Chapter 8

"You both should hang out sometime! We can make tacos together! I'll call her right now!" "Wait Sans-" you tried to speak but he was already running for the phone. "Hello? Alphys. We should hang out again. I have a new friend I want you to meet. She's really cool. You both will be such good friends!... Tomorrow? What time?...... Alright, see you." He hung up.

You just hoped Alphys would be friendly. When Papyrus came back from his little party with himself  in his room, he came down casually. "Soooo.... You guys are... Dating now, I guess. Heh." He tried to keep his cool. He probably made a bet. You and Sans glanced at him, then laughed so hard you started crying. Papyrus started laughing too. You had to sit down. Sans was literally lying collapsed on the floor. Papyrus started crying and laughing too. He held on to the couch as he leaned over. Yeah, the window was open, and yeah, people were judging you, and yeah, you were being really loud, but you wished you could replay this moment over and over. You savored the moment, making sure to live it as it is. You wouldn't have traded the world for this moment, lying on the couch laughing and crying, out of breath, at the same time with Sans and Papyrus. 

You slept with Sans from then on, because he declared that 'the couch was unfit for you' and that Papyrus's room was too messy. But that night in bed, you had another nightmare. Number two. Everything went as usual, except your hands were always covered in dust. You had a knife instead of a stick. Then... then. You got in that fight with Sans. He noticed the 'dangerous path' you were going down. He offered you a hug. He welcomed you with open arms. He spared you. 

And you killed him. 

Even after he was about to die, he still believed in you. The real, currently living Sans would have been like that. You tried to make it stop. You repeatedly screamed, "Wake up. Wake up. Wake up." You screamed. You called out for help. But nobody came. 

You yelled, "No!" just as you woke up. You sat up in bed. Tears started welling up again. Sans groaned in his sleep, but he heard you sobbing. You covered your face with your hair. Sans flicked on the light. You hugged him tight. "It's alright," Sans said. "I'm here. You don't need to be afraid." You tried to talk and took deep breaths. "It happened again," you said. Then you remembered he didn't know about your nightmares. You decided not to tell him.

"I'm sorry," you said over and over. "It's okay," Sans said. "There's nothing to be sorry about." But of course, he didn't know how sorry you were. You vowed to yourself, that one day, you would tell somebody about your nightmares. Not now, but maybe one day, when you were closer to everyone, when you could just laugh about all this. But for now, you were all alone. Abandoned. Just like your human parents. It was just like back in your childhood.

You were still thinking when Sans let go. You didn't realize that you were holding on to him the entire time. You gave him a quick smile, then slept again. Or at least pretended to. Sans still didn't buy it. He pushed you up, and you giggled. "Okay, okay, I was pretending. Jeese." You giggled a little more so he wouldn't take the 'jeese' as offensive or something. For the first time, you saw how unique his big, blue eyes were.

They seemed to cave in deep into his eyesockets, with an empty ring circling at the edge, and expanses of light and dark blue reached out to the edges of his eyes. They were truly beautiful. Looking into his eyes narrowed down everything to just you and him. Then you snapped back to reality. "So how long are we going to pretend to do this thing?" you asked. "I mean, pretending to be dating and stuff."
"It only takes one big mess-up to get kicked from the royal guard. I think Alphys is going to stop training me. I mean, she didn't do much fight training. We mostly just made tacos. I'm pretty sure it won't last long." Sans replied.
"Great," you said. "I mean, you're a cute little guy and all, but you're way too... Not my type." You sighed, and lay back in bed. You tried to sleep, but suddenly you weren't very tired. So you kinda forced it. You squeezed your eyes shut, turned around in bed. You put your face in the pillow, and counted the seconds until morning.

You knew that today you were going to meet Alphys. You prayed, literally prayed, that she wouldn't be crazy about killing you. So you got out of bed as normal, and Sans was going to take you to her house.

You were wrong.

Chapter 7

"Papyrus? Are you smoking again?"
There stood Sans, a disappointed look on his face. His arms were crossed. He stomped his way toward Papyrus. He grabbed the cigarettes. He started yelling at Papyrus.
"Every. Single. Day. You keep smoking and smoking. I even try hiding your cigarettes, but you get more. Where do you even find so many? As for these, I shall confiscate them! I don't care if you don't read me my bedtime story tonight. I'm concerned for your health. You're ruining your non-existent lungs!" Sans grabbed the cigarettes in one hand and his scarf from the table in the other. He turned at you and smiled.
"Sorry that you had to watch that. He's always smoking and never doing anything productive. He's so lazy." He slipped his scarf over his head and glared in Papyrus's direction. He went back upstairs quickly. The door slammed shut. "Heh," Papyrus said. "Well, these hot dogs aren't gonna cook themselves." He stood up and went back into the kitchen.
You smiled and watched as Papyrus finished cooking breakfast for you and Sans. "Do me a favor," he said. "Go get Sans for breakfast." You said, "Why can't you do it?" Papyrus winked and said, "Gravity's overpowered me. Can't get up." You rolled your eyes and smiled. You went upstairs and opened Sans's door.

You were greeted with a sad sight. Sans was crying. You closed the door and rushed over to his bed and sat down next to me him. He looked up and wiped his tears away. He tried to smile but tears were still coming. You tried to comfort him. You hugged him tight. "What's wrong?" you asked.
"I don't want to be in the royal guard anymore. I don't want to capture you. You've been such a good friend. But if everyone else knows that I don't want to join it, they'll hate me. Everyone in town tries to help me and support me along the way. They'll never forgive me if they know that I don't want to be in the royal guard anymore. What do I do, Frisk? What do I do?" He buried his face in his scarf. You hugged him tightly. He grabbed onto you.

"Shh, shh. It'll be okay. Be brave, be brave." you whispered to him over and over. He cried more. You placed his head in your lap, rocking him back and forth gently. You gave him a little kiss on the cheek. He blushed a lot, his face almost entirely blue, burying his face into his scarf. Suddenly, he lightened up. "Frisk! You're a genius!" He yelled.
You looked at him wide-eyed. "Huh?"
"If we were a couple, I wouldn't be allowed in the royal guard anymore? Then I won't have to join, I won't have to capture you, I keep all my friends, and I get another friend too!" You giggled, as he got starry-eyed again. "Alright, if you say so," you said. Sans got all giddy and excited.
You hugged him tightly once more. "Come downstairs. Breakfast is ready." He wiped his eyesockets with his scarf, then smiled. You gave him your hand, and he took it. You led him downstairs for breakfast.

Papyrus, seeing you and Sans holding hands, made him kind of... Well.. "Called it," he said, before running upstairs to his room. You heard him yelling on the phone or something, "ALPHYS! IT HAPPENED! SEE? I TOLD YOU! I KNEW IT!!" He babbled on and on. "Alphys?" You asked. "Oh, she's my friend! She trained me for the Royal guard. She's the head of the royal guard. She's really cool."

Chapter 6

The light was turned on. You turned around. It was Sans. "Frisk? Is everything alright? What's wrong?" Blueberry had a concerned look on his face. You squeezed him tight, tears still streaming down your face. "I-I don't know what happened. I tried to, I mean, I-" You tried to talk, considering whether you should tell him or not. You ended up crying even harder. Your hands were violently shaking.

You heard a door open, and Papyrus came out. He looked tired. He was about to turn and go back to sleep, but then he saw you with tears all over your face, sobbing, and immediately rushed over. He squeezed you and Sans tight.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. It's fine." Papyrus said. It just made you cry harder and harder. You took deep breaths, trying to calm down. You kept reassuring yourself that it was only a dream. It's not real. It isn't hurting anyone. You kept repeating to yourself, "It was only a dream. It was only a dream."

So why does all this feel so wrong?

"If you'd like, you can sleep with me tonight," said Blueberry. He offered his hand. You wiped away your tears and sniffled, then went upstairs with him. You felt bad. Every gesture of kindness from your 'victims' was just making you feel worse.
Papyrus followed you up and went back to his room. You didn't feel tired at all. It seemed Blueberry wasn't sleeping either. He sat up and faced you.

You sat up. You both locked eyes for a moment, not saying a word. Then you broke the silence. "So does Papyrus have a nickname? Like, you're Blueberry, so does Papyrus have one?" Sans giggled a little bit, then replied, "Carrot."
"Carrot?" It did describe him though. Tall, slim, orange. "Yeah. Otherwise, we call him Paps, Papy, you get it." You both just stared, until Sans said, "Well, good night." You laid back, and suddenly you were exhausted. Your eyes fell closed, and you slept.

You woke up. You were happy that you didn't have any nightmares again. Sans was next to you, drool rolling down onto his taco pajamas. Then you rolled off the bed and fell. "Ow. Crap," you said, then stood up. Sans opened his eyes. "Is something wrong?"
"Nah," you replied. "Just fell off the bed."
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's really nothing."
"Ok. I'm just concerned for your safety. Especially after last night. Don't worry, I, the Great Sans, shall protect you!"
You giggled. Sans didn't even look tough enough to protect a rock. You wrapped your arm around him, then softly and playfully punched him. You then got out of bed. Sans went back to sleep. You had slept in your clothes. You ran your fingers through your hair and tugged at your shirt, trying to pull yourself together as much as you could at the moment. Next time you climb a mountain, you thought, bring stuff with you.

You smelled something downstairs. Papyrus was making breakfast for you and Sans. He laughed when he saw you, but you didn't know what was wrong. Then he came over and pulled Sans's scarf that was hanging off of your shirt sleeve. He held it for a few moments, clutching it like a little kid with a favorite stuffed animal, staring into its deep blue shade and its torn edges, as if it were the only time he would ever get to touch it. Then he sighed, and put it down on the table.

He looked up at you, then pulled something out of his pocket. Cigarettes. He pulled one out, then lit it. You saw a flash of orange in his eye. You blinked, and it was gone. You "assumed" it was just the lighter. He sat down for a while, and took a drag. Smoke curled out of his eyesockets. You coughed. Papyrus looked a bit irritated and glad at the same time. You couldn't tell. He was always smiling.

You heard the familiar sound of tiny footsteps making its way toward you.

Chapter 5

(Before you read, I would just like to say that you are Frisk. That seems normal for a fanfic, but in this, Frisk is a girl. Be warned, and don't stop reading or complain. I know Frisk is gender neutral, but giving them a gender just makes writing this easier. Don't hate me :3)

He had a look of slight concern on his face. His cheeks glowed a shade of light blue, illuminating his face in the dark. "Don't you have a place to sleep? Do humans not need sleep anymore or some thing?"
"Uh..." You tried to think of what to say. "The thing is, I, um, don't really have anywhere to go, um, for now." You tried to think of what more to say.

"Really? It's okay! I, the Great Sans, will allow you to stay at my house, with me! Actually, it's Papyrus's house too, but, um, you know what I mean." He led you to the big house you saw earlier. "You can sleep on the couch," he said. You sat down. "Thanks, Sans. A lot. You don't know how much this means to me," you said. "It's ok," Sans said. "Call me Blueberry. That's what my friends call me."
"Okay, Blueberry," you said. You both locked eyes for a moment, then he broke the silence. "So, human. I don't know what to refer to you as. So I, the Great Sans, would like to learn your name!"
"Frisk," you said. "Frisk? It's a nice name, for a girl who falls down a hole." Blueberry started to go upstairs, but he stopped and turned around. "Good night," he said. "Good night," you said back. He smiled and flicked off the light, then went up the stairs.

That night, the nightmares began.

You saw yourself, everything the same. But you killed everyone in your path, even looking around for more monsters to kill. You could barely recognize yourself, bringing your knife down on every single monster. Froggit, Loox, Moldsmol. Hapstablook. Even Asgore.

You woke up with a jolt. You sat up panting. It was still dark. Then, tears started welling up. You started to quietly cry. Then you softly giggled, tears streaming down your face. You felt scared.

You heard the patter of footsteps coming toward you. Small arms wrapped around you from behind. 

Chapter 4

You started to continue walking but then something stopped you in your tracks. It was the silhouette of a short figure, about an inch shorter than you.
It was Sans.
"Human," he spoke in a serious tone. It was the first time he ever spoke and you didn't even think about how adorable he sounded. "Allow me to tell you about some complex feelings. Feelings like... The joy of finding another taco lover. The admiration of another's puzzle solving skills. The desire to have a cool, smart person think you are cool." You listened as he talked, not looking as serious anymore.
"These feelings... They must be what you're feeling right now! I can hardly imagine what it must be like to feel that way. After all, I am very great. I don't ever think about what it must be like having so many friends. I pity you... Lonely human." He was gradually looking happier and his cheeks glowed a faint light blue. "Worry not! You shall be lonely no longer! I, the Great Sans, will be your-" Sans stopped. He stared at you for a while, then started speaking fast. "No. This is all wrong! I can't be your friend! You are a human! I must capture you! Then I can fulfill my lifelong dream! Sans! Part of the royal guard!" He stared at you some more, then snapped his fingers. Bones appeared out of nowhere, in a neat pattern behind him.

You dodged his attacks the best you could. When you got too close to getting permanently hurt, when he wasn't attacking, you ate some of the items you got at the Snowdin Shop. Of course, when you seemed too weak, he purposely toned down his attacks, like Asgore did. Between his attacks, when he gave you a chance to make your move, you didn't fight. You kept your stick on the ground next to you the entire fight. Sans kept firing bones at you. Blue bones, white bones. He turned you blue. Gravity was in full effect.

Finally, the fight was over. Sans looked about ready to give up. You still spared him. No matter how much it hurt, you refused to fight. You didn't know why, but you knew that things would go wrong badly if you fought. Sans had small, short tears welling up in his eyesockets. You started to feel bad.

"I can't even stop someone as weak as you! Alphys is going to be disappointed in me. I'll never join the Royal Guard, and... And... My friend quantity will remain stagnant!" A sob cut through his voice. Tears started flowing freely now, streaming down his cheeks.

You decided to cheer him up. "It's okay," you said. "Let's be friends."
Sans instantly looked up, and a smile broke across his face. He wiped away his tears and ran over to you.
"Really? You want to be friends, with me? Well then, I guess... I can make an allowance for you. Wow! Who know that all it takes to make friends was to give them awful puzzles and then fight them?"
It felt good to make him happy, and you gave him a huge smile.

"You taught me a lot, human. I hereby grant you permission to pass through! And feel free to come over and hang out!" He walked back to Snowdin.

After a while of exploring the rest of Snowdin, meeting new monsters and befriending them along the way, it began to grow dark. Monsters were going back to their homes. The inn was crowded. You didn't have the money to get a room, anyway. Having no place to go, you sat in the snow. It wasn't actually cold, anyway. Maybe it was artificial.

You saw the short silhouette of Sans make its way toward you.