saw Cal, hide a grin in the corner of his eye. She recovered quickly, “Oh no that's fine, I am here to give you something” Glancing at the absurdly large bouquet of roses in her arms, and saw a box behind it. Meeting Charlotte’s eyes again, she was grinning widely, and it took everything not to cringe visibly

“I’m sorry” he forced a polite smile “I don’t take gifts from people that insult my friends” “What?” Charlotte’s eyes tuned to Cal angrily, who was done packing his things and stood beside him. He no longer tried to hide his grin

“I heard you talking as I came over here” Now that Cal's gift was out of her range he didn’t feel like he had to keep up the act of innocence anymore. She looked a bit horrified, but again quickly recovered “Oh, you must have misunderstood me,” she said with a laugh, as Cal glared at her “I was just explaining to him the meaning of those flowers, wouldn’t wanna upset a date, and offered to get rid of it,”

His smile dropped, she was just blatantly lying at this point, And Callied bristled beside him But before Cal could say anything” he said “I don’t take anything from liars either”

Callied angry bristle turned into a surprised bark of laughter, and he could feel the edge of the grin at his own lips. He continued on looking at Charlotte’s shocked face

“And for your information, I would be lucky to receive such lovely flowers, as would anyone with a bit of taste. Now if you excuse us, we need to go have dinner, you ready to go Bp?”

Cal was still laughing at Charlotte’s shocked face “Yeah, ready, bye bitch” “Burgy~! “ he said mock scandalized, as he picked up the handles of his cart and walked down the hill, leaving angrily stuttering Charlotte behind.

“What? She ain't a customer” He glanced behind them, happy that Charlotte didn’t decide to follow, and harassed them further, as they slowly walked towards the park exit.

Cal was looking back as well, seemingly happy to leave her as they did, but as their eyes met, there was a sudden uncertainty in his eyes. And he mumbled, almost too low to hear “Did you mean that…about the flowers..” He did his best not to frown, right now he had the feeling Cal wouldn’t interrupt that as him being mad at Charlotte, she had clearly said more nasty things, than just what he overheard at the end. “Every word”

It was near the exit of the park that he decided to stop for a second. The mud from the hill was making pushing his cart harder. And besides the day being pretty relaxing, he had been out longer than he had in months Trying to give his muscles a short rest, before the rest of their walk through the ever-growing monster town. Rolling his shoulder, trying to get a crack out of it.

Cal gave him a sympathetic look. “Long day huh?” “Longer with her dropping in at the end, I dunno how many times I told her I wasn’t interested, and she still tries to ask me out? Sorry you got dragged into that” I Callied rolled his eyes and smacked his arm “What did I tell you about apologizing for what other people do to me” He rubbed the part that Cal just hit, and pouted, “Not to..but this” “Nope, zip it, ain't your fault,”

Callied sighed and shook his head “Seriously, you attractive people have the weirdest problems” He stopped mid-stretch of his other arm, sure he misheard it “What?” he turned to face his friend, who was looking back at him questioningly Did…did Cal find him attractive?... Did he? that...That couldn’t be true right? Right? He had misheard him, right?

“What…did you say?” he felt his face flush He expect Cal to dismiss it, to say something different than what he heard. To maybe laugh, at him not being fully awake. He didn’t expect to see Cal's own face erupt in a blush, and nervously stuttering out half sentences.

He felt his own soul beat start racing up, and before he thought it through he blurted out “You find me attractive?” Callied flushed even harder, tail wagging back and forth, hairs standing straight up like he was frightened. His own face felt very hot as well, but this…this wouldn’t be the reaction of someone that liked him right? Was he horrified by the implications?! He looked down at the ground, trying not to frown. Of course, he misheard, Cal wasn’t interested in him at all. What was he thinking?!

“Nnghg Yes! You idiot, of course, I do” His eyes snapped back up, Cal had crossed his arms and wasn’t looking at him, The frustrated look was a bit undercut by the bouquet he was still holding.

Oh…. His soul was beating a mile a minute, and he felt his face flush even darker. He pressed a hand against it, trying to cool it down a bit. He was pretty sure was smiling like a doofus, but what did that matter? Callied liked him! Okay found him Attractive! But still!! Him! Okay, okay, he really shouldn’t get his hopes up, and probably say something. But he could scream with happiness!

He had a feeling that calling Callied handsome as well would not work out, he would scoff and huff about it. The other didn’t have the highest self-esteem. But the silence was stretching on as he was having an internal freakout. So he opened his mouth to thank Cal, but then, at the last second changed it.

“I am happy, you think so” Even though Cal's cheeks were already quite dark, they turned a darker shade again. Still avoiding eye contact. “Yeah well, when have I ever lied to you?”

His soul was still racing, but he didn’t wanna push Cal more. He was happy with this, an unexpected Valentine's gift just for himself. It was maybe a bit selfish, but he would hold onto this moment for a long time to come.

“Last week, when you told me you didn’t steal the last of my treats” Cal laughed, tension unspooling from him, as his hair and ears flattened again, And it was a good look on him, “I told you I was sorry alright, really thought we had another left!” He gave a chuckle in response. “I know”

Cal had stopped laughing and was looking at him. It was a look he had seen before. It was a rare one, it was the one he had when he was debating taking a big risk. Cal didn’t like to take many risks, some of his biggest hadn’t turned out so great. He understood, but what he didn’t understand was why he was now at the receiving end of one.

The last time he was at the end of it, was when he had offered Cal to look into moving in together and being roommates. Both he and Cal had been struggling to afford to live in the city alone. He had thought that with the two of them working together, they could at least manage to live somewhere decent. A place where by that by the end of the month, they both have a bit of money to spare and set aside for their dreams.

Cal had been hesitant. Of course, he had been. But it had been a good decision, Cal was one of the best roommates he had had. And he was so glad it hadn’t damaged their friendship at all. No, it had grown stronger, as had his feelings for the smaller cat monster.

The look changed into one of determination, he opened his mouth to say something, not sure what he was gonna ask but he didn’t have to as Cal started talking.

“I was gonna give you this later, but now might be more appropriate” Cal's face had scrunched up really small, making it also harder to hear him. When had been the last time Cal had been nervous enough to lose control of his face-morphing abilities around him? He couldn’t remember, Cal took a couple of steps towards him, grabbed his arm, and put a small box in his hand.

He felt his own face start flushing again. wait…it couldn’t be Looking back up at Callieds face, the other murmured “Happy Valentines Day” Their eyes met for a brief second before Cal broke their gaze and stepped away, with a dark flush covering his cheekbones.

His head was reeling, he got a valentines Day gift from Callied…? He got a Valentines Day gift from Callied! Holy shit this was definitely the best day ever, there was a smile on his face, as his trembling hand touched the edges of the gold ribbon holding the lid of the box secure

“Thank you…” he said a bit dazed “You ain't even opened it yet” He didn’t have to look up, to know the other was pretending to look away while following every action from the corner of his eye

“You got me a gift,” He looked back up to meet the others slightly surprised faces “That itself deserves thanks”

Cal spluttered some words, but nothing coherent and his gaze dropped back to the small red box in his hands. He slid the golden ribbon off with ease and lifted the lid, Gasping as he saw what he saw inside. He tried to still his trembling fingers as he lifted up the small bronze bell. A perfect replacement for his cart. He shook it lightly to hear it ring, and he couldn’t help the surprised huff of laughter

“Callied…this is…” Forgetting they were not alone, he rang the bell again. He wanted to burst out laughing, he wanted to cry. In all the time that he worked his little cart, no one ever got him a gift like this. Something that he needed, They got him things to decorate it, but never something he could really use.

And while this might not sound like it would, it did. He had been heartbroken when the previous one broke. It was one of the first things he bought from himself after he stopped living with his parents. The cart had been a hand-me-down from his grandfather, and it had been him who had taught him the art of ice cream making. While his parents didn’t discourage him when he worked the cart in the underground. Seeing it as a nice part-time job. They had been less than happy, that he wanted to keep it going and start his own business.

But he persisted, managed to get an economics degree, and was managing on his own, and one day. He will achieve his full-on dream of owning a parlor. But for now, his small cart was what served him. The little bell had been his own idea. It attracted customers with its sound, taking a hint from the little tunes, he heard the human ice-cream cars liked to play

It had been for that at first, But it had turned into something that meant so much more and that, was the kids. All kids loved rigging the small bell. He let kids ring it after buying something. And it could brighten up any kid's day.

He don’t know how many nights he had sat on the couch, curled up and sad at all the kids he had to disappoint now that it had been broken.

Cal had tried to distract him from the sad thoughts that could sneak up on him so unexpectedly. Doing everything watching movies with him, and playing games But it didn’t always work. But now...

He had clutched the small bell close to his chest. “Thank you…” his voice cracked a bit and he laughed. Feeling a bit embarrassed, here he was, in the park, nearly crying over a bell.

“Yeah…you shouldn’t have to wait till summer to spread joy” He let out another laugh, quickly wiping away the few stray tears. He carefully put the bell back in the box. Still holding it close to his chest. He didn’t know what to say, That thank you wasn’t enough, cause this was the most wonderful thing he had ever gotten in his life. It was then that he remembered something, it wouldn’t hold a candle to this gift, but he was sure it would make Cal happy.

“I actually got you something too…but I left it back home, didn’t want to risk it getting damaged”

Cal had been looking very proud and happy. Turned to look very surprised, himself, eyes growing larger for a second.

“You got me a gift?” Callied asked hesitantly, And he gave a nod “...for today?” He gave another nod, his own face still flushed “Why…?”

Callied sounded so unsure like he couldn’t believe it. He wasn’t surprised the other questioned it, he heard the many, far to many stories of people trying to set him up for fun. If you think he be offended that the other didn’t trust him, you be wrong. He would have been more worried if he had just accepted it. It would have meant, Cal had felt like he had to accept it.

He gave a smile. There had been many reasons he got the gift. Because of his crush on him. Because of the fact that Callied deserved some nice things. Because he likes seeing him happy. …but in the end, he settle on saying what was the most true

“Because I wanted to”

Cal avoided his eyes, and he gave another light chuckle, “You want to put your flowers in the storage compartment before going on?” Deciding to keep going, Let Cal, think about what this meant on his own. Hopefully coming to the correct conclusions

Cal gave a nod, as he undid the lock, and opened the hidden latch from the side. Cal bend down and carefully put the flowers in, then he held out his hand,

“Let's put that here to…to keep it safe”

A surge of warm feeling came over him, and he very carefully put the small gift box back in Cal’s hand. Cal reached forward, before his eyes widened, and quickly snatched the golden ribbon that had fallen to the ground in his admiration of the gift, and tied the lid close with a quick knot.

Cal rose again, still with a slight flush on his cheeks. Cal closed the hatch, it locked into place “There we go..” he mumbled. He reached over heart racing, as he gently covered the others hand and gave it a squeeze “Let’s go..”

The trip home was spent in mostly silence. He wondered what was going through Cal's mind at the moment. What would he be thinking of, would he be thinking of the gift, or was he still questioning his motives? Was he wondering if he made the right choice back in the park? And what did this whole thing mean for them anyway? This gift, the small wonderful little gift, just thinking about it made his heart start racing again. He hopes his face wasn’t as flushed as it felt.

Cal had gotten him something that meant so much. Something that Cal knew meant a lot to him, and given it today. ‘Happy valentines Day The words were still echoing in his mind, along with the look he had gotten. There had been something in there, desperate and pleading for him to understand. It had been buried deep. He hoped he was right, that maybe, just maybe. Callied felt the same as him. But he didn’t dwell on that thought for long. He would focus on getting Cal his gift. To show him he cared for Cal as well, However, Cal was gonna take that. He’ll see how he handles it when they get there.

They arrived in front of their small apartment building, and he spoke up to put his little plan into action. “How about you go up and turn the oven on, while I go lock up the cart? Then I can give you the gift while we wait for the pizza to heat up” It was best to let Cal think he forgot, didn’t want him to jump to the wrong conclusions. “Yeah sure,” Cal wasn’t looking at him but he didn’t push it.

“Thanks, I’ll be sure to be quick” and he steered his cart to the basement door of their complex. But quickly turned around to say to the retreating back of his roommate “And maybe look for a vase for those flowers?” He got a thumbs up, in return and he left for the basement

He had been very happy when they found this place, the basement of the complex had a little ramp that let down too, and several garage boxes, that you could rent for extra storage. Most people in the building, if they rented one, used theirs for their motorcycles which helped them get quicker around the city. For him, it was the perfect place to safely keep the ice cream cart. And the apartment itself wasn’t too shabby either, a small two-bedroom apartment. Big enough to give each other the space they needed. Cal had said that some of the tech crew had joked it kinda looked like they were living like a married couple. And it was something he couldn’t unsee himself.

Quickly going through the routine of emptying the till, taking the coolers out, and taking everything out of the storage. Double checking, he locked everything, he took the coolers, money, gifts he got from customers, the bouquet, and Callieds gift. And quickly but carefully headed back upstairs.

He heard the oven as he stepped into their small apartment. As well as some clinking of glasses. He glanced into the kitchen and saw Callied searching their topmost cupboard...Having to use his magic to stretch out and reach it. It made him smile, and he continued onward to the living room, setting everything beside the coolers on the table.

“Cal? The bouquet is on the table!”

He didn’t hear a response and continued on to put the coolers in his bedroom. He put them in the corner with the rest of his stuff for the cart. Writing on a sticky note he had to clean his cartwheels, and placing it on his laptop so he would see it. The coolers need a good cleaning as well, but that was something for tomorrow. For now, he quickly went over to his desk and grabbed his gift from the bottommost drawer.

Letting out a shuddering breath, his soul started racing as he went back to their living room. He had been surprised with how easily he had kept it hidden in their own home, but he had now, he just hoped the other liked it. Hiding the gift behind his back, he heard a sudden shout

“Ah! Found you, you bastard!” and he gave a chuckle, as he heard the faucet go “Mission successful? “ he called out A moment later, Cal appeared with a half-full vase and a triumphant grin. Nervous and thoughts of the gift were briefly forgotten it seemed. “Clearly, knew we should have one, pretty sure one of your aunts gave us this thing”

He shrugged, he honestly couldn’t remember. It was in the back of the closet for a reason. His smile grew as he saw Cal, carefully put the flowers in the vase, arranging them, so that all would be visible, and none swallowed up.

He shuffled up to the couch and sat beside Cal, as he continued to work on it. The card was set safely aside, next to the box containing his own gift. His soul skipped another beat as he looked at it. Filling him with warmth and a reminder of why was doing this, and he cleared his throat to get Cal's attention.

Cal seemed slightly surprised to see him so close, and he gave the other a shaky grin, Pulling the gift from behind his back, Cal’s eyes snapped to it. His face shrinking slightly, he hoped it was not a bad sign.

He found it cute really, the way Cal's face seemed to morph into so many different expressions. This time thou, it was making his anxious heartbeat impossibly faster. He took another calming breath. And said softly

“Happy Valentines Day, I really hope you like it”

He carefully handed the rectangular wrapped gift to him. Cal's hands shook a bit as he took it. Holding carefully and put it on his lap, fingers gliding over the paper, He noticed Cal look up so he did too, giving him what he hoped an encouraging smile

“Go on…open it.”

Cal started into his eyes a moment longer, like he was reading him, trying to figure out what his motifs were. He wonders what he found. He had nothing to hide, not from Cal, Even his feelings for him, as close to the chest as he held them. He never really hid them. Maybe not show how deep they truly went, but hide, no not fully. Don’t think he could.

But he had known his place, at least. He was Callieds friend. Best friend even, and that was enough. Callied trusted in him, and he trusted Callied. Would do anything for him, but that wouldn't change. Romantic feelings or not. Or maybe he had always had a crush on his best friend, long before he realized it. Who knows... This gift he had prepared. He hadn’t meant it as a show of his feelings for Callied. No, it was meant to show Callied he mattered, that his dreams mattered. This gift was nothing like that bronze little bell, but it would show Callied he cared, and with it that this. Whatever this here is. Was welcomed.

Callied extended one claw, to carefully slice through the tape holding the packaging together. When all was done and the other was slowly folding open the wrapping paper, his soul started racing once more. Revealing the simple red bound book, he saw the brows furrow in confusion. Carefully flipped it over, but there was no title on either side.

Cal eyed him questioningly, but he only gave an encouraging nod,

He saw the others eyes widen as he opened the first page, even further when he quickly started flipping through the rest. He saw surprise and awe in the ever-growing eyes. “Felix…” His soul made a happy little flutter as he heard his name. As Callied swallowed nervously. “Felix’s…what..what is…”

He chuckled warmly. He looked down at the book, It was a custom-ordered scrapbook. The pages were paper, and you could slide a picture on every page, On one page it is in the corner, the other in the middle, and it could be rotated slightly. And he had filled the first couple of pages himself.

“You said you wanted something you could show old and new kids in the theatre. Get them to reminisce, and be inspired. Thought it would help”

He had chosen different types of pictures. Some of the kids at opening night, in the middle of a scene they worked so hard on, Another photo of Cal helping out the tech crew. A group shot of the cast at the end of one of the plays. All of the photos he had surrounded with text and stickers, or even tickets of the shows It were just six pages, he wanted the rest to be filled by Cal. So on the last page, he left just the photo, no text.

The theatre's budget was small, what they got usually went to costuming and props for the next show. Something that preserved what they’d done, more than just the single wall of cast photos in the staff room. It proved these kids were making something. That their work could be used to help the new kids.

He saw the other reading the texts he wrote and he chuckled “I hope I captured what you loved about these moments, You told me all about it for hours, but to just put them in a few words, was a bit harder. But..you get the idea of it, right? Do You like it”

Cal nodded, eyes still going over every single word. He smiled as he saw the others absorb the pages he had made. His chest felt warm and satisfied. He did well. This was something that Cal could use, but also for himself, to see what he achieved. To never forget the little victories. He reached forward and gently squeezed the others hand for a second before standing up. Happy to let the other enjoy it for a while. “I’m glad you like it, I go throw our dinner in the oven okay?” He stood up, letting go of the other. But as he took two steps he heard a soft

“Felix..?” “ yeah?” He said turning back around to see, Cal carefully closing the book and setting it on the table as he stood up. “What is i-” He got cut off as Cal moved forward and enveloped him in a hug.

He looked down surprised, to find Cal's head buried in his chest. And he wasn’t able to control his blush, as he slowly warped his arms around Cal in return. “Thank you…” he heard softly.

His soul beat raised again, as did the flush in his cheeks Because Cal was definitely hearing that. But Callied didn’t let go, quite the opposite, he seemed to hold on a bit tighter. So slowly, ever so slowly he rested his head on top of Cals. Feeling the others soft fur against his face, the tips of Cal's ears against his Jaw.

“No…thank you, my gift is nothing compared to yours” Cal shook his head lightly, beneath him “No…yours is..” Then he heard the other let out a sigh, and a slight chuckle “I aint doing this, ‘no you’ game”

He chuckled softly himself, squeezing Cal closer to himself. He was gonna enjoy every single second he got out of this embrace. “Would you….would you still have given it today?…if I hadn’t given mine?”

He gave a nod, “Yeah, yeah I had planned to give it today” He heard the other take a shuddering gasp, the arms that were wrapped around his waist moved up to hold onto his back instead. Making him feel more surrounded by the other's presence. And it took everything in him to not squeeze back harder.

“If-if Charlotte hadn’t shown up, you wouldn't have complained, and wouldn’t have said what I did. And I think…I think I might have chickened out on giving you mine…”Cal admitted, sounding guilty,

His soul was nearly stammering out of his chest. The other had gotten it for the purpose of giving it today. TODAY! Of all days, a valentines Day present. It could still have been a gift for a friend. Part of him still expected it to be just that. But another part, a hopeful part that he stifled so many times, through the past few years, was screaming at him to not be so blind.

“That’s okay” he whispered “Knowing you, you would get your message across either way” There was a slight tremble going through Callieds frame, and he pulled back slightly. Trying to check on him. Callied did as well, meeting the other's eyes and freezing in place. Never had he seen them from this close. And he was mesmerized by them, trying to commit the shade of brown to memory. And Callied was staring right back, a flush was covering both their cheeks.

“Fuck…I am hoping I am reading this right, if not…sorry”

Before he could react, or even fully understood what Cal had set. One hand had let go of his back, come to the back of his head, and pulled him down into a kiss. His eyes widened, and his blush deepened. Cal had closed his eyes and was pressing closer clumsily. His brain did him a solid and not overthink, and he pressed his lips back against Cals. It took a few tries but as his own eyes closed, their lips had found a rhythm. Softly gliding against each other back and forth.

He raised one hand to cup the others cheek and keep him close. Callieds tail was whipping excitedly back and forth. His own was probably twitching as well. As the realization that he was kissing his best friend was washing over him. His best friend, Who’s lips were currently still pressing against his own. That he now knew tasted lightly of ginger. Whose fur was stuck between his fingers as he held their cheek.

That was blushing just as brightly, keeping him close just as tightly. And he responded to every questionable move of lips with an answer of his own. But the need to breathe did soon come, and they pulled apart. Not far, he could still feel their breaths fan over their faces. Their eyes met again, and they leaned in once more.

This time he could feel a tongue probing at his lips and he didn’t hesitate to open them. Pulling the other closer against himself. Feeling the heat rise beneath his fingers, gently stroking the cheek with his thumb. Trying to tamper the noise he made as tear tongues touched. Callied's hand moved from the back of his head to the top, scratching lightly between his ears, Wich he felt twitch in response.

His soul was hammering against his chest, and he could feel Cals hammering in turn. Callieds tail had wrapped itself around the arm that held Callied to his chest. He was having trouble keeping up with all the sensations flooding him. This time Callied pulled away, panting lightly. And he looked down at him, his lips wet, eyes wide. He was gorgeous.

He had to stop himself from leaning in for a third kiss. But he wanted to, he wanted so badly to just keep on kissing. And as he looked at him, the words that he had kept locked away for so long. For years and years tumbled out of his mouth.

“Love you” His cheeks couldn’t possibly grow any darker, and he felt the heat spread down his neck and chest. He saw Cal's eyes widen once more. And he felt his nerves rise, scared. Oh so scared he had screwed everything up. That this couldn’t be what he thought it could be. That he had just ruined the best relationship he had. And then a slow smile broke over Callieds face.

The hand on his head slid down till it was cupping his cheek. He felt the thumb stroke his cheek. And with a dark flush on his own face Callied whispered back

“I love you too”

Oh… Oh…. He felt himself start to shake, then laugh. Cal loved him…Callied Loved HIM! And then he picked the other up and spun them around as he kept laughing “Woah! Hey! Carefully you big buffoon” But Cal was laughing as well, there was no heat in the words, as he was clung to just as hard.,

He kept swaying them back and forth. He pressed a kiss against the others cheek, something he had wanted to do for ages. Then he pressed another a bit higher, then another, and soon he was leaving kisses all across Callied's face.

“F-felix~! “ the other laughed loudly, half-heartily trying to pull away, “Come on, haha, Felix!!!” He didn’t stop for a second, He was gonna shower Cal with all the love he could muster. Then he felt two hands grab his face holding it in place. And suddenly the roles reversed. Cal started leaving pecks all across his face.

He felt his face turn its darkest shade yet as he laughed. Happily, deliciously, not really knowing how to react now that the affection was turned to him. The kisses slowed down, a last one placed on the tip of his nose that twitched in response.

Cal let out what could only be described as a giggle, face quickly flushing at the realization. He leaned forward, letting their noses touch. Nuzzling them together softly. If was soft, and he finally got why there were nose-nuzzling championships underground.

He did it again, just to feel that warmth spread. Cal shyly returned the favor, He felt his hand shake against the other's waist. If he just tilted their heads, they could kiss again. Something in the others shy seeming eyes changed. It was small, like a flicker of understanding.

“Felix…?” His own cheeks burned, and Cal still sounded a bit out of breath. His hand had fallen to the others shoulder, and he squeezed it briefly. Cal turned his head slightly, their lips almost brushing. He felt his own eyes widen as he looked into Callieds eyes. A question, was in there, as were nerves. But this time he took the step. And slotted their lips together once more.

He was sure he would never get tired of this taste. If Callied would let him of course. The hands cupping his face were holding him in place. But had no intention of going anywhere. He was also quickly getting addicted to the others taste, this warmth, this love. Reaching up a hand to cup the back of the others head, Pushing him further against himself, Changing direction as he felt his fingers brush against Cal’s ear. Scratching at the base, and feeling them move against his palm.

They stayed like that for a while, hands holding cheeks, ears, and the back of each other's heads. Jus slowly learning what the other liked, until eventually they slowly parted, lips swollen. And their bodies slightly trembling. Giving Cal a last slightly trembling kiss on the forehead, and then being pulled down and receiving one in return. They slowly let each other go. Leaving a bit of space between them.

He started down at his…. Could he call Cal his boyfriend now? Was that allowed? It still kinda felt like he was dreaming. All of this was kinda to good to be true.

“So..” he mumbled “That happened “ Cal averted his eyes to the side, the blush still on his face “Sure did..” He tried to suppress another chuckle but didn’t manage “I am glad it did..”

Something in Cal's shoulders relaxed, and he felt himself relax with it as well “Yeah…me too”

Both of them just kinda stood there with grins and blushing faces before Callied pointed a thump over his shoulder and asked “Pizza?” He let out a startled laugh “Pizza”

They could figure out, the details of this new relationship later. For now, some celebratory food sounded great. After they put the pizzas in the oven, they leaned against the counter, waiting on the timer. He listened with a smile to Cal’s story of what the sponsors were demanding him to add to his next play. While he gave some small anecdotes about his day. It was chipping away at the weight of everything that had changed, and reassuring them both. That at the same time, they were the same as they had always been

And as they sat at the table mid-way through eating their pizzas. It was that he reached over, and took Cals’unoccupied hand. Callied put down the slice he was about to take a bite out of. Gaining a light flush on his cheeks once again.

He squeezed the hand softly “Happy Valentines Day…Callied” He felt the small tremble in his hand, but he could also see the way the others mouth slowly curved up “Happy Valentines Day, Felix”

[noffy96]

My first Sun/Moon fic

So had this idea, i thought it was cute. And then when i wrote the outline. A writing demon possesed me and i wrote a entire fic. So...This is the result of that.

So yeah something different for a change.

Let us see what's there

Word count: 9,102

Chapter 1/1

Summary:

“You know…I don’t think I ever got a true look at you either. Sparing glances in mirrors and blurry photos are not the same”

He chuckled. “Whoever made the fazzcams so blinding is to blame for that one. It really hurts when a kid takes a picture”

Suddenly he remembered something, something he had seen in his tentative exploring in the past few days. So He turned around and down the walkway from where he came.

“Sunny?”

Or

Sun now that he is now free to roam outside the daycare. Is looking up at the statue of himself and Moon. Because he really wants to know what his counterpart looks like. As he never really got a good look. Now that Moon can also roam in the light, Sun remembers there might be a place where they can do just that. a.ka Sun and Moon will see each other for the first time.

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He glanced back down the stairs and then continued walking down the hall toward the pickup area. Every step careful, trying not to make a sound. It still felt wrong to be out of the main section of the daycare. Like he was sneaking out, and if he would be found, He’d be sent back. So he had to be quiet. But he was trying to be better, to not be afraid to do this on his own

He was taking Moon's advice Just walk around the area around the daycare after hours. Just get a feel for it. Chase that fear away. One small area at a time. No need to wander the entire plex. Just these small hallways and doors he had always been able to see but never go to.

And it helped! It really did. And anytime he told Moon he had done it. He could feel a warm pulse from deep inside that told him Moon was proud of him too. Someday he will be able to walk out through the entire plex without someone else's help as well. But for now. Now this was enough.

The Glamrocks had come over, and they had finally officially met, and they happily brought him along around the whole plex. Making his exploration a lot easier. They had even gone to several of the main attractions. Freddy and Chica were really nice. But Monthy and Roxy were a bit much. He supposed he himself would also be classified as that. But..

Well for now he rather stick around those other two as he tried to not spin himself into a panic. They weren’t bad. Once they played Monty golf he was surprised with how patiently the big gator taught him. And Roxy was ready to talk all kinds of gossip about the parents with him and Chica.

They also told him all about their hangouts with Moon, which was nice. He closed his eyes for a second, letting his fans give a big whirl. Feeling Moon still in rest mode, he flashed the clock on his HUD. About twenty more minutes before he woke up. He nodded and headed towards his destination.

Continuing down the long walkway. Glancing back to the side and seeing the nets that were his walls and roof for so many years. Anytime he was here, it filled him with that odd sense of pride. Being able to see into the daycare…looking over it from here. Cold hard proof he could walk around as much as he wished.

But his musing stopped as he got to the real reason he wondered so close to the doors. He turned around, back to his home. And started up at the statue he could only see the edges of when he was down below. The big golden statue of himself and Moon. And he was staring at Moon side.

He looked at it, trying to find the differences between himself and his lunar counterpart. Besides the glaringly obvious ones of course. He still has never really been able to see him. Besides all the drawings the kids made of him. And part of him longed to. And it would not an impossibility for long.

The virus that had plagued Moon for so long, was gone now. Ending years of torment for the both of them. As he finally heard the voice of what sounded like the Moon he knew and loved, and no longer in any pain. After years of silence, was one of his favorite memories. When that virus cut them off. He had been so certain something was wrong with his lunar friend. And he had been right...hadn't he

He had tried to get them fixed. But for so long no one listened. But now. After a visit from a strange boy one night. Staff had been replaced, and restrictions lifted. And Moony after all these years fixed and able to care for the children once more.

To say he was overjoyed was an understatement. As they tried to pick up after everything. Then came the news. They would be getting an upgrade. Something that would make them a bit more friendly-looking. More facial moving features like the Glamrocks. But not just that…but a separate body for both him and Moon. And it excited and terrified them both.

But it was a while away. They wanted to keep an eye on Moony's code to be sure that the virus was completely gone and not just slumbering. Their current body had also been neglected by the previous staff. So they were slowly going through years of updates. One at a time. So that they: One: won’t lose themselves and Two: the transitions wouldn’t be too harsh

All in all, it was gonna take a couple more months. Especially since the staff was also focussing on repairing Glamrock Bonnie who had finally been found.

But the thought of seeing Moon was exciting. He knew he would pull him into a hug as soon as he could. One that would say: sorry for all the mean things he said when Moon was trapped by the virus. But also one that would show how thankful he was to have him with them. And that they never be truly alone again.

He started up at the statue, but this wouldn’t be the Moon he would see. It would be a new body. One that both had never seen. And that kinda…twisted something inside of him. There was a part of him that wanted to see and meet how Moon looked now. Cause this body as much as loved it, caused them pain And he wanted to sooth that. He wanted to see what others had. Cause looking at just the statue he didn’t understand.

Moon didn’t look so much different than him. Yet people and staff had called him scary, unnerving, not fit for kids, and more terrible mean comments. Some that should never have been uttered in a daycare. He got some of the same comments. But never at the same level as Moon did. And it confused him. He wanted to understand, he wanted to see his other half.

He was swaying in place. Bells gently chimed along. Tapping his knuckles together every so often. He had tried to figure out how Moon looked, but nothing really worked. He was given limited access to files and only could get to his own manual. Not Moons part..

The kids' drawings only do so much. And he could see out of Moon’s eyes when he was active. Moon had always been working. In the daycare, there were no large mirrors. And with it being very dark, whenever Moony had to work. Even if there had been. He wouldn't have been able to see much.

But lately, they had gotten more free time. They weren’t as free-roaming as the Glamrocks yet, but the staff was working on that. Their battery was simply not powerful enough to support two AI awake at all hours of the day. For now, they got rid of the program that made them switch out based on the light. As it had been terribly inefficient.

Now they just had to switch at pre-determined times. Before powering down in rest mode to conserve the rest of their battery. The most time they actually got to spend together. Was during work hours. As Moon woke up a bit before naptime. And would be able to help out through their shared mind. As he looked through their shared feed. And could see things he wasn’t focused on.

They managed to catch a kid trying to sneak out like that. And when naptime was on, he could just sit there listening to Moon read stories, as he’d be the extra pair of eyes for him.

But his favorite time was mornings. If they managed to get a full charge cycle. He’d wake up early from rest. And they had a couple of hours every morning. Where they could just. Hang out, talk, and just..be. Where he could wake up, to Moon reading on their warm plush bed, or maybe even tinkering at the broken staff bot. That had been in their room for who knows how long. Before they switched out again. And could feel Moon's tired but happy presence behind himself. Last time he even worked on the staff bot as well..under Moon's directions. He got why Moon did it. Was strangely calming. Before he had to leave to get the daycare ready.

They of course also could do this just before Mooney's security shift started at night. As the same amount of time was set out there. But…he didn’t wanna take all of his friend's free time.

“You’re outside”

His head jerked up. Internal clock flashing on the screen. And yup the twenty minutes had passed. He had planned to be back in the daycare by now. But this wasn’t too bad.

“Yeah…wanted to look at something”

He could feel Moon's presence behind him. Like they were standing back to back. He kinda knows when Moon is looking out as well, and he wasn’t just…close. It was a hard thing to describe. He felt that warm pulse of pride run through his sensors.

“Gaudy things…honestly”

He heard Moon say as he felt him tap into their visual feed. He chuckled wryly. Yeah, they were big and obnoxious. The gold didn’t really do either of them any favors he thought but…

“At least it lets me know what you look like”

Moon was quiet for a moment.

“Kinda sad it’s just the one pose, You are way more animated than that”

He laughed. All the glamrocks had commented on the fact that neither of them where seemingly able to keep still. Always swaying, bouncing, moving something. The bells around his wrist and shoes made sure you heard them a mile away. He didn’t know why he did. It helped him relax. Moon was better at it, he was king of hide a seek after all.

That and the head of security

“I think the kids do us better” Moon mumbled and he could feel the burst of happiness coming from his lunar counterpart. And he nodded along.

“They certainly do, Just Kinda sad this is the only way I can truly see you, you know”

There was another silence. And then it felt like Moon placed a hand on his shoulder for a brief moment..but it was gone before he could really tell. Before stepping next to him.

It wasn’t like Moon was there physically, or if there even was something there in his vision. He just knew there is where Moon was. Like a mist or ghost or presence. It was like he was more of the forefront, instead of back in his mind. But talking like this with the kids around didn’t look good. So normally they just talked internally. But there was no one here but a stray staff bot and a cleaning bot. So it didn’t feel weird to be talking to ‘himself’

“You truly haven't?” Moon mumbled

He shook his head, looking back up at the statue.

“There is a mirror in our room, you never even got a glance there as I passed it?”

It wasn’t accusatory., it seemed Moon was truly a bit bewildered. And he shook his head once more, rays rocking side to side as reffing up for a spin before stopping. He had tried of course. But the most he had been able to see were Moon's shoes..and well…those were the same as his own.

“Our room is quite dark with the lights out, and besides, it’s your time to be out. I wouldn’t want to intrude”

Moon's arms dropped to his side, and he could feel Moon's gaze on him.

“I’d be alone when you are in rest mode…you are welcome to tag along when you’re still awake”

He shook his head

“I’ve taken a lot of time of you before. I aint taking more “

There was an odd feeling in his chest. Moon muttered something. But he wasn’t sure but it sounded like

“But what if I wanted you there…”

But that couldn’t be true. After having had to lock Moony out with the generators. Insisting on the lights on, even if it had been for the best with how bad the virus had gotten.

It had been a terrible way to treat a friend. And while yes they have been talking more and more. And getting along, teasing each other, and playing games when both were awake. He wouldn't take up everything out of Moon's day. He would need some rest, and have time to do his own thing. So he retreated to the back of their mind, and let Moon just. Be. While he just poured over the memories of the day before rest would take him. He didn’t mind. Even if it meant they spent less time together.

They were both silent for a little bit, Moon broke it as he lifted his gaze up as he started circling around the statues.

“You know…I don’t think I ever got a true look at you either. Sparing glances in mirrors and blurry photos are not the same”

He chuckled. “Whoever made the fazzcams so blinding is to blame for that one. It really hurts when a kid takes a picture”

Suddenly he remembered something, something he had seen in his tentative exploring in the past few days. So He turned around and down the walkway from where he came.

“Sunny?”

Moon asked as he passed the daycare doors. But he didn’t answer as his mind raced.

They hadn’t been the only ones to get updates. No most of the rooms had been getting patched up, The Daycare had gotten new mats, padding, more toys, and a thorough cleanup. A machine that helped clean the ball pit so much easier. And many more little things. As he went to the theatre doors.

This place had gotten an update as well. Now it could do more than host movies. And a stray comedy act from comedy-bot. They had extended the stage and added a backstage area so plays could be performed.. The only room that hadn't gotten redesigned…was their own..and that was on request. The many changes were frying his brain. And it wasn’t like kids could accidentally get in. So having a bit of the old still there was nice…comforting

But he knew…that when their new bodies would be here. That too would have to change. He shook himself out of it. He trembled for a second then opened the doors and stepped through. Quelling the stray thought. That no. he wasn’t going or coming from parts and service and he determined to walk passed the hidden door to their room.Into the theatre down the steps, past the seats.

“Sundrop?”

And off to the left past the curtains to backstage. He felt around the wall until he came across what he sought. And found the light switch. light's flickering on And He was able to see the tables with probs, a few costumes on a rack. And most importantly, A huge mirror that covered one wall in length. Large enough…that they could see their entire body in them.

All he had to do was step through as he stood in the shadows of the curtain as Moon had fallen silent. He couldn’t bite his lip. But suddenly the thought of taking that last step was terrifying. And he almost whispered.

“Do you….want to see?”

His internal fans were whirling wildly. A loud sound in the otherwise silent theatre comedy-bot luckily nowhere to be found. Moon's presence against his back returned. And it took him a second to realize…he was probably being hugged. His hand hovered around where he assumed Moon’s where As he stared forward. Towards the props, not really seeing it more focussed on that nice warm feeling behind him.

There was a nod. And he took a tentative step. As he kept his eyes averted as long as possible. He felt Moon cut off his access to the visual feed.

“Tell me when to look?”

If he could blush, he would. But he still carefully shuffled forward. Making sure he was as much in the light as possible. As well as fully in the frame as possible. With a nervous sigh, he knocked his knuckles together a few times. Before nodding.

“Okay…ready”

He said as he started at himself in the mirror. Noticing his own form slightly swaying side to side. How he nervously kept tapping knuckles together. But he would stay. For Moon.

Moon connected to their eyes again. And he felt something warm in his chest. And he waved at himself shyly in the mirror. His never-changing expression couldn’t show it. But the rest of his body was betraying his nervousness. He couldn’t see Moon. But he still felt close by. Like he was looking right over his shoulder. He couldn’t tell what the expression was. But even if he couldn’t see it. He knew Moon was there. Watching.

Moon let out a laugh. Not a cackle as he so often did. But more a disbelieving sound, that echoed from the back of his mind

“It’s…exactly like I expected and also nothing like it…it’s…it’s strange... A very strange feeling.”

He gave a hum, it felt a bit weird on his end as well, to just stand in front of the mirror. While knowing someone was looking at you. But…not a bad thing. Just strange indeed.

“You really do keep swaying”

He stopped doing it, not wanting to distract Moon with his movements. But Moon quickly corrected him.

“No..no. didn’t mean for you to stop, it’s cute”

If he had a blushing feature it would turn on to his highest settings. Instead, his fans started blasting hard. And all he could do was bring a hand up towards his face as his chest fell close to bursting.

As Moon was suddenly stuttering in his head. He pushed past the overwhelming feeling before Moon could take it back.

“Thank you…”

Mood nodded, he might be wrong, but the feeling that their cheeks were aflame even without any receptors there was probably not only coming from himself. He removed his hands from his face and stared forward again. Tilting his head up, and down, side to side as well, as twirling his body a bit so that Moony really could see everything.

He could feel Moon's amusement, and the warm feelings in his chest weren’t going away either. He wasn’t sure which of them was feeling those emotions.

“I really like your rays”

They retracted for a second not expecting another compliment, before they spun widely, and he heard a light cackle.

“So that’s what’s happening when I feel that…okay..good to know”

“Feel what?”

“The spinning…I feel it…vaguely, I could just never tell what it was Just knew it meant you were happy”

They spun another few rounds, and Moon was laughing again. His hands moved to tug at a few of them as they stopped spinning. He swore he heard another “Cute….” Causing another spin.

Covering his eyes afterward.

“Sorry Sun, didn’t mean to make you feel embarrassed or anything”

He shook his head a couple of times. His fans and vents steaming a bit as he was heating up from all the compliments.

“It's okay…it’s nice.”

He took a couple of simulated breaths and met his own gaze back at the mirror. Staring into his blank white eyes. His face hadn’t moved an inch, as the plate couldn’t move at all. But He was sure that if he could, he would be grinning all the same…if with a bit more flustered eyes.

“Could you…could you take a few steps forward…I wanna see your face better”

His chest fluttered again. As he absent-mindedly stroked over it a couple of times. Then he stepped forward crouching a bit, so his face remained visible.

“Like this?”

Moon hummed and he could feel Moon basically watching from behind his eyes. Tracking everywhere. But now that he looked in the mirror. He thought he saw the faint hint of something moving in his own white eyes. He couldn’t tell if it were his own broken LEDs. Or Moons LEDs that where hidden behind the faceplate.

“I know the staff said your LEDs were broken…but…it looks different from what I thought”

He gave a bit of a defeated laugh.

“It’s a bit unsettling, I know”

The warm feeling on his back was back. Like Moon was pressed up behind him, head over his shoulder.

“I don’t think so, works better with your face than mine. Though I am curious as to what they looked like before.”

“Blue…”

“Mnn?”

“My eyes were blue..” It kinda felt like Moon was smiling into his shoulder

“So the posters are accurate. “ he heard him say slowly.

He shrugged lightly. “Yeah, It seems they thought us both more cute, in the design stage”

The feeling around him constricted like he was grabbed tighter.

“You are plenty cute”

His rays spun again. And he felt Moon press closer. He certainly seemed to like flustering him with this new compliment.

“I mean it Sun. You look great. Thank you for showing me.”

He laughed breathlessly, voicebox stuttering a little. Hands came up to hold his arms, as to give himself a hug. Or more accurately Moon. Leaning into the warm feeling that he was feeling behind him.

“Any time.”

He pulled up his clock. It was ten minutes before they would switch. Had it really been almost an hour? Time had rushed passed them it seemed. He stepped back a little. Surprised that the feeling of being held didn’t stop.

They were touching more, in these last few months. Now that things were starting to look up. Feeling Moon at his backside. At his side. Like their hands were brushing together. Just there. That he was still here. Not gone. Just a solid presence. And he wondered not for the first time how lonely Moon had been as well in all that time. Where the virus cut their communication. And he had to fight to keep Moon from coming out.

The isolation had nearly driven them both mad. But at least he had the kids, if only for a little while longer than Moon had. He gave his own arms a tentative squeeze before dropping them. Before standing tall staring in the mirror as though he was talking to Moon and not himself.

“It was a very nice to see you today, Moony, Hope you had fun, and have a fazz-errific day”

His voice was echoing through the empty theatre, and he hoped no human security was walking anywhere near the daycare. As he waved at the Mirror as he would wave at the kids who were leaving the daycare at the end of the day. And Moon was laughing heartily in their head. And hearing that made him laugh as well. As he turned and walked away. Feeling warm and fuzzy. Ready to head back to the daycare so Moon could enjoy his time awake before he had to go on patrol.

“Thanks, Sunny”

“No problem at all Moony”

“Wait..? Sun..? Where are you going?” He had walked back to the curtains, towards the wall with the light switch to turn it off.

“Back to our room. Didn't you want to see if you could fix that staff bot? You got pretty far yesterday. Just there is still time for me to - “

“- Didn’t you wanna see me as well?”

He froze with his hands hovering over the light switch as Moon interrupted him. His fans spiking up, rays slowly retracting

“You don’t have to..” He said staring straight forward.

“You went out because you wanted to see what I looked like right?”

Moon asked. There was something on his arm, was Moon trying to make him pull back? And he gave a slow nod.

“Then let’s do what you came out here to do…I really don’t mind”

He felt himself sway anxiously.

“Don’t wanna take up more of your time.”

There was Silence for a while, The feeling on his arm still there, tightening. Until eventually Moon pierced the silence first.

“I enjoy spending time with you…”

He felt himself stand up straighter, hand pulling back surprised.

“You do...?” he asked in wonder.

Moon felt more to his side, so he tilted his head in that direction. There was nothing. Nothing to see, nothing to feel. Moon was seeing the same thing as him. Not looking back at him. Or towards him.Just empty space. But at the same time. It felt like he was there. Right there. Standing beside him hand trailing up his arm.

“You…couldn’t tell?”

He sounded hurt. And he put his hands up, rays shrinking further.

“NO! I mean..YES?!…What I mean is?!”

His voicebox let out a static sound before he tried again., nervously tapping his knuckles together.

“I mean…you already have to spend so much time with me...I just..didn’t wanna force more of my time on your free time. I have posed my will on you enough”

He turned his eyes off for a second, as his faceplate was unable to blink. Or well..shut his eyes.

“Oh…oh Sunny”

The words seemed between fond and heartbroken. And then that warm feeling that had been pressing against his back, was now at his front. And yeah he was pretty sure he was being hugged. There was nothing. Just the strong, very strong feeling of it. He lifted his arms and thought it back at him.

Thinking about how he would warp his arms around Moon's frame. How his faceplate would feel next to his. All of it. The warmth pulled back, and his eyes flickered back on there was still nothing. Just him with his arms outstretched like he was holding onto air. But it still felt like Moon was staring him down. Even though he is looking at the wall.

“I say it again, I like spending time with you, If I ever will need some time alone, I will ask. Don’t…Don’t feel like you gotta hide for my sake. Okay? I Like it when you hang around before going to sleep”

His rays were spinning, and he was letting out a couple of puffs to keep from overheating. That fluttering feeling was back. But it felt stronger. Als it kinda felt like he was gonna cry. Moon didn’t hate him….he still wanted him around.

He managed to nod. “Under…understood”

His shoulders were gently squeezed. Then he felt something warm on his cheek which made him gasp. But the second afterward. He felt his body move before his input, shutting down his control over it one by one. As they switched over.

In less than a second it was over. And suddenly he felt himself float. Panicking for a small second. Then they calmed down as Moon slowly opened their bodies eyes and they were looking at the wall.

“You okay there Sun?… I forgot about the time”

He smiled at hearing the deeper, raspier voice out in the open

“Yeah…yeah just surprised….can you..can you stand still for a few seconds so I can adjust”

“Sure, don’t worry. Not going anywhere”

Switching in the past had always been a painful process. Especially after he started to fight for control. To keep Moon from coming out. And in his infected state, he could hurt the kids. But the fight was gone, it wasn't painful. Just kinda disorientating if he didn’t expect it. And it always took a while for him to get used to not having the body. As he was in control of it for so long.

He was glad Moon always gave him a moment to adjust as he needed. Moon was flexing his fingers slightly And he felt them slowly bounce back and forth as he rolled from the top of his toes to his heel and back. Slowly he got the presence of where he was in their code. And tried to press himself against Moon's side. To let him know he was there.

What…was that before the switch? He was not in the body but he still could feel the echo of what it had been. On where his cheek should be. Had? Had Moon kissed his cheek? He had no rays to spin anymore. But they might as well have.

He shook his head, trying to ignore that thought. As he kept close to Moons ai.

“I’m….here” He mumbled. Moon nodded taking a step back. Before halting, Moon turned towards the backstage area. Taking a step, His own eyes flew to the corner of Moon's vision trying to see if he could catch a glance. And Moon laughed.

“It only be fair if you closed your eyes as well. Isn’t it Sundrop?”

He felt flustered, but he had to agree. So for now he shut down his access to the visual feed. And he heard Moon chuckle again. He kept a hand on his arm. He wanted to stand behind Moon. Like had done when his vision returned.

He needed the guidance of where Moon was. Without a visual, it was hard to project himself near Moon's presence. Even with the visual, he was worse at it than Moon. At least it felt like he did. Moon never seemed to react as much to his touches. As he did to Moons.

The bells around Moon's wrist were jiggling. But for some reason, he realized that Moon was standing bent over, he thought it strange, As they should be the same height so Moon should also be able to be viewable at full height. But he couldn’t even question it further.

“Okay, You can look”

And he wasted no time, turning on his visual feed, and then burst out laughing. Moon Was jumping from one foot to the other, imitating the pose he was doing in his statue. cackling and saying. “Naughty boy, Naughty boy~” As he won’t try to catch intruders at night. Or stray children during hide and seek. It caught him totally off guard, and he held onto what he hoped where Moons shoulders. His visuals kept being cut off as he couldn’t concentrate.

Moon was laughing and slowly raising to full length.

“Gotcha”

He gently nudged at Moon through his code, but he didn't budge.

“Moondrop!”

He exclaimed loudly between giggles.

“Not…not fair. Ru-Rulebreaker!”

He could feel the level of amusement rise within his counterpart

“What’s not fair? I thought you liked laughing Also”

Moon let out a disbelieving laugh

“What Rule did I break?”

“Moony~!.. Stop. I wanna look at you! stop playing around”

Moon's laugh was a soft cackle. Clearly amused at his breathless state.

“Alright, alright, I’ll play nice”

And he took a few steps back. When he finally had control over his laughter, he focused on getting back in the visual feed. And look.

And oh….oh yeah..it was strange.

Because there was Moon, giving a little salute, then a wave. Before clasping his hands behind himself as he bounced back and forth slowly.

He let himself take it all in.

“I get it now…with it being like you expected and not at all…”

Moon hummed. Doing the same he has done, giving him the ability the watch all of Moon’s sides. He had known Moon was blue and white from all the drawings. But seeing it, it kinda felt like looking at his own body, but with the kind of clothes you would never wear. But somehow it still looks really good.

And the colors really looked good on him. The dark side made the moon part of their faceplate stand out. And he wondered if it maybe glowed in the dark as well. The spots on his cheeks were clearly moon craters, while they looked like freckles on his own face. Mouth set in that same grin. Teeth were just as smooth as his own, and not sharp like some of the kids had drawn in the past.

He realized that without the rays, Moon might be seen as slightly shorter than him. But Moon had the nightcap as well. Smiling he could hear the bell from it with every slow bounce his counterpart made. It made him even more curious about how he was able to move around so silently in the dark.

There were a couple of little mannerisms that he caught Moon doing as well. The bouncing instead of the swaying. Arms behind himself instead of in front of him like he did. And while his rays were swaying. Moon's faceplate seemed to be much looser

“It’s…it’s your faceplate that can spin…right?”

Moon gave a nod, and though they had no eyelids to narrow it felt like Moon was doing so anyway as he stared into the mirror into his own eyes.

“You wanna see?”

It made his chest tighten, could Moon feel that? Was that him? Was that Moon? He didn’t really care. As he nodded.

Moon held out three fingers, then put one down, as he counted down, and then. He saw Moony’s face do a whole spin, turning upside down, then right side up again, cap attached and all. The bell made a soft sound as he did. But surprising him, their vision stayed the same, not turning with them.

He pressed himself further into Moon's back excitedly

“Oh!…oh! That looked so cool! Can you do that again?!”

He got a warning of temperatures rising but he ignored it. As Moon chuckled flusteredly.

“Sure Sunshine”

He Kept staring at how easily Moon's face spun around. before the new name hit him.

Sunshine?

His code buzzed happily at the new name, and he saved it somewhere where he knew even the fazzbear people wouldn’t touch it.

“Happy?”

He nodded, As he kept looking up and down. And then he kinda wondered something

“Does..does your cap ever get tangled with the wires behind our faceplate? I…I mean I think I would remember if we ever would have gone to maintenance for that…but..I dunno seems also an easy fix. So just a handler could have fixed it I suppose.”

Moon groaned and dragged a hand over his face.

“Has happened a couple of times, yes, but I can’t take it off. Luckily I managed to convince one who worked long, long ago, to stitch part of it together. So the tail ain't as long as it used to be.”

He chuckled softly,

“Let me guess, the kids, grabbed it too, making your head spin” Moon's eyes rolled

“Obviously, like they’re not playing with your rays when you hold them. I can feel it when they do”

He warped his arms around Moon's middle and hopefully conveyed that through their shared mental link. And wondering how his yellow arms would look against the blue and white of Moon's

“Of course they do…I don’t feel anything when you do this though….which is kind of a bummer.”

The hand on Moon's face dropped to about where he was holding them if a little off. But he felt that fuzzy feeling rise again.

“Maybe there is something else?”

He thought about it for a second.

“I feel it when you use the wire”

Moon's arms dropped, head tilting side to side.

“Huh…I don’t feel it when you do. The only reason I know you’ve used it is cause I get an alert when you call for it.”

He hummed

“That is a little strange indeed, oh can you step closer now, wanna see more of your face as well”

Moon chuckled.

“Yeah, yeah, Sure Sunny”

He stepped forward, and then immediately raised his arm as he looked directly into the light. That was mounted above it.

“Ah shit…that hurt”

“Are you okay? Also, language! “

Moon grumbled “We’re not even in the daycare” but as he slowly lowered his arm he continued

“Yeah, fine…just still not used to all the lights. Dunno how you dealt with that every day”

He gave a shrug. “I don't really know any different, I just can’t believe they only let you out at night, you look handsome in the light”

Moon froze. And he felt his own coding screech to a halt. Did he really just say that?! Out loud?! It was true, but he didn't need to say that?! Something came over the vision feed, Moon had covered part of his face. And he realized it was spinning again

Had…Had he flustered Moon?! Did…? Did Moon like it that he called him handsome?

Moon cleared some static from their voicebox. And continued on like nothing had happened.

“C-close enough for you”

But the small stutter in the voice box made his code tingle pleasantly. He looked at Moon standing there and imagined himself standing behind him. And giving him a hug. The LEDs of Moon's eyes slid away from the mirror as he continued to look forward. There was nothing to see. But now that he could see Moon. He found it a bit easier to project what he wanted. And Moon was clearly feeling it. Just like he had felt the hugs before.

“I like your eyes”

He said softly.

“I don’t think they are scary looking at all, those adults are just mean.”

There were a couple of clicks coming from their body until Moon looked up. His face also held that ever-stockfast grin. But he wondered what his expression would have been otherwise.

“I don’t think they mean it when it’s like this, but with the lights off, and only the red glow it can be pretty eerie”

“Eerily handsome is what they should mean”

And just like he thought. Moon's faceplate did another full rotation. And he pulled back

“Right, right…I get it. No need to tease”

He grabbed tighter on Moon

“I aint teasing, Just speaking the truth”

Moon rolled his eyes. His vision going to the light switch in the corner.

“Right…right”

“I mean it,” He said deadly serious.

Moon stops moving for a second gaze going to the mirrors for a brief second before moving away.

“It would seem then that you are the only one who would think so Sunny,” He said with a sigh. “Just…hard to think you are serious”

As he continued to walk to the lightswitch

“You are the only person to ever call me cute, where you serious?”

Moon stopped completely. There was a Silence, his own code trying to write and rewrite himself to articulate what he was feeling. If he had control of the body, it would probably feel like blushing.

Moon turned around looking towards where he he stood. It was hard to imagine himself in front of Moon. But having just seen his image in the mirror made it a bit easier Cutting off his visual feed to keep that other image fresh He reached out to where he thought Moon's shoulders were. Then slowly warped his arms around him. And hugged him.

He was in total darkness. Relying fully on his memory so he could send this sensation of this hug. Just like Moon had done.

“Even if I am the only one…I am not lying…I really think you look good M-Moonbeam”

He stuttered a bit on the last part. He decided at the last moment to add the nickname. Hard to concentrate on speaking while also using some of his power to project the feeling of hug, and close. And hopefully. Loved.

A few seconds later, he felt the same sensations being sent back to him. He had no body to feel with right now, but it felt like it had before. Like Moon was close. But now he could picture it better. Now knew of the exact shades of blue and white that were coming around him. How he should angle his face to give Moon’s faceplate enough room. Where their clothing brushed together. That he would feel the trails of ribbon on his back if they hugged like this

No more guesses. And…maybe because both of them now knew how they looked…and were kind of projecting the same image back and forth. It felt stronger? Tighter? Realer? Hard to describe. Just. Close. It felt close. And that was all he had wanted.

Before both of them slowly let go. And joined back on Moon's vision. Moon's arms lowered slighty, Before slowly bringing his hands together, where his fingertips intertwined. He felt a faint sensation. And Moon stared hard at his fingers. He didn’t know why. But it felt kinda nice. Like their fingertips were locked together in a way.even if it was fully in Moon's control.

“I…believe you”

The happy fuzzies returned. And Moon let out a punched-out little laugh. Walking back in front of the mirror with a shake of his head. Bringing one hand to his chest. And he knew what Moon was gonna do. And he pressed forward eagerly. Ready to watch

Moon spread out his other arm.

“Hope you all had a good nap. But it’s time for the Moon to go, Farewell “ Moon paused, he had mouthed along at Moon's speech as he did every night, Moon wished the children farewell.

Moon took his bow a moment earlier than he normally did, just before he said ‘little starlights, instead of after. But as Moon titled his head up, he was sure he felt an amused grin

“ My Sunshine”

All he could do was stare at Moon's eyes. Their fans were rushing, As Moon was still bent in the perfect little bow. Ever present grin seemingly even wider than before. As Sun felt his code scrabble to make sense of everything.

He couldn’t, he tried, but everything came to one conclusion. But that certainly was the wrong one. Right?! Moon certainly wouldn’t be…flirting with him.

He thought back to when they switched, on that feeling on his face. And deciding not to think. Trying not to panic about what this could mean if he got it wrong. He saw the mirror. And pictured himself doing what he was about to do, not trying to overthink it too hard

And then he leaned forward and did it. He kissed Moon's cheek. There was nothing there, nothing for his face to touch. right now he was just code. But it still felt like he did. It made alerts of all kinds spring up. But nothing like systems failing. Just caution alerts. It often happened if he panicked too hard. But now…they went away as he pulled back. Yeah, just his code reacting to his own panic.

Moon stumbled a bit, before pulling himself upright, and he just put himself behind Moon. Making sure to press their backs together to let him know he hadn’t left.

Moon's hand had come up and was caressing his cheek. He leaned into the feeling, because what else could he do? He wanted his rays to spin. His cheeks too burn. But everything felt like a warm static code.

He heard the notification of the clock being brought up. Ten minutes before his rest time, Monny’s parol would start. Moon laughed.

“That’s the second time I lost track of time tonight.” there was amusement in his voice. And he chuckled himself

“At least the distraction was fun…?.” he mumbled. And Moon gave an agreeable hum. Finally turning away from the mirror. Turning off the lights and And walking out from backstage toward the main daycare again.

As they neared the door Moon spoke up slowly.

“So… Tomorrow? Will you stay out with me…and…I dunno. Spend some time together…just us two?”

Their body was still making their fans go into overdrive. But he nodded happily. “Ye-yeah. I would love to”

Moon nodded Ready to open the doors.

“Lights still on, protect your eyes..” He murmured. The hour wasn’t up. The pizzaplex would go dark with his rest mode

“Thanks, Sunshine…” another fuzzy feeling seering right through him.

“No problem….Moombean”

A brief pause in which he was sure Moon's face rotated, and then finally stepped through arms protecting himself against the harsh lights.

“Thank you…” he mumbled, realizing he hadn't yet

“No, I should thank you.”

He smiled to himself. Trying to imagine how Moon would look in the opening of the theatre doors and giving him a hug from behind. And as Moon lowered his arm against the light, it rested right where his own did.

“Look at us sharing our thanks”

Moon chuckled “Good example for the Kids”

“Mmmn we are the best”

He saw the time, just a minute left.

“Have a nice night Moony, and good luck on patrol.”

“I’ll try…Good night Sunny” He hummed before gathering the last of his bravery

“Looking forward to our date tomorrow”

He smiled as he felt Moon quickly spin around. But the lights went out. And he went into rest mode

It was the next morning when he came online. It was later than normal, But he wasn’t that surprised. They were lying on their nest of pillows in their room. Feeling their charging cable plugged in. Seems that they charged through the switching process. As he gently removed it. And activated their vision.

He stretched his limps. Surprised to feel something slide from his chest down to his lap. He looked down. And looking at the backside of his own plushy. Had Moon….? Had Moon held it as he went asleep?

He gingerly picked it up and turned it over. Nothing strange or weird about it. Just the sun plush that had always been in their room. Up on a makeshift shelf but now…it lay here. He quickly looked up and scanned around the room. And found the Moon plush on the floor near said shelf.

“Oh noo…”

He quickly crawled over and picked him up, now holding both of them.

“There we are, the ground is no place for you”

Checking the plush over, for some dirt. He suddenly heard Moon's quiet voice laugh. And felt like he was pressing himself against his side. He could hear the exhaustion in his counterpart's voice Probably meant there had been some intruders last night. No wonder they woke up so late. He would ask about it during nap time as Moon's morning rest was soon to start.

“What is the place for him then?”

Moon asked with a yawn. His rays spun, glaring towards his counterpart. Who only laughed. He knew full fell Moon was doing this on purpose. Moon knew he would be plagued by thoughts of Him holding the plush As he slept. The image was cute.

But what it really kind of meant…was well. Moon had maybe wanted to have held him for real. And he knew. That in the future he would, they could every night.

But this was probably payback for his own comment last night. Calling Moon’s invitation out as it was…how he had seen it. He probably drove Moon mad with wonder if he had meant it as well, and what that meant for both of them. The thought made his own head spin.

“I know a better place for them.”

He mumbled, moving back to the bed. Moved some pillows around, so he could set them down. He picked up the plushies again. Just stared at them for a second.

“Don’t really look like us at all…do they?”

The feeling of Moon beside him shifted, and it was now as if he draped himself over his back. Looking over his shoulder.

His thumb stroked both bellies of the plushies tenderly.

“They’ll do for now…” And he placed them together on top of the nest of pillows they called their bed.

“There! See they are…”

His voicebox filled with static for a bit causing a pause, before he managed to finish

“planning their date”

Moon let out a saticly laugh. Then gave a very pleased sounding.

“I see…good for them”

He nodded. His rays already spinning once more. He heard the lights go on in the daycare. And his system gave an alert that an employee was walking in through the daycare doors. He glanced at the balcony, then back at the plushies.

Deciding to finish the little story that he started, he pushed them closer till their hands touched. And felt like Moon was warping his arms around him again. Really plastering himself across his back.

“They seem to be having fun..” Moon whispered.

His fans kicked up another notch

“The date is going well.”

The arms around him tightened.

“I wonder how it will end.”

Moon's voice was…hard to read. But the hands around him didn’t move. Strong and steady and there. Feeling Moon stare at the plushies In front of them. As if he was waiting. Hoping? His fans puffed out a little steam as he continued.

“I could show you”

Moon's face was right next to his. It felt so close. Even tho he knew it wasn’t there He thought about what he saw last night. Of the split face, the red iris that seemed to know him through and through. Just the idea..that if he could turn his head and see it. It was driving him forward towards the end of this little game.

“Please…”

Moon started softly and he reached forward again. With shaking hands holding both plushies. Turning them to face each other. He really wished he could blush so he was maybe overheating a little less, as his rays continued to keep spinning.

“Show me” Moon finished speaking softly

And he pressed the faces of their plushies together. Like he saw the children do to indicate their dolls or stuffed animals were kissing. He did it softly, and carefully. Holding still for a moment before pulling them apart, and setting them in such a way that it looked like they were hugging.

“L-Like that-at..” His voicebox stuttered

“Sun…”

He turned his head to the side, towards where Moon's voice felt like coming from. He cut off his visual feed, knowing Moon wasn’t there. But he didn’t want to face that. Instead, he felt something. The same warm feeling that was on his cheek last night. It was now pressed against his smile.

He pressed back. Thinking of pushing his static faceplate against Moons Feeling it move side to side a bit as it couldn't stop moving. Of reaching up and holding that faceplate in place himself. Of Moons’fingers holding onto his rays. And they lost themselves in whatever wonderful, strange feeling this was.

He stayed there. Imagine all of it. Feeling it projected back. Knowing deep down that Moon was sending the same feeling toward him. The same image, the same sensations. How they thought it would feel.

He felt that warmth spread from his face, down into his processors, and he was storing all these sensations and memories right next to the newly given nickname. Eventually, the warm feeling pulled away.

He kept his vision dark. Moon kept quiet. He reached out, towards Moon, just his whole mind screaming..touch..hold. He didn’t really care what. And it felt like something was wrapping around his hand. His vision flickered on. But there was nothing there. Not that he thought there would be. But still.

Slowly he brought his hand against his faceplate, and his fans started blowing much harder. He wondered if that was Moon or himself. He checked the time. Moon would go into rest mode in less than three minutes.

Hand still against his faceplate he rose from the bed, walking towards the balcony. He could hear distant sounds of voices. As more employees filled the building. They should be getting ready. But he didn’t wanna risk…not saying goodbye.

After that…it felt wrong for Moon to just go to sleep as normal. But he didn’t know what to say, and time was running out.

“Good luck…”

Moon’s voice was soft…and a bit distant. And he pressed his hand harder against his face

“With a distraction like that…I need it” he muttered back.

Something rested against his back. He smiled knowing that he was right there. Probably feeling just like him. A lot happy, and a bit lost.

“Sweet dreams”

A little warm burst from his chest. And now he finally realized…that it was Moon’s music-box winding up..but never playing.

His hand dropped over top of it. He glanced back, seeing the broken shard of a mirror they had carried up some time ago, and he usually avoided. He glanced at it, back at the opening. Checking the time, he had sixty seconds and launched himself across the room to the mirror

“Sun? Wha-”

Moon cut himself off as he quickly but carefully pulled the broken piece up to his face, staring right into it. Thinking of Moon's face as he saw last night, instead of his own staring back.

“I love you, Moon”

He was trembling. Forty seconds

“I… I do…I didn’t wanna wait till tonight to-”

“Love you too” Moon's voice was clear. His grip tightened. The mirror splintered lightly beneath his thumb.

He sent all the love he could towards him. And his whole body was heaving and whirling and clicking. He rested his forehead against the mirror. He kept his eyes on his own face for Moon to see.

“Good night”

And then Moon's presence was gone…No not gone, never gone. He could still feel him. But all the parts that had Moon input were slowly shutting down. The fans got a bit lower, his heat seemed to lower..

He delicately put the mirror on the ground. Wiping the splinters of glass of his thumb. And made for the opening. As he dived into the ballpit, he knew it was gonna be a long day.

But he didn’t care. He couldn’t wait till tonight. If him getting out of the daycare laid to situations like this. He was planning on traveling even further next time.

[noffy96]

Errink fic

Did I write another fic? YES

for so long this one was just a 1 sentence prompt in a document, but i couldn't let it escape me.

So here we are. I finally wrote an Error/ Ink fic! So happy to finally do that

read the full story below or go to

Warnings:

I rated it M to be safe, cause it involves ink. Puking ink into the error's mouth. so...yeah don't read if you are squeamish, but it shouldn't be too bad.

How Excitement ruins everything

Word count: 8282 ( i didn't notice that. that's funny XD)

Summary:

They had been so worried about Error crashing. That the thought that this would happen never crossed his mind. Or maybe it did, how would he know… But it had happened. Another sob wrenched itself from his throat, the brush dropping to the snow as he dug his hands into his closed eyesockets.

He was such an idiot, Error had deserved a far better first kiss. Their relationship had been fine without it, and now look at where they were. Error was gonna tear him a new one when he was found. He had been told repeatedly to be careful and not get his ink all over the other's clothes.

Or

I remembered that Ink pukes ink when overwhelmed with emotions. So what would happen if he pukes ink while having his first kiss with Error because it makes him feel too much. This. This is what happens

AO3 right -> HERE

Or continue reading, right below:

He landed once again and made another portal and jumped through it. He had jumped through what 10 maybe 15 portals. He didn’t keep count, he just wanted to get away, he didn’t wanna look Error in the eye after screwing up like that.

Of course, he had to screw it up. When did he ever do something right? And even now while having been so careful. He had to forget and throw away all that progress the two of them had made. Slowly he came to a stop, he was on the edge of a snow-covered cliff overlooking a chasm. It was so very quiet, no one was around for miles.

He closed the portal, it wouldn’t matter much, Error would find him eventually. He always did and it’s not like he could avoid him forever. He collapsed onto his hands and knees. Tears were running from his face. As the tears hit the snow, it slowly turned blue. Then one drop fell from his chin and made a spot of black appear. Just the one, but it stood out. He let out a hollow laugh and squeezed his eyes shut.

Emotions were running wild inside of him, not sure which one to settle on. Disappointment, embarrassment, fear, sadness, and guilt. It made him taste so many different colours, it was making him sick.

And before he knew it he was retching out another large puddle of ink from the depths of his stomach. It all fell away, the tears stopped, and only some drops from the ink on his chin kept falling into the puddle below. All his emotions had become distant whispers, leaving him nearly empty. He started at the black puddle beneath him for a second longer before sitting up straight, and quickly petted at his stash and grab some paints.

Going for all the colours he just vomited out…because he did it twice, was nearly all of them. Drinking his blues, purples and greens in quick succession. But when his hand rested over the yellow and orange. He stopped…he hadn’t forgotten how he ended up here…and he really didn’t wanna feel forced happiness right now.

The tears that had stopped were back, making more of a mess of the white snow. As he sat back, his bare hands and feet dug into the snow. Just staring up, looking at the ceiling of the underground, that stretched higher than he ever remembered seeing.

He tore his gaze away before he got distracted, and tucked at his scarf. He had to write down what happened, such a fuck up should be noted. He got one of his smaller brushes from his stash and whipped some ink from his face with his gloved hand.

His eyes scanned over the expanse of his scarf looking for a free space. Not really reading most of them, until he saw one note with Error’s name.

Error wants to kiss you, he sets the pace because of haphephobia and will start our first kiss!!!!

Next to them was a tally with ‘failed attempts’. Ten small lines crossed beneath it. A brief sad smile came over his face as flashes of memories came to him. One of Error crashing before he even got close. Another of Errors determined yet shy face. Flushed blue. Another one of them leaning closer only to be interrupted when Fresh suddenly poofed in.

Error had been trying so hard to overcome his fear of touch. And he was so proud of him, they had come so far. If you told him, that one day he would be leaning against the destroyer happily working on his next artwork when said destroyer was working on his dolls. He would have laughed at your face.

But it was real, a good type of real. Error made him feel all kinds of emotions, emotions that mixed so wonderfully that it was like tasting a shade of colour he had never come across. It made him want to experiment with his colours so he could try and feel more. And then return those feelings. But most of the time when he tried mixing them it left him overwhelmed and vomiting out ink again, and maybe he should have thought about that.

After trying to wipe his face once more, he wrote beneath the entry

First kiss failed, you puked ink all over him.

His hands shook. Why..? Why couldn’t he just be normal? They had been so worried about Error crashing. That the thought that this would happen never crossed his mind. Or maybe it did, how would he know… But it had happened. Another sob wrenched itself from his throat, the brush dropping to the snow as he dug his hands into his closed eyesockets.

He was such an idiot, Error had deserved a far better first kiss. Their relationship had been fine without it, and now look at where they were. Error was gonna tear him a new one when he was found. He had been told repeatedly to be carefull and not get his ink all over the other's clothes.

But how could he have known this would happen, it had never happened before. A kiss never had made him feel so much. Surprise? Sure. Happy? Yeah. Excited? Most definitely But this…this had been so much more.

Maybe because he hadn’t seen it coming. Maybe if he had he might have drunk a little less paint. But would it have felt the same? Or would he not have been able to reciprocate the full extent of what the other did to him?

Not that he had been able to now. It had been barely a second after their teeth touched before he puked all over them.

His hand went down to his mouth. He could still feel it, the slight tingle of one of Error's glitches. The hand against his cheek, guided him to look up. The fond look he had gotten from Error just before they had closed their eyes.

It was like he had been filled with all his warmer colours, when you mix them all together to get the most beautiful of sunrises. Chasing away the cold blues and purples that had been there all along. And when their teeth actually touched. It felt like buckets of that mixture had been poured into him. That along with pride, for coming this far. Relief for getting there. Excitement that he was allowed this close at all.

But then he could feel it all mixing and turning until it had become a black mess., He felt it coming, and fear settled in, acting as an accelerant. Within the next split second ink had boiled up from his throat and started coming out of his mouth.

By the time he had managed to pull himself away, the ink had been dripping from both their mouths onto their scarves and shirts. Error's eyes were filled with error signs and were completely glitched out, on the verge of a crash. Fear consumed him, and he fled.

He ran, he didn’t want to be yelled at. Or want to see the disgust on the other's face. Not wanting to see the slowing realisation, that he had not been worth all this.

It was hard enough, their relationship. With his awful memory and inability to feel. Add Error’s haphephobia, temper, and their fights over creation and destruction. It was a surprise they worked at all.

Yet they did, Error somehow loved him, despite the fact that he couldn’t return those feelings in full. But he did feel so much for Error. Love…he was thinking that more and more these days, A emotion that he was sure was the most impossible to feel out of all of them. Yet it came up in his mind more and more. Cause what other feeling could that warm yet terrifying feeling be? And Error might be the first person he felt so strongly about. And it terrified him, 'cause if it wasn't that. That would mean breaking Error’s heart…and he was so scared to lose him.

Because Error was despite everything a great boyfriend. He could be a downright asshole sometimes and yell at him a lot. But most of it was deserved. Dream didn’t seem to like it, but it helped that someone reeled him in and just point out he was being a dick. Yet also didn’t force him to change.

But Error also helped him with the confusing emotions, not caring when he was high up on one colour, And never demanding for him to find a balance that was ‘normal’. In fact seemed to enjoy it, when he let himself go for him.

His hands were brushing over the blue vial again carefully taking another sip, as from the dept of his mind a memory serves from a little while after they first started dating.

They had been sitting on handmade swings from Error’s strings. And Error pushed himself into a slight swing.

“I still don’t see how you can say they are all fake Squid”

“Error…it’s…” He sighed “They just are okay?… I could drink any of these, and suddenly i would not be enjoying this date anymore!”

“But you ain't doing that?”

“But I could!”

“So?”

“What do you mean? So?”

“Some people take drugs to make themselves feel different right? Or drink? Or take medication so they feel more in control, how is that different?”

“Cause they don’t change their entire personality?!”

“Your paints don’t do that? So you are a bit more cheerful, or more sad, but you are still You, You are still an annoying inkblot, that will somehow make a mess out of everything. Sometimes you forget to take them, sometimes you take too much, it’s still you,”

He didn’t remember what face he made, but Error came to a stop.

“Look here, no look me in the eye. I know with what kind of abomination I fell in love with Capiché?! God knows I asked myself why! And I am FULLY aware that someday you might forget your paints, go completely blank and forget whatever made you so obsessed with me. Yet you are here. And not because those paints made you. Cause YOU choose to Ink! “

He must have looked doubtful cause Error continued on

“Look... You got the full set now right? A nice concoction of all your colours.”

He had given a nod.

“You could at this moment, pick and choose just a single one of them, yet you don’t, you let them mix inside you, and form who you are, You might ‘pick’ “ He made big quotation marks with his fingers. “Your emotions more than we do, but that's just you being you, and I fucking like that okay. And I trust, that this is the truth of your wants”

He stayed quiet

“You are quite the fool”

Error just shrugged

“Sure, yet you don’t leave me, so I say we both are”

He was smiling despite not having taken any of his warm colours. But yellow was in green, and red in purple. So that might be how…who knows, you think he did after all this time. But if he had written down all the times the paints acted differently than he thought they would, his scarf would be 10 times its size.

A crunch of snow sounded behind him. He had been found.

He held his breath and didn’t look up when the other's shadow fell over him. “Fucking hell, you stupid Squid, did you have to run off….”

Error’s voice trailed off, as he kept his gaze on the ground below. The other let out a deep sigh “Right….” And then a thud sounded next to him, and from the corner of his eye, he saw one of Error's legs laid out on the snow next to him.

He turned his head more to stare at said leg Seemed the other had sat down, one leg crossed under him, the other sprawled out, He didn’t dare look up. Still kinda waiting to be smacked over the head at the very least.

The silence stretched on, and the longer it continued, the more confused he became.

“W-what are you…doing?”

He hear some rustling of clothes so he assumed the other shrugged.

“The same as you do after I crash, I think, waiting for the worst to pass, until you're willing to talk”

“W-what if I don’t want to”

“Tough luck Inkblot, if you won’t let me escape after a crash, you ain't escaping after nearly overdosing yourself on blue paints, seriously Squid, it looks like you smashed several blueberries on your face”

“I might have” He countered weakly, and Error snorted.

“Any other day, I’d believe you, you’re stupid enough”

He gave a weak glare at the other's knees.

“Now come on Squid, spill”

“Spill…what do you mean spill…” He was confused., Was the other not mad? He had ruined their first kiss. Why was the other not yelling at him, telling him how disgusting he had been?

“You are obviously upset, so tell me so I can help you”

He felt his fingers clench as a short flame of anger seemed to flare up from somewhere deep inside him. “Like you don’t know…” he muttered

“You think I'd be asking if I did, idiot”

“STOP!” He finally looked up, more tears falling, but his anger was snuffed out the second his gaze landed on Error's face.

The bottom of his face was still covered in black ink. It covered the bottom of the blue streaks that came out of Error's eyes, making them nearly impossible to see. He could still see black between the other's teeth as well. Good god, he felt awful, he wanted to reach out and help remove it, just as much as he wanted to curl away and hide.

Errors brow furrowed. “Fuck, did I screw it up that badly?”

He grew even more confused “What?”

Error's gaze left him to glare at the ground instead and he murmured, almost too low to understand.

“Didn't think I'd be that bad at kissing”

He scrabbled up, as a whole different emotion filled his system

“What no! NO not at all! How dare you say that! That kiss was amazing, better than anything I’ve ever experienced. It made me feel so much!“

He grabbed the other's jacket sleeve, careful not to touch him. Not sure how glitched out his boyfriend was after the near crash he caused.

“I’ve felt so many colours, all at once like never before! It was so overwhelming like…like a shower of ink of all my favourite feelings just rained down on top of me. It really, really wasn’t bad. Believe me!”

He was panting at the end of his little declaration, tears still falling from his face with how much blue he had drank, as his body trembled with fear, fear that he had caused the other to doubt himself, that he might have scared Error away from ever trying something like that again.

Error in response simply raised a browbone.

“Yet you still ran…”

He gave Error a helpless look. “Of course I did…after screwing up like that”

Errors eyes narrowed further until something of an understanding came over him “Wait…are you talking about the whole ink thing? Dude…that’s what got you like this?”

He warped his arms around himself, hoping to stiffel down all the emotions he drank. Trying to get some kind of comfort that he knew the other wouldn’t be able to give at this moment.

“Of course it is…”

“Ink…”

He curled more into himself, swallowing thickly.

“Go ahead…it’s fine..” he mumbled

“Wha…Ink? What are you talking about now!?”

He shrugged, not looking back up. “Yell at me…call me disgusting…I dunno…smack me for forgetting not to get your clothes dirty. … break up with me” On the last part he felt his voice crack.

He didn’t think that would hurt, but it did…and it felt somewhere deeper than where his paints normally reached, Just like that one emotion that was so terrifying, And it was of course in the moment of his biggest screw-up he realised he might have truly and deeply fallen in love with Error. Might…have…it could still not be real..but would it hurt like this if it wasn’t? But he continued on with his speech before he lost what he was trying to say. Tabeling that terrifying thought for now.

“It’s what I deserve for that disgusting display”

The wind blew past them, making an almost whistling sound. It sounded eerie and foreboding. His body was trembling, waiting for the other's judgement.

But no yell came, no hit, nothing….until he felt something on his hands. The warmth was something he recognised immediately and he opened his eyes, to see Error’s multicoloured hands holding his own trembling hands together. Glitches were passing over them almost gently and he could feel the tingle of them.

The action filled him with a confused warmth. He looked back up to see Error staring at their hands as well, opening and closing his mouth, like he was trying to say something. But sometimes shook his head, like the words weren’t good enough.

They sat like that in silence for a bit, the pleasant tingle slowly becoming more of a painful itch as the glitches grew more intense. But he wouldn’t let go before Error did…not knowing if this could be the last time for something like this. But eventually, his confused curiosity won out.

“Error..?”

Error's eyes looked up And for a moment he seemed helpless and sad, but it seemed to pass the longer he was stared at. His hands were squeezed drawing his attention back to them. Wanting to squeeze back, not sure if he should

“I didn’t find it disgusting…” Error stated. He looked back up, Error eyes held a determined gaze, like daring him to be contradicting.

“It wasn’t…pleasant or…expected. But not disgusting. So stop saying that you are…Okay?”

This time it was his turn to raise a brow at Error. “I threw up ink…IN your mouth…You…you really want me to believe��That didn’t bother you…That it isn’t horribly -”

“Yes, you idiot!” Error huffed impatiently.

“If you can deal with me glitching out, and not hugging me and touching me when I ask for it. Despite your love for physical affection. Having dealt with that for years. Then I can suck up my fucking pride and not yell at you for getting us covered in ink. Because you couldn’t help it, It really isn’t as bad as you seem to think it is”

He felt a slight flush on his face, “That’s not…that’s not the same”

“Fucking bullshit Ink. Honestly, I don’t see why you are so upset about it…” He flinched trying to pull back, feeling a bit hurt, but that might be the blue paint.

Error sighed “Wait..fuck..no, poor choice of wording. What I mean is…like...I don’t get it. Like Really Ink, It’s not the first time, we’ve dealt with you being too excited to hold in all your emotions”

“But it normally doesn’t kill the mood this bad…or make you suffer it with me, and just Rruin the whole thing we have been trying to plan for mon-”

Error lifted their hands cutting off his little spiel. “Did it really ruin anything? It didn’t for me… not until after you ran off, And from what you said, until right the moment before you couldn’t keep it in, you were enjoying yourself as well.”

“But..it happened so fast, and no one wants to have ink sp-”

A kiss was planted against his knuckles, more glitches sprang forth from the connection. Almost hiding the other's face from view for a few seconds. But the kiss was warm, making it feel like his hands were on fire. If he had had even slightly more yellow, red, or god forbid pink in his system. The colours it would have brought up would have made him puke again.

But now it only gave him a gentle warmth that spread throughout his chest, making him feel confused fondness along with the sadness and fear of losing his relationship with Error.

“Squid…it’s just ink…It really isn’t as bad. Not the nicest taste in the world, but I won’t die from it…immortal remember.” Error gave a slight quirk of a smile, mouth still close to their hands but not touching it anymore.

He realised the burning feeling in his hands…might actually be how bad Error’s glitches were affecting his body. If he was burning, Error must be in a lot of pain as well…yet his hands were still held onto. Not being dropped for a second, it kept a warmth burning in his chest that didn’t seem able to be put out.

“Besides…it’s flattering in a way…if what you said was true” In the other's eyes was a teasing glint…almost prideful in a way. Like he was boasting about something, holding something shiny that only he could have far above anyone's head

He cocked his head to the side confused. “Flattering?...how…how is it flattering?”

Errors smile turned bemused, dropping their hands back down, but one hand let go to reach for the end of his own scarf.

“Answer me this…cause I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure I ain't. When do you normally expel your paints? “

He blinked a couple of times rapidly, becoming even more confused.

“What does-?” “Humor me Squid, it will make sense.”

He narrowed his eyes “It…it normally only happens when...I feel too much of one emotion, or if I have too many and it mixes weirdly…”

“Mnn. mmm. So I was correct”

That didn’t answer anything!

“Error I really don’t get what you’re trying to say here…correct about what?!”

Error’s smile fell, half concerned. “You really don’t see it?” The other hand wrapped it itself into the scarf.

He looked around helplessly once again, “No, I… I really don’t see how any of this was flattering?”

“Let me phrase it differently then…Did you mean it when you said, this never happened with anyone else you kissed”

“Yes, and I am so sorr-”

“A kiss” The other broke him off, staring straight into his eyes “NEVER made feelings rise in you so much, you had to expel them?” At that, his face flushed, and he could see what the other was trying to say. The conclusion the other had gotten, and the underlying truth of it.

He was pretty sure he was blushing quite badly, and with the rising grin on his face, Error seemed to know he had finally understood as well. He shook his head, he couldn’t believe it..he didn’t dare believe it. As Error leaned a tiny bit forward. His eyes never left his.

“I did that…” He had said it, without any room for argument left, full of a boastful pride “You felt so much, one way or the other, that it exploded out of you, that you couldn’t control it. To me, that seems like a pretty big compliment, Especially now after you insisted that my kiss didn’t suck “

He felt his magic turning inside of him, if he had a soul, this would be the moment he suspected it would hammer at his chest. Out of embarrassment or because of….love. Maybe a terrifying mixture of both, For now, it left him anxiously still and flushed.

Errors hand came up to hold his chin, scarf in-between as a sort of barrier, it didn’t do much, but his bones weren’t burning right away, so better than nothing. The hold, kept him gazing up at Error.

“I promise you Ink, I really don’t mind this at all, But if it really bothers you this much still, we can look into ways to prevent it, so it won't happen, I doubt we get there all at once, but I am willing to try if you are..okay. Your worth trying for Kiki.”

The little bit of his warm mixture of colours was really doing a workout after hearing that little nickname. Trying to warm him with all the love in the world. Feel all the emotions he wanted, but it was stuck at warm affection. With tears forming once more, at the unfairness of it, not able to fully feel that warmth.

“Thanks….Ruru.” He got another small smile, then the other slowly pulled away. But then stopped as he hesitated for a second.

“Ru-?!”

Error moved forward and quickly kissed his cheek. He felt his eyes widen, And when Error pulled away, his face was flushed a dark blue, not meeting his eyes anymore. His own free hand reached up and traced where Error’s teeth just were. Still feeling the lingering ghost of glitches, proofing that it hadn’t been his imagination.

He was blinking rapidly, feeling his eyes shift between colours and shapes. As far as he knew, Error hadn’t kissed his cheek before today either. Error had gone right in for the big guns, with their first kiss. But this random bit of small affection was using up all the warm colours that were still lingering in his system.

Like a muted version of that sunrise mixture from before. He quickly dropped his hand to his paint stash grabbing for his warm colours. But before he could raise one to his mouth, a hand tugged at this sleeve.

“You don’t have to…Don’t feel like you need to just because-” “Error” He cut him off this time And he felt himself smile at him.

“I want this…I get to decide my emotions, Trust me…this is what I want..”

The other huffed a laugh and let go.

“Just wanted to be clear…I don’t need you to force yourself to be happy if you're still sad about” He waved his arm around, indicating…well everything.

“I was..am? But I also know I feel happy about what you said, and now I wanna feel it to its fullest, so shut up and let me drink my paints”

And with that, he started taking sips from all the colours he neglected before until he got to a nice balance…When he was done, he held on to the pink one …the one that made him feel affection and love…as well as embarrassment and shame.

Debating for a second more, then took an extra swig from the vial, and put it away. When he looked back at Error he saw the other was blushing a nice shade of yellow this time around.

He couldn’t help the happy giggle that escaped him. “Idiot…” The other mumbled into his scarf.

He felt a way stronger wave of fondness come over him and squeezed the hand he was still holding. The glitches seemed to have died down a little, or his hand was burned enough not to notice anymore…one of the two

He looked around trying to find the paintbrush he dropped earlier. Until it appeared in front of his eyes, making him nearly go cross-eyed. He plucked it from Error's fingers with a huff. “Thanks, Ruru~”

The other rolled his eyes, but didn’t comment. He unwound his own scarf, looking for a good place to write all this down. Trying to word it in a way that would make sense for him if he ever forgot. But something inside him hoped this was one of the few memories he could retain. He might…it involved Error after all.

When he was done and looking back up, he saw that Error had removed his scarf as well, looking at the ink stain with a slight frown. Guilt stabbed him once again, Error might find the whole process may be flattering, didn’t mean there weren’t some casualties.

He held out his hand, “I could fix that for you,” Error met his eyes, ‘I know, it’s fine…just wondering about something”

“What is it?”

“How come yours isn’t stained, you got ink dripping down your chin as well”

He let out a startled laugh, leave it to Error to notice that of all things, And now of all times.

“Sci helped me make a special tonic for it that repels it, is easier than cleaning it with broomie every time”

“And you only use it on your scarf, and not your whole outfit because?”

He shrugged “Cause it’s a pain to make, and my scarf is the only piece that is important to not get completely ruined, and besides, if I used broomie I might accidentally remove some notes”

He paused for a moment as he got an idea and continued with a slight blush “I got some spare bottles, for when the magic wears off…I could treat yours with it if you want to?”

Errors eyes widened. “You would do that…”

He gave a nod, feeling his face warm even more “Yeah well..if…if what happened today…happens again... It might be a good idea?”

“I’ll….think about it” he gave a nod. He was about to suggest they get out of this snowy cliff and maybe back to the Antivoid or Doodle Sphere when Error moved closer.

“Hold still for a moment, will you?”

“Oh…sure?” He went to sit back and keep as still as he could.

A new light flush was forming on Error’s face, as he shuffled forward. His flush was a dark blue again. It was almost glimmering, glittering, like. Well, glitter. His blush was something so uniquely Error’s. Most monsters blush in the colour of their magic, but not Error’s. No, it switched between yellow and blue. Sometimes a dark blue, that got darker and darker looking like a beautiful night sky, with yellow sparkles in them. Other times the blush was a yellow glow, and only seemed to grow brighter and brighter, with blue-ish freckles shaped like stars.

In all his musings on the other's blush he didn’t notice how close the other had gotten until he felt something against his face. Slowly rubbing back and forth, first gently. Then with a bit more force.

It took him a couple more seconds to realise the other was whipping his face clean off all the ink stains that his tears and throwing up had caused with his scarf. And now his own face was covered in its own blush.

Flustered eyes met Error’s, who was trying to do the whole ‘Totally not affected by this at all’ stick, he let him have it if it meant Error stayed close and showered him with soft attention.

“You..you don’t have to...” he half whispered “It’s fine if it needs to be cleaned anyway, the least I can do is make you look decent after making you cry like that” He felt blue and pink fighting to make their way to the surface. He let the feeling pass over him as he mumbled “Wasn’t you…” “I….I know..but..still..” The other had a slight frown.

Error…must have been pushing down a lot of his own feelings to help him here. No matter his tough, nothing can bother me, front. It must have hurt, to open himself up like that and for him to run away. Looking back it was a real asshole move, even if he hadn’t intended it that way. An apology right now would be brushed off…he’ll think of something to thank him at a later date..

At first, he thought he was imagining it, but no. Error was definitely looking at his mouth every so often. The thought that Error might want to kiss him again, even after everything…made the blush grow, slowly covering all of his face. When the last of the ink was wiped off, both their gazes seemed to shift between their eyes and mouth.

Never before had he felt so nervous…and gave an answer to the unasked question. “I…i will throw up again…most likely” His voice was now an actual whisper, afraid he might have broken the moment. He felt Errors tri coloured eyes stare right down into him, “I know…” “You might crash… you are glitching pretty hard..” “I am aware”

The scarf had dropped from the others hand and he was touching his cheek with the tips of his fingers. That barest hint of touch was sending several shivers down his spine. Both of them were flushed, so close, all it took was one push.

“Do you want…?” “Yes…”

Error voice was half a plead, even if he would deny it till the end of days. But the other wasn’t moving closer, he was hovering just above him like he couldn’t take that final step. And he realised the other was waiting on him, for a sign from him,. That another kiss would be welcomed. Not wanting to risk him running away again.

But he had no intention of running, even now knowing what was to come. Error really didn’t seem to mind…seemed to expect him to vomit ink again.Yet didn’t move away, stayed close even.. And himself…he was too desperate to feel those wonderful emotions again. Wanted to try and show Error what he did to him, and hopefully share them.

And with that, the next step came easy. With a sigh, he pushed up, eyes fluttering close, as he pressed his teeth against Error’s.

He heard Error’s short gasp just before they connected. And when it did he started feeling so much once more. Buckets of paint seemed to slam into him, and it was a lot. He was trembling with it. But he was determined to hold out more than 3 seconds this time. He felt the others glitches. Like drops of hot oil springing from a pan, burning and surprising. But he wouldn’t pull away, a little pain was worth the mounting warmth in his chest. Error's hand came to fully cup his face, pulling him closer, his own hand mirroring it, feeling the glitches beneath his hand spark. The rough bone he so rarely got to touch seemed to tremble as much as him. And the warmth of the blush was intense beneath his fingers.

His other hand finally let go of Error’s to clutch at his shoulder instead, It was difficult to stay upright, he felt overwhelmed with the rush of emotions surging through him. The teeth against his own opened a tiny bit and he felt the slight heat of a tongue against his closed mouth. It made a moan escape his teeth, he was pretty sure he had never done that before from a simple kiss.

Error answered it with a small little growl of his own. The ink was boiling inside of him, he tried to let Error know, gently pushing at his shoulder. But instead, Error pushed closer, and the sound around them got filled with buzz and static. And Error spoke against his teeth, with a voice deeper and more glitched out than he heard in a while.

“Don’t hold any of those feelings back, Ink. Show me how you feel…” Pressing closer, not letting go of his mouth. Staying close like he wanted to taste it again. He felt the pink colour expand and take over all other colours, more and more until all he felt was his deep, deep love for Error.

Then it ran over, and he felt the ink rise from his throat. Right against Error's mouth again, the wetness dripped between their mouths. Making a new mess of their faces.

He felt dazed, going a bit slack against the other. He wasn’t sure, but the other might be smiling against his teeth until finally pulling away. His face felt incredibly hot, part of him still wanted to run away and hide. But a larger part of him was completely overwhelmed by the way Error looked.

Error's face was still flushed darkly, new ink stains covering his chin, and his fingers had smeared the old ones on one side of his face... Errors eyes were filled with error signs, and he probably couldn’t see a thing. Yet he still felt the fingers gently stroking at his flushed face, and the other had a small content smile he wasn't sure he had ever seen before.

It was a look he really wanted to capture. Two of Error's five tongues darted out for a second, licking at the mess on his face. Then he saw the other's throat move. And he felt himself blush even harder

“ERROR! Did you just…did you just swallow my ink?!…. Please don’t do that?! That can't be good for you?! And you said it wasn’t pleasant!”

Despite the other still not being able to see, Error let out a cackle dropping the hands from his face “I can do whatever I so please squid.” Error turned his head to look at him seriously, but was turned a bit too far to the side, but he wouldn’t mention it.

“It isn't pleasant…but it’s you. And you are mine…so I do what I please with this unless it bothers you”

He felt his chest squeeze in affection and worry. “Just…don’t do it every time?”

The other nodded, “ I can live with that”

He slowly dropped his hands from Error's face so the other could reel himself in a bit more quickly. He was sad to let the warmth go. But he got so much more than he ever thought he would ever get to have with Error. So he could table his desires for now. There will be more times in the future when he could hold the other.

And maybe someday, far far away, they wouldn’t have to worry about it at all.

He gave Error's shoulder a final squeeze and stepped away. Looking around, he spotted broomie, who he must have dropped when he first entered here. He went over and picked him up as well as both their scarves. Used broomie too quickly, clean the ink stains of Error’s, and then sat down next to his lover. As he drank some more paint to replace what he just lost, but this time, deciding to stay in what felt like a healthy balance. Then he started to write down the last of his notes.

Apologize to Error for running away after first kiss! Do something, don’t just say sorry.

Second kiss went better. Still puked, But Error Truly doesn’t care if it does happen. Seems annoyed if I hold back the feelings (still wanna kiss him longer so LOOK INTO CONTROLLING IT at least a little)

…I think…I truly do love Error…

After a few quiet moments, the buzzing and static noise finally died down. He deemed it safe enough, and carefully went put Errors scarf back around him, careful to not accidentally brush against him. And when he finished the final loop, it seemed the last of the error’s signs had left the other's eyes. Who was giving him a look between fond and annoyed?

He stood up once again, “So shall we go then?”

Error sighed and with a groan and some popping sound stood as well. That near crash must have stiffed him up really bad. “Yeah, we should, probably have to work soon anyway”

“Probably yes….was one of the better breaks from it tho” He said opening a portal to the Antivoid without question, The better for Error to recover after two near-crashes.

“Even with the emotional episode? ” Error asked, half amused, half worried. Opening his own portal and stepped through it.

He jumped through his own, appearing behind Error. Who quickly spun around with an eye-roll at his antics. “Of course, got to kiss you twice…didn’t I? “

Both of them flushed, and then he couldn’t help his own giggles. “Thank you…Ruru…I mean it. Thank you…for being.. so nice about everything…and my little freakout... In the end…I really enjoyed myself”

The other hid his face in his scarf and mumbled something he couldn’t hear, before facing him fully. “Yeah, yeah, well don't get used to it…was a special occasion”

He let out another giggle, he didn’t believe that for a minute. “Of course glitchy, I understand.”

Error huffed “yeah well…just so you know…idiot squid” “I know , Glitchy” He just kept smiling at the other. And the other's eyes narrowed in a glare he turned to walk past him towards the small space in the Antivoid he called home. Error grasped his sleeve, and pulled him along.

“Yeah, yeah, Love you Kiki”

He felt hit with another wave of the biggest and scariest emotion of them all. It was so much bigger now that he had all his paints. Bigger than when he took more of the pink. Like now that things were in balance. The strength of it stood out. A hint of fear rose up in him. What he was about to do, might change everything. Destroy what they just patched up. But he couldn’t help it, the words wanted to be free.

No. They needed to be said, and for the other to be known. Cause Error let him know, in his own gruff way. He should know it was finally and truly returned. That this wasn’t a passing curiosity, that he wouldn’t let the other go…not anymore. It might not be the real thing…but it would probably be as close as he could ever get to it. And that is what he had wanted, more than he could ever have wanted.

“Love you too, Ruru” The words were barely a whisper, and his voice gained an awe to it. Feeling himself mean it to the fullest he ever had. He had been sure he had to say it again he had been so quiet. But Error suddenly froze in his stride.

The other turned around, eyes wide, Face covered in a yellow blush, matching his own rainbow one.. He felt himself smile shyly. It had felt so different to say it than at any other time in his long life, he hoped the other understood. But Error would understand, might understand better than anyone else how he functioned. He would know this would be the truest he ever could be, he was scared of saying it again now. Not sure he could put the same amount of feeling behind it again. Not wanting to cheapen it.

The next second he was pulled close, as an unexpected kiss was placed against his teeth. And while before it felt like being showered with buckets of paint. This..This felt like being thrown into an ocean of colours.

There was so much, and not just his own. He could feel Error sending his feelings to him with his magic. His fear, His relief, His frustration, His joy, His love, Everything., And he did the same, tried to at least Had no idea how or if it was even working because within the next second ink had spilled from his mouth once more. Dripping all over their faces

But Error didn’t move away this time. No, he dove in for another even hungrier kiss. And his whole face must be flushed in all the colours he had taken. Feeling the other's tongues against his teeth. And not just the one, but all of them pressing at the seam of his mouth. Without really thinking about it too much, he opened his mouth to them. The chemical taste of ink was still in his mouth, as was the burning and tingling sensations of glitches everywhere they touched.

It was the closest he ever felt to having a soul. It took him another few moments to realize he should properly make his own tongue form as well. And as soon as he did, it was struggling against the overwhelming force that was Error’s tongues and love. But before he could even figure out what that taste of the destroyer was. Another surge of ink came from him. Which Error swallowed down, licking it up with a little groan.

The overwhelming feeling was dying out, quickly and slowly turning more numb. He gave a weak push against Error's chest, the other made a soft sound of protest. And that send a pang of some feeling he couldn’t identify anymore…he pushed again. Not wanting to keep kissing without his paints…not for something like this.

Maybe..he’ll let Error do that in the future…maybe…he could trust him with that…. Error pulled away. Not far.. But as he did he felt most of his emotions, leaving with it. He started up at Error.

“Ah…ink?” He mumbled.

That was warm…hearing his name. It was a good feeling hearing the other say his name. He swayed a bit, wanting to listen to Error's soul…but remember something about permissions

“Can I hug you…?” He mumbled “Yeah..yeah if you want…”

He wrapped his arms around Error, placing his head on the other's chest like he wanted. The sound from inside was a fast drum, almost fluttering. “I meant it….” he said, tho the feeling was far away, almost out of reach, he knew that he did. He felt arms warp around him as well, keeping him close, not as tight as he would like…but he wouldn’t push. Doesn’t want the other to get hurt

“I know Kiki….Thank you”

He shook his head softly “Don’t thank me…just…keep loving me like that…and I do the same…to the best I can…I promise”

He felt the other's teeth twist into a wider smile on top of his skull. “I will Inky…I will” He was squeezed softly

“I am yours now” He promised softly. And Error let out a short laugh. “Tell me that when you're on all your paints as well…Because then…this…this relationship of ours…it would mean forever okay? You won’t be able to get rid of me” A soft nuzzle against the top of his head. “If you want forever of course, just …give me those words again…knowing you remember would be all the proof I need that you want it… And I know you will remember…you always remember the sappy shit”

Error's voice was soft, and something surged from deep inside him like this meant more than he could currently comprehend. “Forever sounds nice..” he answered with a smile.

It was a while later, when his body was filled with warmth again, As he kept drinking the concoction of paints in his hands, not sure how it got there. When he finished the last drop he realized a couple of things. One: He was still in the Antivoid. Two: He was lying on Error’s bean bag. And three: He was leaning against Error. He tried to think about how that happened. But the last thing he remembered was that overwhelming kiss, and being hugged afterwards as all his feelings dripped out of him.

He rarely let himself drain that completely and he felt his face flush. And a kiss was placed against the side of his head. And he turned to face Error who was looking smug. Like everything he ever wanted had landed on his lap.

And maybe in some way, it has… He gave the other a small smile “Hey…” “Hey…” “You ain't…glitching as much” “Had some time to recover”

He nodded “How long was I?” “Half a day or so..not long, I Promised I wouldn’t let you be blank for more than a day remember”

His hand went to his scarf, he could vaguely remember writing that down long ago. “Sort of….yeah..” The other smiled self-satisfied His mind tore over the memories of just before it all became fuzzy. The promise he made in his near-emotionless state felt so much bigger now. He had meant it, and a forever with Error sounded truly wonderful. The request on Error’s end…had almost been a proposal.

Forever…huh… He could get used to forevers like this. But he wanted to be sure, wouldn’t want to break Error's heart in the long run with a promise like that made carelessly.

“Ruru..?” The other hummed “Forever sounds nice…if a bit scary…I hope you won’t mind terribly waiting a bit longer”

Error's face flushed Like he hadn’t expected him to address it right out of the gate, but he didn’t want Error to doubt. He remembered, and in a few minutes, he would write all of this down.

He got a nod “As long as you need, we aren't in a rush.” “Thanks, Error” “No Ink…Thank you”

Yeah….They’ll work it out. For now, he snuggled back under Error’s arm and let himself bask in all the feelings that had returned to him. Later they’ll talk…about the kisses, and how to proceed. But for now. He could say he was feeling pretty well-loved, and he was able, to give some of it in return.

Turns out, he hadn’t ruined anything. No…he had gained something even more special.

Later he wrote two more notes on his scarf

If you ever tell Error you are his…he will stay with you forever.

The number of times I told Error I loved him. tally 1

[noffy96]

Kustard mer au -  the Swap brothers 

Okay everyone remembers the random kustard mer Au idea I had? 

No, doesn’t matter, you can read up on it here,  and see one fic here,  and some art here

But I was thinking about this Au, 

Because in my mind this au contains at least, the Undertale brothers, the Underfell brothers, and the Underswap brothers

The undertale and underfell brothers are both still secret mer.  ( the undertale brothers living at sea most their live, while the fell brothers live of land because of (mostly Red’s)  Trauma ) 

But i wanted to do something special with the swap brothers. 

It came to this because i wanted, Papyrus to meet someone on his travels around the world. In the year Sans is spending on the surface.  And just the Idea of Blue And Papyrus exploring together teaching each other new stuff. And then falling in love gradually was really sweet. At sea and on land 

But i am also a fan of Spicyhoney. And I really liked the idea of Edge actually Falling in love with a human (unlike his brother who only thought he had)  And that beeing stretch

So, I imagen the swap brothers parents being like, a mer and a normal monster Giving birth to two children 1 a mee (blue) and 1 regular monster (Stretch) But then why would blue be exploring? 

And now i decided to be a bit angsty 

Blue And Stretch got separated quite young.  Blue and his mother ( the mer of the parents)  got one day captured by poachers/collectores/bad people ( subject to change in future)  

Eventually Blue they try and make a escape, Blue gets out, but his mom dies in the process.  

He doesn’t know where he is, where is taken, and spends most of his live searching for his brother and Father.  Using the sea, to travel from costal town, to costal town, cause he doesn’t rember much of where he lived.

Meanwhile Stretch and his Dad had been searching for the other two. Until one day they came across the layer/dealt with the people that had captured Blue and his mom in the first place. A couple of years after they escaped. 

There they find stuff that makes them both think that Blue and his mom are both dead. ( records that list them as deciesed cause they wanted to cover up the escape for example?)  

This hits them both very hard. They move to a different town trying to get away from it all, but it doesn’t fix things . The brothers dad gets super depressed, And Stretch hit’s a major slum as well, Somehow in all of it, they open this stand on the beach. It made the dad feel close to his love, And Stretch was glad that it helped him, it made him wanna do better. 

Wanna try better for the older brother he had lost, who had always had so much energy and love to give. The dad also passes away. And Strech keeps this little shop/stall thing open. Works near the beach.

Where he will meet a edgy very tall skeleton. A bit of a hardass prick, but he loves aruging with him. He has a blast anytime this guy comes by. 

Over time he gets the curage to ask him on a date. And he accepts! It’s amazing 

They even start dating…Edge is opfront about something. That his family has a big secret, something he thinks he will never be able to share. Edge is afraid that speaking of it will hurt his brother, and he doesn’t wanna risk it. 

Stretch understands. It sometimes causes them to argue, but they manage. 

Little do they know tho. That a change meeting, Of Edge’s brother, and Papyrus’s brother. Would lead to the two lost brothers reuniting someday 

So yeah…i somehow fleshed out the world…like a ton? 

Got some more ideas for the fells and tale backstory, let me know if you guys wanna hear more 

[noffy96]

A disrupted rest

Fandom: Undertale / UTMV

Ship: Papyrus/ Blue ( Undertale Papyrus / Underswap Sans)

Chapters: 1 (Complete)

Rating: General

Words 3,272

Fic summary:

Noticing the smallest tremble of Blue’s shoulders. He swam a little faster And he froze just above him. Silent tears were gliding down Blue’s cheeks. He had never seen him cry. Not once in the past two months have they travelled.

Debating with himself for only a second, then placing his hand on his shoulder so he could gently shake him awake. Hopefully waking him from his bad dream.

or

Papyrus is trying to sleep, but is failing. Just thinking about his time with his travel companion and friend. Until said friend starts making distressed noises in his sleep. And he goes to check on him.

Link to ao3

Or read it below the read more line:

He blinked a couple of times, staring at the bubbles that floated to the ceiling of his little overhang. Sleep wasn’t coming to him, it had never been easy. He had run on just three to four hours of sleep a day since he turned five.

At least he actually rested his body for a minimum of six hours. Even if it meant staring at the rocks of the grotto. Counting the different shapes, seaweeds, bubbles or anything else his eyes landed on. Until he began his day.

It did help him train his hearing, able to distinguish the quietest of noises and in turn, made him an excellent guard and hunter. Something he was so proud of. But not good enough. Not yet. He just had to gather more experience. Different experience. That’s why he was doing this.

He turned around, staring down from his little overhang to the other bed on the floor. And at the back of his travel companion. Blue had rolled over a little while ago. For as active as the smaller Mer was, he didn’t move much in his sleep. So he had thought the other had woken up, but it didn’t seem to be the case.

He never thought he met someone just as bad at sleeping as he is. Somebody who, despite that, still took their rest just as seriously as him. Sometimes the two of them talked through the entire night as they rested their bodies. One of them kept watch as eventually one of them fell a light sleep.

And if woken up Blue was just as quick on the draw. If not quicker in some cases, and they had gotten out of many a small scuffle together. Predators seemed to think the two lone Mer would be an easy target. Fighting for his life wasn’t fun per se. But the thrill of working with Blue was. They had so quickly gotten adapted to each other's fighting style. Blue’s more evading and quick nimbleness was able to confuse their enemies.

He relied more on his brute force. What he had lacked in magic he made up for in strength. Though at this point he was quite skilled at both. And while he tried to subdue someone if he could. He could bite and scratch himself free if needed.

Blue’s surprise attacks were swift and powerful, he knew where to hit to put their enemies into a daze. Which gave him all the more openings to get his punches, throws, and body slams in. Growing stronger with someone by his side. Was a new joy he never experienced before. Having been either far above, or below in skill with the other Mer he had worked with.

He saw a shudder go through his companion and he made a mental note to gather more seaweed for their bedding as they continued to travel. The water was getting colder and colder as they continued their track further north. He would need more for his hands as well

The fact that Blue trusted him enough to show his back to him. It was doing things to his soul. He was growing fond of his companion, quicker than he had done for anyone. It reminded him of how Undyne started talking about her feelings for Alphys. And he wasn’t stupid. He knew what was happening.

He was just helpless to stop it. Not sure he wants to stop it. But also knowing he would most likely keep this blossoming feeling close to his chest. Because after he and Blue would part ways…Who knows if he would ever see him again?

Blue had a mission, one that drove him to do everything. The one that made him travel the world for the past nine years. To find his brother and father. It was a noble pursuit, and while he was still travelling with his friend. He would do everything in his power to help.

But he couldn’t do it forever. He had to return home in a few months, he had a promise to keep to Sans. And his own mission. He was gonna take over his brother's guardian role. He wanted to lift that burden off his shoulders. He has been protected by him for nearly as long as he can remember.

Sans didn’t mind his title. But it was clearly weighing on him. He never really did anything for himself. It made him so happy that he was taking this break. Even if had to nearly force it on him. And together they had to pull every string, every favour Sans had built over the last twelve years.

He trusted Asgore and Toriel to watch over their reef. And they bribed the hell out of Axe for the extra security in their absence. He swears his bones were caked in squid ink, blood and every other kind of substance after all the trips back and forth to deliver everything he needed to agree. But so worth it.

He could tell he was growing stronger and was already planning new strategies for when he would next challenge his brother for the title. His head turned to the side again as he heard movement, but it was just Blue curling in further. A subtle shiver went over him once more.

Maybe they should look for some thicker stuff than seaweed. And on their next resting point. He was gonna insist Blue be the one taking the warmer spot. Or hopefully, find a place where both of them could be off the ground. He had tried for Blue to take the shelf he was lying on. But Blue had flat-out refused. And gave him a stern look and braced his claws.

That might have something to do with that he had offered his spot the last few times as well. They needed their energy, so he wasn’t willing to fight him over it this time. Though it had become a fun ritual to do every time they came across a cave or overhang with a superior spot.

He lost as often as he had won. He patted at his ribcage, trying to calm his racing soul at recalling the image of Blue pinning him down to the floor. His mind had drifted to things that weren’t as friend-appropriate as he would have liked it to be.

As he continued to rub his chest he felt the seaweed around his hand rip. He grumbled bringing it up to his face. It wasn’t too bad, just one of the lower straps got torn, so he pulled it out from between the others. And fished around their bag of supplies for a single strand, that he weaved back into his makeshift fingerless gloves. Pulling it tight. Making sure the old injury was still covered

After he was done he laid back again. Closing his eyes and trying to at the very least get into a light doze. Focusing on the sounds. The sound of the current outside their little grotto. The weeds that slide against each other a little further ahead. The soft ripples his own body made. The scrape of Blue’s prosthetic against the sand where the tail had slid off his seaweed bed. Blue’s hitched breathing.

He opened his eyes wide and rolled from his side to his belly. Staring down at his friend. Focussing on him like he would a prey, but not with the intent to harm. Just all his attention focused on him to make sure he was okay. He was pretty sure that he heard a sniff, and he silently slid off his rocky shelf.

Noticing the smallest tremble of Blue’s shoulders. He swam a little faster And he froze just above him. Silent tears were gliding down Blue’s cheeks. He had never seen him cry. Not once in the past two months have they travelled.

Debating with himself for only a second, then placing his hand on his shoulder so he could gently shake him awake. Hopefully waking him from his bad dream.

The moment he made contact, Blue’s eyes shot open. They quickly switched to a glowing bioluminescent sky blue. He realised his mistake a split second before two sets of claws dug into his arm harshly. And then he was yanked with incredible force and was forced into a spin and hurled away. He tried to orient himself but his body flew upside down into the wall of their cave crushing his dorsal fin and he slid down catching himself with his arms.

Looking back up quickly, as he tried to orient his body back to normal. He saw that Blue had used to force of his throw to propel himself backwards and away from him in the opposite direction giving him a chance to escape. He got a glance at the other's panic look, He tried to call out but choked on the little air he had because of the impact.

But Blue surprisingly didn’t go for the exit, instead, he swam up to where his temporary sleeping nest was built. And he felt the colour rise to his cheeks. Even in sheer panic, Blue had gone to look for him, to warn him? Protect him? Either way, the action put a smile on his face and a warm feeling spread through his entire chest.

“Papyrus?”

He heard Blue say. Clearly confused. Quickly switching back around. Looking ready to fight.

“PAPY-” Blue cut off his scream as he saw him on the ground of the cave. They both stayed still for a few seconds. And he saw realisation slowly dawn on to his face. As he slowly kicked himself off the ground, reaching back to rub at his fin.

It didn’t feel like anything had broken, but he likely be sore for a couple of days. Blue shook out of his shock quickly swimming back down. Hands hovering around him for a second. Before gently checking him over for injuries.

“Oh My God. Papyrus, I am so sorry! Did I hurt you?!. I swear I didn’t know it was you. I was just-”

“I know Blue,” He cut off his friends rambling. Reaching for those fluttering hands. And as that didn’t work. Grabbing his forearms instead. Meeting his guilty gaze head-on.

“You have nothing to apologise for my good friend. You have told me before never to grab you from behind without warning. I can see why now. I am fine, At most a bruise. More importantly are you all right?.”

The smaller Mer blinked at him. He could still feel the tremble going through his entire frame. And he ran his thumbs gently across Blue’s Ulena’s.

“M-me? I didn’t just get thrown into a wall..?”

He frowned at his friend and lowered his voice.

“You are still crying”

There was another slow blink. Blue moved one arm and he let it go. I saw him wipe across his cheek. Eyes widening seemingly confused. Eyes glanced around their little cave before landing on the destroyed remains of his bed.

Then he saw something dark come over those ever-bright eyes. It was the same type of darkness that came over Sans whenever someone mentioned their father. He might have been a child, doesn’t mean he was stupid. He had the scars to prove it. He wished his brother would speak more about what had happened to him. But that felt like asking for the stars to come into the ocean.

He might have not been able to see the end of the fight. But Sans had taken no pleasure in having to fight him even if he was the worst Mer he had ever known... And he was sure that if he could have helped it. Sans wouldn’t have killed him.

It was that same type of darkness. That was now in Blue’s eyes. He hadn’t seen it before today. But he wasn’t surprised. Maybe he should have been. But he wasn’t.

One didn’t lose a tailfin and survive years after without witnessing some horrors. He moved a bit closer. Hopefully not overstepping any boundaries and very gently bonked his head against Blue’s. Far from the few playful head nuzzles they had shared. Just one that was hopefully affectionate. And signalled that he wasn’t alone.

The darkness seeped away a little, replaced by a soft light flush. As he pulled back again. Blue took in a shuddering breath,

“Just…just a bad memory”

The slightly older mer wiped at his eyes again. Trying to catch a few stray tears.

“I offer to listen if you wanna talk about it. But I have a feeling you rather not.”

He got a hesitant nod in return. And he gave a gentle smile in response

“That is perfectly fine. But be assured if you ever do want to. I’ll be here for you. For now, I dunno what else to offer you to make you feel better.”

Blue laughed softly wiping at his eyes a final time.

“You don’t have to Papy, Thank you for trying to wake me up. And being so chill about…” He trailed off before continuing “Everything, You are a great friend “

He laughed softly. Feeling his insides warm at the compliment

“Nyehehe. I sure am. As are you, my small friend. Still, I wish I could be of better help.”

He had an idea and he hoped his face wasn’t flushing when he offered.

“Would a hug help?”

He spread his arms a little in invitation. Blue stared at him for a few seconds before launching into some soft giggles of his own.

“Mhehe…Actually…yes…yes I think it would.”

Before he could even agree, two thin arms had warped around his ribs. His own arms quickly rested just beneath Blue’s dorsal fin, and gently smoothing out the scales. Blue let out a content chirp that he echoed. Gently hugging his friend tighter. Hoping that him being there might drive away the lingering sadness. Or at least the feeling of loneliness that seemed to come to his eyes when that darkness set in.

Their tails moved together in tandem. The rubbery prosthetic felt a bit strange against his tail, yet different than it had in his hands when Blue had allowed him to examine it closer. He rested his head on Blue’s shoulder who seemed to lean further into his embrace. And for a few moments, they just floated there in quiet bliss.

After a few minutes. Blue murmured.

“We should probably get back to sleep”

He let out a hum of agreement, and they both glanced towards Blue’s bed. And he winced. In their small scuffle, the seaweed had flown through most of the cavern. And he had a feeling Blue would insist on using the floor again.

“You can take my bed.”

He said before his friend could open his mouth. Blue pulled back from the hug but didn’t let go. Giving a soft glare

“It’s my turn to watch. So no”

He shook his head.

“No, one, no it isn’t it’s still my turn. and two. I am letting my friend, who has clearly just had a distressing dream, sleep on the floor. If there is a better option”

“Papyrus.”

“Blue”

They stared at each other, neither backing down.

“I am older than you Papyrus, I can sleep on the floor just fine”

He let out a little scoff. Blue was really tired if he pulled out the age card. That hadn’t even worked the first time. And often was a sign of how tired his friend really was.

“Just half a year. You only seem older because your birthday just passed”

Blue crossed his arms

“I aint letting you sleep on the floor after making you do so three times in a row”

He sighed deeply.

“You didn’t MAKE me do anything. I chose once and the others you fairly won”

“And I CHOOSE the floor this time. Really Paps it’s not that-”

“Or we could share”

“...what?”

His eyes widened and he felt his face flush. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud. But now that it was out there…well. He gotta make it seem like he planned to anyway.

“I mean there is enough room. We don’t waste more resources. We both get to rest. And…If you have another bad dream I can wake you up without you throwing me across the entire cave.”

Blue was quiet for a few questions. As if pondering over the suggestion. And the longer the silence lasted the more he wanted to scream at his friend to forget it. But no, he made an offer. He was gonna stick with it now.

“Okay…”

He stared widely at his friend, who he hadn’t expected to agree. But all he did was nod in response. Slowly they let each other go as they swam back up to the little shelf that nestled near the top of the cave. The bag and little help-hazard nest they built are still there. Not having been disturbed at all.

They rested both near the opening. He waited for Blue to go in first. But he just hovered there awkwardly. It took a couple of seconds to realise that Blue was waiting for him. Seeing as currently this was his nest. Even if it was a temporary one.

So he said as softly as he could. So hopefully his friend would agree without any fuss.

“I thought you rather not have your back turned to the open cave”

As he gestured for the other to go first. He saw Blue’s eyes widen, a light flush on his face. He expected a retort of sorts, but all he got was a nod. Blue let out a yawn, then swam in, laying on his belly back to the wall, watching him as he swam in as well, folding his arms for his head to rest on. Resting next to him, his back to the opening of the cave

Both of them were lying Half on the seaweed, half against the stones. But neither said something about it being uncomfortable. He looked into those blue eyes for a few seconds more before closing his own. Hoping his face wasn’t as aglow as it felt.

He muttered

“Have a good night Blue”

“You too Papyrus”

And with that, they tried to sleep. But softly, subtly he felt Blue move closer. And then he decided fuck it and warped his friend back into a hug. Neither said anything as he felt Blue’s nuzzles into his chest. His own head tipped down resting against his friend's skull. With just a tilt it could turn into a kiss.

The way their tails slowly coiled around each other, in a way that was more than just a friendly gesture. As they both held on just that bit tighter. Pressed together in the dark, hands carefully sliding over scales. Just a hint too gentle. Just the side of too loving. The heat that came from Blue’s face matched his own.

Neither would say anything about this come morning. Both did not want to risk ruining the friendship they had built. Afraid of the heartbreak that might come when they will part ways. So better not to start anything at all. Even as from that day forward it happened more often. Neither ever said anything about it. Just the quiet understanding of what could be.

And as they lay there, both trying to hold onto something they were sure they couldn't have.

Both of them thought

“I am so screwed,”

As the warm feeling of love grew stronger in their chests.

[noffy96]

Kustard Mer fic

It's finally here! managed to get it done before MerMay ended, so technically a Mermay entry even if it wasn't intended that way. (also was supposed to be short, but apparently, i just can't)

But anyway everyone. Enjoy

Can't Stay

Word count: 7,726

Chapter 1/1

Summary:

A creak sounded behind him, and he straightened his back. The weight of it was more hesitant than he was used to, but still, undeniably it was Red.

“Thought you be gone by now Asshole”

He couldn’t help the sad smile that came over his face as he heard the other's gruff voice. His soul leaped in excitement and trepidation.

“I will be soon, the year isn’t over just yet.”

He heard a scoff and heard the other kick away some sand, it landing in the water and making soft splashing sounds.

“So got a cab coming the second the year is up. Never took you to be that punctual”

or

Sans is a Secret Mer that has been living on the land for a year. Today is the day he should return home. As he sits at the dock. Red finds him and is trying to get some answers about why is leaving. Will he be forced to reveal his secret?

--link here to AO3--

or continue below the read more line

He stares out over the water, towards his old home. The lowering sun chasing away the blues of the sky, turning into a soft yellow glow. His bare toes just touched the water with each sway of his legs. He should have left already. Left and not turned back, it would have given him time to get things ready for Papyrus's return. But he had promised himself he’d be here for a year, and he wasn’t gonna skimp on the last day.

Yeah, if he keeps telling himself that he might start believing it. Who knew that so much could change in a year He hadn’t expected much from it. Something new sure. New experiences to tell when Papyrus returned from his trip around the world.

He could still recall Pap's face when he told him, that he was going to live topside for a year. Papyrus had dropped everything that he had been holding and then began swirling around him in a flurry of bubbles. Equal parts excited as worried.

Papyrus had for so long tried to nudge him to do something for himself, instead of just taking care of him. And don’t get him wrong, he loved taking care of Paps. It’s the best job in the world. But he got the desire to spread his wings and fly.

Or well fins and swim, He laughed softly at his own joke. Papyrus would scream in indignation if he heard it. He hoped that Papyrus's travels had gone as wonderfully as his own time here. If the few scant messages he received were anything to go by, It had.

He glanced behind him to the Island he called his home for the past year. It had been a crazy idea, to live topside. Figuring out how legs worked took a while and what would and would not trigger a transformation. But he settled in nicely. Managed to get some lodgings with the help of the old turtle monster Gerson. Allowing him to stay in an old cabin at the edge of town, if he helped out in said town.

He did some odd jobs for a while but turns out he is pretty good with a trombone and was able to bring in some customers at the bar at night.

And it was while doing that job that he met Red. He was of the main people handling deliveries coming from the mainland. Would make the track 3 times a week, traversing the old bridge in his rusty old car. Coming with supplies to fix houses or little trinkets. Things you wouldn’t buy in bulk but needed for a quick fix.

If Red was on the island, he stayed the whole day. And after a week or so of being stared at when he was playing at the bar. Red had waltzed up to him after a set and offered him a drink. The grin he wore was sharp, and his eyes too bright. He was being seized up and he knew it. But he wouldn’t let the asshole get to him. And was he glad he took the offer?

Red was something else, Harsh, brash, Loud. And a downright asshole. But also incredibly funny. His jokes always leaning towards the crude side. But he was also brutally honest. He wasn’t bullshiting anyone or anything it was referencing to see.

He began looking forward to seeing Red. They started hanging out and helping each other with their odd jobs. Then two months later, Red had asked if he had been to the city on the mainland, and when he said he hadn’t. Red had all but dragged him to his car and shown him around.

He met the guy's brother, who looked an awful lot like Papyrus. If Paps ever decided that spikes and leather were the hot new fashion. But the guy was fun. Hard around the edges like his bro. But good.

He sighed deeply looking down at the water again, Watching the ripples his toes formed. Would he ever return here? He doubts it. It’s strange, he never thought he would miss this. He had missed home and swimming around as much as he could when he first arrived. The way the sun would feel in the water when he lazed around. The thrill of chasing some prey.

But now...now he knew that he would miss the things here on land as well. The way the sand would feel between his bones. The wind whistled through his skull when standing at the cliffs. Dancing around after way too many drinks with Red at the festival.

He hadn’t intended to stay, that is why he never told anyone what he was. And besides, what would happen if people found out? He had heard the stories and saw the survivors. Of mer having been forcibly taken, experimented on. Some had escaped, and most had lost something of themselves.

The townspeople were kind, he didn’t fear them. If his secret got out, he doubt they would tell. But tourists aren’t so easily trusted. He would have to leave, and Red. Red who he had begun to see as a true friend.

He found more things to like about the more days passed. That when the thought of kissing him crossed his mind. All he could do was bury his head in his arms and groan. Because of course, of course, nothing could ever be that simple could it? But it was not his feelings that made him stay quiet. No, it was the other larger thing

Red was afraid of the ocean.

When on the beach, Red stayed far away from the shore. When walking near the cliffs having Sans as a buffer between him and the water. At first, he thought Red just didn’t like getting wet. And yeah, clothes plus water equals a ruined day.

But it wasn’t until later in their friendship that he found out the truth. When a storm suddenly kicked up, when they had been walking on the cliffs, they both got hit with a huge wave of water that nearly dragged them towards the ocean. It had been both their quick thinking that prevented them from tumbling down.

But the downright terror that had been in Red’s eyes. The way he swore, it wasn’t anger, it had run so much deeper than that. He was also glad that just being splashed with rain and water, even that huge of a wave didn’t trigger a transformation.

Much later he asked once, tentatively, why Red feared the ocean. He had done so after a few drinks, but not too many. Red had gotten this look. One that was a combination of anger and sadness.

“It tried to destroy me when I was already down” Red had said. He had subtly clutched his hip. Where he knew was a big nasty scar. It hadn’t been much of an answer, but he didn’t pry further. Felt wrong to do so, he had the feeling Red normally didn’t even tell people that much.

If Red knew that he was from the ocean. That he was part of this thing that had hurt him so badly. Would he look at him the same? And even if he could look past that. He knew he couldn’t give up his life below. Not with his brother still there. He had a promise to keep, to look after him, even if Paps was getting older.

He also just loved his life in the ocean. Despite living topside now, he made trips back to his old home. There is a part of him that would never be able to let this go.

Red could stand the walks near the beach and on the cliffsides. But he could never ask that of him To confront a fear so deeply rooted. That wasn’t fair. To either of them.

And of course, the longer he kept the secret the worse he felt for it. Just a nice feeling of guilt on top of everything else. Slowly building and building.

He stretched lazily, cracking the magic between his bones Slowly leaning back, eyelights scanning the clouds.

As he thought of his last conversation with Red a few days ago. When he told him he was gonna leave by the end of the week. How his face turned from disappointment to frustration when he couldn’t answer where he would be going. Or that there was no way to contact him…maybe ever.

Red had been so bright, so good to him this last year. He wishes he could have had it till the end. But this was how it was gonna go. He couldn’t tell Red and Red would push against that answer. The trust they build over the year shatters with each refusal.

It had been hard to stay indifferent and calm during that conversation. When the frustration had turned to anger. And Anger to betrayal. That one hurt the most, cause it was. Wasn’t it?

He wanted to trust Red, yet he couldn’t. But he had managed to stay calm, Just saying he was sorry. But Red wasn’t having it. Red had stormed off. The door of his cabin slammed shut as he did and shouted that he hoped to never see him again.

It wasn’t until he heard the car start in the far distance and drive off. That he let a couple of tears fall, It had hurt, but it was for the best.

Now he sat here, in the last few hours. Having said his goodbyes to the people in town, his stuff was in a bag next to him. Bigger stuff is hidden in a secret cave to pick up later. All he had to do was slip off the dock and swim home.

He rubbed his chest at the thought. Soul softly aching as he thought of everything he would miss. He remembered the first time he had watched the sunset here a year ago, so similar to this one, of no more seeing the light dancing across the sky every day. Thinking of how the low light would fracture on his friend's face, as they stumbled out of the pub. During the local festival. Of how the golds and oranges of the morning sun had made Red look that much more beautiful.

If he had ever come close to kissing him. It had been in that moment, Red eye lights gentle, and a smile on those ever so sharp teeth, Like he had been content with his life. Like all had been well. If he hadn’t drunkenly stumbled over a loose cobblestone and faceplanted them both on the Town square’s floor. He just might have confessed his love.

A creak sounded behind him, and he straightened his back. The weight of it was more hesitant than he was used to, but still, undeniably it was Red.

“Thought you be gone by now Asshole”

He couldn’t help the sad smile that came over his face as he heard the other's gruff voice. His soul leaped in excitement and trepidation.

“I will be soon, the year isn’t over just yet.”

He heard a scoff and heard the other kick away some sand, it landing in the water and making soft splashing sounds.

“So got a cab coming the second the year is up. Never took you to be that punctual”

He didn’t answer, he hadn’t intended it to be so on the dot. Not from the outset. But maybe…just maybe he had hoped, that if he stayed. He could see him one more time.

He turned his head to look at Red. He was standing at the beginning of the dock. Closer to the water than he had ever seen him. His shoulders raised like he was trying to hide in the fluff of his jacket. The big bulky jacket looked like it had been put on in a rush. His whole appearance was a bit sweaty. The same look as when he had done a day full of jobs in the sun.

He only smiled gently and turned back to the ocean. He had gotten one last look, and his hands trembled. That would have to be enough.

“So that’s it? You are not even gonna say anything”

He stayed quiet. Red would get frustrated and leave again. When he saw there would be no budging. His fingers trembled slightly at the thought of hurting Red all over again with another refusal. But this is how it’s meant to be.

“You really are just gonna sit there, and what..say nothing. You can’t ignore me forever!”

Oh how Red was wrong about ignoring him, it was the farthest thing he was doing. He was listening to every word, even though they stung. Cause they might be the last he would ever hear.

“You are a fucking coward Sans. If I knew you had been I would never even have bothered with you”

He knew, and he grabbed the wood beneath his fingers. He hadn’t known when he accepted that drink, but he learned it quickly enough. He could have stayed distant. He didn’t Red had been too enticing to stay away from.

“You are not gonna tell me when you leave. Fine I’ll just stay here till your cab comes, you aint leaving without me saying a few words to your face”

He heard the sound of something heavy hitting the ground. Turning his head slightly and seeing Red now sitting cross-legged on the other side of the dock. Blocking his way out, or at least so he thought,

He titled his head straight again. The sun had turned orange, the scene would be called beautiful by many. And he would try and enjoy it if it were not for the eyes boring into the back of his head.

“I’d just swim”

He said it loud enough to be heard, and even without looking back he knew the way the other would freeze. He heard the barely contained gasp.

“As if someone would let you get into their car dripping wet “

He chuckled, trying to fill it with mirth and not sound too hallow

“Not if I warned them beforehand, and agreed to pay extra” There were some soft curses spoken behind him.

“So you choose this place, knowing I would be afraid,” There was a dry disbelieving laugh. “You are evil you know that. You bastard, I don’t get what angle you get out of torturing me. But-”

“Never” he broke him off. The word tumbled out his mouth before he could stop them, as he continued on. “I would never do this to torture you, not everything is about you.”

This was the first place he’d come to. Where he first transformed into a full skeleton monster when he dried off. This is where he would end it, this chapter of his life. This one year of a glorious experience.

Poetic? Maybe but it was a bookmark. An end that was slowly crawling closer, one that he might have to sidestep to lose Red on the island before he could return. Keep up his ruse of being a normal monster for one last time.

He had to, cause what if Red wasn’t as good as he thought he was? What if he told him, and he would be followed? or chased? He’d be putting Papyrus in danger.

The silence stretched on as the sun continued to set. He heard Red shifting and tapping behind him. As well as little angry growls and murmurs. But he didn’t turn back around. Red might be stubborn, but he himself was even more so.

“I’ll figure out what’s going on you stubborn fucking asshole”

He raised his browbone even if the other couldn’t see it. The other voice had been…gentler. It held a determination in it, that made his soul skip a beat.

“This ain't like you, I dunno what’s going on, or what kind of threat you are under that you feel the need to go MIA.”

He sighed, it was sweet that the other worried. It was kinda breaking his heart. He had to break off that line of thinking. Red shouldn’t come looking for him.

“Is it really so hard to believe that I want this for myself”

He heard red Scramble up, magic crackling in the air

“For Fucks sake, YES, you absolute moron. You hang out with someone day, after day. And then out of the blue go. Yeah after this you’ll never see or hear me again. Something is going on. And I don’t care what it is. I am gonna fix it! I dunno if it has to do with before you came here. That something from your past is catching up to you. But I can fucking help okay?! You talked about having no one left but your bro. I know what that is like, and it fucking sucks okay. So if you need someplace safe to stay. I can fucking help. You aint alone Sansy. We…we’re” Red seemed to halt in his angry spitting tirade for a second

“We’re friends right?! Don’t those help each other, I get you are not able to give me details. But let me help you”

Fuck this was spiraling out of control so fast. He had hoped he could just slip away and be a ghost in Red's memories someday. One that he would look back on fondly, if with a bitter ending.

Yeah…that’s right...Then why had he stayed here? Why had he sat in this one spot waiting for Red to find him? He knew why, He started at his reflection in the water. Because he loved Red and didn’t want to do this to him. Didn’t want to leave him hurt, wanted to soothe the pain if he could.

Cause he doesn’t hate him, but this was becoming more and more of a mess. Red had gone eerily quiet for a few seconds, maybe waiting for a response, and he was thinking. Trying to find a way to respond. For Red to spot thinking he was being persuaded by what…the mafia? It almost sounded like that was what Red was thinking.

But also find a way for Red to just leave, the only way to do that. Would be to open up every single wound he had learned over the past year. Completely tear into the other, but he doesn’t think he can.

“Is…is it your brother?..is he the one that is…?”

He stood up lighting quickly and turned around

“Don’t you even dare finish that sentence, my brother would never ever do anything that results in other people getting hurt, you hear me.”

Red eyes widened and then a grin started forming

“There you are..” Red said, and what the fuck was that supposed to mean. How could Red even suggest, even think that Papyrus would even think of doing something. ..

Good god he didn’t want to think about it, he had told Red countless stories about his bro, it is surprisingly easy to substitute the mer-stuff for normal-monster stuff.

Red had crossed his arms and looked very self-satisfied with himself. “I knew you were putting up a front”

His own eyes widened at that declaration.

“I ain't letting you go that easy, something is happening, and I am gonna figure out what. I don’t care how many necks I have to break, but they are gonna be sorry when they realize who they are messing with” Red cracked his knuckles angrily. Looking itching for a fight. And dammit that shouldn’t make his soul swoon, but it did.

But he also started panicking. Cause this was bad, really bad. At this rate Red was gonna throw everything at it, to help with this perceived thread. Red knows people, if he got wind he was out in the ocean. The people there..his brother.

Fuck it, that can’t happen. But Red wasn’t gonna stop. He knew that. There would be nothing stopping him. Not when Red was seeing something so clearly going wrong. And he couldn’t contradict that. The only way he could was….

Show him...

Fuck no bad idea...But what choice did he have at this point? Red would not stop, everyone would be at risk. That stubborn refusal would stop at nothing, not even his own fears, Red would be on a ship terrified out of his mind. Some of those people could be shady, they could hurt his brother.

Red would not follow him if he knows, but it would hurt Red. A final act of betrayal, of that he had been lying to him all this time, about what he was. Where he belonged and where he longed to be. He hated it. But he saw no other way, he just has to dash off quickly when Red realized. Don’t let him think too much about it.

Show him, let it sink in, and swim away.

Fuck this was a bad idea, but he turned around and dove into the water anyway, Hearing a shout of his name. The water felt like home and within seconds his legs transformed into his bright blue tail, the shorts he’d been wearing tearing to sheds. It was sad, he had hoped to keep them as a memento, but he had more importing things to deal with.

Looking back up seeing his back still on the dock. Well, that was one good way for Red to get a good look. He quickly swam to the side, turned around, and propelled himself with enough speed to launch out of the water.

He heard a surprise gasp, as his hands grabbed the straps and pull it with him in the water. Landing in it with a heavy splash. The bag became heavy in his arms dragging him down a bit. But he quickly corrected it and swam back up. One last check to see if Red had seen everything. And then he would leave.

He let out a gasp as his airways didn’t like he kept going between the water and air. Once he was able to see he noticed that Red had walked closer, and was now in the middle of the dock.

Had…had he tried to come after him?

His gaze quickly landed on the other's face, to be met with the widest eyes he had ever seen. The shock was plainly written on his face, and only shock, no anger. None at all, his soul gave a hopeful leap. But he tried to stomp it down.

Suddenly those eyes were focused on him. Eyelights a dark red, even in the orange light of the setting sun. They were burning, and fuck he had to go. Flee and never go back. But he couldn’t look away not from him.

Then he heard thumping, Red was barreling forward. Wait…? What?! what was he doing!? Red was getting closer to the end of the dock and all he could do was stare, instead of flee. Then Red dove off the dock, straight at him.

Everything else happened in a quick flurry of movement. The force of the dive had sent both of them beneath the water, he felt two hands grab his shoulders roughly and pull him towards Red. He dropped the bag and grabbed onto the other's hips, and then there were teeth pressed harshly against his own.

His own eyes widened even further, he couldn’t see anything through the flurry of bubbles around them. He could feel the magic of the rough kiss against his own teeth. It was screaming, Mine Don’t let go Keep him close STAY! Maybe he should have fought it and demanded an answer. But that desperate kiss pulled him under. And he started pressing back just as harshly. He didn’t know what was happening, or why it was happening. But Red was kissing him. Red was also digging his fingers into the top of his humorous. Sharp claw-like fingers leaving thin white scratches. Their shirts had filled with air and were trying to rise to the top before the air escaped and started to lay heavily on the bones trying to drag them down further.

Then a tongue lapped at his teeth and he opened without hesitation. But only when he felt bubbles from between them as their tongues kept meeting. Did his mind catch up to the situation

Fuck Red needed to breathe, he needed air before they ran out, He pulled away from Red, fully intending to slap a hand over his mouth and let him keep whatever air he could have left. But then he realized that the texture under his hands had changed. He was no longer touching bones.

What he was touching felt smooth to the touch, yet he could also feel individual scales give way under his fingertips. He looked down and saw a tail moving in counter motions with his own..always drifting slightly to the left.

There were side fins just below his hands…or there should be. Where the nasty scar on Red's hip was, There was just a stub, like it had been violently ripped off by something sharp.. The other side fin was also torn, There were gashes and scars all over him.

Some looked like those he saw others had suffered from man-made tools, others looked like other mer got that had gotten into huge territorial spats and left one party for dead. Yet somehow they survived.

Some of them seemed to be treated by human hands, and others like had done them himself The color of the other's tail was slightly off too. Like it was supposed to be brighter. Like his own light blue, but it was a dull reddish-grey. And a lot of things started clicking into place.

He looked back up into the other's eyes. The emotions stared back at him. Was such a mixture, of relief, annoyance, anger, and happiness but also. Fear. A terror that he only had seen once before slowly creeping in and overtaking him.

Another realization hit him. The way Red clung to him, had changed, it was subtle. But Red was clearly using him to keep himself on eye level. Like he was having trouble.swimming upright. The other's breath quickened, as Red’s gaze left him, and he stared around. That the full realization of what he had done was setting in.

He warped an arm closer around the other's middle, pulling him against himself, and swam both of them up. Coming up beneath the floorboards of the docks, until he found the one he was looking for. A large rock under the water stood against the wooden pillar. Red grabbed onto the wooden beam with one hand and rested against the rock beneath him. While he still floated in front of him, helping to steady him by holding onto his other arm.

Like this, they were hidden from view from anyone else in the low red lights of the setting sun at the horizon. Staring at Red, who was clearly uncomfortable, and afraid, but seemed to not be near the point of panicking anymore.

He brought a hand up to the other cheek, feeling the water slide over the rough bones,

“That was incredibly stupid, are you okay?”

Red let out a dry laugh, and his red eye lights small pinpricks.

“Couldn’t let you get away now…could I?.... asshole…” his next laugh was hallowed as he started towards the ocean, and he quickly guided the other's gaze towards himself.

“Hey no..eyes on me”

No need for Red to confront more than necessary, let him focus on something else. Anything else?

Another laugh, and then those scared little pinprick lights were boring into his own. But he wasn’t planning on letting go. Wasn’t gonna leave his best friend in this state. Answers could wait.

A hand came up to his own face, and he felt magic starting to dust at his cheeks. The smile on Red's face became less abstract terror and more disbelief fondness.

“Fuck, you are real aren’t yah.”

He paused, and then

“As pufferfish are round yes”

Red gave another punched-out laugh “Fuck, haven’t heard that expression in ages.” He felt his own teeth tug into a small smile, chest easing with each steading breath that was taken. Red’s thumb caressed the corner of the said smile, and he felt himself being tugged closer.

And then he was kissing Red again. This time it wasn’t a flurry of emotions, it wasn’t desperation. It was just them tugging each other closer, heat slowly building. Trying to answer the questioning magic. They seemed to whisper instead of scream this time. Questions like: Is this okay? Are you real? You feel safe I can’t believe this... He tried to answer every question. Red hand moved to the back of his head, slowly pulling him in deeper and deeper. Mouths opened once more to let their tongues dance together again.

There was a distinct lack of sea salt in this kiss. And he could faintly, very faintly taste those hard cherry candy sweets the other liked to munch on so much. Letting out soft breaths and gasps the whole time, his fingers traced over the other's cheek, as Red’s face slowly heated up beneath it. At the same time, Red was holding onto the back of his neck, with a gentle pressure that was making his already fast-beating soul, sing louder.

The sudden sound of a car door being shut, along with some muffled voices made them break apart. He glanced around the pole they were leaning against. At the top of the beach was a fish and bird monster gathering some fishing supplies from the car.

He recognized them as regulars at the bar. He looked back at Red seeing the other's eyes had gone back to pinpricks.

“I know a safe place” he whispered quickly. There was no way those two would overhear them over the waves, but he didn’t want to risk it. What were those two doing anyway, going fishing at this hour? “But it would be a bit of a swim, you up for it”

He received a glare in return

“Don’t need you to use the kiddie gloves on me, I can handle myself” Red angrily spat. He held onto the other's shoulders gently but firmly

“Never said you couldn’t. But you are shaking…so…do you trust me”

Those words felt a lot more loaded now. His secret was out, but in return….red had done the same. But that didn’t excuse anything. Part of their friendship was on a shaky foundation. And Red…red didn’t trus-

“Yeah…” His eyes widened. Now was not the time to overthink. “I’ll grab my bag and we go…”

Red gave a stiff nod, eyes flickering towards the car on the beach. He gave a nod, and quickly dove down, seeing his bag, and grabbing it. Making a quick 180 turn back, towards where he saw the dull red tail.

When he got closer, Red lowered himself under the water, Still, a tremble going through his body. But staring hard at him, as he struggled to keep himself balanced.

Red clearly hadn’t swum in a long, long time. Or that might be the missing side fin or both. “What’s the plan”

Even though the tail had been clear evidence, seeing red speak without problems underwater is what sealed it. For a brief moment, he had been filled with panic. But he stomped it out.

He held out his bag, “Wear this, and hold onto my back, I think that is the fastest way” He saw the other stare at his back then at him wearily, giving a tense nod, Roughly grabbing the bag and putting it on, as he turned around so Red could hold on.

The hands that settled around the ribs just below his shoulder blades were surprisingly gentle compared to how he handled the bag.

“If we need to stop for whatever reason, just pull alright?” “Sure…” was the curt response,

He gave a nod, and started moving, Slowly speeding up as he went down deeper. It felt like Red was trying to keep up, but every time he made a slight turn, he could feel Red's body being dragged by the currents. The hands' grip grew tighter and tighter by the second. As he scanned around for the cave entrance. It was harder to spot in the dark. But luckily it didn’t take too long.

“Where the fuck..” Red mumbled as they entered it, the passage luckily wide enough for both of them to fit through.

“Careful, tight corner up ahead” He felt Red pull himself closer to him, but still let out a swear as they turned said corner. Seems like his tail still scraped against the walls

“Sorry” he mumbled, and he only got a grumble in response, the small cave tunnel opened up into an underground lake, and he slowly surfaced. He could feel red looking around seeing all of the stuff that he had kept in his cabin on the shores, and then up at the sky where some last rays of red light were coming in.

“How the fuck did you find this place”

“Being an idiot and still not knowing how to walk in my first week”

“So you slipped on yer ass?” he could hear the grin on the other teeth

“More like fell face first into the water” And Red laughed, it was such a good sound to hear after the near panic he had been in for a while. And they reached the rocky edge

“There are some towels and clothes in the corner over there, “ He raised his hand from out of the water to point at the indicated corner.

“ You can use those” He finished as the other monster let go of his back, and held onto the edge. He saw Red set both hands on the edge to start lifting himself up before he stopped and turned around

“What about you?” Red asked subtly clutching at the backpack he still had

He ran a hand over the back of his own skull

“I…I gotta get back to my bro..” He said slowly. He had no intention of going back on his word. He would go meet Paps. but as for his intention to stay down in his old home…well..there was a shaky revelation in front of him that complicated matters to the millionth degree

Red Started into his eyes for a bit and then let out a sigh eyes averting “I…understand”

For a moment they both just hovered, then Red let out an even deeper sigh

“Sorry…by the way…for making you…ya know..”

He turned his gaze back confused, but Red still had his gaze averted. His brow bones furrowed trying to grasp the other's meaning before it slowly hit him.

“Oh…I…it’s fine…i mean…well..” He let out his own frustrated grumble

“I am glad I told you…” he settled on.

“Didn’t give ya much of a choice” Red still looked kinda dejected

He gave a helpless shrug. "Not like I was giving you much to go off. You cared, that means a lot you know"

Reds brown furrowed deeper. "Yet, you are still leaving"

He felt himself freeze and said steely "I made a promise"

They both stared each other down, for a few moments and then Red closed his sockets with a weary sigh. “And you wouldn’t be you, if you didn’t keep it” Red stated

At those words, he felt a slight flush cover his cheeks. And rubbed the back of his head awkwardly “Yeah, guess not”

Red heaved out a sigh and turned back around, and with some trouble heaved himself up on the shore. He swam a bit closer, with a heavy chest.

“You…gonna be okay?” He asked hesitantly, Red didn’t look back, and for a moment he thought the other wouldn’t answer as he dropped the bag on the edge with a heavy thud. It would be an appropriate response after everything. But then he heard lowly “Managed so far”

Red wasn’t anything more slip, no more feelings, no more information. His hands dug into the rocks of the shore, as Red dragged himself towards the corner staring at the towel for a moment, Before drying off his tail.

“I’m sorry” After everything, Red deserved at least that much, and he saw him freeze up “About…well…a lot, just…I never intended for all of this to happen. But…it did. And I could have done a lot of things better. I know it probably doesn't mean much but - “

“-It’s fine” Red cut him off still not looking at him. His eyes trained on his tail with a sort of disdain he couldn’t understand. It made his heart ache. Part of him wanted to reach out, part of him was afraid that saying the wrong thing would make him disappear forever.

That had been what he had intended not mere minutes before…but still... It hurt. It would always have hurt. He wanted things to work, wanted more of Red. Red had fucking kissed him,

Holy shit Red had fucking kissed him. It had been harsh and forceful, and overwhelming. Everything that Red is. And he had loved it, he wanted more of it. Didn’t want to give up anything, didn’t want to choose between his life up here with Red, Or down below with his brother. He wanted both.

But fuck he thought he had seen Red scared before It had been nothing to that look in his eyes that he got when his gaze had drifted to the horizon line. Just stark terror, even without looking at his face directly now. He could still the ghost of it.

“I am the one that jumped in, you didn’t drag me…” Red mumbled.

That was true, but it still didn’t sit right with him. He looked at the rough rocks of the cave, towards the entrance where the beginnings of moonlight began to show. He had been here so much, but never did it ever feel this small, this oppressive.

“That doesn’t change the fact I have been a fucking asshole” Red seemed to let out a chuckle, but it was cut off soon so he could not be completely sure

He felt the corner of his own smile quirk up. Staring At the other back he finally said what was on his fucking mind. Damm the concequeses. He had no idea how to fix, or resolve this. But Red was smart. Maybe they could do it together

“I don’t want this to be the end…” The words were barely louder than a whisper. But he might as well screamed with the force Red turned around. Eyes boring into him, and within those fiery red eyes he could see hope,

“You think, that isn’t what I wanted?” Red narrowed his eyes “You think I go even near the beach for just anyone”

He felt another flush cover his cheeks. “I don’t think you ever do anything unless it is for yourself”

Red’s mouth turned into a grin “ Ya got that right, so watta you thinking sweetheart”

His face flushed even darker, and Red’s grin widened. It wasn’t the first time Red had called him sweetheart. But after well, everything, It seemed to hold a lot more weight. And Red seemed to love the reaction he was getting, cause he dropped the towel, dragged himself back over to the water's edge, and laid down, Lying on his front, and staring him right in the face with a lazy grin now that they were on eye-level.

A part of him wanted to push himself up and kiss that smug look off his face. He didn’t Red’s ego is big enough without him knowing how much he could get under his skin by a simple action. His gaze never left Reds despite the flush

“Someway to keep meeting, I can’t just stay…my bro…” “Is too important…I get it” Red’s eyes were gentle, if frustrated. “Contact is hard….no way to communicate underwater for long-distance” Red mumbled and he gave a nod in response

“Like setting up meetings would work…but what if something happens, I couldn’t let you know anything was happening..” He said And Red brow furrowed “It is better than not seeing you at all…” he mumbled gruffly, and he had to fight another flush

That was true, but it still felt very risky, A good way to be prone to miscommunication. Espeasily if something really bad was happening on either end.

“Are there…any devices divers would use if they get in trouble?…that send off a beacon with their location, either of us could activate it if we can’t make it” Red suggested, wondering out loud

“...couldn’t anyone intercept that…I don’t want to bring the others near my home in any danger”

Red’s frown turned deeper, understanding crossing his eyes.

“I could hack it…” “You could get in trouble “ “I ain't supposed to exist among the monsters, yet they never caught on. Besides this is worth it”

He reached out a hand and wrapped it around Red's wrist. “I really don’t want you to get hurt because of me” Red leaned forward and gently knocked their foreheads together. He wonders if Red remembered that being a sign of affection in mer-culture.

“How about this, for now…we just set up a next meeting, gives us both some time to think of solutions yeah? And I think I held you up long enough.”

His soul still churned in his chest, but it sounded acceptable. The lingering fear probably didn’t help Red’s thinking abilities. . “Alright” He breathed out, he waited a sec, then hoisted himself up the rest of the way to drop a chaste kiss against Red's teeth. When he pulled back and sunk back into the water, it was Red who had a blush covering his cheeks.

Red scrambled up into a sitting position, Tail having turned back into legs while he lay there, and hid his widening grin behind his hand. It made him wanna leap out of the water again. He didn’t… But it was a nice feeling.

“So how about we meet up, in a month? That gives me time to settle things back home with my bro”

Red took another moment to shake the soft smitten look on his face, back to the regular asshole he always knew.

“How you gonna know a month has passed,” Red asked.

He chucked and pointed up, to where they could see the moon appearing between the cracks of stone.

“It’s half a moon today…I will be here on the next one “

“And with here, do you mean…” “The Island, also the cave…but. I think meeting in front of the bar would suffice”

Red nodded and stood up. His bulky jacket was hiding his currently bare pelvis. He flushed and looked away at that realization wich made Red bark out another laugh.

“Then i guess…this is goodbye…” Red said, but it didn’t feel him with dread as he had feared. No there was a glimmer of hope. Hope for both of them, that they’ll find a solution that’ll work for them.

“Not goodbye, it’s till we meet again” Red laughed. “Poetic, get out of here you asshole, you got a brother waiting on you, tell him I said hi” “Tell yours the same” “Sure”

He grabbed the bag Red had dropped, put it on, and pushed himself away from the shore “You can tell him…by the way..” Considering what Red was….Edge should be too, it would be safe. And Red gave a surprised stiff nod. Red opened his mouth a couple of times…but no sound came out. Then a frustrated huff.

“Same… “ He stared at him shocked, “....you sure?” he asked completely blind sighted Red gave a nod… “Don’t feel like you have to” He stated just in case that wasn’t clear “I don’t …honest…”

And he gave a nod himself, as Red finally put some pants on. They had said their goodbyes all they had to do was leave. But instead, they just stared at each other. Slowly Red got closer to the water again, and he swam up to meet him. Red sat down on his knees, and he put his hands on either side of it.

Then Red’s hands were on his cheeks pulling him further up, as he used his tail, to lift himself up and kiss Red one last time. Hands let go of his face after a moment, to warp around his waist instead, to keep their chest flush together, his own arms holding on tightly on the other's shoulders.

Forming a tongue and pressing it against the others sharp teeth, Red opened up with a little groan. Red still tasted of sea salt, but that addicting cherry flavor was also back, And it made him wonder what Red tasted of him. But gravity was getting stronger, and as he felt himself tip more backward, and Red lean more forwards, he quickly let go before he dragged the other into the water again.

The shift in weight caused Red to drop him, but luckily stayed above water himself, if not getting a tiny bit splashed. He surfaced quickly, eyes meeting again.

There was some sort of understanding between them. Next time, they talk about that too. For now..they just enjoy what they had. He pushed himself away from shore once more, lest he be tempted into another kiss.

Red held up his hand “See ya later, Sansy”

He gave the other a small two-finger salute of his own “Later…..Sweetheart”

And he dove back into the tunnel they entered, not looking back to see how Red reacted. Something for them both to remember. As his hand game against his mouth, his face flushed in a slight blue

Nah, Red had done that for him. But for now, he tried to focus on getting back home. Happy knowing that returning was not only a possibility. But ineffable at this point

[noffy96]

Kustardweek Day 2

Wrote this on the train yesterday. Decided to use this prompt to add to my Mer Au! So enjoy!

Sorry if it isn't as polished as my other work. But i am still really proud

Photo surprise

Word count: 778

Chapter (1) (Complete)

Chapter Summary:

“How do you think they come up with this shit?”

Red mumbled with a bit of a slur, and he tilted his head back to indicate he had heard him. Letting out a questioning noise. Red pointed at the tv, that he had tuned out over an hour ago. He had just focused on the gentle breathing beneath him, slowly drifting him into a low slumber.

or

Sans and Red, see a commercial about a mermaid. After a comment from Red, Sans gets a idea

made for kustardweek2023

Link here to AO3

Or continue below the read-more line

He yawned deeply and took another gulp from his beer can. Sinking back more into Red’s hold.

It had been too long since they had done this. If there was one thing the ocean doesn’t have it’s good good alcohol. Drinking with Red had become one of his favorite activities when he spent on the surface. But now with him going back and forth for the bi-weekends. He couldn’t risk being hungover for the long track back. Not to mention Papyrus would yell his head off if he did.

“How do you think they come up with this shit?”

Red mumbled with a bit of a slur, and he tilted his head back to indicate he had heard him. Letting out a questioning noise. Red pointed at the tv, that he had tuned out over an hour ago. He had just focused on the gentle breathing beneath him, slowly drifting him into a low slumber.

But he refocused and saw that it was playing a commercial about an animated movie was playing. It seemed to be about a mermaid that gave up her voice for legs. Or something of the like.

“Aint that based on those old human tales, before the monsters came back into society?”

He felt Red shrug, his hand scratching away some dirt absentmindedly

“Just wondering what they think we have to give something up”

He gave a shrug jostling Red’s head on his shoulder who gave an angry grumble

“Don’t fucking know dude. Humans are weird. For them apparently, a horse with a horn counts as mystical! So I can’t fucking tell what’s normal for them”

Red gave a sage nod and seemed to absent-mindedly nuzzle his face closer and got a small kiss on his neck. And they continued to watch their show.

“You ever seen this movie?”

Red mumbled later when the next rum of commercials was airing, at the same ad, was playing.

“Once” He gave an answer

“You tried doing some of the stuff in it?” He snorted

“Like what, her twist and loops in the water? Or jumping out of the water? “

Red shook his head

“That one scene on the rock, with the singing after the prince woke up and is walking away”

He Frowned “Don’t have much of a singing voice, so No. Also, someone could spot me!!”

Red just nuzzled in deeper and mumbled, probably not realizing he was talking out loud.

“Bet you would look pretty though”

He fiddled with the camera. Double and triple checking it was Steady. And the camera angle was right. Fiddling with the settings, the timer would take pictures every couple of seconds. And once he was happy with everything. He sighed deeply, fixing the clear straps on his shoulders, and dove down to get into position. …. The things he did for his love

He didn’t make a big deal out of it. It took some planning to print the pictures at the local library without being spotted. He earned Edge a huge ass favor for that one. As soon as they were done he slipped them into a blue envelope and then hid them between some of Red’s hoodies.

He had intended for Red to find in between the meetings. But that morning, when he rolled over to make a flirty comment as Red grabbed some clothes. It had slipped out and saw Red pick it up. As he took out the pictures his boyfriend's face coloured into his namesake. Also, his eyelights grew to almost overtake his whole sockets.

“Wha….How…Why?” Red finally managed to Sutter out.

He shrugged helplessly his own face still Blue

‘Just wanted to give you something nice’

Red stalked back over to the bed. Quickly casing him in against the mattress

‘It’s very nice indeed

And Red crushed their teeth together in a harsh kiss. Wasting no time at summoning his tongue and licking at the seem of his mouth begging for entrance. After a few seconds of sitting there stunned he started to return the hungry kisses.

When they finally broke apart Red, spoke against his teeth

“I knew you’d be fucking pretty Before crashing for months together once more with no information of leaving the bed any time soon.

On the ground lay the picture he had taken. It was a picture of Sans in his mer form. Just like the mermaid girls of the movie sitting on a rock with a big wave splashing behind him. While wearing a replica of the shell top. A light flush on his face, as the sun hit him

Later it would be put in a special album Red keeps for special memories.

[noffy96]

Errink Fic

yup wrote another, Was fun to do, and yes this is the one that i accidently i bit more angsty. But should still be fun. Soooo here we go

What death takes from us

Word count: 8,457 words

Chapter 1 / 3 (Complete)

(next chapter)

Summary :

Waking back up is the easiest and the hardest part. As long as he doesn’t move. He knows what happened, even if he can’t remember how. He had died and had just regenerated. It feels different than waking up from sleep. It’s like he is slowly pieced together, piece by agonizing piece.

or

Error has just woken up after being dead for who knows how long. Have things changed? and more importantly, does his boyfriend still remember him? What changes has death brought this time?

--Link here to Ao3--

Or continue below the read more line

Waking back up is the easiest and the hardest part. As long as he doesn’t move. He knows what happened, even if he can’t remember how. He had died and had just regenerated. It feels different than waking up from sleep. It’s like he is slowly pieced together, piece by agonizing piece. The floor below him is cold, smooth, and familiar. Considering it’s the only tangible surface of the Antivoid, you get to know its feeling pretty well. Espeasily after being stuck here for as long as he has.

He knows he should move, he has a job to do. There are people…people he should see, like..Ink, Blue, and Lust. Let them know he was back, that he was alive. But letting them know would meen moving, which means he would start to glitch, and he wasn’t looking forward to it. But he can’t stay naked on the ground forever. And the thought of Ink or god forbid Fresh finding him like this.

Yeah, Fuck no.

It’s time to be alive again.

He quickly came to from the crash, now lying on his back, instead of his front. Gasping and panting like had run a marathon. His throat hurt, and his face burnt. He must have screamed himself hoarse, wouldn’t be the first time.

He slowly curled his fingers against the floor. Only for the glitches to start rapidly moving over his entire body. Moving the joint hurt. And it made his arm jerk. Causing a chain reaction of pain with every movement he made. His body was on fire, being poked and needled from every direction Like he was getting electrocuted from the inside out.

He was screaming, tears flowing from his eyes, glitches gliding painfully up and down his body. Not able to see anything, and he blacked out.

He rolled to his side and with effort got on his hands and knees. Vision still swimming, and the burn on his bones was not fading, but he could start to tune it out. The voices were coming back too, Some of them were telling him he should call for someone, others laughing at him, at how the destroyer could be reduced to such a sad pile of bones. He ignored all of them, trying to find where in the fuck in the Antivoid he appeared this time.

To any other monster, it would appear as if they were just in an endless white room, but then again he wasn’t any monster now was he? So even with the few glances he got between his glitched-out vision, he ripped open a portal, closer to his home, and fell on through.

He landed right next to the beanbag with a hard thud. And he lay there for minutes on end just writhing in agony, waiting for the glitches to pass.

Once he had a little control, he tried to take stock of things. His web of souls lays undisturbed. Good seems like the truce with the stars still stood, glancing to the side, his dolls were fine as well if a little moved around. Probably his boyfriend, Ink liked to make little stories with them from time to time, not caring that most of them were filled with monster dust.

Dream called it disturbing, he called it endearing. Fuck he had to find his phone and let the others know he was alive again. He wondered how long he was gone. The last time he died, he had been gone for a week. But then he had only drowned..this time.

…

…

What had happened this time? Fuck he still couldn’t remember. Just that both Ink and Blue had come to him to ask for help dealing with a threat. And maybe he could handle puppy eyes from one of them. But his boyfriend and best friend teaming up. Well…he was no longer made of stone.

He started to take stock of his body. His body felt stiff, not too strange after dying, Glitching badly? Also normal. Naked. No surprise. He pressed a hand to his chest and pulled out his shard of a soul. Its beat was in its regular irregular rhythm. A bit faster than maybe normal, but considering how badly he was glitching. Nothing to worry about either, so he put it back.

Dream hadn’t seemed sure of his involvement. But he could care less what that golden bastard thought of him. But then what?

His mind just felt like static and h groaned as his head hurt more the more he thought about it. Okay so dropping that for now. Not too important, he’ll just ask Blue later.

Slowly and with difficulty he sat up. He should probably find his clothes, but the idea of putting anything onto his burning body was seriously unappealing. Instead, he just went through practicing if he could summon all his attacks, Starting from basic bone structures, up to his blasters.

The blasters seemed to whine in pain as he summoned them, but otherwise fine and he put them away. Fuck it was a bad one this time. He let out a deep breath and brought a hand to his face, luckily his face didn’t burn more as he touched it and pulled the strings from his eyes. Good not the absolute worst then. If he was in pain again from summoning his attacks he would seriously destroy four times as many universes the second he could.

IT would be fine, Ink would understand.

Right, call Ink.,

Let him know he was alive. If that rainbow bastard didn’t forget about him already. And he ignored the voice telling him how fitting that would be for someone like him. Just as he stood up, he felt a tug, a familiar call. He was being summoned, fuck, did he have to…

He grumbled under his breath, but if he was being called. Ink would most likely be there, so that would deal with that. He glanced around and found a pile of his clothes neatly folded on the other side of the beanbag. But what was on top of them made him pause.

That…

That was Ink’s scarf…

He picked it up, seeing the thousands of scribbles his boyfriend left on it. His vision was still too blurry to read any of them. But it was definitely Inks, he had felt it enough during their soft kisses, pressed against his chin. Or wrapped around his arm as a makeshift shield on his bad days.

He felt the call again, and he grumbled loudly. A petty part of him really wanted to ignore it. But there weren't many people that could call him like this. And most of the ones who could, would know that he was dead, so to call for him...

Well, something must be going on at the very least. He quickly put his clothes on, biting through the way the normally soft fabric still made his bones itch But he wasn’t gonna stroll in naked. He looked at the brown scarf he had thrown on his beanbag in his quick change. After a second of hesitating he quickly warped it around his neck and jumped through a portal.

“So I was right, you are back, I figured seeing Ink was wearing your scarf, Now can you Please stop your Boyfriend from trying to murder one of mine? Before I break our truce and kill him”

The chill Snowdin air felt nice against his burning bones as he landed behind Nightmare.

"What the fuck do you need?" He crossed his arms as he noticed his voice was glitching more than normal.

Nightmare glared at him, and an air of constrained anger surrounded the guardian. It only made him raise an eyebrow. As he noticed a few of the other members of his gang stood around him, ready to spring into action

“But just for you, keep your boy toys in check. You really must have messed up to get Ink that furious.” Not waiting for an answer he took off, teleporting closer, and then summoning strings to make his way toward the running pair.

He snorted, “You are truly pathetic thinking you could kill him, but I ain't want to fight you.”

He got ready to spring into action, seeing a brown blob that he assumed was ink chase angrily after a blue with red blob in the distance. He really should be wearing his glasses, but he felt uncomfortable enough.

The closer he came the more curses he heard from the murder abomination. And he caught up with them as Ink slammed Dust hard into a wall. Hovering above them in a web of strings Ink crowed against Dust, lifting him up by just his shirt. Dust tried to kick ink away, struggling to breathe.

Dust was dropped, and a dark portal appeared beneath him. Looks like Nightmare was smart and take his boys away. Ink angrily whipped around, and he noticed that Ink’s Firey red eyes had crosshairs in them.

He supposed that was his cue.

“Oi Squid!, You ain't breaking our truce again?! Are you?!”

He crossed his arms and scoffed.

“Seriously ink, I can’t leave you alone for even five seconds can-”

“Error!” He could hear the way Ink's voice was filled with absolute adoration and joy.

And he couldn’t help the fond tuck of his own smile, as Ink Jumped up on top of one of the trees, to meet him. Ink stayed there a few feet away, balancing on top of the tree, eyes glancing up and down his body, while flickering rapidly through different symbols

It was nice to be appreciated.

“You’re back…” It was said with a sigh of happiness,

Eyelights stuck flickering between, yellow stars, and pink hearts.

He chuckled and pulled more strings from his eyes.

“Yes, and what a mess it is, seems I need to remind you how things are done”

He let out a burst of manic laughter and attacked. Attacks zoomed around him, he dodged and weaved. Laughing every time he managed to get a hit in. The land around them was uprooted in their fierce battle. Some inkjets hit him in the side and face, leaving his face and clothes a disgusting mess of ink.

Ink's smile broadened into a bright grin, Jumping back down with a somersault, the showoff, Ink grabbed broomie and stood at the ready.,

“Bring it on you Glitch”

All the while Ink kept taunting him and laughing. And the more they chased each other the better he began to feel. That he could see his own bright blue scarf against the artist's brown clothes. Was also filling him with possessive glee. That it made the other easier to spot and follow without his glasses was just a bonus

He doesn’t know how long they fought, it felt barely a few minutes but he heard a desperate

“guys…Guys stop…Please…Ink! Error!”

He recognized the voice, and both he and Ink jumped down to the ground. In front of Blue, who just seemed to stumble away from some debris. Ink rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Sorry…forgot you were here..”

Blue waved him off,

“It’s fine, I get it. And Blue turned his happy grin to him.

“Good to see you again Error, been too long,” He gave him a nod, deciding against pleasantries as he saw the last of the stars stumble out of the rumble behind them.

Dream angrily stomped over to Ink And started yelling at him about the usual things. Bla bla, safety of the universe, blah blah could get him killed. Like Dream wasn’t immortal himself.

Dream looked non to pleased,

“Ink, what the hell!”

He tuned out the one-sided argument, it wouldn't be the first, and Ink can handle himself. Turning to Blue, who seemed to keep an eye on them. As he continued with a bright smile

"How are you holding up?" He asked

He gave half a shrug. "Could be worse "

Blue's smile turned sympathetic. The other could read between the lines. But also knew he wouldn't say too much with Dream around. Wouldn’t give that golden bastard any information he could use against him.

"I am sure you gotta deal with the balance for a while, but once you're free. Let me know. Lust and I have been aching to catch up on Undernovella. We could hold a little marathon!"

He looked back at the other pair. Ink was looking hurt. Not the, one that came from his blue paints. Whatever Dream had said, had cut deeper.

He couldn't help the grin. Fuck yeah, he wanted to nerd out with those two. No one else could appreciate the fine drama of it all.

Ink certainly tried. But it wasn't the same. Blue grinned back. Before suddenly snapping his head to the side

"Dream! You did not just say that"

Blue marched over and yanked Dream a couple of steps away. Who had still been standing angrily over ink.

Dream bristled in response, and he got closer to his boyfriend. The smile Ink gave him seemed relieved, some of that sadness ebbing away. And he glared at the golden twin. As he stood protectively behind Ink.

"Hey, could either of you open a portal to my universe? I think Dream here has been in a few negative universes too long. With everything else that happened.” Blue trailed off, raising an eyebrow at Dream started to protest but ultimately decided against it.

But Blue seemed to be giving him a verbal beatdown already. "I don't care what you think Dream. You don't play with his emotions. No don't interrupt. I don't want to hear it. You know just as much as I, that Ink cares about him. And he was dead for fucks sake. He has every right to be happy… what's with you. "

Blue sighed. And then a sudden understanding seemed to come over him and turned back to face them.

“Well, this might be a tipping point. " He finished and Blue caught his confused glance

"I'll give you the details of what you missed later, but I think it's better we deal with this now"

Blue thanked him and pushed Dream through. Giving a wave as it closed behind them. Ink looked up at him with a small smile that seemed to reach his eyes again.

Dream gave another sound of protest, and even he could tell there was something about the guardian that wasn't right.

He glanced at Ink who was not looking at either of them. He glared. Another reason he hates dying. He had no fucking idea what was going on. But he didn't want to hang out here longer than necessary.

He rather go back to the antivoid so he made a portal for the other two.

He glanced around at the destroyed landscape around them and couldn't help the small grin.

"We'll…that's one hell of a welcome party"

Ink snorted.

"Certainly is in your style"

His grin grew brighter there were puddles of ink and loose strings everywhere. He glanced at Ink who was looking kinda proud himself. Probably seeing something artistic in the mess they made.

He stretched.

"Well...I suppose you got to finish your job."

One of Ink's eyeligths became a teardrop. More saddened by the sounds of having to perform his duties than normal. he opened a portal to the Antivoid, glancing at Ink.

"Visit me once you're done?"

The voices were screaming at him to go back and talk to Ink. Or that destroying that universe is better. But he ignored it. Flopping down onto his beanbag with a groan.

Ink instantly brighter up. Rocking in place.

"You bet!" Before one eye turned into an exclamation point.

"Oh here. Let me remove my ink from you first"

The bristles of the giant brush swept over him as quickly and softly as the brush was capable. Which caused more glitches to appear,.but he was thankful his clothes were clean.

"See you soon, Squid. Don't forget!"

And he stepped through the portal with a sigh.

Glitches were still traveling up and down his body in erratic fashions. Fuck it, he sat up slightly to take his long coat off and threw it on the ground in a huff. He thought about taking the T-shirt off as well.

Maybe he could rest a bit now. See if the glitches actually settled the fuck down. His skin had been itching and burning the entire time.

His throat still felt like sandpaper. The only time it felt remotely like how he should was when he was fighting Ink. And even then the problems didn't go away.

But Fresh might still show up unexpectedly so deciding against it. He could use a hot bath or something like that though.

Letting out another sigh, as he thought of ink, he hoped Ink was okay. He'll get to the bottom of what happened. But he also trusted Blue and could be patient enough to wait. And besides if he didn't like what he heard he hunt Dream down anyway.

He leaned back once more, closing his eyes. Yeah, that be kinda nice. Go to a hot spring in an empty AU. Let his body relax and glitches settle. Ink could be sketching his half-naked body as he had done a few times before.

He would pose however the Artist wanted him to. He could admit to himself at least that he didn't mind the attention he got for modeling for his boyfriend.

"Aaah Oop sorry!"

The wet splash of a portal opening sounded followed by Ink's excited footsteps against the antivoids floor.

The fact that Ink was still so excited to see him was doing things to his soul. He knows his face was covered in a pleased smile as he called

"Close. the god damm portal Ink"

Hearing Ink turn around, to close the portal, and once Ink's footsteps sounded close once more. He opened an eyesocket and took a good luck at his squid.

"Hey Kiki"

Ink was panting lightly. A small pink-yellow flush on his face. Glutching at the blue scarf he was wearing.

Right! He hadn't asked it back yet. Also noticing that Ink's eyes were trained around his own neck where inks scarf was.

Inks flush grew brighter and gained some extra colours as Ink's smile nearly split his face

"Hey Ruru"

He felt his soul speed up, Ink hadn't forgotten him, or their relationship it seems. And fuck if that wasn't the best thing that happened today.

Ink kept bouncing on the balls of his feet. So he summoned some strings to pull the other down into the beanbag with a yelp. Leaving enough room for them to sit apart comfortably as they had done countless times before.

"Quite hovering stupid Squid"

"Sorry…sorry it's just*. Ink replied. As he untangled himself, both of them turned to lie on their sides to look at each other

"You are back…" Ink said it in a cross between awe and relief. a small happy smile on the other's mouth. His own cheeks flushed lightly.

He looked back to see one of Ink's eyes becoming two triangles that reminded him of an hourglass. Head tilting back in thought. Tapping his fingers as he will do when trying to recall something.

He veered his eyes away.,

"Yup.. so tell me how long was I gone?"

"I think you have to ask Blue to confirm it. But…nearly two months?"

"Ru…?"

He stayed silent staring at the other dumbfounded. Then leaning back and staring up. A hollow feeling filled his chest.

Two months….Two fucking months.

He glanced back at Ink, who looked concerned.

"I really…didn't expect it to be that long."

Yeah. He suppose it was. He gave his boyfriend a careful once over, before deciding to drop it for now. Besides he didn't want Ink to be sad. He rather have that happy expression back.

Ink gave a shrug but something felt off about it

"Not like you could help it? You are back now. that's the important part..isn't it."

Ink gave him a smile and he wasn't sure how he felt about it. They have been without contact for longer stretches of time. But that was before they had been a thing.

He also had a nagging feeling that Ink was gonna brush off how much his absence had actually affected him. Brush it off...or maybe he didn't fully understand himself.

To most people, it was clear that Ink had trouble understanding emotions. But the truth is...the emotions he struggled hardest with were his own.

"Ru..?"

Oh, he had never answered.

"Sorry, Kiki…just…" he dragged a hand over his face, frown deepening as he felt his own glitches spark.

"This whole situation just fucking sucks, and I don't think I have fully recovered yet"

Ink hummed sympathetically.

"Is there anything I can do?"

He glanced back to meet his gaze. The shapes in the artist's eyes shifted between red, orange, and yellow colours. Hopeful determination is what he called that combination.

He could hear the plea in there even if it wasn't voiced.

The dread in his chest tightening

"Don't think so Squid, sorry"

"That's okay...I can be patient, I have been in the past"

Ink's face fell very quickly. Eyeshape once again a blue teardrop. Then Ink shook his head and smiled once more.

Again it felt too forced. Like he was picking the colours to focus on, instead of letting them flow naturally

Something ached in his chest and it was not his glitches causing it. He had been so proud of what he and Ink had managed to achieve. How far they had come. He doesn’t know how much time has passed since he first met the Inkblot and their first semi-friendly conversations. Decades at least, if not centuries. For a long time, both of their sense of time was out of wack. Having mortal friends did stabilize that, but he knew it wouldn’t last forever.

But that didn’t matter. He was gonna cherish these bonds all the same. But Ink was special, it wasn’t someone he ever had to say goodbye to. That eased some awkwardness. But over time he had come to genuinely like hanging out with ink.

Espeasily when it got through the artist's memory that he didn’t like to be touched.

And then…friendship shifted. When, and how….was a little fuzzy. It kinda feels that his obsession with needing to know what Ink was doing so he could stop and destroy him, had just..shifted. He still would like to know what the squid was up to all the time. But now, it was just genuine curiosity. He didn’t mind listening to the artist ramble, on and on and on. When he was working on a new project.

And then came the touches. Most, in the beginning, had been accidental. That Ink now remembered that he didn’t like it….doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. They still fought a lot over the different AU’s. And in fights as intense as theirs could be, some touching wasn’t avoidable.

Also, Ink was just a fucking clutz. Tripping over anything and everything. But he found, that even with the pain…he didn’t mind.

Then one day, after the two of them had pulled a prank on Nightmare. Ink had held out his hand for a high-five…

and he just..he just did it.

It had given him glitches…but. Damm had their grins had been near face-splitting.

He stared at Ink whose eyes were flickering between all the souls strew above them. He could just…lean over and kiss him if he wanted. He could, but he felt a sharp pain run through his spine. He wasn’t an idiot, doing so would hurt right now.

And from there…well more touches, confessions, and now they were here. Dating for what?!…three years…? Longer?

Fuck they had been able to kiss, which was something he never thought he could have. Let alone enjoy.

Ink had probably missed him…he closed his eyes. No definitely, would he have found Ink's scarf here, if he didn’t? He wanted to do something. Maybe a bit of contact…just feel like he was back himself.

Even before today, it wasn’t like his glitches stopped as he kissed Ink. The other once described it as, splatterings of hot oil. To him that seemed like an extremely bad time. Ink claimed he enjoyed it.

He still isn’t sure how he felt about that particular statement.

“Hey Inky…?” he mumbled,

He couldn’t help the fond grin himself. It was fucking adoring how much Ink tried for his sake, how much even the littlest thing still excited him so much.

“Yeah?” he felt the weight of the bean back shift as the other got up slightly.

He stayed still a moment longer. Then held out his hand. He heard Ink gasp. And he looked from the corner of his eye. Eye shapes flickered through many shapes, as it seemed he was visibly restraining himself not to wiggle happily in place.

Suddenly a hand flew to inks mouth and he ducked his head. And he flinched backward, knowing the signs of overexcitement all too well at this point.

Ink waved him off, but he already noticed the slight greyish filter the colours in his eyes had gotten. He knew pushing it wouldn’t change a thing, so he sat back up, facing Ink who was smiling once more.

Ink stayed still a couple of seconds, then it sounded like he swallowed, and slowly raised his head with a sheepish grin.

He let out a sigh, and if it was any other day, he would have bonked the idiot on the head for swallowing his ink like that.

Instead, he just said irritably

“Don’t swallow you, idiot, you know how bad that is for you”

But this time, it didn’t feel too bright or too forced. Ink held out his hand.

“Whenever you are ready Ruru” A yellow and pink flush had once again made himself known on the other's face.

He nodded, shifting a final time. And reaching out as well. He stopped just before, he felt a heat...and a pushing sensation…like a magnet being forced away.

He frowned and wondered if Ink could feel it too. But he would push through, Taking another deep breath and interlocking their hands

The ringing in his ears stopped next. Only to be replaced by the frantic cries of his boyfriend

Fuck it hurt, it hurt real bad, it felt like his hand was on fire. The ringing in his ears got louder and louder. And he wasn’t able to see anything. Glitches were springing forth from his burning hand, running up his arm, his shoulders, everywhere.

He was sure he heard a scream but he couldn’t make it out over the beeps and dials from his incoming crash, until suddenly the pain in his hand went away.

“Error…fuck Error I am so sorry…what do I do..aah there are no notes on here?!..”

“Ye-es? What…what do you need?”

Shit yes, he was wearing Inks scarf still…not there would be anything useful..but still. He tried another couple of breaths

“iNkY?!” he managed to get out.

With a few more calming breaths his vision came back, but all the calm he had built up before had gone, his body was more agitated than ever.

Ink was close by, not touching. No, he had let go some time ago, but he could still feel his presence, and his voice was too loud.

Speaking hurt, even as the glitches were coming down, the edges of his vision slowly coming back, as he tried to indicate, slow down…and give me space.

It took a couple of tries, but then he felt Ink get up, and the pressure around him lessened, and with it, he let out a relieved sigh

He looked up to find Ink a few paces away from the beanbag. Rubbing at the hand that he had held, and when Ink noticed him looking, quickly hid the hand behind his back, and that was an even bigger tell

“Fuck…”

He fell back into the beanbag. Fuck that had hurt, and worse was, not only him but it had hurt Ink as well

“Error?”

He blinked hard, he wasn’t gonna fucking cry dammit. It was fine. He was just tired, he just needed to recover.

“Error?”

He just, needed a good long rest, maybe a calming bath, and they could go back to holding hands, and he wouldn't have to worry about anything.

“...Ru?”

He blinked again and tilted his head, Ink was closer and his Eyes downcast,

“Do…? Do you need some time alone?”

Need?

Probably,

Want?

Fuck no!

Dangling them in front of the artist, who was still not looking at him. He let the strings sway forward, brushing against the top of Ink's skull. Who gasped and looked up. He started at the strings for a few seconds, before he recognized the old gesture, and wrapped the other end of his strings around his own hand.

He wasn’t gonna send Ink away, not like this. But he didn’t know what to say. What to do, he wanted Ink close.

He had missed Ink, in how far being dead made him able to miss stuff.

He summoned some strings from his eyes, wound them around his fingers, and let the other end come up to the Antivoids ‘ceiling’, and back down.

Then the same happened in return. They managed before they could ever touch after all.

It wasn’t like hand holding, nothing his strings did compared to actual touch, but it was his magic, and he knew when something was in them. And like this…well,

He curled his fingers, pulling the strings tight, and then slacked them.

“No Inky…I don’t want you to leave…and sorry”

He didn’t look at the artist, but he felt another tug against the strings. And he blinked against more tears wanting to spring up.

“It’s okay…” Ink murmured, it sounded a bit hollow, but inks voice wasn’t always able to portray his emotions. He could check..but…that didn’t feel fair. Ink was trying to be reassuring, that was good enough for him.

He tugged at their locked hands again, silently encouraging Ink to sit back down. The artist shuffled closer but didn’t really do anything. Error found himself frustrated at all this, why the fuck did this happen to them. He wanted to think of something else, anything else than what was happening between them now.

“Is there any reason you took my scarf Squid”

“Huh…what?”

He slowly sat back up, looking at Ink, who had one eyelight changed to a question mark.

“My scarf…why did you take it?”

He leaned forward and felt a smirk play on his lips, it wasn’t often Ink got flustered. Not much would trigger the paints that made embarrassment, so he would soak up this treat of Ink flushed on all his pretty colours.

Inks head tipped side to side. And he was beginning to think that the idiot might have just forgotten. Until Inks's face broke in a rainbow flush.

Oh…now isn’t that interesting

“Just..it’s just…please don’t be mad...I hadn’t intended to..” Ink tugged at the scarf to hide his face, like he would his own, Only to realize he was still wearing a blue scarf, and flushing even brighter.

“Then what did you do intent.?” He wasn’t mad… surprising even himself. He had found it annoying that he hadn’t been able to find it…but mad? It hadn’t even come to him

Ink murmured something Into the scarf. In response he tugged at the strings, pulling the artist's connected hand away from where ink pressed it against his blushing face. His soul raced at seeing the flush.

“What was that, Squid”

Ink didn’t meet his eyes, but they had turned a deep blue and purple. And he felt the grin on his own face drop, those..were not happy colours.

“I didn’t wanna forget you..” Ink's murmur was much clearer, and he sat there, mouth open in slight shock as he stared at Ink.

Ink squirmed a bit, one hand coming up to his face to wipe at his cheeks, and saw it left a little swear of blue ink left behind.

“Kiki…”

He…Fuck....

Of course, Ink had been scared of forgetting him! Ink was worried about that fact with him around.

Two months with no contact. Yeah..yeah of course Ink was terrified of forgetting more every day.

Ink twisted the end of the scarf he was holding.

“I just…I had been coming here, just…just to be sure I wouldn’t forget you…”

He realized two things in that instance...

First Ink hated the antivoid, as much as the squid loved visiting to annoy him. He would not stay here willingly if it was empty. Ink could never describe why he hated it, only once staying it was ‘too white'.

So to come here, ALONE, despite that fear…he felt his soul swell up.

“Just…being here…with your stuff…like...It’s still here, so it meant you must come back right? And this is where you always showed up, so I thought. Hey, might be nice to have someone here for once. “

The second thing was something like… recognition. Being dead didn’t make him…unaware. A weird side effect of being immortal he guessed. Even tho he wasn’t here…or...anywhere. He could tell people were in his home. Not that he could do anything about it.

And yeah. He could remember feeling Ink visiting often… frighteningly often.

Often enough that he could feel the presence of Blue or Dream, however briefly. Probably getting Ink to go somewhere else. Only for Ink to return.

He doesn’t know how he would have reacted had he seen Ink here…He had been looking for him. But had Ink seen him in his vulnerable naked state, he wasn’t sure what he had done. Yell at him most likely.

“And just…this week wasn’t great.”

He frowned, by Ink standards that meant, it was probably really shitty.

“And just…I needed….I wanted.” Ink buried his face a bit more into the scarf.

But he couldn’t, not physically. But he was gonna try with words. If ink came here, again and again Despite this place freaking him out. That he could speak some goddam words to make him feel better.

He felt lost, he hadn’t seen Inky like this in a while. Last time was...what?. Their first kiss. When Ink had freaked out about his ink puking. But now…fuck what could he do. He couldn’t go up and hug Ink. He wanted to. He wanted to so fucking badly.

He wanted to be able to comfort him dammit.

“Thank you Inky” Ink looked up surprised, eyes utterly lost.

“For not forgetting me…I mean….or us for that matter” Ink's eyesight stuttered, and he looked completely taken aback

“Oh” something like realisation filled his eyes

“I…i didn’t forget…i…haha..I didn’t realize. I had been so worried about not….that…”

He gave a soft chuckle. Leave it to his idiot to forget that he was remembering. Wasn’t that just so wonderfully Ink?

“Yeah..ink you didn’t,”

Ink started smiling again, but it was different from the previous ones. It was the most similar to one he got from Ink after a kiss, and the thought made a blush on his own face rise and he broke eye contact. And he heard Ink let out a giggle

Ink laughed a bit louder “ Yes, sir”

Infuriating, handsome squid.

“Also…just to be clear, I don't mind you wearing my clothes,, but now that I am back, ask first! you got that, idiot?!”

He felt the flush on his face growing darker. Glancing back to see that Ink had done a small salute.

“One more thing..”

“Mnn yes?”

“You look good in blue”

Ink’s whole face coloured pink, he sputtered a few times, before a hand came to his mouth. And he wasn’t gonna let ink poison himself by recycling his paints a second time.

“Fuck it, INK, don’t swallow again!” He yelled at his boyfriend,

Who doubled over and at ejected a large puddle of Ink from the depths of his stomach. He gave a glare at the new stain on his pristine floor. But also let out a sigh of relief,

He gave a small tug at their still-connected hands

“Was that all Kiki?” Ink held up a hand, indicating for him to wait a moment, and made some heaving sounds. And spit out a last glob of paint,

“Uhh ink?” Ink let out a sigh of relief

“Gross..” Both said at the same time.

Ink laughed, and he looked up. Eyes no longer held that weird grey sheen and were slightly duller than they were before.

An exclamation point appeared in one of Inks's eyes, and he quickly looked down checking his scarf.

“Good, managed to keep it clean” And he felt a pang of affection run through him. Why Ink remembered those small little details about him, he'll probably never know.

He felt a slight tug at his hand, as he saw that Ink, had wandered off to grab his big ass brush. Coming back, to clean up the mess he made with a little hum. Something inside him settled. Looking at ink like this. Felt normal. Coming home to something he had lost.

He gave the strings a little tug and saw Inks's smile widen. Eyes shuffling peacefully through its many colours, But once he saw a red square appear in one of Ink's eyes, he suddenly remembered something.

“Why the hell, were you angrily chasing Dust anyway?” Ink looked up from what he was doing, before returning to brushing away the ink with a frown.

“Revenge” It was said, coldly. Not jokingly, and it made his arms drop from where he had crossed them. Giving the artist what could only be described as a look. But Ink didn’t look back up. In fact, it seemed his mood had soured again.

“For what?” Ink was quick to forget stuff, and often blamed himself for causing any arguments, but something felt off about this

“He tried to damage your scarf” Ink’s tone was flat, eyelights shifting to white dots. Ink wasn’t that low on paints, not as far as he could tell. He should be able to last another four hours, based on the brightness before.

No ink was deliberately trying to not feel. What the fuck is going on?

“That all?” he asked skeptically, and Ink, still looking down, gave a nod

“I told him to be careful, how would he feel if I went after his precious scarf.” He saw Ink's hands tighten around broomies handle,

“Lying doesn’t suit you Ink” The artist flinched, and a brief red-purple hue came through his eyes.

He went through his mind when he saw that combination before, coming up empty. But he could guess.

“He kept making comments on how it wasn’t the same, that I didn’t know what it was like, something like that.”

Inks eyes turned into crosshairs again, as he snarled

“Cause the soulless doesn’t feel anything, does he? You can take what he loves, cause he won’t care in the end. Not like he remembers. Not like you were dead…that…you were gone...that I wasn’t trying to remember you.”

Inks eyes shifted, dark blue and cyan filled the different shapes, that were all turned upside down.

He saw tears gather in Inks's eyes, and he took a step closer. Remembering with a start that he couldn’t touch him, as Ink’s angrily rambling, turned into heaving with barely contained sobs.

He hadn’t said anything, didn’t know what to say. Every word Ink spoke was a like a knife wound to the chest. Like it drove right to his soul. And he knew from experience what that kind of pain felt like.

“That I hadn’t seen you get blasted up. No, I am soulless so that means I don’t care. I mean…he is right…I can’t care…I can’t love…but it still hurts. And you were gone. And I just wanted you back, 'cause I missed..you. Cause I lo- “Ink cut himself off.

Dropping broomie, hands digging into his eyesockets like he was trying to stop the crying.

Chest heaving with unshed tears. He couldn’t see Ink's eyes anymore, but he saw hints of blue and purple streaks form against the other's cheeks.

He gave a desperate little tug at the strings still holding their hands together. Hoping for something, anything. Cause what could he say, nothing that would reassure him. Inks self-hatred for his lack of soul rang deep. It was something that he tried to teach the fucking squid to stop.

Ink wasn’t emotionless, nor careless. Just different, he had a lot more trouble with feelings. Big fucking whoop. Like all of them were so perfectly balanced. They were just as messed up as if no more so.

“Kiki”

Ink's head shot up, turning his head towards him but not fully facing him.

“But you got bigger worries than me, so don’t worry about it okay? I am sure you need to focus on the balance for a bit, I tried my best to keep it as even as I could.”

Ink was smiling again, there was yellow and orange in his eyes. Like if he could focus on those colours. He could eventually feel them.

But he knew ink, that was not how it worked, and he wasn’t gonna let this go.

“Fuck the Balance for now ink, My LOVER’S feelings will always come first”

“Your feelings matter Ink. How many times do I gotta tell you that before you get that tidbit in that thick skull, do I need to write it down here?!.” He shook inks scarf still around his own neck.

The yellow flickered out, replaced by a shocked purple and pink. The Smile fell as Ink's eyes met his.

He took another step forward, slipper stepping into the last remaining bit of inky puddle, but he could care less

Inks eyes snapped to it like he just noticed it. Or more likely had forgotten he was wearing it again.

“Of course, you care that I was dead, I ain't fucking surprised Inky. “

He was stepping closer and closer to Ink. He felt that same pushing energy trying to keep him away. His glitches agitating

“B-but…”

He was just. So fucking angry. Not at Ink.

No at everything else. Everyone else that made Ink feel like he was just a puppet, instead of a damm monster like everyone else.

“No Buts!” he heaved. “I say it as many times as you fucking need to hear it, I fucking Love you, you stupid squid. That is your lack of soul included. I know who you are, And I don’t choose fucking lightly. So don’t put yourself down, and don’t fucking believe those lies. You hear me?”

“Good, you stupid inkblot” Ink let out a stuttering laugh, before looking up. He was close enough that he was towering over him.

Ink nodded, face flooded back with a pink colour

“You had a RIGHT to be angry. You had a RIGHT to be upset. So what, you didn’t feel it 24/7, no one would, and anyone that tells you is a liar. You hear me?” Ink nodded again.

After a few heaving breaths, and shifting of the eyelights. Ink's eyes stayed a Star and little soul. And with a slow smile, as he was close enough to see the many different hue's trying to mix in the other's eyes. Ink said softly.

“Thanks for loving me Glitchy, I love you too”

His own face which was flushed with anger before was now flushed for an entirely different reason. He could count on one hand how often he heard those words from Ink.

He leaned down and kissed Ink.

And…fuck now...

He didn’t think, he really should have. But hearing those words, he just had to.

It was sadly a decision he immediately regretted, Cause his body erupted in so much pain. It was like he was thrown in the middle of his worst crash in an instant, and then just ramped up. He couldn’t feel anything, besides the burning pain scorching through him. Could feel his body being split apart by the glitches, and reassembled itself again.

He didn’t know if he moved if he stumbled back, it still felt like people were touching all over him. He struggled against the feeling trying to get it to stop before darkness overtook it all.

There was noise, so much fucking noise. Not sure if he himself or if it was Ink that was making it.

Oh fuck no Ink,

Get away from Ink,

Don’t hurt Ink

Ink.

When he woke up, he didn’t know how much time had passed. Only that he was still tired. His throat was hurting worse than before. He somehow was more sore, and he couldn’t open his eyes.

Fuck that was bad, he hadn’t glitched out like that. In a long, long time. And all that because he wanted to kiss….

Fuck Ink. Where the fuck was he?.

He tried to get up, even though his body protested.

Fuck! Ink would feel so guilty everything had just reassured, probably just thrown out the window. Would Ink even still want him around? Would ink -

“Lie down, please”

“Error?” he stopped in his tracks turning his face to where he heard to voice coming from, it sounded distorted, but also familiar

“Ink?”

There was a long silence, where he tried to get up once again, just calling out for his boyfriend. Fuck what if he hurt him, what if..?

He tried again, no, he would not go without knowing where Ink was, feeling tears stain his already burning face

“No I have to get to Ink!” he yelled out, confused

“Ruru…I am here…it’s me..” The voice still sounded wrong, distorted. And garbled, but also familiar. His breath hitched, sitting still and turning back towards the voice gain

“Ink..?”

“Yeah, it is me Ruru, just…lie back down okay…could you..for me?”

Even if he didn’t want to, his arms gave out beneath him and he fell back.

More silence. “Yes..of yes of course I won’t, I’ll stay right here okay? Right here. Just rest Ru…please…take a rest”

“Error!” He reached a hand out towards the voice.

“Inky?...please don’t leave. “

He tried to protest, but within the next second, he was out again.

“I’m sorry…didn’t mean to…”

“I know Ru…just rest now….we talk later…I promise”

He also didn’t know, how much time had passed after his second round of unconsciousness. Felt longer than the first. His body was still in a lot of pain, but at least somewhat bearable. He opened his eyes to the harsh light of the Antivoid.

Ink was sitting a few feet away from him, making tiny figures in a puddle of ink. He watched Ink moving them around. He wasn’t sure, his vision was slipping in and out of focus. But it might be a playground or a skatepark. The little figures were jumping all over the little buildings at least.

He tried to focus on Ink, and the first thing he noticed was that inks hands were shaking. Gazing up at Ink's eyes, which were watching his own creation with purple eyelights, occasionally it would switch to blue, and then back again.

Ink was scared…how long had he been here?

It was as if Ink could feel that he was looking, cause he froze for a second. When their gazes met, he saw the purple shift to green and yellow. And before he knew it, Ink was kneeling next to where he lay on the floor.

Ink seemed to understand tho, as he opened a inky portal, and stuck his hand in. pulling out a water bottle. Ink opened it, he wondered if he stole it.

“Hey, Ru…”

“Ki..” he grimaced, his voice feeling too scratchy, saying even that much hurt.

“Open up, I don’t see another way to do this without touching, and I don’t think you can move just yet…”

He gave the lightest nod he could. And opened his mouth a little, Ink hovered the bottle as far above his face as he could without aggravating any glitches, and carefully tried to feed him the water.

It didn’t go perfectly, it splashed on his face, and his clothes… Ink's scarf that he realized he was still wearing. But he managed to get a few gulps of water down.

Ink set the water aside.

“Better?” and he gave a nod.

There was a silence between them. As the reality of what had happened settled over him.

Part of him didn’t want to cry. But his body was exhausted, and his soul longed for a comfort that it hadn’t had for a while, and probably wouldn’t be able to experience again for a long time either. He could feel them slide down his cheeks, down to his vertebrate...

He had crashed kissing Ink. Not just crashed, but glitched out harder, and more painful than anything in a long while.

Whatever process they had made, it had fallen back to zero, no even further than that. He had felt it again, that pulsing force to keep ink away when the bottle was above his face...

He heard a sniff and looked to see Ink with tears in his eyes as well

Ink choked on a laugh, not really sounding genuine. And he laid down, far enough away that they didn’t touch. There on the icy floor of the Antivoid, the web of souls, he could just see from the corner of his eye.

“Look at us idiots” he mumbled

He let out a hum of agreement, not sure his throat could do more.

Ink hadn’t moved him from where he crashed. As it was probably unsafe to do so.

He isn’t sure how his body would have reacted if ink touched him even if he was out cold.

“What now?” Ink asked, voice wavering and unsure

He met Inks's gaze and spoke raspily

“We keep fighting…like we’ve always done”.

This time, Ink's laugh was genuine.