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it-refused · 7 years

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Working Title: Forward, Back (10/?)

Summary: Knowing what’s going to happen doesn’t mean Sans can stop it. Maybe he could’ve put it off forever. Sans decides to go.

Rating: T

Part Summary: Undyne takes a call, there’s breakfast, and Frisk heads out.

>>First Part<<

C/N: Mental Illness

Sans could hear Undyne talking loudly on the phone in the living room. Papyrus was rushing around the kitchen, trying to get food together for all his guests. He looked happy.

"You were ill so recently--please, Papyrus, allow me to lend you a hand," Toriel said.

"I AM COMPLETELY FINE NOW," Papyrus said.

"eh, she'd make any excuse to help out," Sans said.

"WELL, IF MY ILLNESS WAS JUST AN EXCUSE TO FULFILL YOUR DREAM OF HELPING ME IN MY PREPARATIONS, I DO NOT SUPPOSE IT WOULD BE RIGHT TO DENY YOU," Papyrus said.

"Thank you, Papyrus."

Frisk had been inside before they went to drag Sans and Toriel in with them. They'd already reassured themself that Papyrus was fine, but they were still inclined to stay in the kitchen with him. They peered into the large pot on the stove, curious what Papyrus was making.

"How much? I don't know, just estimate it!" Undyne's voice carried from the other room. "Wow. Ok, that's a lot of puke, but we've seen more from that little vomit-cannon! They're just letting you know they're worried 'cause I'm not there!" She was quiet, for a few seconds. "He'd run over in a second if you asked."

Grillby opened the kitchen door and joined the crowd. He was burning low, clearly still exhausted.

From the other room: "That's really sneaky! Alphys, you're brilliant!"

"Grillby, greetings," Toriel said. "It has been several weeks, has it not? Are you here to lend us your aid?"

It was too much conversation for Grillby, so soon after waking up. He stared at her while her words sunk in. "...yes?" he tried.

"of course he's helping out. aw. everyone's making breakfast for me. this is great," Sans said.

"You and Frisk can set the table, or you can leave the kitchen," Toriel said.

Frisk started getting out silverware, and Sans went into the living room. Undyne was making smooching noises at her phone, so Sans realized he'd made the wrong choice. He settled down on the couch anyway. He put his feet up on the coffee table. Now that the excitement was over, he felt all that extra energy draining out of him. He wanted a quick nap before he was woken up for breakfast.

Undyne sit heavily on the couch next to him. She sighed, loudly. "She's so great."

"yeah," Sans said.

"I told her to call Asgore over if it was getting tough, and she said she'd call him over for tea. There's no way he won't volunteer to babysit. She won't even have to ask!"

"smart." Well, it was a way of avoiding asking, anyway.

"Right! I kind of put this on her out of nowhere. Maybe she's right and five's enough, since it's getting kind of tough to watch 'em alone."

Five? "congrats."

"Don't tell anyone yet! I want to surprise your brother next time he visits."

"got it." Sans slid down a little more.

"He really freaked all of us out. I'm really proud of him for defending everyone! But...holy shit, if anything had happened to him..." She trailed off.

Sans risked a look. She was shaking with anger, staring straight forward.

"that woulda sucked," Sans said, shrugging. "but it didn't."

"That human still needs to get their ass kicked."

He couldn't disagree with that.

"A 100% non-fatal ass kicking!"

"right." Papyrus wouldn't want anything else.

"NGHAAAAA! Now that the brat's here, they'll get pissed if I try it. I'd be really gentle! It'd be more like a loving caress! Just softly toss 'em into a brick wall!"

"heh. draw little happy faces on your spears."

"Perfect! They'll be GRATEFUL! Or they'll SAY they are, when they're CRYING and telling me how they're never hurting anyone ever again!"

Sans didn't regret missing his nap, anymore. "the kiddo's probably right, though."

"Yeah. But I've got to punch SOMETHING before I go home."

Sans moved a little bit away from her.

"Not you! You're too flimsy. It'd be like punching a pillow. Not satisfying at all!"

"thanks."

Sans managed to get a nap in while she went down through a list of different things that could stand to be punched.

The number of people visiting made it feel almost like Gyftmas. Sans was happy for Papyrus. He had to see how important he was. They'd probably be dealing with visitors from all over for the next couple weeks.

Tori set a platter of waffles on the table. Yeah, like Gyftmas, except not one of the good ones. One of the ones where the air was stuffed thick with anxiety. Sans could see the worry on everyone's faces, and in the uncomfortable ways they carried themselves.

Sans wasn't sure what Frisk's plan was, or what Undyne was going to end up doing. Things could go wrong very quickly.

Sans took his seat at the table and yawned.

"I do hope we are not interrupting your nap by bringing you food," Toriel said, laughing.

"man, tori. you guys are rude." He rested his head on the table, and Frisk sat down next to him and tried to balance a plate on his skull.

"The longer we sit around, the more time that messed up human punk has to get away!" Undyne said. She didn't act so rushed she was going to skip breakfast, though. She sat down with them.

"ANYTHING WE ATTEMPT WILL BE MORE SUCCESSFUL AFTER BREAKING OUR FASTS ON THIS DELICIOUS MEAL," Papyrus said.

"You aren't doing anything!" Undyne said, sharp, and then pulled back. She gave Papyrus a reassuring smile. "You still have to recover, right? Your doctor will kick my butt if they find out I let you go."

Frisk said they wanted to see if they could figure it out themselves, first. Undyne had gotten a good description of the human out of Papyrus by getting him to brag about the fight, and from what they had heard, they thought they might be a kid.

"Someone needs to speak with that child's parents," Toriel said.

Sans closed his eyes, listening, but not wanting to engage. Shouldn't other humans be going with Frisk? They weren't technically a kid anymore, but they were still very young. All of this was happening too quick. Sans didn't think Frisk was actually there in any official capacity, despite their fancy clothes.

He sure didn't like this. Humans were pretty good at killing other humans. What if something happened to Frisk? It was a pretty old worry, but the situation felt like the time he’d knocked a broken bone right when it was almost done healing.

Thinking it over, Tori was acting pretty strange, too. She wasn't happy about whatever Frisk was up to. Sans didn't think she would have run out to visit so fast herself once she was reassured that Papyrus was okay. She would have stopped by, but she wouldn't usually just drop her responsibilities.

"I TRUST YOU WILL BE CAREFUL, FRISK," Papyrus said. He sounded more and more like a mom every day.

Frisk nodded. They said that they knew what they were doing. They weren't going to kill anyone, and they weren't going to be killed. Their confidence reassured everyone at the table.

"cool line, kid," Sans said.

Sans ate what was probably technically more than his share of breakfast. Grillby left for work, already exhausted and moody. He was going to be a lot of fun when he got home that night. Frisk left after him, and everyone was a little bit on edge, again. Half an hour after they left, Undyne went after them. Toriel fussed in the kitchen and Papyrus walked back and forth from where Sans was napping in the living room, to where she was in the kitchen. He wanted to follow Undyne, but he had made a promise to her.

Sans tried to distract both of them by sharing knock-knock jokes with Toriel. Papyrus found them obnoxious enough to forget about following Undyne, at least for a short time. Toriel quickly lost steam, though.

"I am going to...step out for a little while," she said. "I would like to clear my head."

"i just use a cue tip but whatever works," Sans said. He wanted to ask her if she was going to go after her kid, too, but decided to just let her go do what she was going to do.

"WHY DID EVERYONE RUN OUT SO QUICKLY?" Papyrus asked, nervous. "I AM NOT WORRIED! THEY KEEP SAYING THERE IS NOTHING TO BE WORRIED ABOUT, SO I BELIEVE THEM! BUT...THEY ARE ACTING IN WAYS THAT..."

"well, tori'll always be uneasy 'cuz she's frisk's mom," Sans said. "you know undyne just wants part of the action, even if there isn't any."

"YES, RIGHT." He didn't seem reassured. "I KNOW THAT I SAID I WOULD NOT GO, HOWEVER..."

"nuh-uh, bro. there'll be a kid back from school soon, and you know if it's just me here i'll give 'em whatever candy i find for their snack and call it done."

"THAT'S SO UNHEALTHY! I ALREADY PREPARED A NOODLE SALAD FOR THEIR POST SCHOOL MEAL! AND IF THEY PREFER SOMETHING ELSE, YOUR FRIEND MADE THEM SOME...SNAIL THING."

"i've got half a packet of m&ms in my pocket, somewhere," Sans said.

"THIS IS BLACKMAIL! FRAUD! OR AT LEAST YOU ARE BEING KIND OF A JERK."

"maybe."

"YOU KNOW THEIR NUTRITIONAL HEALTH IS VERY IMPORTANT."

"yeah."

"YOU COULD JUST SAY 'I DO NOT THINK YOU SHOULD GO EITHER, BROTHER.' I MEAN, 'bro.'" He considered. "BRO ACTUALLY IS A VERY COOL WAY TO SAY BROTHER! IT NEVER OCCURRED TO ME THAT YOU MIGHT BE SAYING SOMETHING COOL, 'BRO.'"

"i do not think you should go either, brother," Sans said.

"IN YOUR OWN WORDS WOULD BE PREFERABLE, BUT I WILL ACCEPT IT. I AM OUTNUMBERED! MAYBE THAT IS EASY WHEN YOU ARE NUMBER ONE."

"it's tough work, being at the top."

"IT IS! NOT MORE THAN I CAN HANDLE, HOWEVER." He sighed. "I DO WANT TO REGISTER MY PROTEST. I WISH THEY WOULD ALLOW ME TO HELP."

"yeah. look, though. you remember what you were like after grillbz got sick real bad, right?"

"THAT IS NOT..." He considered. "YES, THAT IS VERY SIMILAR."

"you'd get mad if you didn't think he was eating the right stuff."

"YES, BUT, CELERY, SANS! THAT IS 99% WATER! THERE IS NO NUTRITIONAL VALUE IN THAT FOR A FIRE MONSTER!" He stomped his foot a few times, and then settled down, sighing. "I DO ACTUALLY ALREADY UNDERSTAND."

"frisk'll go out and take care of this freak. yell at their parents or something, i dunno. then in a couple weeks they'll send some people down who'll be paid to guard this town, and you don't have to worry about doing it yourself anymore."

"...RIGHT."

"c'mon. sit over here with me."

Papyrus sighed and went over to the couch. He sat down and sighed again, louder. He crossed his arms and tapped his foot.

"you're so relaxed."

"EVERYONE IS EITHER ANGRY AT ME OR WORRIED ABOUT ME. THEY SHOULD TRUST MY STRENGTH! OR AT LEAST NOTICE THAT I AM STILL HERE, AND THERE IS NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT."

"grillby's not that mad."

"THE EX-QUEEN GAVE ME AN EXCEEDINGLY LONG BUT SKILLFULLY DELIVERED LECTURE WHILE WE WERE MAKING BREAKFAST. I BELIEVE SHE THINKS SHE IS ACTUALLY MY MOTHER? I WAS NOT QUITE SURE HOW TO DISABUSE HER OF THAT NOTION."

"tori did?"

"YES! EVERY TIME FRISK LEFT THE ROOM WITH DISHES, SHE WOULD LOOK AT ME AND SAY 'Now one more thing, my dear.'"

"that doesn't sound that mad."

"I COULD SEE THE BARELY CONTAINED RAGE IN HER EYES! IT WAS LIKE WITHIN HER SOCKETS WERE TINY ENCASED UNDYNES, WAITING FOR THE CHANCE TO BREAK FREE AND GIVE ME THE MOST PAINFUL NOOGIE OF MY LIFE!"

"oh no."

"AND OF COURSE YOU AND THE CHILDREN ARE VERY UPSET. AND NOW EVERYONE IS WORRIED ABOUT FRISK. BECAUSE OF MY ACTIONS, APPARENTLY."

Well, if the human had attacked someone other than Papyrus, Frisk probably wouldn't have rushed down. That was going a little far in blaming Papyrus, though. No one wanted Frisk to go, either.

"it's the worst, right?" Sans sighed. "doing what you think's right, and having it go bad. they'll get over it, papyrus. you don't monitor what grillbz eats anymore, right?"

"I DO NOT TELL HIM, SINCE HE FOUND IT SO IRRITATING."

"that's just as good."

Papyrus rapped his hand on the arm of the couch.

Sans patted him on the back. "it'll be ok, bro. i can feel it in my bones," he lied.

"NOW IT IS TIME TO PLEASE STOP TRYING TO CHEER ME UP."

"what? that didn't tickle your funny bone?"

"YOU WORE IT DOWN AND AWAY BY REPEATING THAT JOKE SO MANY TIMES!"

"maybe you should've gotten the doc to look at that, too. if your bones start wearing down, one day i'll tell you a joke so good, you'll just fall to pieces."

"IF ONLY!" He took the blanket off the back of the couch and dropped it on Sans' head. "GO TO SLEEP!"

"i'm not a bird," Sans said.

"YOU MUST BE TOO EXHAUSTED TO SAY ANOTHER WORD."

"there's a bird under here, though. be free, little bird." He lifted the blanket up enough so he could flip Papyrus off.

"HAVE A PILLOW AS WELL!"

Sans felt one hit his head.

Papyrus stood up and started loudly pacing. After a minute, he sat back down next to Sans again. "HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN?"

"let me check. half past 'i don't feel like getting my phone out and i can't see the clock because there's a blanket on my head.'"

"SOUNDS LIKE IT IS TIME FOR SANS TO BE SO LAZY HE CANNOT MOVE A BLANKET OR TAKE OUT HIS PHONE. IT IS THE SAME TIME AS EVERY OTHER TIME, IT SEEMS? WE ARE FROZEN IN A MOMENT, FOREVER. HOW TRAGIC."

"it's not that bad. how long've they been gone?"

"IT HAS BEEN OVER AN HOUR SINCE TORIEL LEFT. SHOULDN'T THEY BE BACK BY NOW, SANS? I CAN'T IMAGINE IT TAKES THIS LONG TO RESOLVE SOMETHING LIKE THIS. IT WOULD NOT TAKE THE GREAT PAPYRUS THIS LONG."

"frisk can try, but they can't live up to your standard."

"TRUE. BUT...THAT'S NO GOOD. I NEED THEM TO GET BACK VERY SOON."

"yeah."

"MAYBE I SHOULD CALL."

"if you want."

"BUT WHAT IF THEY ARE CONCENTRATING ON AN IMPORTANT STRATEGY?"

"yeah. maybe you should hold off."

"OR MAYBE--" He broke off and sighed. "NEVER MIND."

"ok."

"...I WILL CALL IF THEY ARE NOT BACK IN AN HOUR."

"ok. if it helps, i don't think anything that bad happened to them." Time was still moving forward, like normal.

"AH, SANS. EVER THE OPTIMIST. OBLIVIOUS TO THE DANGEROUS REALITIES OF THE WORLD."

"that's me."

"NEVERTHELESS...I FEEL VERY STRONGLY THAT YOU ARE RIGHT! THEY WILL BE BACK VERY SOON, AND I WILL MAKE EVERYONE LUNCH!"

Sans leaned against him. The blanket was still over his head, but he was pretty sure he was leaning against Papyrus' arm. "sounds good."

"YES! I AM POSITIVE!"

"yeah." Sans felt a little bit of optimism leeching off his brother and into him. Anyway, even if everything was going to go horribly wrong, what was the point in worrying about it right at that moment? If something went bad and they went back, well, this was all he had, really.

Sans didn't think Frisk would reset if they were hurt--he just didn't think they wouldn't, either. He didn't know.

Papyrus sighed and gave him a hug. "IF YOU ARE WAITING FOR ME TO REMOVE THAT BLANKET FOR YOU, THEN I AM AFRAID YOU WILL BE WEARING IT FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE."

"i like it under here."

"SANS. OF COURSE YOU DO."

>>Next Part<<

#sansby #my fic #fanfic #fb fic

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