#sighs deeply and thinks about alphys

[silasbug]

alphys WIP

[haveyouseenthisskeleton]

relationship: platonic

How do Undertale characters react if their friend (inadvertently) holds their hand like a little kid? either to cross the street or just to guide them

(context? the friend has a little brother so he does it automatically without knowing)

Undertale Sans - He stares at his hand, mind blank. Uh. You're... You're dragging him around and he's just following. He's not too sure about this though. Sans is not very comfortable with a lot of physical touch, but he doesn't want to be mean either so he just... Follows you. He's just staring at his hand hoping you will get the message eventually that you can let go. Please?

Undertale Papyrus - Oh, he doesn't mind. Papyrus loves touching people anyway and he holds everyone hands when he's excited. He doesn't really react when you just randomly hold his hand because that's just something he does so it's fine. At best, he's flattered you're starting to imitate him. Such a good role model.

Undertale Toriel - She really doesn't mind either and she tends to do it anyway whenever someone crosses the road, either you, Frisk, Undyne or even Asgore once. Road is dangerous. She is older and she already experienced the road before all of you youngers, let her lead the way. She likes holding hands in general, it helps her to be less nervous in public.

Undertale Asgore - He has this small little smile. He thinks it's funny you're instinctively clinging to him to cross the road. That's change from humans being scared of him. He is glad he's making you feel a little safer in his company. Not every humans are this trustworthy around him. He likes it.

Undertale Undyne - The first times, she immediately takes her hand away, but the more time passes, the more she just accepts her fate, simply rolling her eyes or sighs deeply at you. You're taming her. You know you are.

Undertale Alphys - It's almost an instinct. Alphys is so nervous she's doing it too. Now you took the habit to immediately hold each other hands to comfort yourself, even if you're in group and there's like people between you. You're road crossing support buddies lol.

Undertale Frisk - Years of Toriel's training made them not even realise you're holding their hands. They're a natural at this. Frisk does it with everyone anyway. Toriel was so paranoid about their safety younger (it doesn't help Frisk sometimes just disappeared because they felt like so), she kinda traumatised everyone the day she decided to lecture all his friends for two hours about how to watch after a kid and Frisk found themselves suddenly holding everyone's hands. So yeah, they don't mind.

Undertale Chara - They refuse to move as long as you're holding their hand, even if you're dragging them. They don't like that. Please let go. There's a low chance they might hiss if it's happening too often.

Undertale Mettaton - You did it only once. Mettaton kinda forgot you were here and suddenly kicked you in the face to pose dramatically for no reason, knocking you out. Since this day, you're keeping a safe distance with the robot.

Undertale Gaster - It scares him everytime since not a lot of people dare to touch him and he accidentally disappear back into the void instinctively, leaving you all alone in the middle of the street. Woops.

Undertale Grillby - He got surprised the first few times, but now, he's waiting for you before crossing a road, hand open for you to take. He doesn't mind and he likes to help, so here you go.

Undertale Muffet - You're staring at her four hands, not able to choose which one you should hold. Muffet is staring at you, wondering what the hell you're doing, just going for a hand, then retracting and chosing another one. "Dearie, please choose one or I will eat you." You give her a shocked look, gasps, and runs to take Grillby's hand instead. Now she's just mad AND jealous.

Undertale Burgerpants - He won't let you drag him anywhere. When he is off work is like his only moment of liberty of the week, he's not going to obey anyone. He scratches your hand, gives you a dark stare and turns away, walking straight into a wall and knocking himself out. You barely hold your laugh. Please someone ends him.

Undertale Flowey - He sighs. You sometimes forget you're tall and that he is only a small flower. He's hanging a few inches above ground by his wine, screeching angrily and struggling, but you're not listening to him and it's not like he can force you in this humiliating position. He's so mad.

Undertale Gerson - Actually, it's better as Gerson is easily distracted with pretty things and kinda forgets he's following people sometimes, so someone dragging him around is kinda useful. Well, be careful though, the old turtle has enough force to drag you as well and he's very stubborn, so have fun with that.

[sir-achimus-prime]

Expect the unexpected !!!!

Summary of the story : Y/n and Sans experiment and don't really realize the consequences of their actions after a particularly emotional and difficult event. And well, dear reader , they are made aware in quite possibly the worst way.

Note : Okay , so I was toying around with Undertale Monster's and how they have baby and came up with this. Because it's been stuck in my head, and i'm supposed to be learning another language 🙃 i will also be using Ahhh ! Real Monster baby term Bonsty to reference babies because i'm not 100% sure undertale does . Please correct me know if not, and i'll change it 😁😊

Chapter 1 : Point A ?

So Monsters to my knowledge are made through a bond/strong connection many refer to as 'Love'.

(Yeah , sounds like shit. But Sans and Papyrus lectured us the last-time we voiced our opinions so 'rudely')

So it would surprise you how exactly you found yourself standing beside your best friend at Undyne and Alphy's wedding , who was eating nearly everything on site with hot sauce. He was absolutely disgusted by the idea of eating anything with Ketchup and refused a shot of fire whiskey mixed into either condiment.

As a human , this behavior drew your attention as she blushed deeply wondering what exactly had possessed your friend as you rudely picked him up and dragged him away to question him further , when the flaming hot catdogs began grossing him out.

So ever the Bestest Friend that you are , you dragged him away to your actual house that you were lending to your newly-wed friends for a honey-moon. Your farm was the actual reception and venue , so it was like a 10 minute walk. Once in the safety of your room , you fixed him with a questioning look.

"Heya bubs , ya feelin' fine ?" His eye lights were fuzzy, and knowing him for nearly 8 years. Before a goopy mess of undigested magical food splattered on the floor and her dress .A frown settled on your face before sitting on your bed that you'd told your friends was off-limits as your friend complied "You emotional for Alphy's and Undyne or ya nervous ? You're not still worried about your nightmares are ya ?" Sans buried his face into his suit sleeves as he laid on his back.

"I don't know !! Ketchup's making me sick, and …..Foods not fooding !! And my soul feels weird and ……" he sighed miserably with a frown."Hey , i know ya said it's not possible. But could we …have …ya ….know?" She asked, lying back onto her bed as she felt an indignant glare."No! Biologically-Y/n!!! Be serious !!" She frowned."Hey ! I am ! And I wasn't talking about me !! Is it possible you are ? I don't know lot about monsters , but ya were-" she yelped at the hand firmly against her mouth "Yes-I don't think it's possible for your soul too , and ya have barely any magic Firstly !! And 2nd humans aren't capable of that , you guys are too weak. " she opened her mouth and shut it again as she glumly nodded.

She glanced at her roof. "Whelp, i don't know, Princess. Sounds like ya need to find your Baby Daddy. 'Cuz that sounds strangely what the buns and Dogaressa described before baby monsters spawned. But , that could just be my human dumbness, " she huffed, getting up. Her thouggts drifting and willing them not to she decided to distract and deflect as she recognized that look on his face.

"You should probably take a break. I'll keep Paps and the others distracted while ya rest some…call me if ya need me , yeah ?" She said changing clothes to a pair of jeans and a teal blouse/dress-shirt before yelping when Sans sighed hugged her from behind , his mental protuberance digging into her shoulder blade "I wasn't trying to be mean" she pursed her lips "Not mean. Just snappy , but hey, your freakin' out, and that's fine." She said as her heart squeezed in her chest."You don't owe me anything …It's not like we're exclusive or official…..just an experiment , right ?" She smiled sheepishly.

"I mean you do like the bone-zone , ain't like it's just for me or sumthin' " she said before shaking her emotion off as Sans frowned, shifting to turn her around"Anyways , i'll leave ya too !! !" She smiled as she twisted outta his hold and ducked out of the room hearing the music kick up.

♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♠︎♤♤♤♤♤♤♠︎♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤

Later

Y/n found it strange that Toriel was guiding her to her own room. She'd noted she'd disappeared at some point during the party as Undyne danced with Asgore for the Daughter Father dance. And was gone until Papyrus let her settle down for some Cat-Dogs when 'Your Man' by Josh Turner came on and her sister threatened bodily harm if her boyfriend wasn't returned.

She had been munching happily on her hot-sauce and ketchup covered Hot-dog and was currently drooling over her Hot Cat as Toriel had stolen it after she'd reassured her Sans had been fine the last-time she'd checked on him. Which he had been , it wasn't her fault her best-friend was stubborn.

Toriel sighed and stole her Hot Cat , and if she was in a normal non-hungry/lazy mood , she'd have gotten up and made another or simply asked politely for it back. She did the latter, and Toriel had walked away with her beloved Hot Cat as she heard it calling her name.

She hummed as she guided to her room as Toriel ensured that they were alone as she regarded Sans. Who looked weary and worse for the wear , as she had a feeling of dread.

"You okay , Bone-boy ? Seems like ya took Bone-Tired too seriously" she smiled with a teasing lit. Toriel frowned and Sans smiled slightly "hehe , yeah….whatcha doin' tori ?" She glanced upnat Toriel before her….brain connected it all together "Oh ? You found your BD ? Whatcha need ? Want me to beat'em up ? I won't do much but , i can try !" She smiled reassuringly "Oh Tori can i have my Hot Cat ? I made the best concoction known to man and monster kind !!" She drooled as Toriel sighed nodding , she took the plate happily before Sans snatched her Hot-Cat as she gasped in surprise and betrayal before Sans hummed happily.

She sighed allowing her friend to peacefully enjoy her masterpiece and mourn the loss of a beautifully delicious morsel.

She turned to Toriel to allow her friend to eat as Toriel gave her a quizzical look "So Y/n ? What do you know about monster reproduction ?" She paused at that "Ahh well , just what Paps , Sans , Alphy's and ya told me. Babies are made of love and stuff " she said nonchalantly as Toriel cringed "Yes. But you still don't believe it? I'd have thought after sometime…" she frowned at Toriel "Uhhh, i sorta do but , it's ….errr…." She paused looking for words .

"It's foreign to me as a concept. Human babies don't really need that , as long as a male cums. Baby is made , so …it's kinda an older outdated concept" Toriel hummed "But , do you …ermm…Are you intimate with just anyone ?" She shook her head "Not really my cup of tea , why ?" Toriel smiled "So you atleast have a standard of ..a connection with intimate partners ?" She said with a pink blush on her cheeks as she quirked a brow "i-I…..yeah" she said her own cheeks redding "Ummm, but why does my intimate life have with relevance here" she questioned as Toriel sighed.

"Sans is in denial , he is fine but being stubborn. But what he needs to tell you is that he-" Toriel was rudely interrupted and given a very rude look by Sans "That i am fine !" He huffed as you shot him a concerned look as Toriel and Him maintained a glaring contest and wordless arguement before shrugging "Okie dokie , kinda overboard just to tell me that ,bubs. But , ummm, ya want another hotdog or Hot cat ? Or are ya gonna chill in here ? Just stay outta my drawers , yeah ?" She teased with a chuckle before Sans snapped out of it and nodded "No , i'm going to go see what Paps is up too" he said going and going to grab Toriel's hand as they short-cutted away.

She sighed deeply as her heart plummeted to the ground again painfully. As she stared absently out the window in deep thought in regards to her friend. Wondering what was going on and if it was what she believed it to be …how she'd continue with their relationship….how she'd deal with the sudden absence of her friend if Toriel and him had began a new life as she sighed knowing the slippery slope she was nearing before brushing it off.

"It is what it is , y/n ! You can't change anything or anyone" she murmured to herself before joining the party again to help clean up before doing some rounds on her farm to make-sure they were clean and content.

Later on….

Undyne and her had planned a particularly romantic star-watch at the gazebo in her private garden as she waved her friend off with a smile. Before She felt Sans short-cut beside her as she leaned against the large oak tree whilst sitting and balancing on her fence.

She ignored Sans and figured she'd play dumb as she stared up at the stars curiously. "Man, must be nice…"she sighed as Sans snorted, "To visit a garden ?" She frowned "N-Well…. yeah…I meant more the thought of having someone like that …someone that plans stuff for ya and knows ya that well. Undyne planned the star-gazing and stuff, " she sighed."It's kinda like a fairytale, ya know ? Loving someone so much … that ya want to do stuff like that and want the whole world to know , ya know ?" She smiled "My parents always fought or my mother couldn't leave things be , and …I really never experienced something like that or saw it growing up" she said wiping her teary eyes "What about you ?" Sans was silent and gone …as she sighed deeply, fighting the sting of hurt that flashed through her . It felt like her heart and lungs were being squeezed by her ribs as she sighed, deciding to call it a night.

[thelibrarbian]

Rating: T

Chapter word count: 2384

Read on Ao3

or below:

---

Movement on the upper floor made Papyrus look up, just in time to see the door to Sans' room open and his brother step out. Sans shuffled up to the banister and leaned against it, looking down into the living room. When his gaze landed on the two skeletons on the couch, his eyebrows shot up, but all he said on the matter was a small "huh".

"did he wake up? thought i heard you guys talking."

"He did - well, somewhat." Papyrus glanced down at Fell, who appeared to be deeply asleep once again. It was less alarming now he knew that Fell wasn't Falling Down, but it was a strange sight nevertheless. He didn't even twitch in response to the talking right next to him, and Papyrus got the distinct impression that he wouldn't stir even if somebody broke down the door and started supplexing the couch. He made sure to keep his voice low anyway. "But I think he will be alright." Eventually. "For now, I suppose he has earned his rest."

Sans gave a vague hum of agreement, leaning heavily against the railing.

Papyrus looked his brother up and down, frowning slightly. "Sans… I know this is a rare thing for me to encourage, but I think you, too, should try to sleep a little. It's still the middle of the night, and while I may not need to nap for such an excessive amount of time, I do believe you're used to your eight hours of snoozing."

Sans chuckled and shook his head before pushing himself back from the banister.  "eh, it's fine." He began to shuffle down the stairs. "you keep telling me i should find hobbies other than napping, right?"

Papyrus raised an eyebrow. "That may be true, and far be it from me to curb your enthusiasm! But maybe we should postpone these plans to a time when you don't look like you're going to pass out standing up?" His quota for passed out skeletons this night was already filled.

"you mean i look bone tired?" Sans winked.

Papyrus let out a huff. "Do not attempt to distract me with your perpetual punning! That one was low even by your standards." He sighed. "But I suppose I can't be too hard on you today. How is Red?"

"still sleeping." Sans reached the bottom of the stairs and leaned against the banister. "and snoring like a chainsaw, that's why my napping's on hold."

Instead of pointing out that Sans usually had no trouble falling asleep even in the noisiest environments, Papyrus waved his brother over. He couldn't exactly give him a hug with Fell on his lap, so he settled for the closest alternative, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze.

Sans raised an eyebrow. "you okay, bro? i mean, i'm not complaining about unprompted cuddles, but…"

Papyrus straightened himself. "Of course! I, the Great Papyrus, master of first aid and healing magic, am perfectly fine!"

Sans didn't look entirely convinced, which was absurd - after all, what reason did Papyrus have to not be okay? Everything was fine. Or would be fine very soon. No, Papyrus was more concerned about his brother - and he would have asked if he really was alright, but he already knew the question would just be shrugged off with another pun.

Setting that aside, though, there were currently two unconscious skeletons in their house, and even though everything was certainly going to be just fine, their unexpected guests would need something to help them recover both health and magic when they woke up. He shared the thought with his brother. "And as much as I would love to volunteer my culinary expertise, I am a little stuck here at the moment," he added. "So if you don't mind lending a hand again…"

"i gotcha, bro." Sans pat Papyrus' hand that was still on his shoulder. "and by that i mean, i'd get grillby's, but-"

Papyrus sighed. "But it's two in the morning," he finished the sentence for him. Grillby, too, belonged to the majority of monsters that slept at night, and therefore couldn't keep his establishment open around the clock. "Fortunately, because I can not in good conscience subject our guests to anything that comes out of that greasehole."

Sans chuckled faintly. "hey, you did like the milkshakes last time."

"The milkshakes are an exception! And do not distract from the issue at hand, brother! No Grillby's! You will need to make do with what we have. Such as…" Papyrus paused, mentally going through the contents of the fridge. Which was a rather small selection, now that he thought about it. Had he known that they would have visitors tonight, he would have moved his weekly shopping trip forward by a day. "Well, aside from your empty chips bag - which I am only tolerating because it's in your half of the fridge - there should be some spaghetti left over from yesterday…"

"oh. uh…" Sans looked aside, rubbing the back of his neck.

Papyrus was still waiting for the day when his brother would speak his honest opinion on his pasta, but today was not the time to have that conversation. He decided to rescue him. "I see what you are thinking, brother! Reheated pasta is not an appropriate meal for our recovering guests. It will be much better fresh, so we shall hold off on the spaghetti until I return with the groceries tomorrow."

Sans' shoulders visibly sagged in relief. "sounds great, bro."

"In the meantime, I believe we still have tomato soup in the freezer."

"nice." Sans gave an appreciative nod, the corners of his permanent grin rising up a little higher. "leave the tomato stuff to me, i got it."

"Thank you, brother." Papyrus gave Sans' shoulder another squeeze before letting him go.

It took a good minute before a realization struck him. "Sans!!" he whisper-yelled after him. "You are not going to put ketchup into that soup!"

All he heard in response was his brother bustling about in the kitchen.

---

It was hard to miss the exact moment when Red woke up. There was a thump and a muffled curse from the upper floor, then the sound of displaced air from a shortcut right next to the couch as Red appeared there, kicking a tangled blanket off his feet. The tension was practically oozing off of him, his eye lights darting once around the room before settling on his brother.

"is he…"

"He is going to be perfectly alright, yes." Papyrus made sure to inject as much sincerity as he could into the statement while still keeping his voice quiet. "He even woke up a little while ago, and I'm sure he will be on the mend in no time at all."

Red only gave a nod, his eye lights still fixed on his brother. Papyrus couldn't blame him.

"How are you feeling, Red? We were worried when you suddenly passed out - as comfortable as our carpet is, I do not think it was intended-"

"'m fine," Red interrupted him. The hollow tone to his voice, the dim eye lights, and the tense set of his shoulders told a different story, but Papyrus didn't press.

"My brother is making soup for all of us," he said instead. "Unless he has fallen asleep in the kitchen, that is. Which, while hardly surprising, would be rather ill-timed, not to mention a fire hazard…" He craned his neck to try and peer into the kitchen, hoping that Sans wasn't really asleep at the stove…

"nah, i'm soup-er awake over here," a familiar voice from the kitchen reassured him.

Red didn't even react to the pun. Instead, his eyes suddenly locked on the skeleton in Papyrus' lap with increased intensity, and Papyrus followed his gaze down.

Fell's sockets were open again. Maybe it was just Papyrus' imagination, but his eye lights looked a little brighter than before, even if he still didn't seem entirely aware. He wasn't trying to move, but the impression Papyrus got was more of a grouchy monster whose sleep had been disturbed rather than anything he really needed to worry about.

Red cracked a grin that was still looking strained. "heh. lookin' pretty cozy there, boss."

The only response was an unintelligible grumble and what seemed to be a weak attempt at a glare, although Papyrus couldn't tell for sure from his position. However, he didn't miss the way Red's shoulders sagged and his expression turned into something less of a tense grimace.

"Would you like to join us, Red?" Papyrus asked.

Red shook his head. "nah, 'm good. don't think ya two cuddle bugs have left enough space for my bony ass, anyway."

The pillow rustled as Fell lifted his head just slightly to look at his brother, and whatever Red saw on his face, it apparently made him change his mind. With a cautiousness Papyrus had never seen him use before, he shuffled over and perched on the very edge of the couch next to Fell's feet, settling a hand on an uninjured part of his leg. "there. happy?" he asked, the gruff tone to his voice not quite matching the care with which he was moving.

Fell gave a vaguely affirmative grunt and snuggled back into the pillows on Papyrus' lap, letting out a soft huff as his body relaxed again.

Red was watching his brother with a rare soft expression on his face that Papyrus had the strong feeling he wasn't supposed to see. He quickly looked away, occupying himself with rearranging the blankets.

There was a brief moment of silence before Red spoke up again. "y'know, i'd say sorry for dumping this on yer doorstep, but…"

Papyrus quickly shook his head. "Oh no, we're very happy to have you as our guests! I mean, I do wish we had you as our guests under different circumstances, but given the situation, I am very, very glad you came here!"

Red shrugged, leaning back against the arm of the couch. His hand remained on his brother's leg. "wasn't like we had much choice." His expression darkened slightly. "'t was either you guys or the doc, and who knows what she woulda…" He trailed off.

Before Papyrus could ask what the issue with their world's version of Alphys was, there was a familiar rush of displaced air as Sans appeared next to the couch, balancing a tray of soup bowls in his hands. "mornin', sleepybones," he greeted the latest arrival on the couch.

Red grumbled good-naturedly, grabbing a bowl before slumping back into his end of the couch, somehow without jostling Fell's legs in the slightest.

Sans unceremoniously plopped down on the ground with his own bowl after handing the third one to Papyrus. "bone appetit."

That particular pun was about as tired as Sans looked, but Papyrus still awarded the attempt with an eyeroll. He carefully took a sip - and yes, there was the unmistakable sweet tang of his brother's favorite condiment. "Sans…"

"'sup, bro?" He let his skull roll back against the couch, innocently grinning up at Papyrus.

"You know exactly what is 'up', brother." It didn't even taste bad, if Papyrus was completely honest, but it was a matter of principle.

"what, not a fan of the soup-prise ingredient? i think it tastes soup-erb."

Papyrus took the bait. "That's three times that you've used 'soup' in the span of five minutes!"

Sans shrugged. "what can i say, it's a classic. though i soup-pose i should ketchup on some new material…"

Papyrus let out a long-suffering sigh and turned to the other Sans in the room. "What about you, Red? Are you enjoying the soup? We can get you something" – he side-eyed his brother – "less ketchup-heavy…"

Red shook his head and gave a thumbs-up at the same time, emptying what appeared to be half the bowl in a single gulp. "nah, soup's perfect. gotta condiment yer cooking, comic."

"Don't encourage him!"

A snicker came from the ground next to the couch. "thanks. gotta admit, i've been stewing over it for a while, so i'm glad at least someone's relishing it."

Papyrus groaned. Quietly, of course, even though Fell seemed dead to the world again… no, that was a bad one.

Red's face suddenly split into a sharp-toothed grin that filled Papyrus with dread. "but ya know, i wonder if we could spice it up-"  

"Please do not wonder!" Papyrus tried to cut him off, but it was already too late.

"say no more." With an equally wide grin, Sans got up and disappeared into another shortcut. He returned a second later with a suspiciously yellow condiment bottle and tossed it at his alternate on the couch, who expertly caught it.

"Do not think I don't see how you're fully exploiting the fact that I can't get up right now!" Papyrus whisper-yelled.

Red made full eye contact as he uncapped the bottle and, teasingly slowly, turned it upside down above his bowl. Somehow, his grin widened even further.

Groaning, Papyrus threw an arm over his eye sockets (albeit slightly less dramatically than he would have done without a sleeping skeleton on his lap) so he didn't have to watch him squirt an ungodly amount of mustard into his soup. "Why??" he lamented. "Why must I be plagued by the only two monsters in existence who will ruin a perfectly good tomato soup with condiments?"

He sensed more than saw the bottle flying past him and back to Sans. There was another squelch of mustard being squeezed into soup.

"I swear, you're only doing this to torment me!"

"hey, don't knock it 'til you've tried it, bro."

"I don't need to try it to know that mustard has no place in a tomato soup!"

"nah," Red chimed in. "i think ya just haven't mustard up the courage fer it."

Papyrus buried his face in his hands.

"what's the matter, creampuff? can't take what we're dishin' out?"

Papyrus let out a perfectly silent screech to keep himself from smiling at the horrendous puns. Not to smile at the two Sanses' laughter that rewarded him proved more difficult, though. Playing along with their jokes was comfortable, familiar - and just for a little while, it was easier to pretend that everything truly was alright.

[thisisgonnafuxkinkillme]

Undertale with Toshinori

Warnings:

Established relationship, Toshinori x gn! reader

A little fluff

MAJOR spoilers for Undertale. Please just don’t read this if you haven’t experienced this masterpiece already. I promise it’s worth it.

Also cringe warning uwu

Toshi isn’t a huge fan of video games. He never played them when he was younger, so he doesn’t really *get* it, plus they often don’t interest him. He’s tired of seeing violence, fighting, drama, and anything like it. Now, he just wants to relax.

You know this, so you made sure not to pressure him too much to play with you. (He did quite like Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley though)

However, one lazy Sunday afternoon, Toshinori surprised you.

“Hey, um, do you wanna play something?” He asked, still in his pajamas, which consist of an entirely too large to shirt with some flannel pants. You nodded, queuing up the island you both shared.

“No, I mean, do you have any good story games?” He inquired. He sat next to you on the couch as he took a sip out of his coffee mug. You immediately had an idea of one but you weren’t sure if he’d actually like it.

“Well, I have one game, but if you don’t like it you don’t have to finish it,” you reply, clicking through your library.

The 8 bit theme rang out through the living room, filling you with nostalgia and him with a little wonder. His eyes scanned the opening scene, taking it all in.

UNDERTALE.

You taught him the basic controls, but made sure to keep your mouth shut to avoid spoiling or tainting his first experience through the game. He typed in the character name simply as Toshi. You almost thought about telling him to use the name Chara, the most canonical one, but thought better of it. Your eyes followed his movements across the screen as he inspected items, followed Toriel, and clicked through dialogue.

Soon, the first fight happened.

“What do I do?” He asked innocently. The froggit bounced around the screen, waiting for your action.

“Well, you can kill it, run from it, or you can try getting it to calm down and not want to fight you,” you explained. It was so hard not to spoil anything, and your heart was basically bursting as you waited to see what he’d do.

He ran away, and you let out a small breath you didn’t realize you were holding.

Toriel praised him, walking him along the rest of the map and into her home. He looked in the mirror, the text announcing, ‘It’s you!” 

A few minutes later, Toriel was on the fight screen.

Toshi had taken quite the liking to the goat lady already. He ran from her fight, too, going back upstairs and into the character’s room.

He looked at you, silently, for guidance.

You said nothing.

Of course, he knew he couldn’t stay in his room forever, and eventually made his way back downstairs. Toriel was still waiting.

He sighed deeply.

“Do I have to leave? I really don’t think she seems all that bad...” he muttered, partly to himself, but also to you.

“Well, you have to fight her, sunshine,” you placed a hand on his thigh. You made sure not to say ‘you have to kill her’.

He started the fight again, not hitting her. You didn’t guide him, not sure if he was missing on purpose or just didn’t know how to play the game.

Then, he began choosing the action button, trying to bargain with his goat mom.

Soon enough, she broke down, letting us go.

“Don’t let him... ASGORE... kill you...” she warned before Frisk, (who Yagi named Toshi) was on his own.

You watched as he refused to kill anything, not even one character. You said nothing, but were admittedly surprised. The first time you played Undertale, you accidentally played the Neutral route via killing some NPCs. You didn’t really know any better. You didn’t realize what kind of game Undertale ended up being, and how much it’d mean to you.

He returned playing, and you watched intently. He’d ask for help every once in awhile, still not totally being used to video game mechanics as a whole. You didn’t mind showing him what to do, as long as he was having fun, and he was. He made sure to read and inspect every single little detail to make sure he knew the story in and out. This ended up making the gameplay last quite a bit longer than it would have otherwise, but you were grateful that he was so interested in something you also enjoy.

The fight with Undyne and Mettaton went by, Toshi sparing both of them while he cursed under his breath. The fights were getting harder and harder. At one point, he handed you the controller so you could ‘fight’ Mettaton for him.

Finally, Frisk walked into Asgore’s castle. As you walked, the story of the kingdom, the conflict between humans and monsters, and most importantly, the story of Asriel, was told. You watched your boyfriend more intently than you did the screen at this point. He had his jaw clenched, obviously moved by the tragic story.

Now, it was time to finally fight Asgore. The evil monster that slaughtered children, stealing their souls. The strongest monster of the Underground. The enemy. Toshi was hunched forward, ready to fight, and even more prepared to win. He had a concentrated expression, his large hands enveloping the controller.

“Would you like a cup of tea?” The horrific monster asked. Toshinori was almost taken aback by this one little line of dialogue, but was still ready to go.

The fight began and ended, much like the others, but this time, Toriel was back. But so was someone else.

Before Toshi could celebrate, Flowey took over the game, trapping all the beloved characters and newly found virtual friends. Toshi threw his hands up in the air.

“That’s not it!?” He exasperatedly yelled.

You shook your head, your hand gently resting on his arm.

You knew what was coming soon.

A good while later, Toshi was walking along the map of the game one last time, to say goodbye to everyone he met along this journey.

Finally, he was back where he started. The yellow flower patch was no longer a lonely one, a small goat child tending to them.

You watched the text roll across the screen.

“Well, that’s all. See you later, Toshi,” the goat boy said.

You sighed, long and heavy. That was more intense than you remembered. You looked over at Toshinori, who was sitting there, tears silently streaming down his face.

“Oh, Toshi, are you okay?” You asked softly, putting your arms around him gently. He broke at your question, letting his sobs flow through his frail body. You felt for him, hard. His head was buried in your shoulder, salty tears wetting your shirt.

You didn’t say anything, letting him process everything he just played through. He calmed down, sitting himself up.

“Well, what did you think?” You asked, a playful tone in your voice.

“It was great!” He chuckled.

“Who was your favorite? I personally love Toriel and Alphys,” you smile, trying to start a little conversation.

He looked back at the screen, a little smile pulling at his lips. “Asgore. He... reminds me of myself in some ways,” he whispered, his eyes filling back up with tears.

Your heart dropped. You definitely could see it. You rubbed his back, the opening screen replaying as it did just a few short hours before. 

You turned off the TV, the blank screen reflecting you and Toshi’s reflection back.

Despite everything, it was still you. 

[roryandcorey]

Core: Hi there I'm Core, and this is my cutie tsundere boyfriend Error, say hi Error

Error: *Sighs* Core do we really need to answer stupid questions to a bunch of strangers?

Core: Aww don't be such a grumpy boyfriend Rory, we're just going to make new friends, I love meeting new friends and forming long everlasting friendships with them, you wouldn't want to see your Corey be very sad would you Rory? *Core's hollow black eyes turns into Puppy doll eyes*

Error: "Error's heart begins to pump faster as he can't resists his grey childish girlfriend's Puppy doll eyes"........Fine, but if our new friend is being rude or mean, we stay away and don't talk to them alright..... Corey?

Core: YAY! Thank you Rory! "Core kisses Error in the cheeks and Error shyly Blushes blue as he turns away from Core"

*Error/Rory and Core/Corey are available for Regular and Magical Asks*

Fun facts about them

Core

1. She has Amnesia and is the reason why she's very childish

2. She has a hard time distinguishing between a new friend or an unknown stranger

3.She sees both Reyn and Ink as Best Friends especially Reyn, while Ink she considers him as a fun big brother

4. She doesn't know about other Aus, but wishes to visit them someday

5. Corey doesn't have an Omega Timeline like other Core Frisk, and she doesn't know what or who's Frisk despite her name being Core Frisk

6. She isn't omnipotent like other Core Frisk

7. Corey has met an Errorink couple before, the latter being Nextgentale one's and she really thinks that they're a very cute couple especially their child PaperJam or PJ

Corey loves and trust Rory, but is unaware of his deepest darkest secret

Error

1.Error doesn't have Amnesia and he remembers what had happened to Corey that caused her being the way she is

2. He hates all warrior-type Undyne and Alphy's, but doesn't hate their science and timid swap counterparts

3. Error is both annoyed by Reyn and Ink, especially Reyn cuz she goes shipping mode whenever she sees both Him and Corey do something romantic

4. He knows about other Aus but doesn't like to visit them, much to his girlfriend's disappointment

5. Rory doesn't like/know how to destroy Aus

6. He doesn't suffer from Haphephobia aka fear of touch unlike other Errors

7. Rory despite being an Error Sans isn't really an Error, He was once a regular True Pacifist Sans that during "The Incident" caused him to become an Error

8. Even though Rory's a big grumpy Tsundere, he deeply cares/loves Corey and is very afraid to tell the truth of what had happened to them

[the-river-person]

A Sansationally Bad Liar

“Sans...Sans. You can’t hide from Papyrus in here forever.” Stepping away from the complicated looking engine he was putting together on his worktable, Gaster had made his way over to where Sans was sitting, watching the video feeds Alphys had set up so that Gaster could open or close the cave using FUN values without having to physically open the door to check if someone was outside. Sans had claimed the position of lookout, saying it was already a job he was good at, not that they really needed much of a lookout anyway. Waving his hand distractedly at Gaster, Sans shushed him. “Listen! Listen. They’re talking. I got an audio feed from that tunnel.” Frowning. Gaster leaned in to peer at the pair of Monsters making their way down the Waterfall tunnel, an umbrella held by one was enough to shield both from the rain. “And you’re telling me that not only did it take you all this time to actually realize I was flirting, but then you waited even longer to talk to me because you got freaked out and tried to find a casual way to bring it up for an entire year?” asked one of the pair, a Rabbit type monster with thick blue fur and a pair of red overalls over a yellow shirt. The other monster, a cat like one that Gaster felt sure he’d seen before, looked embarrassed, or possibly in pain, and nodded weakly. “Y-yeah. It was Papyrus who said you were flirting though. And I wasn’t sure if you were actually serious, because who would ever actually want to flirt with me? I’m not actually worth-” “Seamus,” Interrupted the rabbit. “You’re an idiot. An adorable, incredibly fuzzy, and absolutely hopeless idiot. Now are you going to kiss me or not?” Looking deeply flustered, Seamus began to say something, but Sans didn’t catch it because Gaster leaned over and flipped the machine off, both audio and video image died. “Hey,” Sans protested. “Is this really what you’re going to do with your time, Sans? Spy on the private moments of Monsters like you’re watching some MTT drama or whatever else it is they watch out there? Are there not enough good movies or television programs to fill your time?” Gaster frowned down at the skeleton. Sans smiled disarmingly and shook his head. “What are you talking about, Doc? I’m just doing my job. I can’t help it if folks are talking about all the deep and mushy stuff where the camera’s can-” “What job? Sentry? Lookout? We don’t need one. There’s nothing to guard against. Nothing to watch out for. Or did you mean Royal Judge? Are you telling me you need to spy on everyone and know every secret of their lives in order to do a job you’ve been called to do officially maybe three times?” Looking less like a grin and more like a grimace, San’s smile had dimmed a little bit and he couldn’t quite meet Gaster’s eyes. “Five times. Asgore had me show up after he killed the third fallen human, the guilt was getting to him and he wanted judgement and punishment.” Oh, that wasn’t quite what he’d expected to hear. Poor Asgore, poor child. It wasn’t the first time Gaster wished he hadn’t nearly destroyed himself. If only he could have been there, maybe he could have helped Asgore to find another way? Or maybe he wouldn’t. Things didn’t always work out the way you intended. Gaster shook his head clear of these worrisome thoughts. “The point is, you’re here because spying on people and pretending to have a job because you don’t want to think about the consequences of your true job. And any time you’re not occupying yourself with some trivial pursuit is when you start thinking about it again.” “You’ve been talking to Papyrus,” Sans accused him, looking irritated but still not quite meeting Gaster’s eyes. Oh drat him, stubbornness would be the end of him. Turning away, Gaster strode back to his worktable and picked up the bit he had been working on, a section of unflawed crystal he was using to make a sort of holding shell for the engine. “Of course I have,” he said. “He thinks you should go to therapy, and I think he’s right. You need it.” Saying this, Gaster glanced behind him and caught Sans cradling his right arm. “What are you doing?” “Nothing. I don’t need help, and I don’t need therapy. Can’t a guy just get a break somewhere?” “Not here,” Gaster retorted. “Go home and talk to your brother. You’re worrying him. Please, Sans.” There was a silence, and Gaster looked away, glancing over to the other part of the cave where Alphys’s two younger assistants were going through a pile of reference books on Monster Biology and occasionally pausing to scribble down notes on another piece of paper. When he looked back, Sans had vanished. Sighing, Gaster went back to his work.

[winkette]

Alien Pt2

This is the last of this idea drabble that I have written. There is a loose idea of the rest of the story, mostly revolving around Reader, but little to know actual plot. Enjoy~

---

“WHAT A STUPID JOKE.”

“That would make things more interesting.”

“C’mon Classic, it ain’t that fuckin’ funny.”

Stretch snorts into his arms, which forces another round of laughter from you before you can finally open your eyes again.

“IF YOU ARE ONLY WASTING OUR TIME WITH PATHETIC JOKES, I WILL CLUB ALL OF YOU ON THE HEAD.”

You’re wiping away tears, giggling again when the fancy-dress Sans alternate beside you chuckles at your state. Poor Stretch and Sans are so tired, they’re delirious in their laughter and it takes much longer for them to settle down. G finally clears the tea from his non-existant lungs and Green has cleaned up the tea G spat out in his laughter.

“ALIENS WOULD BE AN INTERESTING THING TO CONSIDER. WOULD ALSO EXPLAIN WHY COMET AND I ARE HERE.”

“DO YOU NOT WORK ON THE MACHINE WITH PAPS AND THE OTHERS?” Fancy-Blue asks from behind his equally fancy brother. 

The two skeletons in yellow and dark blue each shake their heads. The Sans-alternate speaks up further, “me and neb know rocket science, not quantum physics. Even our engineering knowledge is limited to how to run a rocket versus building machines from scratch.”

“YES. ENGINEERING WOULD FALL UNDER OUR ALPHYS’ EXPERTISE. UNFORTUNATE THAT SHE IS NOT HERE.”

The edgy Blue slams both hands onto the table top to garner attention. “SILENCE YOU IDIOTS! NONE OF THAT EXPLAINS WHY THERE IS A HUMAN HERE.” He turns a fierce glare to Sans at the head of the table. “IT WAS YOU WHO DEMANDED EVERYONE FOLLOW YOUR POINTLESS RULES, ONE OF WHICH WAS TO CLEARLY TO AVOID HUMANS.”

Sans sighs heavily. You get the feeling he’s heard this alternate Blue argue a lot. Sans and Stretch share a look, probably trying to figure out where to start, so you jump in instead.

“I was pulled through the machine as well. I arrived with Blue, Stretch, Red, and Edge.” Four of the only six skeletons you knew. Aside from G and Green, who you met earlier that day.

Everyone else perks up and studies you. “No kiddin’?” Fancy-Sans asks. 

“Ya don’t look any different from humans ‘round here.” Fancy-Stretch comments. 

Fancy-Blue looks uncertain. “HAVE YOU RUN INTO THIS WORLD’S VERSION OF YOU?” 

“WHY WOULD A HUMAN BE PULLED THROUGH THE MACHINE?” Edgy-Blue scoffs.

“WE NEVER FIGURED THAT OUT.” Edge answers.

“Ya.” Red points you out to everyone else. “Ya fuckin’ vanished after two days.”

It sounds like he’s accusing you of something and the glare he’s leveled you with matches the glare from Edge. Several other gazes turn suspicious at the statement. 

You just nod. “Yes. It’s a good thing I did too.” You explained, but honed in on Red when you continued, “I was hospitalized for three months.”

“WHAT?!” Blue and Papyrus shout at the same time. Their surprised shock seems to unnerve many of the others in the room and when you turn to reassure your friends, you’re pulled part-way from the chair as Papyrus hugs you. 

“What are you talking about, hon?”

“Why didn’t you call us, kid?”

“ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!”

You chuckle in Papyrus’ arms and pat them to ask for him to release you. He does, gently lowering you back into the chair but stands close behind you when you face the table again. 

“Relax guys, I’m fine now. Obviously.” You wave a hand over yourself to show how very alive you currently were. “That was two years ago and things have settled down quite a bit.”

“But what happened? Why were you in the hospital?” Stretch worries.

“AND WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL US SOONER!” Blue argues.

You raise both hands in a mix of defense and apology. “I’m sorry guys, but I didn’t want to tell anyone at the time or until recently.” You look to Sans. “Remember how, when we all showed up, everyone had various headaches or reactions to the travel?” Sans and Stretch both nod their heads. 

“Ya,” Red interjects, “you were fuckin’ unconscious half the time.”

“I know.” You state. “I got scared and called a taxi at two in the morning to take me to a hospital since everyone was too busy trying to figure things out at first.” You give a pointed look to Sans and Papyrus, who flinch and blanch at the look. “I understand why you didn’t want anyone out of the house at the time, but I was severely struggling with my health.”

Sans and Paps look guilty at your explanation and Stretch and Blue share a worried look. Before anyone else speaks, you continue. 

“I listened to the doctors and nurses while I was under their care. Didn’t recognize half of what they were saying but I made sure to remember as much as I could. They had to transfer me twice to larger hospitals because my body was struggling so much to adapt to this place.” Now you give Sans and Papyrus forgiving glances. “Know that I don’t blame you guys for anything, okay? But I almost died several times.”

That makes Blue and Papyrus give worried cries and they each move around the table to gather you in a hug between them. With arms pinned to your sides, you try to return their hugs as best you could. 

“WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU ALMOST DIE? ARE HUMANS SO WEAK TO NEARLY DUST FROM A SIMPLE HEADACHE?!” Edge looks like he takes personal offense to this knowledge. 

“She has stated earlier that it was the magical energy of this world that was attacking her body.” Green tries to explain while you’re still held hostage in Blue and Papyrus’ arms. 

“She came into Sans’ office earlier and said that her body was changed by coming here, so much so, that she doesn’t think she can be returned home.”

There were a few gasps around the room, including from Blue and Papyrus who immediately hug you tighter, winding you. 

“WHAT THE HELL IS THIS? ARE YOU SAYING THAT WE COULD BE STUCK IN THIS PATHETIC WORLD BECAUSE YOU BROUGHT US HERE?!” Edgy-Blue shouts, presumably, at Sans. 

“We didn’t notice any problems by coming here.” Fancy-Stretch states.

“AND CERTAINLY NO ACHES AND PAINS FROM THE SUDDEN TRAVEL.” Fancy-Blue adds. 

“Guys, please!” You shout from your containment. The excitable skeletons release you back into the chair but stay close. Blue takes hold of one of your hands. “Calm down guys. Let me explain further.” You take a breath and look to the pair in the back with stars and constellations on their clothes. They stand straighter under your attention but watch you with worry in their sockets. “I asked Sans if there was anyone with advanced knowledge of Space. Is that you two?”

They both nod, the Papyrus adding on, “YES! IN OUR WORLD, WE LIVE IN SPACE!”

You give a noise of interest. “Really? Cool. We will need to talk more then to get some details, but, “ You open the thin file folder you had brought with you and push the collection of your notes around the table. There’s notes of various things you studied in your time away from the skeletons that brought you here, but you make sure the Monsters from Space get your notes on the galaxy and solar system that you took.

“These are a few of the notes I took over the two years. Each one based on a question I had or something I took notice of.” You slide some of your health notes to Green when you see they peak his interest. “One thing I learned is,” You point to the Galaxy notes in the Space-Sans’ hands, “My world is from a different Galaxy. An entirely different planet.”

That gets surprised gasps, shocked shouts, disbelief, and various murmured conversations start up at once. You smile at the chaos you created, but point to your Galaxy notes again and shout.

“This world has, what I believe to be, my home galaxy marked as M-37. Nicknamed, Milky-Way.” You chuckle at that, “Which is funny, because that’s what we called our Galaxy too. We even nicknamed this Galaxy, Andromeda. Funny how that works out, huh?”

“SO YOU’RE NOT AN ALTERNATE SANS OR PAPYRUS?” Fancy-Blue shouts in awe.

“Nope.”

Space-Sans chuckles deeply. “ ‘Who brought the human?’ “, he repeats. He barks out a laugh and then starts laughing harder as the joke you had made finally sets in anew. Several other skeletons also start laughing at the new context of the joke.

-----

Reader is the Alien. Dun dun duuuunnnn

The starting idea was basically; The MilkyWay is a galaxy without magic and Andromeda is a galaxy with magic.

Part 1 Here

[keelywolfe]

FIC: Beneath an Aurora Sky ch. 20

Summary: The South Pole Station is equipped for research and Edge has always made sure things run smoothly for the inhabitants. His charges are meant to follow his rules and regulations, and in turn, he makes sure they survive in the arctic temperatures. It takes plenty of hard work and determination and Edge, along with his crew, can handle both.

He wasn’t counting on one of the newest researchers. He wasn’t expecting Rus.

Tags: Spicyhoney, First Time, Arctic AU, Hurt/Comfort

~~*~~

Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four

Chapter Five | Chapter Six | Chapter Seven | Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine | Chapter Ten | Chapter Eleven | Chapter Twelve

Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16 | Chapter 17

Chapter 18 | Chapter 19

~~*~~

Read Chapter 20 on AO3

or

Read it here!

~~*~~

As Edge was walking towards the vehicle shed, he caught an acrid hint of cigarette smoke in the air. He followed it, not inside but around the back and sitting in the shadows of the halogen lights was Rus.

Edge could hardly disguise his approach, the crunch of his boots in the hard-packed snow would have carried in the still icy air long before he came around the corner. But Rus made no attempt to hide. He stayed where he was, a burning cigarette dangling from his gloved fingers as he gazed up at the aurora-filled sky.

He’d already been out here for some time while Edge and the others spoke with Toriel and Gaster. The cold would soon be seeping through his outdoor gear no matter how good it was, sinking its chill into Rus’s bones. Monsters felt the cold less than Humans did but they were by no means immune to it. They could be sickened, frostbitten, and some, like Alphys, tolerated it even less than Humans. As a skeleton, Rus’s endurance should match Edge and Red’s.

Then again, who knew the boundaries of a skeleton from an entirely other universe.

Edge sat down next to Rus, drawing up his knees to rest his arms on them. He looked up at the swirling aurora overhead, the blur of colors rippling together in tangled waves, a sky ocean born of solar particles colliding with the atmosphere.

“it’s so beautiful here.” Rus’s voice was almost too loud in the hush.

“Yes,” Edge agreed in a voice to match.

It was. His intention when they’d first arrived here was only to find a safe place for those in his care, Alphys and Undyne and his still-wounded brother, and later, for Bonnie. Somewhere they could be certain of their meals and shelter. Nothing more than a job to replace the one he lost with the guard and a feeble attempt at that.

He hadn’t expected to find beauty in the glacial whiteness, nor in the endless night sky. He never anticipated the satisfaction that came with seeing another group off, knowing he’d protected them and guided them through this dangerous beauty. He couldn’t have known how Undyne and Alphys would blossom here, both their love for each other and their lives, settling into their place. Or that Red would slowly find his own footing and perhaps he’d never adore the Humans that came here, but he had his own pride in his work, kept all the equipment in top form and helped Alphys in her designs for new additions for the station. And Bonnie, who’d come to them later and never discussed her own inner wounds, yet still seemed to be healing from them. Together they’d created a place of safety for them, a home.

Even after all that, he never could have braced himself for Rus. Who’d settle into their home like he belonged here, their missing puzzle piece. Only it seemed as if he’d come not from their picture, but an entirely different box.

“he told you, didn’t he.” It was impossible to tell if the fog of Rus’s breath was from the cold or the cigarette.

Edge said nothing. His promise to Toriel specified he couldn’t reveal what they’d spoken about. It did not preclude discussing it at all and he only waited as Rus chuckled bitterly, filling in the silence on his own.

“it’s funny,” Rus drawled, flicking ash into the snow, “i came all the way to the end of the world to escape my past and it still came after me.”

Edge thought of Toriel, currently cramped into one of the spare rooms and probably trying not to scrape her horns against the ceiling. “I know the feeling.”

“yeah, i know,” Rus said, grimacing, “i’m sorry. part of the deal of tori sponsoring me was i’d keep mum about back home. i promised.”

“I understand.”

“yeah, well, if i’d known they were gonna pop in unexpectedly, i would’ve warned you about that much, anyway.” Rus’s expression crumpled slightly, going brittle around the edges. “look, i love tori, she’s been nothing but good to me. moms her way into everything. but you guys got your reasons to not want her around, i get that.”

“Rus,” the cloud of his own breath briefly obscured his vision as Edge sighed, “even if they are here because of you, that doesn’t make it your fault.”

“doesn’t it? think what pissed me off most is i know dings is right,” Rus murmured. “he’s can be a little rough saying it, but he means well.”

The resignation in Rus’s voice made Edge bristle, “He accused you of being nothing more than a key made for a particular lock.”

“truth hurts.” It was startling to realize how he’d categorized Rus’s smiles in his own head, the bright, fake one and the softer, shyer truthful one that came with a measure of trust. This one was entirely new, tainted with deep bitterness, “bet big brother didn’t fill in the details, so let me give you the highlights of our family tree.”

“see, our pop was the royal scientist in our world, the real deal. i call him pop, but that’s mostly because it annoyed him. he wasn’t really our father, he was a dna donor. he didn’t even name us, we named ourselves.” Rus was sitting right next to Edge here in the deep cold and still seemed miles away, no, not miles, he was in another world entirely. “dings took his name. not like he really knew there were many options past that or just getting called number one. just as well, i guess, looks more like him than me or blue. dings named blue and they both named me.”

He slanted a glance at Edge, his bright eye lights dimmed behind his goggles. “dings was still really young when blue popped out, what did he know about names? baby bro’s magic was blue, so that’s what he went with. i came a few more years down the line and by then, they’d raided the librarby and found out that papyrus is a traditional skeleton monster name.” He chuckled then, some of the bitterness of his smile invading the sound. “like anything about us was traditional.”

“we were his own personal test tube babies, homegrown like fucking cabbages, and gaster made us to fulfill a specific role. see, the core was important work, sure, but what he was really trying to do was make a machine that could get us past the shield. turns out, third time is the charm for our old man. he made dings and blue first but neither of them could use void magic. i was his hail mary, his last shot, and whaddaya know, it worked.” Rus scowled, tamped out his burning butt into the snow. He dropped it into his little tin and lit another, inhaling deeply and breathing out a cloud of smoke. “he never let me forget what i was for, but dings and blue always tried to be the best brothers they could. after pops kacked, it wasn’t until dings got that machine working that it even came up again.” He shrugged, barely visible through the layers of his heavy coat. “i got to forget for a while, at least.”

Edge said nothing, what could he say? His childhood was hardly one ease and joy; it more resembled the fairy tales that Red sometimes read to him when he still the shorter of the two, listening with wide sockets to gruesome tales that seemed all too possible. It seemed Rus had his own experiences with a sort of wicked stepfather and it was every bit as terrible as those stories. The urge to pull him close, to keep him safe, was itching in Edge and he forcibly held it back, let Rus tell his story.

“i never expected the machine to actually work,” Rus admitted. “dings was messing with it for so long. then we were here. my bro was only supposed to talk to the royal scientist and we were gonna hightail it back. easy peasy lemon squeezy.” Rus chuckled darkly, “turned out the lemonade was too sour after all. dings was pretty upset to find out the guy he was looking for was gone and so was his successor.”

Rus’s smile eased into something warmer, familiar, “it was tori who got me to start studying, you know. my bros always kept me on a tight leash back home, it was dangerous to even go outside, but here? i went out, tried to make some friends, ended up sleeping around some. wasted time,” Rus admitted, “tori suggested i work on my degree. i didn’t see the point at first, our pop always told us our purpose. i was there to power the machine. but, tori has this thing about being everyone’s mom.”

“Indeed, she does,” Edge murmured, recalling his days imprisoned after the coup, with good meals and care instead of execution.

“i think maybe that’s why she’s such a good queen. she told me pops was wrong,” Rus laughed a little in a puff of smokey breath and shook his head. “told me he was an asshole, actually, and that i deserved to have what i wanted out of life.”

“we argued about it, me and dings. drove blue nuts. blue was…he was the failure, pops said. at least dings was a scientist, but blue couldn’t even manage that. dings always told him his purpose was to be our caretaker and he tried damn hard at it.” Rus sighed, dropping his head back against the shed siding with a muffled thunk, “he hates it when we fight.”

“But you did it,” Edge said softly, “you got your degree, you’re working on your PhD and you’re doing a good job of it, at that.” Even through the growing cold he felt an inner warmth at the smile Rus flashed him, the real one.

“i did. i got so close.” Rus’s voice broke slightly, “things were horrible when we left, i can’t even imagine how they are now. and dings, he needs to fix the core. that was the skill that was built into him.” His smile soured back into bitterness, “it’s a compulsion, i don’t think he can help it. he has to be better than our pop. he has to be the one to save us all. blue believes everyone is worth saving, but he’s a protector, and me? i’m just a battery. i was never meant to have any of this.”

A honey-tinted tear slipped out from beneath his goggles and wound its way down, slowly freezing against the chilled bone of Rus’s skull and Edge’s control broke. He crawled across the short distance between them, scuffled through the snow and pulled Rus into his arms. He held on briefly, achingly tight before drawing back far enough to shake him, a little, and Rus looked at him with wide, startled eye lights.

“You are more than simply your father’s intentions,” Edge told him fiercely. “You’re brilliant and kind, and…and funny…wonderful…” He choked, unable to express the wild emotions burning in his soul; if there were words for it, Edge did not know them. Love was too shallow a word, too small, it couldn’t possibly hold everything Edge was feeling, all of it strangled in grief.

Rus reached up and his gloved fingers were gentle against Edge’s cheekbone. “it’s okay,” he said, softly, “i always knew we’d have to go back. i got to see this. i got to be with you. it’s okay,” he said again, crooned it, as if Edge were the one in pain. Perhaps he was, his soul ached as fiercely as if it was threatening to crack. “i saw so much here on the surface. i got to see the stars, i got to come here and see this.” He looked up at the sky, at the brilliant colors still churning within it along with a million twinkling lights looking down on them. “i was never going to get to stay, but i got to see this.”

“It’s not enough,” Edge said hoarsely. Not enough, Rus was supposed to leave here and go back into the sun, and instead, he was going where Edge could never follow, couldn’t protect him, and again, Edge would have given a portion of his own grieving soul not to see that sadness infecting Rus’s smile.

“i love you, you know,” Rus told him, achingly soft. “i know it’s not fair to tell you now, but i can’t keep it to myself. i need you to know it.”

Edge closed his sockets, shutting out Rus’s face and the aurora, saw only blackness and it wasn’t the cold that sent a tremor through him. Then he opened them again, looked into Rus’s face and saw the truth of it, the yearning. And the hopelessness. The need to say it back burned, words already forming on his tongue, but instead Edge blurted, “Stay the two weeks.”

Rus blinked, startled. That was clearly not the reaction he expected to his quiet confession, “but, the people—"

“It’s been two years,” Edge countered, “two weeks means nothing to your world and everything to you. Don’t let your brother’s compulsion drive you. Toriel—"

He almost said she was on his side, couldn’t, his knowledge was gleaned from their talk and words already thickening in his throat, his promise threatening to choke him when Rus kissed him softly, stopping him.

“i can guess about tori,” Rus said quietly, then, softer, “two more weeks.” He looked up again and even behind his goggles, the auroras couldn’t match the soft beauty of his eye lights. “there’s no stars back home. i’m gonna miss them.”

He fell silent, leaning against Edge’s side. Edge wrapped an arm around him and pulled Rus in closer, holding him tightly through the layers of his coat. He was starting to shiver; they were both getting too cold and he was about to suggest they move into the vehicle shed at the very least when Rus spoke again.

“it got so bad towards the end,” Rus whispered, “we stayed holed up in the lab, mostly, but we could see what was happening. monsters were getting more violent, losing control, gaining lv. pops’ diagrams on the core were incomplete. it was dings’s idea to come to another world and check theirs. i had to come, of course and we couldn’t leave Blue alone, so we all came.”

Rus kicked one booted foot idly, scraping up snow with his heel. “s’weird. even the snow is different here. back home it seems…stale somehow. used. maybe it’ll be better when dings gets the core up and running.” Rus sighed. “i never would have come to the station if i’d thought he was close to a breakthrough. it’s weird, i thought i had enough time.” Rus drew back a little, looking at Edge with that soft smile back in place. “but it sure wasn’t a waste.”

Almost, Edge kissed him again, hesitated with their mouths a breath away. Something about what Rus said niggled, something… “Weird.”

“heh,” Rus chuckled, “it’s double weird hearing you say weird. doesn’t seem like your kind of slang, bossman.”

Edge barely heard him. His brother had a breakthrough on the core, Rus said, an unexpected breakthrough. Edge cursed himself, replaying what Rus told him. He'd been foolishly focused on the information about Rus and why they were here, not on what changed to bring them to the station.

"What was your brother studying, exactly?” Edge demanded. He took Rus’s shoulders in both gloved hands, holding him, “You said he was looking for information about the Core."

Rus blinked uncertainly, his browbone furrowing, “um, papers, mostly. tori has lots of stuff from the old royal scientist, dings was wading through tons of it. i didn’t see much, he didn’t want any help. he was afraid we’d miss something. guess he found what he was looking for.”

“Yes, I think he did,” Edge said sourly, “A patsy.” Edge climbed to his feet and held out a hand to help Rus, “I’d like to know what was in those notes your brother found and I think we should ask the former royal scientist.”

“what?” Rus wobbled for a second, catching his balance after sitting for so long, “seriously? you think they’d talk to you? tori said they don’t—

“I should hope so,” Edge said, dryly, “she’s in her lab.” And very likely watching them on her cameras.

Rus went still, croaking out, “alphys??”

“You didn’t know?” Edge slanted Rus a look, but he believed him.

“no!” Rus spluttered, already heading back towards the station, Edge trailing after him. “tori didn’t talk about it, i didn’t even think to ask anyone else, why would i?”

“Maybe your brother isn’t as discriminating,” Edge said, under his breath, letting the wind tear the words away. It was more than a little suspicious that his brother solved the issue of core technology when Rus was in the only place that possessed a replica of the original. Edge didn’t believe in coincidence.

“Rus,” Edge jogged to catch up, taking hold of Rus’s elbow to stop him as he asked, “Do you trust me?”

“yes,” Rus said, unhesitatingly.

“I trust you, too,” Edge said, softly, and leaned in to give him a brief, chilly kiss. “Come on. You’re freezing and I have questions.”

“you’re the boss,” Rus said. It was only a shadow of his normally teasing self, but it was something. He took Rus’s gloved hand in his own and together, they made their way to the main building.

tbc

[undertalethingems]

Fic: Bark at the Moon

Oh boy, the time’s finally come that I feel like I can start posting this--introducing Bark at the Moon, my next major fic. It started as a challenge to myself--I’ve had trouble enjoying how the classic Gaster Blaster AU is often executed, even though I usually like settings where the characters can turn into... well, monsters. I already had a gaster blaster AU with Unexpected Guests, but could I write the AU as it’s usually depicted...?

15 chapters later--and at least six more planned--I think the answer is yes. It likely features many of the tropes you’ll be familiar with... but, I hope I’ve brought something new to it as well. Mainly, I hope you’ll like it regardless ^^

Anyway, on with the story, right?

Bark at the Moon: Prologue

Next>

Or read on my Ao3>

Rating, Setting: Gen, Pre-canon

Warnings: Body horror? Maybe? Please let me know--if it’s any consolation, the content in question is all in one paragraph here in the prologue, and then hardly in the fic ever again.

Summary: Papyrus was well on his way to joining the Royal Guard. Was. Now, he’s not sure he can rejoin society--if only for the sake of his brother. Because he doesn’t want to remind him of anything.

He doesn’t want to remind him of what they can become.

The snow lay crisp and pristine in the clearing, wholly undisturbed after a solid night of frigid winds and blinding sleet that had eventually become a dense layer of snow. Papyrus inhaled deeply, air rushing through his nasals as he steeled himself for a full day of puzzle construction and maintenance. Somewhere under this crystalline blanket was a brand-new tile puzzle designed by none other than the wonderful Dr. Alphys, and it was his duty to ensure it was up and running should a human finally come through.

At least the snow would show any footprints had one passed through overnight and evaded the night guard. He stared at the unbroken plane of white and tried to imagine what a human’s footprints would look like; humans were built a lot like skeletons, right? So they probably had similar feet and left similar footprints—all he had to do was look for prints like his own and he could track the human through the entire Underground if he so desired! He would finally, really prove himself worthy by figuring this out so quickly. Of course, none but the Great Papyrus could work out such a logical deduction!

“A LOGICAL DEDUCTION. BUT FOR OUR PURPOSES... YOUR OTHER FORM IS MORE USEFUL. CHANGE.”

White filled his vision. White, white, white snow, white, blank, blank white walls. He could see nothing else, feel nothing but a steely grip latch into his soul and tug it open. A jolt of something—not quite pain, but unpleasant all the same—shocked down his spine, and he shuddered. It had been so long since he'd felt this--and it was overwhelming.

It drowned out all thought as it washed over him, vibrating through his bones; he shut his eyes and sank into the rush. He'd completely forgotten what this was like. Even if he could have, there was no point resisting it now, and really, the terrible snap of power humming through him was preferable to watching what came with it.

But he could still feel it. Long bones stretched, sutures separated and rewove themselves along new lines. Neural crests grew and sharpened into spikes, and even his spine lengthened until his low, toothy skull rested atop a long s-curved neck, and a whiplike tail lashed behind him. When it was all over, his bones had been completely remodeled from dentary to tailtip--the skeleton monster was nigh unrecognizable. A chimerical mix of mammalian and reptilian features, his new appearance had more in common with a mythical creature than anything alive or long extinct.

The first sensation that crashed into his reeling mind was scent--sharp, heady pine, damp, crisp snow--the dry, earthy scent of his own bones. He tried opening his eyes, bright orange irises igniting in his orbits--but his vision still swam, and took what felt like far too long to clear. When it finally passed, he rose, swayed on limbs both alien and familiar to him, and tried shaking the lingering dizziness from his skull. It persisted stubbornly, but he was just as stubborn if not more so and waited for the ache and lingering buzz of power to fade. At last the haze fell away, and he settled into the form he now bore as though he had never worn another with a sigh.

In a way this was true. Exchanging a smaller, friendlier shape for a long, spiky, intimidating one was something he’d always been able to do. He liked being friendly far more, knew deep in his soul that for as naturally as he bore it, this form didn’t suit him. It had been ages—it felt like another lifetime—since he’d last taken it, for good reason. He snorted, already over this, and called the power back.

It didn't listen. He tried again, focusing on the energy that made up his soul, but it persisted as though nothing was different. Sitting in the snow, he tried thinking back--obviously he'd done this before, so he knew how to change. It just... wasn't... coming to him right now. That was okay, there were lots of things he didn't remember! That didn't mean he'd totally forgotten them, as his nightmares liked to remind him. He just needed to focus. He squeezed his eyes shut, and...

Nothing came to him. He tried again, wracking his memories for a clue, but all he found were dark corners he wasn't about to poke into. Until he remembered or rediscovered how to change back... he was stuck like this. His heart sank--no, no, that wouldn't do, he couldn't give up so soon! He tried calling on his magic again, pulling and straining at it until he felt frazzled. He couldn't let this stop him! He just had to--stop being this. Because while he didn't remember much about why he was like this, he remembered enough to know that no one could ever know about it or see him in this form.

Especially not his brother.

Papyrus sighed, a long hiss gusting from between sharpened teeth. There were no human footprints and he'd gone and done this to himself. He looked down, flexing one clawed hand, then the other. It was funny, really… he would leave very strange, extremely non-humanlike tracks like this. If, of course, he left any to find. Working quickly, he swept the snow from the tile puzzle, scraping away or burying any evidence of his transformation with hands, feet, and tail. Then, he picked up the shredded remains of his clothing, took one look back in the direction of Snowdin, and took a running leap into the forest as far as he could. He'd made his decision.

He wouldn’t come back until he’d remembered how to stop being a weapon.

[buns-with-a-book]

The Most Expected Thing

Part of a shortfic challenge list posted by ao3commentoftheday, the third of five fics.

Fandom: Final Fantasy XIV/Final Fantasy Online Characters: F!Viera!Warrior of Light, Lyse Hext, Thancred Waters, Alphinaud Leveilleur, Y’shtola Rhul, Warriors of Light (F!Hyur!Warrior of Light, M!Elezen!Warrior of Light, F!Elezen!Warrior of Light, M!Miqo’te!Warrior of Light), Aymeric de Borel (mentioned) Tags: @nimnox

Summary: On the eve of Ala Mhigo’s long-awaited freedom, the Scions of the Seventh Dawn and the Crystal Keepers enjoy a well-deserved respite from the battles they endured.

Rhalgr’s Reach was, surprisingly, mostly quiet for the first night of the freed Ala Mhigo. Most of the Resistance was in the Lochs, either celebrating the night away in the newly christened capital of Ala Mhigo or searching for any Garlean stragglers.

But, in the leader’s tent, all was not so quiet.

Lily looked around the brightly colored tent, smiling softly as the Scions of the Seventh Dawn and the Crystal Keepers were happily in conversation about the trials and tribulations they had gone through, what good memories they could share about the war for Ala Mhigan and Doman independence. Those that weren’t so inclined to speak kept themselves busy by other means, such as the elezen bard Virberos Autumnstar, who was playing softly on a harp. As of the moment, Ophelia held the metaphorical stage, telling the Scions and the Keepers about her adventures in the Azim Steppe, mostly with finding out about her Au Ra heritage and how she promptly got into a martial match with an Au Ra named Magnai about the whole thing.

“He said that, if I wasn’t a half-breed, he could’ve entertained the possibility of me being his soulmate. I said ‘Maybe you should stop proposing to every woman who kicks your ass!’ You should’ve seen the look on his face!” Ophelia punched her hand. “And for that, he charged himself right into a jug of water!”

“I’m surprised you weren’t kicked out for that.” Alphinaud said, eyes wide.

“Eh, this was after I proved myself strong enough to be ‘a warrior of the Steppe’, nevermind the fact that I only went through that trial just to get more information about my dad and uncle’s heritage.” Ophelia shrugged. “But I figured out some stuff about myself along the way.” She lifted up her sleeve, revealing pitch-black scales, similar to the Au Ra. “Apparently, my dad and uncle’s ancestors came from the same tribe Magnai leads today; the Oronir. Not that I’m yearning for a run for his position...but I’m not going to say no to kicking his ass again. That was fun!”

“Reckless as usual…” Y’shtola sighed.

“But I looked cool!” Ophelia pointed out. “You’re starting to sound like Master Matoya.” That comment came with an even heavier sigh.

“Now now, let’s not tease the only one who can heal you in the field of combat.” Came the gentle chiding of the Miqo’te samurai, Khona’to Akhabila. One of the oldest in terms of age, his aged amber eyes peered at the young red mage with amusement. “I am verrry certain that Lady Y'shtola would leave you without healing for that.”

“Aw, come oon.” Ophelia pouted. “You’re starting to sound like my dad.”

“That’s because he is.” Thancred cheekily pointed out. “A father, I mean.” He turned to Khona’to. “You went out adventuring well after your own kids were grown.”

“Yes. I believe the Hyurs called it wanderrrlust.” Khona’to smiled. “Whatever you wish to call it, it led me here. And I could not be happier to share this victorrry with all of you.”

“You’re going to make me blush!” Lyse giggled. Lily glanced over to her, noticing the pugilist's face was already flushed from the alcohol. It seemed that making her blush was already done. Lyse glanced over to the mage before her blue eyes glanced down to her hands. “I was wondering something, actually. You got a new ring on and I’ve never seen it before. Some sort of good luck charm?” She asked. Lily glanced at the ring, the signet ring of House de Borel, before smiling.

“Something to that effect.” She turned to the Scions and the Keepers, fully aware that their attention was on her. “I’m pleased to announce that I’m engaged to Ser Aymeric.” A quiet fell in the room for a moment before Lily noticed their faces weren’t exactly as surprised as she expected.

“Finally.” Thancred broke the silence with an exasperated (but still playful) sigh. Lily whipped her gaze to him.

“What do you mean finally!?” Lily demanded, earning laughter from the others. “I thought it’d be more...surprising, you know! Not every woman gets to claim they’re engaged to a leader of a city state-”

“That’s true, unless you’re Ser Aymeric. Do you remember what I told you, before the grand melee?” Thancred asked.

“That one would think a politician more practiced at concealing his emotion?” She paused. “No, a bit before that-”

“That it was love.” Thancred finished her sentence. Lily frowned at him.

“Ok, now you’re just cheating.” The rogue held up his hands.

“Well.” A new voice spoke up. Lily glanced over, watching as the elezen dancer Syldove Wavesinger stepped forth. “Regardless of how obvious the blooming romance was, a new engagement is something to be celebrated.” She settled down on the floor, pushing back her striking red hair. “A word of advice, Lily: Cherish every moment you have with him. It’ll be those memories that’ll keep you moving even in the darkest hour.”

“...mildly cryptic, as usual.” Alphinaud commented. Syldove shrugged.

“I’m saying this from experience, Alphie. All of us are deeply entwined with the fate of Eorzea and the star we all live on.” Syldove pointed out. “There’s work to do beyond freeing Ala Mhigo and Doma. Who knows where it’ll take us?”

“Hopefully to a place where you can stop being cryptic.” Virberos spoke up. “We should enjoy the night while we can, not worry over future trials and toils.” Syldove scowled at him before sighing.

“Undone by a bard, woe is me.” With that, merriment began to fill the air once more. Lily chuckled and leaned back against a plush pillow, her gaze settling on the signet ring as Syldove recounted her experiences in Doma.

[karoiseka]

#15 Ache

((Dialogue in the first part is snagged directly for the most part from the game, but the rest tis mine own.  Pretty much just a re-hash of emotions and extra tid-bits of lore of what Karo was doing with all of this.  This got a little more away from me that I thought, but I’m happy with it. ^_^  Obviously, MAJOR 5.3 spoilers!!!))

“I concede, I may have over-exerted myself,” G’raha gasped a little from the Tower’s floor where he had fallen after defeating Elidibus.  Karo’s heart was racing--not only from the battle she had just finished, the adrenaline singing in her veins, but from the final goodbye of her--well, whatever Elidibus was to her now.  Now, the one that held her heart was transforming before her very eyes into a part of the very Tower that was so instrumental to them both.

“Steady now, and listen.  I told you before that I had a plan, and that when all was said and done, I would ask a favor of you.”  The Bard maneuvered herself beside him, sitting him up and holding his now both crystal hands in her own that desperately were clutching the spirit vessel.  “We have averted the Eight Umbral Calamity.  Found a way for everyone to return to the Source, and… last but not least, we have secured the future of all the people of Norvrandt.  We have won, my love.”  He was squeezing her hands gently, eyes shining, even when gasping for breath as she could watch the crystal creeping over his body slowly.  He reached up to run his fingers gently down her cheek, cupping her face and leaning against her forehead.

“So I hope you’ll forgive me this moment of selfishness.  And… while I wouldn’t want you to feel obliged…” Karo snorted and cut him off with a kiss before letting him continue.  He smiled against her lips and continued on, “Promise me you’ll take me on your next adventure.  A journey.  Together.  That’s all I ask.”  Karo’s voice caught in her throat as tears pricked the corners of her eyes.

“Raha--” her voice cracked as she took a deep breath.  “Of course--you know that’s all I’ve wanted as well,”  nuzzling his ears he sighed contentedly as she continued to try and hold back all the emotion she was feeling.

“If I were to tell you that this isn’t the end--that we will meet again--would you believe me?”  His voice was soft, but insistent and confident that he spoke true despite what was in front of their eyes.

“I have to--” whispered almost too soft for him to hear, she nevertheless looked him in the eyes and nodded her agreement.

“Thank you.”  He nodded once as well and released his hold of his shining star to pull his hood up one last time--though thankfully not hiding his face away from her.  She scowled at the look, but stepped back to let him get to his feet, somehow knowing this was something he needed to do for himself.  His spirit vessel, the brilliant red portion already glowing clutched in her hand, she watched and listened as he found a spot to stand.  He knew this was it as the crystal crept up even further along him--robe and all.

“My love.  With you, my mind and memories shall travel to the ends of the world and beyond.  But in this place shall my body stand immovable.  May it serve as an undying promise, not only to those who looked to me for leadership, but to any soul who has known despair, that hope is everlasting.”   G’raha Tia planted his staff firmly, Xande’s throne towering behind him.  One last time, Karo threw her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply, cupping the back of his head as they shared what they knew was one last moment here on the First.  Stepping back finally she took a deep breath and held out the spirit vessel.  It was time.  As she looked down it started to glow, burning from the inside with an intense light and Aether she could practically feel.  Sapphire eyes raced up to meet his ruby--now glossy as the husk smiled blankly as the crystal finally overtook him.

Her own feet planted barely two fulms from his own, she curled her entire upper body around the warm spirit vessel, holding it to her heart.  It pulsed warmly against her as she took gulping breaths, trying to come to terms at least enough to step away.  Not much longer, she could hear the frantic footfalls of her found family and shouts of her and G’raha’s names echoing from the doorway to the tower.  The scions skidded to a stop behind her as they saw the Crystal Exarch--now the truest description of his name with the Warrior of Light and Darkness still at vigil in front of him.  Thancred was the first of the Scions to let go of his shock, and went to Karoiseka, wrapping himself around her from behind.  He could finally see the spirit vessel glowing in her grasp from his vantage and a deep sigh of relief escaped his lips.

“We’ve got you kitten--and you’ve got him.”  Karo finally spun around and let her tears fall as she let Thancred hold her up as she sobbed into his jacket.  Her heart ached, but she had to keep hope--that hope that he gave her that she cradled so carefully.

-------------------------------------------------------K

The bright stars of Amh Araeng beat down on Karo’s head.  She had finished visiting with Alisaie and Haldric, and had hurried down to Nabaath Areng before Thancred and Ryne got there.  She wanted to allow them their own time, but also had wanted to share the site of her last conversation with Mifillia with G’raha.  Scouting from above  she didn’t see the pair so she landed her borrowed Amaro in the shade of the flood.  Alisaie had a good idea of giving Raha a last tour of the First--maybe take him to a place or two he hadn’t been before.  He had always expressed interest in seeing the frozen wall of the flood up close, the sparkling wall looking almost like ice above the desert.

“Haldric is getting better,” Karo narrated to the crystal in her hand as she walked the platform where she had said goodbye.  “The empty is not quite as empty, and people are feeling the joy of the night’s sky.  Your hope is contagious even out here, m’love.”  Kneeling at the center of the circle she said a prayer--for those they had lost and for those they could yet save.  A smile danced across her lips as the wind whipped around her in a warm embrace, skittering off across the dunes.  Time to take to the sky once more and head to Eulmore where Alphinaud was certain to be getting a teary goodbye.  

-------------------------------------------------------K

Having said her own goodbyes to the Chai family and promised to see Alphy back in the Crystarium, she looked out onto the water from the cliff high above the city.  It wasn’t far from the place she had found G’raha napping before storming Mt. Gulg and talked about the adventure that she was now starting with him.

“It’s a shame you came here really only to berate Vauthry.  The city isn’t too bad now that they’re working on turning things around,”  The sky was clear and Karo realized she was scanning the horizon for Ardbert’s home island.  She could feel him laugh at her, knowing that it was well out of eye site range, yet tinged with a feeling of affection for thinking of him nonetheless.  Turning, pretending to be miffed at her Warrior soul, she continued to chat with Raha.  “You talked about riding the Eternal Wind here on this very cliff, and soon we shall fly across them back home.  Then the true adventure will start,” her blue-black hair was being whipped by the wind making her crystal hair tassels chime as she clung to that hope as her soul pulsed in an embrace lending her strength to carry on.  Beneath the waves she knew she had to dive before going to find Uriangier in the home of the pixies.

-------------------------------------------------------K

Waves crashing high above her head was the only sound in the depths besides her own footsteps echoing in Amaurot’s halls.  Occasionally she’d see one of his shades gliding on to one purpose or another, but she let the star-lit trees and arches light a random path as she wove the streets aimlessly.

“You didn’t get to see much of the city, did you?” rhetorical as the question was, she knew that Emet--Hades--had kept his prize locked up away from where she could have stumbled across him before she turned into the Lightwarden he thought she would.  It had been a near thing looking back, nearer than she liked admitting.  Phantom hand on her shoulder, she could feel Ardbert’s solidarity with her.  I told you I cast my lot with yours.  We’re a team, hero- the whispered voice in her soul made her smile as she held Raha’s vessel to her heart once more.  “We saved you though, Raha, and you saved me in return.  I’ll paint a picture as vivid as can be when I spin this song for you, the one I have yet to write to remember than they once lived.  We all have to remember....” and hope continued to blossom in her heart.

-------------------------------------------------------K

Flowers waltzed around the wide meadows of Il Mheg and Karo walked up the pathway to the castle.  She had the sense to know whatever it was her Elezan friend had to say, that she probably wasn’t going to be in the mood for sight-seeing after.  Instead she decided to visit her Branch and let her say goodbye to G’raha as well.  The gigantic glowing wings of the castle sparkled in the sun and the stained glass windows glowed from within even in the middle of the day.  The city below was so clear under the water it was hard to remember that it wasn’t occupied by more than fish and Fuath.  

“Thank you for introducing me to Fe Ul,” a smile broke out thinking of how innocent that first meeting was in the markets of the Crystarium.  “As much as I kept forgetting to call on them, they always had a knack of getting me out of some of the worst trouble here,” Karo’s thoughts went back to the watchtower and the suggestion to learn more of the Crystal Exarch from the people he led. “Gonna have to try and keep this quick before Uri wonders where we are.”  With a theatrical spin and hope in her voice she shouted out to her Branch calling on them once more.

-------------------------------------------------------K

She had been right to do their goodbyes in Il Mheg before talking to Uriangier and Seto.  In a daze of overwhelmed emotions she had wandered into Slitherbough, and like the magic she wielded, Y’shtola renewed her energy with her antics with Runar..  Wishing the Hrothgar good luck, Karo wandered to the swamps edge before diving in again.  The ruins at the bottom of the lake were a good distraction for her historian, and she slowly pointed them out and their meanings one by one of the old Ronkan Empire.  Excitement rejuvenated, she then took him to the Raval and took in the murals of Amaurot, Hydaelyn and Zodiark once more.

“Wish you could have heard all our shock when he dropped that piece of information on us,” her sarcastic laugh echoed through the caverns.  “I think you saw enough of it when we relayed it back to you though, we couldn’t get back to the Tower fast enough.”  With one last contemplative look at the murals, she gave a nod, hope filling her voice again.

“Alright, enough of that, back to Ahm Araeng, we need to find Thancred and Ryne.  It’s time to go home.”

-------------------------------------------------------K

The Crystarium markets were abuzz as Karo picked up the trinket she had ordered from the jeweler.  She could tell the people of the city knew something was going on with all the Scions back in town, and word about what had happened with their Exarch.  There was just enough time for her to head back to her Pendants room and imbue it with the spell she had planned.  The spell required her to sing, and so she pulled out her harp and sat down at the edge of the window and after activating the first part of the spell with a tendril of aether, started to sing.  The song was one of hope, of the man from another world who had turned this new one into his home, caring for its people and leading them towards a better tomorrow.  Singing with all her heart and soul the sun slowly drew across the sky as she continued with every song of hope and inspiration she could remember.  Out of repertoire finally, she closed the second part of the spell and picked up the glowing pendant shaped like her harp.  She packed up her bags, shouldering them and headed back to the Tower.  Sneaking around the gathering, she headed up the stairs to the platform where she left her voice enveloping the crystalline form of the one who held her heart.  Hope surrounded them both as the ache in her heart finally melted away, and she headed down to bring them all home at last.

[cerealjam]

Sapphire: Hey Lucifer what's the best thing ever

Lucifer: sexy robots?

Sapphire: sexy robots, and none can get more beautiful than mettaton the human eradication robot and entertainer

Lucifer: and hatsune miku the famous teenage vocaloid star

Sapphire: it's are job to analysis there weapons armor and skill to find out who would win a fiction beatdown

Lucifer: mettaton wasn't always a human eradication robot his orginal intention was to be an entertainment robot for the underground

Sapphire: and even then he wasn't originally that either he started off as nspstablooks cousin

Lucifer: they wanted to become corporeal meaning a ghost possesses something to get a body but was worried they'll never find the right one

Sapphire: until dr.alphys designed ther perfect body for them thus becoming the star mettaton

Lucifer: mettaton has three different robotic forms his first one his pretty basic but still has combat abilities in it

Sapphire: in his box fkrm mettaton fires unavoidable electric beams that seem to lock to the player and he can summon mini mettatins to attack the player along with moving boxes and even bombs

Lucifer: mettaton is also completely indestructible while in his box fkrm he can also fly by retracting his wheel and using the booster inside him and has a chainsaw like all robots should

Sapphire: box mettaton has a weakness the switch on his back if you can trick mettaton into turing around he'll turn into a stronger (but more vulnerable) version of himself mettaton EX

Lucifer: in this form mettaton takes on a more humanoid appearance he can now attack using his legs he can also expose his SOUL and attack by firing electric bolts from it

Sapphire: he also attacks using a disco ball using white orange and blue lasers each have different ways of avoiding them except the white ones they do damage either way

Lucifer: is true form mettaton NEO is-

Sapphire: completely useless and will not be used during this fight with miku

Lucifer: has powerful as mettaton is he's still a star and acts like so he likes drama action romance and cares deeply about his fans and ratings he also likes talking about himself and gets easily distracted at the mention of mirror claiming he needs to look his best

Sapphire: but his fans and ratings is also what makes him fight harder for more entertainment more ratings more anything he's a deadly robot now matter how good he looks

Mettaton: drama romance bloodshed!

Sapphire: from one sexy robot to the next hatsune miku is a popular vocaloid from Japan so popular that real fans go to her concerts to see her perform

Lucifer: spanning from vocaloid music videos and games miku as shown to have impressive feats in these videos like the ability to fly and has a pickaxe she used one time

Sapphire: and her voice is powerful enough to be heard throughout the galaxy and it even has dime magic to it to once restoring an intire planet back to normal

Lucifer: miku is also able to grow in size to face off agents godzilla sized monsters and even entire planet's

Sapphire: shes survived being erased and traveled from Pluto to earth in mere seconds this robot as crazy amounts of speed and durability

Lucifer: being a robot you'd think water would hurt her but your wring its been shown she can survive underwater for long periods of time this robot has no weakness

Lucifer: the closest thing she has to one is being spoiled and pampered due to how popular she is

Sapphire: alright the combatants are set it's time for a fiction beatdown!

Alphys: **playing a vocaloid game on her computer and accidentally spills her drink on it glitching the computer** oh no no no

**the computer glitch makes the computer explode bringing miku to life**

Mettaton: **rolls in** alphys are you alright I heard **sees miku** are you trying to replace me with a younger more beautiful robot

Alphys: n-no mettaton it's not-

Mettaton: the perfect idea for a show set all cameras in the underground toilet me and this new robot will fight for victory!

Miku: **looks at mettaton puzzling then getting zapped by mettaton becoming angry** ngg! Fine I'll fight you!

FIGHT!

Miku: **charges at mettaton and starts patheticly punching and kicking him**

Mettaton: oh darling you can't hurt me when I'm like this and even if you could those pathetic hits wouldn't do much anyway! **grabs a hold of miku and flys her straight through the labs walls into the hot lands dragging her through the ground then flys her over lava**

Miku: **grunting in pain hitting mettaton but it's having no effect still the she does a loud high note**

Mettaton: **covers where his ears might be** GAH! but nice cords the darling but you sealed your own

Miku: **stops herself and flys up towards mettaton smirking**

Mettaton: oh my your just fall of surprises aren't you well so am I

**a bunch of smaller mettatons grab miku**

Mettaton: now to end this! **fires an electric blast**

Miku: **shouting in pain as the mini mettatons also explode around her** grrrr! **pulls out her pickaxe and starts hacking away at mettaton**

Mettaton: **laughs standing there taking it** oh you'll never learn **pulls out his chain saw and slices straight into her shoulder**

Miku: **wines and headbuts mettaton so hard it turns him around exposing his switch and she flips**

Mettaton: did you just.... **falls from the sky and crashes hard on the ground**

Miku: **stands over him and just kicks his motion less body**

K.-

mettaton: im not knocked out yet!!! **a light shoots from the ground mettaton doing the most glamorous of poses transformed into mettaton EX** now your death will be beautiful

Miku: **gets annoyed by this and rushes in for a attack**

Mettaton: **dodges and strikes a pose** no touchy~ **starts beating down miku with a flurry of kicks and poses** is that it who knew you couldn't fight

Miku: **getting pissed off she grows in size slightly bigger than mettaton** ENOUGH!! **punches mettaton so hard part of his face breaks apar surprised he's vulnerable now**

Mettaton: I have a heart you know do you! **brings his soul out and starts shooting out electric bolts from all directions**

Miku: **skilfully dodges all of them then grabs his soul**

Mettaton: w-wait what are you doing don't-!

Miku: **crushes the soul causing Mettaton to instantly shut down then miku clenches her fist and smashes his body to pieces** whew!..... **miku does a cute pose to the camera** I win!!!

K.O.

Sapphire: i I have no words how did she that's impossible!

Lucifer: actually it's very possible miku may have little compat experience but she still has solor system level feats

Sapphire: **sigh** I guess that's true but couldn't mettaton just stay in his box fkrm and slowly take out miku

Lucifer: yes and no yes he could eventually take her but no with her crazy regenerate even surviving being deleted after what ever happened to hatsune miku she just tributes over him in many ways

Sapphire: thinking of it theres no instance in this match up to where mettaton comes out on top I mean the guy can lose to a kid

Lucifer: the winner is hatsune miku

[antarestyl]

PTA Sans: The one with Mrs. Smith

Summary: Sans is still waiting for the other shoe to drop and well... he has some interesting conversations in this.

AO3-Link

IT'S A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE!

I am sorry it took again so long. RL and writers block kinda made things very difficult but I had a few days off now and well... Christmas time always makes me nostalgic for this AU. I was to thank all of you who left Comments or gave Kudos. Thank you so much, you always gave me the motivation to return to this AU again and again.

All of you have fun with the chapter and have some wonderful holidays and a happy new year!

To be honest, Sans was a bit skeptic when things went unusually right and smooth. There were no strange after-effects from creating Azzy. Asgore and Toriel kinda coped with Azzy being around and being Azzy, Toriel kinda-sorta forgave him for lying to her, Frisk was overjoyed to have Azzy back and as something like a pseudo-sibling...

Hell, he even dunked Linda a few times again and it was GREAT. (Even with Linda being strangely more manageable these days. Guess she CAN learn after all. She still gave as good as always thou. )

Still, something inside him waited for the other shoe to drop. He waited for the humans to turn around and declare war on monster again seal them Underground. He waited for the officials to come down on Toriel's head and close her school. He waited for something to come and steal his stars or his life, for Toriel to realize that he was just a miserable bag of bones or for Papyrus to finally have enough or...

Or to wake up again in Snowdin.

He really really didn't like thinking like that. He KNEW it was a bad way of thinking, something he realized after months of therapy and something he had under control... most of the times.

It seems with everything that happened he was still a bit on the edge.

He felt it in his bones when he worked in his home office, when his fingers were a bit to tense to type quickly. He felt it when his magic seemed to ripple like waves when he wanted to do small delicate levitation work. He felt it when his magic took just a second to long to dissolve his food into magic at dinner, making him eat just a bit slower than usual.

Luckily, he was not the only one noticing these things.

So when he went to bed about three weeks after Azzy joined them for the PTA meeting, he was kinda surprised when Toriel pulled him into herself. Sans looked up and even in the dim light he saw her looking down at him with concern. It was hard to look at her expression like this.

“Uh...” Sans said, not knowing how to go from here.

“Knock knock.” said Toriel, making Sans blink more but answer just out of instinct.

“Who's there?”

“Water.”

“Water who?”

“Water you thinking in your skull, huh?”

Sans laughed a bit at that, Toriel joining in with her giggles.

“But seriously, Sans.” she said finally. “You seem a bit... distant.”

“I uh...”

“And tense.”

“What can I say, I am all bones, I am bound to be a bit... stiff.”

Toriel chuckled a bit and nuzzled him a bit. “I mean it Sans. Something is on your mind. … talk to me.”

And there they were, the three words that struck Sans more than anything. Not I love you not Let me help, no. Talk to me was the one that let his soul do a little jump. He didn't want to. Honestly.

He had to, had he?

“I... I really dunno, Tori.” Sans mumbled out, turning so he could bury his face into white soft fur. “I just... I feel...”

There was a soft paw on his head again, petting him and this shouldn't feel so nice and this shouldn't sooth him so much but it did. Toriel didn't even SAY anything but her touch and intent and the subtle touch of magic was enough.

She was worried and she wanted answers and Sans had no idea how to put it all into words.

“I just feel like... it's not over. Or it can't be over.” he mumbled. “I worked for years... and before that on something similar even longer and it never worked and now...”

“You waiting for it all to go wrong?” asked Toriel.

“Kinda? I mean... it was hard. So hard.” mumbled Sans. “And I know you and Asgore and Azzy... are still figuring stuff out. But all in all it's so... okay now?”

“Would you prefer if I was more angry?”

“No? I mean you got all right to be. With me, with Asgore, with nobody in particular...”

“Sans...” said Toriel, sighing deeply. “Listen to me?”

Sans sighed with relieve. Toriel talking meant he didn't had to talk now. He nodded and looked up into Toriel's eyes.

“I was angry.” Toriel said. “But I was angry for a very very long time. Angry and bitter. I was angry at Asgore, at the humans, at myself. I was angry even at the children that left me behind despite me warning them. I was angry at so many things, Sans. And I did things in anger I regret and ironically I judged Asgore for doing wrong things in his anger and grief too. And I was unable to let go of my grudge for a long, long time because sometimes it felt like it was the only thing that let me go on.”

Sans wanted to say something but Toriel just lifted a paw, showing him that she wasn't done.

“After the barrier fell... I was angry too. I was angry that Frisk saw Asgore as a father figure despite him trying to hurt them. I was angry that Asgore wasn't hurting MORE. I was angry that there were monster looking at Asgore with adoration, especially Undyne. I wanted to scream at all of them, wanted them to be angry and hate him just as much as I did in that moment. I wanted Frisk to not love him so much.”

Sans stared at Toriel. Sure, he had known she had a lot of issues with Asgore and that she could hold a grudge but he had never thought how deep this was going.

“But... in the end? I sat down with Asgore. We talked. A... a lot. And I came to realize that I misjudged him. That I did a lot of things wrong too and that Asgore was not the evil heartless creature I had pained in my mind. That he was suffering just like I did and just expressed it differently.” Toriel sighed. “We both got angry, we both grieved. He declared war on humanity to keep the Underground from losing hope. I took the body of our dead child and ran away and let my feelings fester. We both had to let go of this. It's not nice, it's not pretty and what happened was horrible... but we both had to accept that.”

“So... that was why you got along better suddenly?” asked Sans.

“I a way.” Toriel sighed. “It... took a lot. To let it go. But I learned a lot in that time. To not let my hurt and grief transform into the sort of dark anger like I had let myself do it before. So... when you told me about this.... about Flowey and As...Asriel... and how you had known my son was still out there, even if his soul was not there anymore... and how you told other people, Alphys and Asgore... I was hurt Sans. It hurt. Because I thought I was better now and that you would trust me with this.”

Sans looked away, soul vibrating with hurt. “I am sorry.”

“And I forgave you for that Sans.” said Toriel, gently holding his skull. “I was hurt but I forgave you because I can understand. And I honestly don't know what I would have done had you told me before. But what was done is done and we are dealing with it.” Toriel sighed softly. “Asgore and I will always have a very complicated relationship now. He hurt me and I hurt him and we forgave each other and are friends again but sometimes it still hurts. Sometimes I am jealous and sometimes I still feel that terrible dark bitterness but I know it's not fair.” She took a big breath. “It was reasonable of you to think I would not take this well. It still hurt but I didn't exactly put much confidence into you that I was able to handle it. And believe me, even now the whole thing is by far not as... okay now as you seem to think. But it is more okay than you seem to fear.”

Part of Sans was relieved. A big part of him even. As strange as it sounded, Sans was just happy that he wasn't the only one still mentally reeling from this.

“Are you still angry with me?” he asked.

“No.” Said Toriel. “I forgave you. I was angry, I worked through it. Things are... different now. With me and Asgore and Azzy and I still have to think about a lot of what happened in all these years since this horrible day. But I am not angry with you, Sans. We talked things out already and things will get only better from here.

Big fuzzy paws were now petting him more, cuddling him into Toriel's body and surrounding him with warmth. He felt himself relaxing more and more because darn this felt nice and he wanted to stay like this forever.

“So relax, my dear.” said Toriel. “Things won't just break apart.”

And in that moment, Sans believed her.

For some reason, Sans never really met with Mrs. Smith. He heard of her and saw her once or twice in the school but she never had talked to him.

From what Mettaton and Papyrus had told him, he kinda didn't want to anyway. It was still strange and Sans really didn't know if he should see it as a blessing or a curse.

Well if even Linda was freaked out, something had to be wrong about her... on the other hand, Linda gets freaked out at a ton of things that Sans considered as only shoulder-shrug-material. (Heh, get dunked on Linda!)

Anyway, he had heard of her, he had seen her once or twice walking through the school but he never actually talked to her. So he was kinda surprised when she suddenly walked up to him while he was waiting at Toriel's office, small brown lunch-bag in his hand. He had felt like grabbing some coffee and chat with Toriel if possible but when he heard the small cough behind him any thought of coffee and chatter went out of his head.

Something was wrong with Mrs. Smith and Sans had no clue what. She looked like a human, yeah. But... just... off.

The feeling was back. The feeling of wrongness was back in full force and it took almost everything in Sans to not let his bones rattle in absolute basic terror.

“Mister... Sans.” She said and Sans cringed again.

“Just Sans is alright.”

“It is nice to finally meet you. Until now you always seemed... indisposed.”

Sans made a face at that. Because... yeah... big can of worms. Very big can of worms.

“Uh... yeah.” said Sans, laughing uneasily as he tried to put his best unassuming smile on his face. Mrs. Smith didn't seem impressed. “So you wanna talk right here or....?”

“I think one of the unused classrooms will be appropriate.” she said smoothly and that was how Sans ended up in an empty classroom, sitting more or less uncomfortable on one of the chairs with Mrs. Smith right across him staring at him, clipboard and pen in hand.

“So. What do you wanna know?”

“First of all, I was told you are one of the guardians of the child called Frisk?”

“Uh... yeah, their mom and I are married.”

“And you are an active member of the Parent-Teacher-Association?”

Sans blinked at that. He never considered himself an active anything. Mrs. Smith was still staring at him and after a few seconds took to writing down something on her clipboard.

“I guess?” Sans said unsure, trying to sound casual.

“How would you describe your experiences at the school?” And that gaze was back on him. Sans tried to not look away.

“Well... it is different than my school back in the Underground.” said Sans easily.

It wasn't a lie. Nobody had to know that he never really visited a normal school. To be honest Sans was well past ready to lay his entire past to rest now. Nothing to see here, just a normal skeleton monster, totally boring, not-at-all interesting past, assume just the standard thing, okay? Okay.

“I see... in what sense?”

“Well... there are humans here? And... things are just different?”

Mrs. Smith wrote something down again and the looked at him again. Sans noticed that he hadn't seen her blink since they sat down. Humans usually did that right?

“You also filled in as a substitute teacher a few times?” She asked.

“Yeah, for science.”

It was super awkward but also kinda fun to mess around with the kids he had to admit but he gladly left the job to people who actually had the qualifications for that. Toriel only approached him as a last resort.

“What are your qualifications for that?”

“Uh... I have several doctorates and I worked with kids some times in the Underground.”

“What kind of work?”

“Babysitting.”

Again not a lie... he did babysitting, he kinda raised Papyrus and he did entertain and look after kids that came to Grillby's, simply because kids like his jokes.

Mrs. Smith was writing something again. Something about that made Sans more and more nervous.

Finally she looked at him again, eyes settling directly onto his.

“Would you say the school is a success?”

What kind of questions were these?

“I would say so.” Said Sans slowly. “I mean... we have monster and humans learning together and from each other. Understanding for each other and all that. Also Toriel does run the school very well, she is a great teacher and knows exactly what to do to make learning fun for the kids. Even the kids from parents that don't like monster seem to get along very well with the monster.”

Even Billy seemed to be... strangely okay. Frisk had turned him down politely when he finally managed to state his intentions to hold hands properly but they remained friends and Sans had seen him hanging out with Monster Kid more and more now.

“I mean... even I learn something new about humans and human culture every day.” added Sans softly, thinking of the last months. “And I kinda hope that the humans learn something about us too.”

Mrs. Smith nodded slowly and wrote something down again, this time more than before. Her pen moved for a whole minute before she looked up at Sans.

“And do you believe in this? Do you believe that humans and monster can change?” she finally asked, eyes boring into Sans as if she was trying to look at his soul. “Do you believe everybody can change?”

Something was wrong. Off. Something of that wording...

Was it just the lighting or... was there a glint in Mrs. Smith's eyes? And why did it feel like Sans's very soul was getting heavier? Why was he so afraid of this human? There was no reason to, she was just a normal human, she wasn't even aggressive towards him!

“I...”, started Sans, unsure what to say but willing himself to form words, any words. “I think so?”

Lots of people changed after all. Asgore and Toriel, Alphys, Undyne. Even Papyrus changed. Heck, he could argue that Linda changed. Frisk changed. He himself had changed. Heck, even Flowey... Asriel... Azzy was as changed as a monster ever could change with his new soul.

Sans had a long time to come with terms with that. Really. He had to come to terms with Flowey being the lost prince and with Flowey changing and wanting to be different and becoming Azzy...

It still didn't really delete what he had done, soulless or not. It still didn't change that Sans was hurt, so so hurt. It didn't change that his friends were hurt, over and over, that the Underground was the playground for a being too powerful for a single being and unable to feel any remorse or empathy towards it's playthings.

 It didn't change that Azzy was Flowey and Flowey was Asriel but also that they were each a different being with different mistakes.

 It didn't change that Sans still had to go through hell, through therapy and through nightmares and tears and panic attacks. It didn't change that he was broken by resets and loads and being helpless to change anything on his own. It didn't change that some scars probably will never really truly heal.

“You think so?” asked Mrs. Smith again.

Still, things had changed, right? Azzy was making an effort. So Sans could too.

“I mean... people do change.” said Sans slowly, trying to keep the unease out of his voice. “We learn new stuff about others and ourselves each day... and that can be used to chance. How we act, what we say and do around other people, our opinions on certain topics... it all can change over time.”

“So you say knowledge is the base of change?”

“... in a way? I guess?”

Was it knowledge? Did knowledge change Flowey to Azzy? Sans was not that sure about it... Flowey had told him that he did most of the things he did simply because he wanted to know what would happen.

He was bored and soulless and way way to powerful. What did made him change?

Frisk.

Kindness and mercy and a different view on things and an offer to help and a whole mountain of determination in a small human being that somehow had the power to make people listen to them, really really listen to them.

Sans fell in love with the human, loved them like his own child. Maybe it was a similar kind of love that made Flowey want to finally change.

Or maybe he really just... got the knowledge about how far gone he truly was and finally got the knowledge that instead of wallowing in it, he could indeed change.

That there was even the option of change.

“... interesting.” Said Mr. Smith before Sans could voice his thoughts and somehow, it seemed like it was supposed to be the final say in that matter.

There was a silence stretching between the two of them and Sans tried not to shiver. He didn't like the way she said this word. Luckily for him she seemed satisfied with him because she started to pack up her clipboard and pen and got her purse before standing up.

“I thank you for your time. This was a very... enlightening interview.” Mrs. Smith said and Sans blinked a bit at the sudden change of mood as she left the room.

“Uh... thanks... bye...?” he said weakly, long after she was gone.

What the heck just happened?

Sans was still a bit shaken when he came home. Toriel would pick up Frisk from soccer practice today and Papyrus was helping Undyne with the training still, so the house was silent when Sans let himself fall on the couch, face down into a pillow.

This was just all... weird. Especially his own reaction to Mrs. Smith.

It didn't made sense. Sans was sure he had never seen this human before. Why did he had such an reaction to them?

Why do they even seem so strange to him?

Questions he just couldn't answer. They seemed normal. The questions were a bit odd but nothing to bad.

The phone appeared almost on its own in his hand. A number was called quickly and only after the second ring did Sans really think about what to even say.

“... Sans...?”

“Hey Grills.”

“... are you alright?”

Classic Grillby, always right to the point. Sans took a deep breath.

“Yeah I am fine... just uh... wanted to talk.”

“You usually text, Sans.”

Damnit.

“Hehe... yeah...”

“So?”

“... do you think people can change?”

There was silence on the phone for a while, only the soft crackle of Grillby's flames could be heard.

“Philosophy?”

“Na, just... a conversation I had today.”

“... I see...” There was again a stretch of silence before Grillby spoke again. “I believe in change. Not completely however. I believe the very core of a person can't be changed.... but they can change their outlook, their believes, their approach to life and their behavior. I do believe a person that acted bad can do good and I believe a good person can change to somebody doing bad things. I believe every being has potential to be good or bad or anything in between and the potential to change... but also that not every person wants this change. And that some very fundamental things of ones being can't be changed, no matter what.”

“... that is a very... uh.. two sided theory, Grills.” Mumbled Sans. “But... what if there was something changed? Like... a soul?”

“... ah. You are thinking of Azzy and Flowey...”

“... and Asriel. I mean, I never knew him before Flowey. But... there are texts everywhere about him and Toriel sometimes talks about him and he sounds like the sweetest child... and then there is Flowey who was just... completely devoid of any morals. And now Azzy. It's just hard to wrap my heard around it. Has he really changed? Or was there always Flowey in Asriel and Azzy in Flowey?”

Grillby again was silent for a bit and Sans noticed that his breathing had speed up and willed himself to calmness.

“Asriel was a sweet soul.” Grillby said slowly. “Flowey had no soul. Asriel's soul shattered when he was wounded by humans and brought back his sibling to the Underground. And Azzy... Azzy is a new soul giving live by the King's love and magic. I don't think it's true change because it's not the person who changed but... a new person was created. First Asriel died and Flowey was born from his memories. And then Flowey gave up himself to give his memories to a newborn soul which became Azzy. I am not saying that they are completely separate people but... Asriel died and what was left became Flowey and Flowey gained a new soul which made him into something new again. Asriel and Flowey don't exist anymore.”

“... what about what Flowey did?” Asked Sans quietly. “Should I... get over myself? Should I just be okay with it? With him?”

“... no.” said Grillby. “... you were still hurt. And the one who did it was Flowey and Azzy has Floweys memories and all the concequences that come from that. He is not to be punished for his deeds but... you don't have to forgive and you don't have to forget, Sans. You were hurt, you are allowed to be upset.”

“I just feel bad no matter what.” mumbled Sans. “I mean... he is basically a child... He IS a child...”

“He still has memories reaching longer than your own, maybe longer than mine considering he lived through loop after loop after loop.” said Grillby. “But I agree, his mental age was stuck and stagnant in the stage of a child. And now he isn't anymore. He has to accept responsibility and consequences of action just like you and me. Including your unease around him.”

“... thanks Grillby.” said Sans quietly, not knowing what to say anymore.

“... Sans, do you want me to come over?”

“No... no, Tori and the kid will be home soon... but thanks.. I might uh... come over one of these days again.”

“Alright.” Grillby said gently. “Don't hesitate to call me any time again. There are many people that care about you. Myself included. And I am willing to help whenever you let me.”

“I know.”

“Have a nice evening, my friend...”

“You too... uh... and say hi to the others from me.”

“I will.” chuckled Grillby, some mumbling in the background indicating that he was no longer alone.

Sans was thinking about Grillby's words still when his family returned. He smiled and greeted them, ate dinner with them, helped Frisk with their homework, made puns and played around with Papyrus. And later, when it was just him and Toriel she took him in her arms and he cuddled into her soft fur and let himself relax.

There were still problems to be solved, things for him to understand. There was still the pressure of the knowledge that things are continuing.

Things keep changing. Some of them good, some of them bad.

But for the moment, Sans decided to care about all of that in the morning. There are people out there who care about him, his family and friends.

His soul was filled with love.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the void there was something and the something became somebody.

 I am.

 I am.

 I need to go home.

A lost soul was formed and wanted to be found. The void was not the void if there was something or somebody. So the void stopped being the void around the person.

And a person, a lost soul found, fell back into the world, back into existence and time and space. There was a gasp and a small groan and maybe a muffled curse as they fell face-first into mud.

The void was the void again, the lost soul back where it belonged.

Wingding Gaster sat up from where he landed and looked around, rubbing his skull, his soul pulsing with a steady hum of life.

Time to go home.

[yastaghr]

Grey 16 - Torture and Rape Aftermath

Stretch prepares to enact his plan on Spike and TNT. Blue re-meets Felldyne and helps Scales recover from being raped.

WARNINGS: Implied/Referenced Torture, Past Rape, Rape Aftermath, Forced Pregnancy, Death Threats

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16555439/chapters/59168641

Getting ahold of his targets was surprisingly easy. It was like neither Spike nor TNT had ever faced a serious threat. Stretch let himself laugh when he finally had them tied down in the empty shed he knew would be hiding in the depths of Waterfall. It had plenty of holes in it, so Temmie would easily be able to watch. Stretch suspected that he had seen them through one of the lower holes on the east wall. “nyeh heh heh heh! wow, did you seriously think that i needed help with a surprise for berry? you really are idiots.”

Spike growled and TNT grunted. He hadn’t gagged either of them because he wanted to hear them scream. it had been so long since blue had screamed. now he usually whimpered, which wasn’t nearly as satisfying. The other advantage of not gagging TNT and Spike was that he could have some fun with bantering. Stretch wasn’t really a monologuer. He was definitely more of a banterer.

“What the fuck do you think you are doing? Don’t you know who we are, stranger?” Spike spat. She looked a lot like the Captain Alphys of his world, only she had a sci fi inspired pair of glasses that formed one long arc around her skull. They had slots in them, but they were probably far sturdier than a pair of glasses. Maybe that was the point. They looked ridiculous.

Stretch let a crazed grin slide across his skull. “oh, i know. you are the captain of the royal guard in this world, and she is the royal scientist of this world. you’re also encroaching on my territory by claiming to be the datemates of berry. i don’t like that.”

They both recoiled as much as they could with their being tied down. “I’m sorry, what did you just say?!” TNT said, outraged. She was taller than Stretch and looked similar to the Dr. Undyne of his world, only her eyes were very noticeably two different sizes.

Stretch hissed, “you are claiming to be the datemates of berry and i don’t like it.”

“We’ve been dating Berry for years now, and Berry says that you just got here a week ago. You don’t get to decide who gets to date him, freak,” Spike growled.

Stretch laughed in a way that sounded way more unhinged than he thought he was, but the effect that it had on Spike and TNT was worth it. They looked deeply perturbed and, for the first time, scared. “oh, i’m not the freak here, spike. you are. and i’m going to make you look like it.” The two girls struggled against the bonds, but they were thoroughly tied down to the heavy oak tables that he had dragged in for this exact purpose. Neither of them could move. “now, which one of you wants to lose your fingers first?”

=====

Blue tried not to let Red’s surprise at how eager he was to see Felldyne get to him. He was excited to see her again! She had been so nice to him last time. That Edge and Red had been so reluctant to take him really was touching, but he knew he would be fine. He didn’t like hiding or lying to people. Even if she decided to hurt him, he had a lot of practice dealing with pain.

As they came into the clearing by Felldyne’s house Blue saw her. Felldyne was leaning on the Mad Dummy. Her expression was… arch. “Oh, so you decided to confide in me about this after all, best friend. How nice of you.”

Edge sighed. “IT WAS HIS IDEA, ACTUALLY. DON’T ASK ME WHY.”

Blue stepped forward with a bright smile on his face and held out his hand. “HI! I’M BLUE! I LOVE YOUR ARMOR. IT’S VERY… SHARP!”

Felldyne stared at him like he was from another planet. That was okay with Blue, though. He was used to it. Her stare went on for a while before she laughed. “You’re alright, kid. A bit too cheerful, but bold as they come. I like that. You’re welcome to hang out with me anytime. I could use a bit of brightness in my life.”

Blue couldn’t help but widen his smile. “THEN I’LL BRING IT!”

She said thoughtfully, “You should come to my training sessions with Edge. I don’t want to find out that someone sliced up that smile into little pieces. You should know how to fight.”

Red butted in before Blue could accept. “he says he’s a healer, ‘dyne, and you should have seen him. he sedated the whole rabbit gang and the dog squad all in one go! if that isn’t impressive i don’t know what is.”

Felldyne froze, staring at him like he was the answer to all her problems. Blue shifted uncomfortably and said, “I HAVE THE TRAINING TO BE A HEALER AND A DOCTOR, BUT I DON’T HAVE A LICENSE. MY QUEEN DIDN’T LIKE SOME THINGS I DID IN THE PAST. THEY HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH MY SKILLS AS A HEALER, BUT SHE STILL REFUSED TO SIGN MY LICENSE. I-”

“I don’t care what you did. I need a healer desperately, and all of the ones here are booked solid. Please help me!” Felldyne pleaded.

Blue felt hugely guilty, but not because he was going to refuse. No, he felt guilty that he hadn’t said anything last time. Felldyne needed him. He felt like he had let her down. He couldn’t change the past… future… other timeline? He couldn’t change it, whatever it was. He could only do his best to help her now. “I’LL DO EVERYTHING I CAN, FELLDYNE. WHAT DO YOU NEED HELP WITH?”

Felldyne shifted nervously from foot to foot. Interesting. “It’s Scales, my girlfriend. She’s pregnant and needs medical care pretty bad, nerd. I’ve done my best, but… I’ll tell you when we get there, okay?”

Blue nodded quickly. “I UNDERSTAND. YOU WANT A LITTLE PRIVACY, RIGHT? JUST LEAD ME TO HER AND I’LL HELP.”

=====

Blue stared at the tormented face of Scales. She was clearly in a great deal of pain, and so the first thing he did was draw a sigil for pain relief over her to help with that. Then he took a closer look at the rest of her. She looked a lot like his friend Alphys, except without all the muscles and with two somewhat functional eyes. Glasses with swirls were worn over a torn and bloodied lab coat. Blue could see raw flesh beneath the tears. It didn’t seem to be actively bleeding anymore, though. He’d still like to put a few stitches in them. They were quite big. The tears weren’t the worst part, though. Scales seemed to be bleeding from under her lab coat. When he looked, the summoned magic was raw and also had… a certain white substance that he recognized intimately.

Combined with everything else, Blue had a theory as to what had happened, but he didn’t want to out and out say it, so he instead said what he thought was a safe topic. It wasn’t. “YOUR BABY SHOULD BE FINE, MS. SCALES. YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY TELL THE OTHER PARENT WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU.”

All four of the other monsters growled. Red and Edge had insisted on coming in as well, and Scales hadn’t wanted them to leave. It was a little intimidating to be surrounded by growls, but not nearly as intimidating as it would have been if one of them was his brother.

“fuck it, you deserve to know. that bastard certainly already knows. he’s the one who raped her!” Red said darkly.

“OH,” Blue swallowed. He really didn’t like the implications of that answer, but he could help no matter what. “THEN I WOULD TRY NOT TO TELL HIM. RAPISTS DO NOT REACT IN A GOOD WAY TO BEING TOLD THAT. I KNOW THAT PERSONALLY. I DON’T THINK IT WOULD BE SAFE TO LOSE THE BABY AT THIS MOMENT, BUT IN A WEEK OR TWO, YES. RIGHT NOW THE BLOOD LOSS WOULD BE TOO MUCH. I CAN HELP WHEN YOU’RE READY. IT REALLY IS SAFE AT THIS STAGE, AND THE BABY HASN’T DEVELOPED A SOUL YET, JUST A BUNDLE OF MAGIC. I’VE HAD TO LOSE THEM MUCH LATER.”

“She can’t lose it,” Felldyne said darkly, “He said he’d kill her if she-”

“Wait!” Scales yelled, sitting up, “You’ve had to lose babies from rape at a much later date in the pregnancy?”

Blue blinked and nodded glumly. “I WAS A CUTE KID, AND LEGALLY, BACK HOME, THE CRIME IS THE FAULT OF THE VICTIM FOR NOT TAKING ADEQUATE PRECAUTIONS. THE FIRST TIME I WAS IN TOO MUCH DANGER OF BLEEDING OUT UNTIL I WAS SIX MONTHS IN BECAUSE OF HOW BADLY I WAS HURT. I WAS ONLY SIX.”

The room went absolutely silent. Everyone was staring at him. He could feel them judging him, but it wouldn’t be the first time. He sighed. Maybe they would all hate him now. He hoped that they would still let him help Scales. She didn’t deserve to suffer just because he’d been gullible as a child. Maybe-

Blue, scaly arms swept him up in a hug. They were quickly joined by two sets of bony ones. He squeaked, “A HUG? WHAT-”

“Oh shut up and let them hug you!” Scales said from her reluctant place on the bed. “If you hadn’t strapped me down to this bed I would be hugging you too. They hugged me when they found out what happened to me! What else besides a hug were you expecting after a statement like that?”

Blue gulped. “IF YOU WANT ME TO SHUT UP, HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO ANSWER YOU?”

Scales narrowed her eyes at him. “You really mean that, don’t you? You’re not trying to be smart at all. Just answer the question. I’d rather know that than have you be quiet by a long ways.”

“UM… I WAS EXPECTING YOU TO HATE ME? THAT’S WHAT EVERYONE BACK HOME WHO KNOWS HAS DONE. IT’S BEEN 17 YEARS SINCE ANYONE’S HUGGED ME BECAUSE I GOT RAPED,” Blue said honestly.

Red’s skull snapped down to face him from where it had been resting on top of his skull. “what about your brother? didn’t he hug you?”

“I WASN’T RAPED WHILE HE AND I WERE… TOGETHER. BEFORE THAT, HE WOULD GET MAD,” Blue said. Mentally he added ‘at me’, but he didn’t say it out loud. He’d already shared so much personal stuff today, and he really didn’t want them to realise how gross he was yet. He wanted to have some friends for a little bit, at least. If he told them that his own brother had been mad at him he was sure that they either would agree with Stretch or not believe him. That was what had happened in the past.

Edge looked at him sympathetically. “I UNDERSTAND. I KNOW I GET MAD WHEN I FIND OUT SOMEBODY HAS BEEN RAPED. I JUST KNOW THAT THERE’S VERY LITTLE POINT IN SHOWING IT, AT LEAST WHERE FELLGORE IS CONCERNED.”

Blue’s eye lights blew out wide. He squeaked, “YOUR KING? YOUR KING IS THE ONE WHO DID THIS?”

All of the others nodded. Felldyne eventually said, “He’s the only one who could get away with it, Blue. The Queen made the laws about the Big Four back before their children died, and long before she did. The King made the rule after he’d killed her that he was exempt from them.”

Blue let out a huff and stomped his foot. “THAT’S… THAT’S SO UNFAIR! WHY DO THE ROYALS ALWAYS TREAT THEIR PEOPLE LIKE PUPPETS? THEY ACT LIKE WE AREN’T REAL, AND THEY ARE, AND IT’S REALLY UNFAIR! I WISH I COULD DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT, BUT I’M SO WEAK I’D BE DUSTED IN AN INSTANT. IT’S JUST… SO UNFAIR!”

He couldn’t read the expressions that passed between the other four, but they didn’t leave him in the dark for long. “What if you could, Blue? Would you really help?” Felldyne asked appraisingly.

“OF COURSE I WOULD!” Blue said firmly. “I PROMISED MY DAD THAT I WOULD DO ANYTHING I COULD TO HELP PEOPLE!”

More expressions passed. Then, slowly, Scales said, “I think we might be able to do it. But we can’t talk about it up here. Blue, come unstrap me. Felldyne, come carry me down to the basement. I’ll be safer down there anyway. I think I have a plan.”

[sheewolf85]

The Best Daddy

NOTES: For @keelywolfe, who tweeted an absolutely precious idea about Edge defending Stretch when someone doubts his ability to be a good dad. I don’t even know what AU this is. It’s a thing, and it happened, and I love it. I hope you do, too. 

Just FYI, Cyperus is a genus of grass-like flowering plants called sedges. Papyrus is one species of Cyperus. I got a kick out of Stretch suggesting not a font, but a plant based around the one they’re all named after. Edge would snicker, but it’s actually cute as a name! (I think, anyway! :D)

Also, I have no idea which of the fathers carried the baby or what the birth was like. I’ll leave that to your imaginations to decide.

Read it here

or after the cut!

Edge was at work when he got the text from Stretch that they were out of a few essentials like milk and that good bread with all the seeds in it.

Edge frowned at the message; he’d taken an inventory that weekend and they should have had plenty to last them a few more days at least. Regardless, Stretch could, and often would, eat a little more when he was stressed.

Instead of questioning where the food went, Edge simply replied that he would stop by the market on the way home to get some more.

After receiving a reply that he was a lifesaver, Edge smiled to himself and opened up the secret folder on his computer desktop, the one that held the pictures of his husband and their new baby.

Cyperus was already two months old, and Edge had pictures as recent as the day before all the way back to the day he was born. Edge himself was getting much better at playing photographer, and Stretch never seemed to put the camera down in case the baby did something cute.

Which was all the time. They had made an adorable baby.

Cyperus’ teeth were rounded, a compromise between Edge’s sharpened points and Stretch’s flattened ones. His magic was a truly mesmerizing coral, a mix of Edge’s own crimson and Stretch’s pale orange.

He smiled as he went through the pictures,

In one, Cyperus was dressed up in the ridiculous yet somehow endearing anime footed pajamas Alphys had made for him. The ensemble had a hood with an absolutely preposterous amount of yellow hair that stood straight up in arranged felt spikes.

Another was the three of them laying on the bed, Cyperus between the two fathers with large, bright eye lights. He had one foot out and pressed into Edge’s sternum while the other was held between his hands with toes in his mouth. Stretch was smiling at the camera while Edge was laughing, his attention on their baby.

A knock on the door interrupted his indulgence, and he forced himself to close the folder and get back to work.

--------------------

At the market, Edge had a list of things Stretch wanted him to get. As he moved along the aisles, it became clear very quickly that he was being followed.

The group following him wasn’t too alarming in themselves. Four or five monsters, all of them fairly young. The oldest couldn’t have been more than twenty.

He heard them whispering, and it wasn’t difficult to catch the words they thought they could conceal. They mumbled about Edge being the one with the new baby, and how they’d seen a picture on Stretch’s Instagram earlier that week.

“He’s a cute kid, right?” one of them whispered.

Edge smiled. Yes, his baby was incredibly cute.

The others seemed to agree with that.

“Yeah, and imagine how spoiled that kid is gonna be. You’ve had his cooking before.”

Edge didn’t care too much about them following him if all they were going to do was compliment him and gush about his child.

When their topic of conversation shifted to Stretch, Edge had foolishly thought they would continue in the same vein. He was wrong.

“Yeah, but can you imagine having Stretch as your other dad?” one of them asked.

Edge smiled again, expecting some fond daydreams about science experiments or helping to care for chickens. What he got instead was like a bucket of ice water poured directly onto his soul.

The others all shuddered simultaneously.

“Dude, that kid is gonna be lucky to survive the first year.”

What the fuck did that even mean?

Edge turned then, unwilling to hear them talk about his husband potentially abusing their child.

“Can I help you?” He asked, trying to remain calm.

All four of them stopped in their tracks and looked up at him with wide, startled eyes.

“Uh…” one of them managed to utter.

“I’m not stupid,” Edge started. “Nor am I blind and deaf to my surroundings. I know you’ve been following me and talking about my child. I’m not sure I want to know what you mean by your last sentiment about my husband, but if there’s something you’d like to say, now is the time.”

Edge waited, trying to steel himself for anything these monsters could come up with. Finally, one stepped forward.

“Well, aren’t you worried? I mean, you leave for work all day and nobody but Stretch is there with the baby.”

Edge raised a brow. “And…?”

Another stepped up.  “We just mean...aren’t you worried he’s just gonna sleep all day or leave the baby somewhere and go smoke or something? He’s so...lazy.”

For the first time in a very long time, Edge could honestly say he saw red. Deep in his soul, LV stirred and told him to slam these idiots again the nearest wall and show them what it meant to talk bad about his husband.

“Lazy?” He blurted, that one word filled with enough anger to make all four monsters take a step back.

“Stretch is no more lazy than any of you are bright. Yes, I work all day, which leaves him there to care for our child by himself. He bathes him, gets up at three in the fucking morning when the baby cries because I have to work, and feeds and clothes him all day long. If you could see how happy Cyperus is, you’d know how desperately wrong you are.

“Stretch is an amazing father; he not only watches after our child but also does housework while I’m gone. He deserves a fucking award for the shit he does for both me and our baby.”

He turned then and walked away, breathing deeply to let it go. It wasn’t worth it. He had a husband and a child to get home to.

--------------------

Stretch knew something had happened when Edge walked in the door. He held Cyperus on the couch, bouncing him lightly on his knee.

“hey babe,” he said happily.

Edge nodded and set down his briefcase, stripped off his suit jacket and hung it haphazardly over the chair at the desk, the stalked forward to sit next to Stretch.

Stretch squawked in surprise as both he and the baby were pulled into Edge’s lap.

Cyperus squirmed and squealed in delight, his little arms reaching out and waving around like he was trying to physically reach for more fun.

Edge kissed side of Stretch’s skull and gave the baby his gloved fingers to grip onto.

“How are my boys?” He asked softly.

“we’re good. are you? where are the groceries? do you need help carrying them in?”

Edge sighed and shook his head. “No, you do plenty for me already. You know that, don't you? I love you so much and appreciate everything you do. You’re such a great husband and an even better daddy.”

Stretch squirmed a little, careful to position Cyperus comfortably, and looked up at Edge.

“yeah, i know. what brought this on?”

Edge shook his head. “Stupid people at the market. I love you, so much, and I just need you to know that.”

Stretch didn’t push it. He knew how stupid people could be. They’d been stupid even before he and Edge decided to have a baby. Now it seemed like that stupid just amplified a million times. Sometimes it seemed like everyone had to be up in their business about shit that didn’t concern them.

“i love you too. and so does cyperus.”

The baby was currently chewing on Edge’s glove, and both dads let out a coo when he opened his sockets wide to look at them both.

“I will never understand how I got so lucky,” Edge said softly.

Stretch reached up to kiss his jaw. “i think we all know i’m the lucky one here.”

Edge smiled and gave his husband a proper kiss. “We both are.”

After another moment, Stretch squirmed. “for real, though, is there milk going bad in the trunk?”

Edge stifled a laugh and nodded. “Yes. Would you and Little One like to come help?”

Stretch carried the baby out and ended up only carrying one bag to Edge’s six, but soon the groceries were all in and put away.