Bye bye blackbird
Surprisingly the next day Sans awoke before his alarm clock. It was usually a pretty rare thing when it happened, but he supposed that it was most likely because of the other occupant in his bed. He had to admit it actually caught him a little off guard when he opened his bleary sockets to see Frisk laying peacefully next to him still fast asleep, his mind not being entirely conscious yet. He realized then that he really wasn’t use to this sort of thing as usually after an intimate night he would often wake up to his previous partner already gone, or in the process of getting dressed to leave, only catching a glimpse of them before they departed, which of course was fine as it was to be expected in those brief sort of encounters.
Sans settled back down under the covers deciding to take the extra time that he was given to simply enjoy waking up next to someone for a change. It was something he never really appreciated before, a comfort he never realized he wanted until now. Frisk continued to doze as Sans relaxed next to her taking in her mussed up hair and sleeping face, feeling a little privileged that only he would get to see her like this in the early mornings.
Frisk then mumbled something drowsily before shifting under the sheets. As she turned on to her back her coverings slid off of herself revealing her still bare chest.
Sans cheekbones tinted blue as suddenly he felt like he really shouldn’t be staring. He remembered that last night Frisk hadn’t been entirely comfortable being exposed to him and he was sure that she wouldn’t appreciate him ogling her now. He reached over and gently tucked her back under the sheets covering her up again.
He then moved to pull himself out of bed, switching off his set alarm as to allow Frisk to sleep a little longer while he got ready for the day. He walked over to his closet in only his boxers and socks as he had kicked off his pants late last night after Frisk had fallen asleep, not able to really snooze comfortably in them. He grabbed a new pair from his closet as well as a clean shirt before proceeding to tug them both on. He then went over to pick up his discarded tie from the floor.
When he was dressed he went back to the bed, gently taking a seat making sure his weight didn’t shift the mattress too much. He took one final moment to watch Frisk’s peaceful sleeping form before gently shaking her shoulder to wake her up.
“Rise and shine.” He sang playfully. Frisk grumbled and tightened the sheets around herself, turning away from him. Sans chuckled before he rapt a knuckle lightly on the top of her head.
“Knock knock.” He continued to pester. Frisk groaned.
“No.” She whined.
“Come on, I thought I was supposed to be the lazy one.” Sans teased, his impish grin growing wider as he began to twirl one of Frisk’s messy stray locks around his finger.
“Fine.” Frisk sighed rolling over and fixing him with unimpressed sleepy eyes. “Who’s there?”
“Honeybee.” Sans answered.
“Honeybee who?” Frisk asked groggily.
“Honeybee nice and get out of bed.” Sans replied with a wink. Frisk then blushed before trying to hide her reddened face under the covers again, not expecting the added pet name in his joke. Sans chuckled.
“Look sweetheart normally I wouldn’t complain about spending all day in bed with you, but Paps is gonna be up soon….” He then said delicately, not wanting to ruin the more pleasant morning by bringing up their less than ideal situation.
“Ok.” Frisk then agreed as she started to pull herself up only to pause when she remembered she still wasn’t wearing anything over her top half except for the bed sheets. Her cheeks flushed darker.
“Turn around first.” She then demanded and Sans cocked his head to the side.
“What?” He asked with a confused laugh and Frisk fidgeted.
“I have to get dressed so…. Just don’t look.” She then managed to mumble out embarrassed, and Sans sockets widened slightly in understanding before he complied to her wishes and turned to face the wall, fighting hard to ignore the itch to tease her a little for still being so shy. He really did like it when he could make her flustered after all.
Frisk stayed where she was for a few moments watching to make sure that Sans wasn’t going to try and peek before she slowly unraveled herself from the sheets and got up from the bed. She realized quickly that she didn’t really have any other clothes to change into except for her dress that still hung from her hips, but she really didn’t want to put it back on, especially since she had slept partially in it for the entire night so instead she made a quick grab for one of Sans’ discarded shirts on the floor. She shimmied the rest of the way out of the dress before quickly pulling on Sans dress shirt. Though it was still big on her it was not nearly as long as Papyrus’, only covering down to just past her mid-thigh instead of past her knees. Because of this she decided to leave her stalking on.
“Ok.” She said after she got the buttons all done up signaling to Sans that it was safe for him to turn around again.
When he did so he paused. His eyes scanned over her appearance and his cheekbones flushed a prominent blue as he wasn’t able to help himself. He rather liked the look of her wearing his shirt like that. Frisk didn’t notice his gawking as she kneeled over to bunch up her discarded dress into her arms, when she returned her gaze to him again Sans quickly snapped his pinpricks back to her face. He then had to stifle his laughter when he noticed that her makeup had gotten more than just a little smudged in her sleep.
“What?” Frisk asked confused as Sans made his way toward her. He then raised a thumb to her face before rubbing at some of the smeared lipstick now staining her cheek.
“Think you might want to clean up a bit before coming to breakfast today.” He said showing her the pink tint on his thumb. Frisk immediately blushed and raised a hand to her cheek, rubbing at the blemish. Sans smirked and stepped closer.
“You know your still beautiful right?” He said as he pressed a smooch to her other cheek. Frisk giggled.
“Guess I could use a shower.” She agreed.
“You go on, I’ll get you your clothes and put your dress back.” Sans offered and Frisk nodded as she handed him the bunched up garment before heading out of his bedroom to the bathroom down the hall.
Sans then moseyed his way to exit the apartment stiffening a yawn as he did so. He could see that the bar was still dark from down the stairs which meant that not even Grillby was here preparing to open shop yet. Wow, he never woke up this early.
When he got to Frisk’s bedroom he entered slowly, flicking the light switch before he made his way over to her end table by her bedside.
He first laid her dress out for her to put away later over the neatly made up quilts on her bed, then he pulled out the folded trousers vest and dress shirt from the lower drawer, draping the clothes over his arm before preparing to leave again. He paused however, when he remembered that Frisk would probably need undergarments as well. He turned back to the end table, this time opening up the top drawer where he saw some balled up plain cotton underwear and a thin worn looking brassier. He hesitated, feeling a little like he was trespassing somewhere he shouldn’t be, but then felt like he was being ridiculous for being so skittish all of a sudden.
“Jeez Sansy, what are you twelve?” He quietly scolded himself before he also grabbed both garments, tucking them in under Frisk’s shirt and turning to leave the room again.
When he made back to the bathroom he could hear the shower running. He rapt a quiet knuckle on the door.
“Special delivery.” He called, and only a moment later Frisk cracked it open before sticking an arm out of the small opening expectantly. Sans smirked and passed her over the clothes.
“Thanks Sans.” Frisk replied before retracting her arm again and disappearing behind the shut door.
Sans then decided to head to the kitchen and start his day. He made himself a mug of coffee and settled at the table while he waited for Frisk to get out of the shower and Papyrus to wake up and make breakfast. He leaned his chin on his palm as he sipped at his coffee drowsily. It really was still pretty early however, and Sans couldn’t seem to keep his sockets from drooping. Maybe last night had taken more out of him then he realized. Sans stifled another yawn before he settled more comfortably into his chair. Soon he had completely nodded off right as Papyrus exited from his own bedroom and stepped into the hallway.
Papyrus waltzed directly down the hall to continue on his morning routine. As he passed the washroom he noticed the shower running and new that Frisk was awake and also preparing for the day. He hummed approvingly, glad to see that Frisk took the same pride as he did when greeting the morning. When he came to his brother’s room however, he let out a sigh. Now if only Sans could show some more enthusiasm. Papyrus then knocked on his brother’s door before relaying his usual wake up call.
“SANS TIME TO WAKE UP!” He announced firmly. When he didn’t get a reply he merely huffed and rolled his sockets before turning to continue to the kitchen. He stopped in absolute disbelief however, when he spotted Sans already there snoozing at the kitchen table. Papyrus' sockets then narrowed suspiciously. Though Sans was asleep, this would be the second day in a row that he had found his brother up and about before he himself had even begun making breakfast. It was odd and very unlike Sans’ normal lethargic behavior.
Papyrus then cautiously settled across from Sans at the table, continuing to stare for a moment before he reached over and tapped Sans on the top of his skull. Sans startled a little as he snapped his sockets open and sat up straight, then realizing that it was only Papyrus he slouched forward again.
“Oh morning Paps.” He said.
“GOOD MORNING BROTHER, YOU’RE UP EARLY AGAIN I SEE.” Papyrus replied as he continued to study Sans’ sleepy expression at the other end of the table for any clues as to what Sans might be up to. Sans merely shrugged.
“Yeah, I’m going to be seeing our old pal Joey today so I figured I would get an early start.” He said while he stretched out his arms and shoulder blades. Papyrus perked up at the mentioning of Joey’s name.
“JOEY? WE HAVEN’T HEARED HIM IN A WHILE.” Then Papyrus remembered Frisk's previous heart break and his sockets narrowed before he crossed his arms over his chest. “SPEAKING OF WHICH I DON’T BELIEVE HE EVER DID CALL FRISK TO ANSWER HER PROPERLY. SANS WHEN YOU SEE HIM BE SURE TO REPRIMAND HIM FOR THAT!”
Sans stifled his chuckles at his brother’s apparent crossness before shooting him a convincing grin.
“Will do Paps, I’ll be sure to give him an ear full.” He said and Papyrus seemed to relax glad that Joey’s faults would be dealt with.
Frisk then exited the bathroom, having finished washing up and towel drying off her hair. She went around the corner to find Sans and give him back his shirt, but when she saw that Papyrus was also present she immediately tensed and hid the rumpled garment behind her back before he could see what she had.
“OH GOOD MORNING FRISK.” Papyrus greeted happily, not having noticed anything out of place.
“Good morning.” Frisk replied as she tried to produce a pleasant smile, but she knew it must have looked too stiff because Sans quirked a brow bone at her. She then proceeded to make her way forward as she knew it would look strange if she tried to double back into the hallway. When she took her seat she shifted the shirt so that it was sitting on her lap concealed by the table top.
Papyrus then got up to start preparing the morning meal.
“SO THEN, WHAT DOES EVERYONE FEEL LIKE EATING TODAY?” He asked as He fastened his apron strings securely around his waist. “I WAS THINKING OF TRYING OUT FRENCH TOAST.”
“Sounds good bro.” Sans replied easily.
As soon as Papyrus turned his back Frisk took the opportunity to get rid of the evidence she had hidden under the table. She nudged Sans lightly on the shin with her foot, he turned to her confused and Frisk motioned to under the table with her eyes. Sans got the hint and extended a hand. Frisk then quickly passed him the shirt hoping that he would be able to make it disappear like how he had done with Papyrus’s less then perfected spaghetti dinners. He tossed her a sly wink catching her watching him expectantly and then returned both of his now empty hands to the table top. Even going so far as to wiggle his fingers in a sort of ‘tada’ like gesture. Frisk continued to stare and Sans smirked, He rather liked the way her eyes widened in wonder as she still wasn’t able to figure out how exactly he was able to do that.
Breakfast was pleasant with amusing conversation as Sans took some time to catch up with his brother while also making Frisk laugh with his puns. Though he knew he couldn’t linger here as there was still plenty of work to be done, and he had to admit that he was feeling a little antsy to get that info out of Joey. He then took the last swallow of his coffee before folding up his newspaper.
“Well I gotta get going thanks for breakfast bro it was great and uh, also I should be home for dinner tonight.” Sans said noticing how his brother’s eyes lit up delighted at the news.
“OH WONDERFUL, I’LL BE SURE TO PREPARE SOMETHING SPECIAL. IT HAS BEEN A WHILE SINCE WE ALL LAST ATE TOGETHER.” Papyrus said.
“Have a good day.” Frisk added and Sans tossed her a smile.
“Will do.” He replied.
When he was gone Papyrus and Frisk continued to sit and enjoy the peaceful morning. Frisk had just served herself another helping of French toast and was now pilling on the whipped cream when she looked over to Papyrus who seemed to be staring wistfully into space. She paused realizing that he was being fairly quiet which was definitely unlike him.
“Papyrus?” She questioned, snapping the younger skeleton brother back to reality. “Are you ok?”
Papyrus smiled at her warmly and waved off her concern.
“OH YES I AM PERFECTLY FINE FRISK.” He answered, but when he saw Frisk cock an unconvinced eyebrow at him he caved.
“WELL ACTUALLY ….. HAVE YOU NOTICED SANS ACTING A LITTLE STRANGE LATELY PERHAPS?” He then asked and Frisk tilted her head to the side.
“Strange how?” She asked confused and Papyrus sighed.
“ IT’S PROBABLY NOTHING BUT IT’S JUST, I FIND IT A LITTLE ODD THAT HE HAS BEEN RECENTLY WAKING UP SO EARLY AND ESPECIALLY WITH ALL THE LATE NIGHTS THAT HE’S BEEN PULLING…HE’S ALSO MADE A BIT OF A HABIT OF BORROWING MY BONE COLOGNE.” He explained and Frisk began to stiffen in her seat when she realized that Papyrus was beginning to catch on.
“FRISK YOU KNOW, AFTER THINKING ABOUT IT, I DO BELIEVE THAT MY BROTHER MAY HAVE A SECRET DATE MATE.” Papyrus then declared and Frisk felt her heart drop right down to her stomach.
“O-Oh really.” She said trying her best to keep herself calm.
“WELL IT’S REALLY ONLY SPECULATION.” Papyrus replied as he settled himself into his seat. Frisk then noticed the slight frown pulling at the younger skeletons cheekbones.
“Is that not a good thing?” She then asked cautiously, and Papyrus huffed to himself.
“IF I AM RIGHT THEN I DO BELIEVE THAT IT IS A VERY GOOD THING. SANS NEEDS SOMEONE TO LOOK AFTER HIM, AND OBVIOUSLY WHOEVER THIS PERSON IS HAS BEEN MAKING A GOOD INFLUENCE ON HIM IF IT IS ENCOURAGING HIM TO WAKE UP EARLY BUT….WELL HE HASN’T EVEN MENTIONED ANYTHING TO ME .” Papyrus then said his brow bones pinching together in concern. “I KNOW HE DOESN’T TELL ME EVERYTHING, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO ASPECTS OF HIS WORK , BUT I THOUGHT THAT SOMETHING LIKE THIS, SOMETHING ABOUT HIS PERSONAL LIFE, THAT PERHAPS HE WOULD WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT. WE’RE BROTHERS AFTER ALL AREN’T WE?” Frisk then felt a slight sting of guilt settle in her soul at the look of Papyrus’s disappointed expression. She hadn’t realized he had been feeling so left out.
“Has he talked to you before about this kind of thing?” Frisk then asked, and Papyrus seemed to look a little bashful all of a sudden.
“WELL …SANS’ RECENT EXPERIENCES WITH LADY FRIENDS HASN’T BEEN ALL THAT ….LONG TERM.” Papyrus then stated delicately and Frisk raised an eyebrow at that little tidbit of information. “BUT BEFORE WE JOINED UP WITH THE PANSIES HE DID HAVE A FEW ACTUAL RELATIONSHIPS, AND HE WOULD EVEN BRING THE OCCASIONAL GIRLFRIEND HOME AND INTRODUCE HER. THEY WERE ALL QUITE LOVELY BUT THEY NEVER SEEMED TO WORK OUT IN THE END. I DO BELIEVE THAT THIS WOULD BE THE FIRST ACTUAL RELATIONSHIP THAT HE HAS HAD IN A WHILE. MAYBE HE IS JUST NERVOUS THAT IT WON’T LAST. ” Papyrus then concluded thoughtfully and Frisk tried her best to keep up her pleasant façade at his comment.
“That could be it.” She said simply.
------
Sans drove down the country road without really paying too much attention to the scenery surrounding him this time, as he was far too preoccupied with getting his hands on that priceless info that joey had locked behind his stiff lips. His interest seemed to pay off a little as the drive went by fairly quickly and soon Sans was pulling into the driveway of Toriel’s little cottage.
The garden was much more vacant looking then what Sans remembered. All of the plants and flowers had basically withered away in there preparation for hibernating through the winter. The trees had all shed their foliage leaving their branches bare and brittle looking. It wasn’t quite the picture of paradise as it had been before, but Sans supposed that nothing did last forever after all. Sans then stepped out of the car and began to make his way toward the cottage. A cold sharp breeze blew up the garden path and Sans shrunk instinctively down into his coat, bracing himself against the sudden chill. The melodic tones of wind chimes rang clear through the crisp air, singing there tranquil song. However, when Sans also heard the sound of the screen door creaking open and shut in the wind alongside them he stopped dead in his tracks. His pinpricks then focused on the entrance of the cottage.
The front door was wide open, the outer screen door continuing to swing eerily in the breeze. Sans felt the all too familiar sense of dread start to creep up his spine as he cautiously moved forward, and suddenly the sound of the wind chimes seemed to call out a far more foreboding tune.
Sans stopped directly before the entrance. He could see that the front door had not merely been carelessly left agar, but had been forcefully kicked in judging by the splintered door frame. Sans readied his magic and also grabbed his gun that he had stashed by his side in case any smoker funny business was to be expected. As Sans stepped through the shattered threshold he scanned the mayhem surrounding him in the front foyer. Toppled chairs, shelves, and broken glass littered the area showing that there had been a definite struggle. Sans cautiously stepped forward surveying the space with his eye alight.
“Hey Joey? You here pal?” He called calmly, clinging to a very thin hope that somehow Joey had made it out of whatever the hell had happened here alive. There was no answer. Sans continued onward.
“Hey slick? Buddy ? This shtick is getting ol-.” Sans paused as his sockets focused in on a heavy red trail leading from the living room. Blood, and a lot of it. Sans felt his frail hope slowly crumble away to nothing.
When he rounded the corner to the living room he found Joey. He was lying on the floor on his back the rug under him stained crimson. Sans shoulders fell as he took in the gruesome scene.
“God damn it.” He hissed under his breath before approaching Joey’s lifeless body. He knelt beside him on the floor.
Four bullet holes riddled Joey’s abdomen, one looking like it had torn right through his heart. Sans grimaced at the wounds, but at least it had been a quick end. Sans then noticed the large kitchen knife being clutched in Joey’s stiff grip. There was blood on the blade which meant that at least Joey was able to pay back one of his assailants, and that that assailant was a human. It also explained the trail of blood leading away from Joey’s body from the living room to the front hallway, seeing as how Joey hadn’t been the one walking around.
Sans spent some time wrestling the blade out of Joey’s already rigid hand before he settled back on the floor for a breather as he decided on what to do. He’d have to inform Asgore that their new contact was a bust, and he’d have to send someone out to get Joey and clean up the scene as Sans was in no way prepared to be hauling a corpse back through the city. Humans really were difficult in that way, they always made such a mess.
Unlike monsters who simply vanished in a cloud of dust once their magic wasn’t able to maintain their physical forms anymore, humans lingered even after their souls departed, leaving behind dead staring eyes that forced you to continue to face them. There dead would always make you confront what you did in one way or another. Sans knew that there was no hiding from the sins that were already crawling up his back.
Sans looked over to Joey, his grey eyes also remained open and unseeing, which gave Sans a little chill. He reached over and gently shut joey’s lids giving himself a little solace. He then picked himself up off the ground and walked over to the little dining room by the kitchen before snatching the lace table cloth from the dinner table. He returned again to the living room, draping the cloth over Joey’s corpse. He knew that it was rather foolish to be messing with a crime scene like this, but he didn’t really like the idea of leaving Joey sprawled out in the open while he went to arrange a cleanup crew.
“Sorry pal this is as best as I can do for now, but uh don’t worry I won’t keep you waiting long.” Sans then found himself saying as he straitened up again in preparation to leave. “I’ll be sending someone over real quick and they’ll bring you home I promise.” He continued. Sans wasn’t really sure what good it did to reassure a corpse but he supposed it was more so for himself than anything else.
He then turned to leave the cottage, making sure to lock the screen and shut the main door as best as he could before sauntering down the garden path. He got into the Buick and was about to start up the engine and head back to town when he noticed a rather large blemish on his sleeve. It was a brilliant red that contrasted harshly against his white cotton shirt. Sans sighed as he realized he had been too careless around Joey’s dead body. He rolled up his sleeves to conceal the blood stain, and then returned his attention to getting back to Ebott to inform the Pansies of the not so pleasant news at hand.
The drive home was long and quiet which unfortunately gave Sans a lot of time to actually process what had just happened. It hit him fully about half way back to the city and Sans clutched the steering wheel tightly as he forced himself to focus on the business side of this situation first. Once he had everything else neat and tidy then he could deal with his own personal gripes. Right now however he was on the clock, right now he had to be a professional and handle this properly. He couldn’t afford any missteps. Dealing with the fuzz on top of everything else would be an utter nightmare if he didn’t get this under wraps quickly. Sans allowed himself one steadying breath before he continued on his way.
He made it to the warehouse after the agonizingly peaceful drive. He found that the country side really wasn’t good for providing him with many distractions away from his thoughts. Undyne was waiting inside. When she saw Sans enter alone she quirked a confused eyebrow.
“Where’s the human?” She asked and Sans tossed her a shrug.
“He uh, won’t be joining us, boss upstairs?” He vaguely explained and Undyne narrowed her good eye at him.
“Did he split?” She questioned darkly and Sans shook his head, deciding that he really didn’t need an answer from her about Asgore’s whereabouts as he walked toward the stairs.
“Not exactly, a fox just found our rabbit hole is all.” He replied. “Or rather a coyote did.” He then continued darkly from under his breath.
“Damn it.” Undyne hissed as she crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance. “Those Gambino’s are always one step ahead of us!” Sans only nodded.
“I’m gonna need you to send someone out to the cottage.” He then said, and Undyne huffed.
“Great. I’ll arrange a cleanup crew and dispose of the body.” She replied begrudgingly.
“No.” Sans said sternly, and also a little harsher then he had meant to. He cleared his throat as he quickly tempered his tone. “Bring him back here, he was an ally of the Pansies. We are going to give him back to his loved ones.” He then stated.
Undyne’s brows softened a little as she remembered the Pansy’s code of conduct. All friends and allies were supposed to be treated with respect.
“Right sorry, I’ll also arrange for someone to find his family and inform them.” She replied. Sans nodded back to her in thanks before he continued up the stairs to Asgore’s office.
He took a moment as he rubbed at his temples in the hallway just outside the office door before he stepped forward and knocked gently.
“Come in.” Asgore replied from the other side. Sans opened the door and stepped forward.
Asgore looked up to Sans from his seat at his desk his brow furrowed as he realized that the skeleton had entered his office alone.
“And Joey is…?” He then questioned and Sans sighed as he scratched at the side of his skull.
“Uh well… Joey’s no longer with us.” He stated delicately and Asgore paused, his eyes narrowing as he leaned over his desk.
“Explain.” He demanded.
“I uh, found him at the cottage.” Sans began. “He was shot four times.” Asgore blinked in surprise before he placed a hand over his face and sighed dejectedly.
“The assailant?” He questioned.
“They were long gone by the time I got there.” Sans answered. “Though I’m pretty sure it was the Gambino’s.”
Asgore was silent for a moment, more before he brought a heavy fist down on his desk in anger. Sans stayed silent as Asgore forced himself to calm down again.
“Have arrangements been made?” He then asked his voice now sounding very, very tired. Sans nodded.
“Everything is being taken care of.” He replied.
“Good.” Asgore said. “When his family is located please inform me.”
“Will do boss.” Sans said. “I uh do have a little good news however.” He then continued and Asgore perked up.
“I talked to Joey the other night before he was attacked, and well I managed to squeeze something out of him a little early.” Sans explained.
“Go on.” Asgore instructed and Sans cleared his throat as he stepped forward.
“Turns out, according to Joey, the Gambino’s have been buying up a lot of land in the forest and apparently they built something out there. I didn’t get any more than that unfortunately.” He said
“Well it certainly is a start, but the forest is huge. It would be pointless and dangerous to start snooping around out there without obtaining more details first." Asgore said.
“I’ll start looking into it first thing.” Sans replied and Asgore nodded in approval.
“Thank you Sans, I believe that will be all.” He said. Sans then dipped his head respectably before turning to leave Asgore’s office.
He drove home after that, and parked the Buick on the curb across from Grillby’s. He sauntered right up to the bar and took a seat.
“Hey Grillbs, I’ll take a double please.” He stated simply and Grillby only nodded before pouring him his whisky, recognizing Sans’ less than ideal temperament at the moment. Grillby then lingered nearby as Sans shot back his first drink quickly and then held out his glass for a refill. Grillby complied topping him up before leaving him alone, knowing that when Sans got like this he preferred his privacy.
Sans sipped slowly at his second drink as he tried to find relief in the amber colored liquor in his glass, but today it seemed that alcohol just wasn’t cutting it. He felt antsy as he couldn’t stop taping his foot against the bar stool, and suddenly everything became too crowded. The sounds of the other patrons in the bar almost came off as suffocating, the warm atmosphere felt out of place. Sans straitened up and then quickly finished his second drink before hoping off his stool and walking calmly to the staircase.
“Thanks Grillb’s.” He said simply, before he started climbing up to the second floor.
When he was alone in the hallway at the top of the stairs he let out a shaky breath. When he saw the light on shining from beneath Frisk's door he quietly crept away from her room, thankful that she wasn’t in the main apartment. He needed a moment to sort himself out before he faced her.
He then continued slowly to the door of the apartment before opening it cautiously. He knew that Papyrus wouldn’t be home yet as it was still fairly early, but right now he couldn’t be too cautious. When he was sure that the rest of the apartment was empty, he then wandered his way over to the washroom.
He turned the sink tap on to cold and splashed his face with water. He then stood there for a while as he tried to steady himself with a shaking grip over the sink.
He was furious with himself. This was all his fault.
He couldn’t even bring himself to look in the mirror he was so angry, so he focused on the water swirling around the sink drain instead. There was only one other person who knew the location of that cottage outside of the main members of the Pansies, and that was Jack. Sans grimaced as the coyote’s name surfaced in his mind.
He had known that that mutt couldn’t be trusted, yet he had let him off the hook. Sans had shown him mercy and now it had coasted him. Joey was dead now because of him, because of his stupid mistake.
How could he have been so sloppy?! He had left a lose end, he had deliberately ignored it. Jack had been his friend at one time and he had wanted to show him compassion, but by doing so Sans had broken one of the Pansy’s most important rules, and also one of his own most important rules as well. The family. Always. Comes. First.
Sans clutched the edges of the sink tighter as his rage continued to build. Soft footsteps of sock clad feet approaching from the living room immediately gained his attention. He forced himself to look in the mirror, quickly fixing his expression in to his usual lazy grin. He couldn’t tell Frisk. Not yet, he needed more time.
“Sans?” He heard her ask softly as she rounded the corner into the little hallway. Sans took a deep breath before he popped his head out of the bathroom.
“Heya sweetheart.” He said casually, and Frisk smiled back at him as she headed over to greet him properly, excited that he was home early today. She pressed a kiss to his cheek and Sans chuckled.
“How was your day?” She asked. “Papyrus told me that you went to see Joey, how is he doing?” Sans fought back his grimace at her question as he struggled to find a way to answer her.
“I’ll tell you about work later, why don’t we just relax a little before Papyrus comes home?” He suggested smoothly, buying himself some more time. A slight blush stained Frisk’s cheeks as she agreed and began walking over to the kitchen to prepare them both some warm drinks. Sans settled himself on the sofa fighting hard against his guilty conscious as he saw Frisk walk over with two steaming mugs in her hand.
She passed Sans over his coffee, but as he reached out for it her eyes flicked over to his sleeve where she saw the edge of a bright red stain protruding from behind the folds of fabric. Sans paused, noticing her furrowed brows. He followed her gaze and then silently cursed himself. He grabbed the mug and retracted his hand quickly, hiding the stain from view, but by the look on Frisk’s face he knew it was too late.
She sat down stiffly beside him.
“Sans what’s on your sleeve?” She asked him cautiously, and Sans took a sip from his mug not answering her. They remained silent for a while as Frisk continued to stare at him. Sans took a deep breath.
“Sweetheart, I got some bad news.” He then said, and Frisk stood up immediately. Sans slowly also pulled himself off of the couch, being sure not to move to quickly. He could tell that Frisk already had an idea as to what he was going to say as she looked like she was about to bolt. He carefully reached out and put a hand on her shoulder to keep her from running away.
“Frisk.” He began, holding her gaze. “Joey …. Joey didn’t make it.” He then said as gently as he could, and Frisk just shook her head as her lip began to quiver.
“No.” She said in disbelieve as she tried to back away from him, and Sans felt his soul start to crack.
“Kiddo I’m ….I’m really sorry.” He said in an effort to calm her, but it didn’t seem to help as Frisk bowed her head and began to sob.
He pulled her into his chest and wrapped her in the tightest hug he could manage while she continued to cry. He wouldn’t let her run away, or try to hide her hurt as he knew he couldn’t bare it if she tried to suffer by herself like she had done with Mittsy. He managed to coax her to sit down again, but she refused to show her face as she continued to sniffle, only staring down at her lap. They sat quietly for a while as Frisk managed to calm down. Sans watched her concerned as he really didn’t know what to do or say, he merely kept an arm on her shoulder trying his best to give her comfort. Then Frisk finally spoke.
“How…..how did it happen?” She asked. Her voice sounded stressed from her crying and sans stiffened unsure if it was such a wise thing to tell her the details.
“Someone found out where he was hiding.” He said simply, and Frisk clenched her hands together in a tight fist.
“The Gambino’s?” She asked, but Sans didn’t respond. He could hear the anger present in her voice. His silence was enough of an answer for her however, and Frisk felt her sorrow turn to rage.
Angry tears then took their turn running down her face as she tried her best to stifle them. Sans grip on her shoulder tightened.
They sat there for a while afterwards not saying anything to one another, Frisk continuing to grieve while Sans struggled to figure out what to do to make it better. When the sound of the door knob rattling permeated through the tense atmosphere they both flinched. Papyrus was home, and now they would also need to tell him what had happened.
Sans straightened up and Frisk turned her face away in an effort to hide any evidence of the foreboding news to come. Papyrus made his way through the door while humming a cheery tune and carrying a large paper bag of groceries that were most likely going to be used for tonight’s special dinner .
When Papyrus spotted them both in the living room he smiled.
“OH HELLO BROTHER AND FRISK, SO GLAD TO SEE YOUR BOTH HOME. I HOPE YOU ARE EXCITED FOR…” Papyrus trialed off however as he all of a sudden became aware of the morose mood hanging over the apartment like a heavy cloud. Frisk tensed and turned herself more away and Sans felt his practiced grin cracking from under the pressure.
“IS…IS EVERYTHING ALRIGHT?” Papyrus then asked nervously, not liking the ominous quiet that seemed to be looming.
“Heya Paps.” Sans began carefully while mustering up his own courage. “I uh, think you might wanna come over here and sit down with us for a moment.” He then suggested. Papyrus moved toward the couch cautiously. He flicked his gaze over to Frisk questioningly, but she still continued to hide herself from his view. Sans skootched over making room for his brother directly between Frisk and himself. When Papyrus took a seat he turned back to Sans now feeling slightly nervous.
“SO THEN WHATS THIS ALL ABOUT?” He asked. Sans strummed his fingers over the armrest of the couch for a moment as he quickly thought of what to say. He cleared his throat.
“Well um, Paps I uh, got some not so pleasant news that I have to tell you.” He said. Papyrus remained quiet as he waited for his brother to continue, but internally his soul was already starting to race as he began to suspect that the worst was to come.
“Uh, well you know how I was supposed to meet with Joey today?” Sans then questioned and Papyrus nodded. “It turns out that there was some trouble, before I could get to him…” Sans then continued.
“WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY SANS? Papyrus then urged not able to take the suspense any longer.
“Paps, Joey…..Joey passed away.” Sans then said while he nervously watched to see how his little brother would take the news. Papyrus stiffened up as he processed San’s words before he raised a hand to cover over his mouth in shock.
He didn’t say anything however, and then turned immediately to Frisk who had silently started to cry again from next to him. Papyrus then instantly scooped Frisk into his arms and cuddled her close, not giving her the opportunity to resist against him. Frisk, surprised by This, couldn’t continue to keep herself in check and then she completely let go of the hurt that she had been trying so hard to hide and began to wail in his hold like a lost broken child.
Sans felt the immediate sting of guilt in his soul as he sat and watched the tearful display still feeling a little like an outsider and at a loss for what to do. Papyrus did not let him linger there alone however, as a moment later he reached out and also pulled his older brother close. Sans startled, not expecting this, but didn’t fight against Papyrus before he allowed himself to relax and return his brothers hold, wrapping his arm around him and settling his hand on his far shoulder in his own act of comfort.
They all sat together on the couch for the rest of the evening. Papyrus decided that their dinner plans would probably be best to put off for another night and Sans and Frisk agreed, so instead Sans did a late night food run, grabbing a few burgers from Grillby’s. They ate in relative silence and sadness, but at least they were sharing their grief together.
Sans felt more at ease now. His brother was so great. Papyrus had always been better at these more touchy feely things, and Sans knew that he definitely owned him for being able to comfort Frisk properly as he was relieved to see that she wasn’t going to try and deal with this all on her own like she had tried to do with Mittsy.
Soon though they had to leave their little sanctuary on the living room sofa as it was getting very late and they were all mentally and emotionally drained from the unfortunate day’s events. Papyrus tried his best to muster up a pleasing smile as he bid Frisk goodnight, wrapping her up in one final tight Papyrus hug, and Frisk also tried her best to send him a reassuring smile in return, though both looked slightly too sad to be truly convincing. Sans also wanted to show her the same level of affection, but grew nervous with his brother still present in the room. He instead settled for tussling her hair gently, which did at least ern him a weak giggle.
“Goodnight kiddo.” He said before everyone turned to go to their own rooms for a much needed rest. Sans however was sure that none of the apartment’s occupants would really be sleeping very well that evening.
-------------
The blackness was back, but this time Frisk didn’t struggle against it like she had done before. She had expected this, for the nightmare to appear to her again, and she already knew what she was going to see. She watched again and again as one by one her friends perished before her eyes. She watched as Mittsy clutched her chest and fell to the ground, she watched as Toriel turned away from her only to be mysteriously shot in the back before her eyes. Grillby’s flame fizzled out until only smoke remained. Papyrus, unable to fight off his attacker also succumbed to a gruesome fate as his head was separated from his spine. Undyne’s figure seemed to melt as she tried her best to save the last remaining monsters still struggling for life. Alphys simply disappeared, swallowed up by the darkness surrounding her, and Sans just laughed darkly in her face as he too crumbled away to nothing. Joey of course was next, and because Frisk didn’t exactly know how he had met his end, her mind decided to play out a multitude of different scenario each more horrible then the last.
Frisk watched on. Even with the gruesome sights her brain decided to create just for her, she refused to look away. She did not feel fear or sadness this time as the darkness held her in place, this time she only felt rage. A voice then began murmuring to her in the void. At first she couldn’t seem to make it out, but soon the words grew clearer and then Ludo’s image appeared before her with his twisted grin and taunting laugh. The voice in Frisk’s ear sharpened and she realized that it was telling her her utmost desires, which at that moment was to rip Ludo’s god damn throat out. The more that Frisk listened to the voice, the more she realized she liked what it had to say.
Suddenly she felt the grip of the void loosen on her arms and she shifted her head to the side. She was surprised to see that Chara was there right next to her, and had actually been the source of the voice that she had been hearing. He smiled at her impishly with his rosy cheeks pinched and his red eyes glinting cheerily as if he were so glad to see her. Frisk blinked confused, and then turned her head over her shoulder as the grip on her arms almost all but melted away. She then was confronted by the pure white face of the bad man atop his shadowy black form. It was then that Frisk realized that he had been holding her hostage all along, that he was the blackness, he was the void that surrounded her fully. He smiled at her menacingly as if he knew that she had figured it out, and Frisk ripped her hands out of his grasp tired of being his toy.
Her rage sharpened inside of her like a blade and she slashed at the bad man with all of her might, banishing him from her sight. He continued to smile at her as his white ghostly face disappeared melting away into the darkness. Frisk then turned around to face off with the other demon still in the room. Ludo just continued to stand there, though now he was no longer laughing. Now free of her tethers Frisk began to steadily make her way toward him, and Chara watched from a distance, only a simple smile on his face. Somehow a gun had materialized into Frisk's hand, but she really didn’t question it as she pointed it at the Don of the Gambino’s. Ludo fell to his knees in front of her, all of a sudden his slimy smile had twisted into a look of absolute terror, and Frisk smirked realizing she liked seeing him with such a distraught expression on his face.
She continued calmly forward, before she stood over Ludo’s pathetic form beneath her. She could see his mouth moving and she assumed that he was groveling or begging for his life, but Frisk couldn’t hear his pleas as no sound came out of his flapping gob. Frisk recognized then that she was already fresh out of mercy and had no more to give. Instead Frisk continued to focus in on Ludo’s yapping lips, and all she could think was how much she hated that mouth of his, with its taunting words, its snake like lying tongue, and its sinister predatory smile.
Tired of his quiet ramblings, Frisk then shoved the barrel of the gun into his mouth, silencing his attempts to barter for his life. Then she smiled at him, enjoying the feeling of finally being the one in control. She pulled the trigger with ease and blew his brains out of the back of his skull, Her eyes as red as the blood that splattered over her face.
Frisk woke with a start as she sat up in her bed breathing hard. She felt unnerved at how realistic that dream had seemed, and even more unsettled by how drawn into it she had gotten. She tried to banish the visions away and just dismiss it as another nightmare, but she already knew that this one had been something entirely different. It disturbed her what her mind had conjured, and more so how she had actually found that she had enjoyed moments of it. She didn’t like how she had acted in the dream, but what bothered her more was how she had still been herself for the duration of the nightmare. No one was controlling her movements, no one was influencing her in any way, she had acted on her own accord and she had liked it.
Frisk felt a shiver run up her spine and she decided that she just couldn’t sit still anymore. She threw the covers off of herself and walked to exit her bedroom, the cool night air feeling good on her heated skin. She quietly walked through the now empty living room of the apartment toward Sans’ bedroom. She hesitated outside of his door as she debated about waking him up. She knew that he had been very tired and needed his sleep after his ordeal with finding Joey today. Frisk grimaced at the memory of the blood on his sleeve. She then moved to knock lightly on the door realizing that she didn’t think she could bring herself to go back to her dark bedroom and be by herself again.
Shuffled footsteps immediately sounded from within the room, which told Frisk that he hadn’t been asleep after all. Sans opened the door already in his plain tee-shirt and boxers, with his ratty pink slippers on his feet. He looked down at Frisk standing outside of his bedroom. Her head was bowed as she also nervously fidgeted with her nightshirt, her hands clutching it at the sides.
“Hey you ok?” He asked her quietly and she didn’t speak, she instead only shook her head for an answer.
“You have a nightmare?” Sans questioned, guessing the reason why she seemed so terrified. Frisk nodded this time but still remained silent.
“You wanna talk about it?” Sans then asked, trying to figure out how to help. Again Frisk shook her head no.
“Wanna sleep here tonight?” Sans then said and Frisk paused before slowly she nodded. Sans stepped to the side and allowed her to enter into his bedroom.
She crawled onto his bed and curled herself up into a ball under his covers. Sans got in beside her and as soon as he had settle Frisk all but glued herself to his side. Sans startled a little not expecting her to move so quickly, but as he looked over her clearly rattled form clinging to him he realized he shouldn’t be so surprised. Kiddo had had her feathers ruffled something awful today after all, and he knew that she was desperate for comfort.
Sans also had to admit that he himself was a little desperate as well as he had been spending most of the night simply staring at his ceiling. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer, feeling immensely less on edge now that he was holding her. Soon Frisk seemed to relax as well and fell asleep again, but Sans was still nowhere near so lucky as his mind was not done tormenting him yet.
In that moment he realized something that he should have long long before he had even made it back home that day, and his grip on Frisk instinctively tightened protectively. He had almost lost her again today hadn’t he?
Sans remembered how set on sending her to that cottage he had been only maybe a few weeks ago. He remembered that at the time he had thought that it would have been the safest place for her, and if he had gone through with his decision then it wouldn’t have been Joey that he had found lifeless and alone there on the living room floor. It would have been Frisk. Sans clenched his jaw tightly as he remembered Joey’s lifeless stare. He cringed when his mind decided to show him what Frisk’s dead eyes would look like instead.
How could he have been so wrong?! He had almost sent her directly to her death! Sans felt a spark of anger alight in his soul then. He realized he had been too lenient, he had been too lax, too lazy with the work that was required of him as the Pansy’s consigliere. He wouldn’t allow for anymore lose ends as now he recognized how like a noose those threads could ensnare him and cause deadly consequences.
Those threads where going to be cut. There would be no more mercy, no more second chances as Sans knew he could not turn a blind eye toward them any longer because if he did then something like today would surly happen again. After all this is what happened when guys like him took breaks.