You fastened the last button on your winter coat. Then you went over your desk to grab a red marker pen. With it, you crossed out yesterday’s number on your wall calendar.
A thought prompted you to check your past records. A few weeks back, you had filled in one of the squares in a light blue colour pencil.
It’s the day you made the pinky-finger promise with Sans. Your adventure started right after the New Years.
Now… Spring was just around the corner.
Time flies. Yet, it also crawls.
Mezil said you must make your final decision before the cherry blossoms bloom.
You managed to ask Dad about it. With Undyne’s help, of course. Mom won’t want to see you speaking to him in person.
With his updated knowledge on all things about plants, he told you that the cherry blossom trees of Ebott bloom about Mid Spring due to climate zones. Trees planted in this district had a history of flowering late due to the harsher winters. But, it’s still not the slowest on the worldwide list.
You wished that you were in the far-north. It meant that Cenna had more days to hang out with you and your monster family.
Mom knocked on your bedroom’s door and asked, “My child, are you ready?”
It snapped you out of your pondering. You went out to greet her, showing that you’re more than ready to visit the skeleton brothers.
Like any good mother, she asked you if your date went well. You wished you could tell her that it was pure fun and you had a really good time. Alas, that was not the case.
So the both of you decided to pay a get-well visit the next day. Mom planned to make some spring onion chicken soup. That’s a true classic.
After she locked the main door, you held her hand and started walking together in the snow. The icy crystals crunched into a slush under your feet.
You asked Mom if you could ask a possibly offensive question.
She chuckled. “Oh my, what would that be? I have the right to remain silent if it’s that bad.”
You asked if she’s ever afraid of Sans.
“No. Why should I be afraid?”
Although you hesitated, you told Mom that you had seen what he’s capable of. In a nutshell… he made Dad the King of all Monsters look like a true fluff. Mom too.
Both of your goat-parents may be the strongest of Monsterkind, but they never went all out. Always held back. Even when Dad did his war thing.
Sans?
…………
If he wasn’t your special friend, you’d be darn scared.
Mom chuckled at you. “Perceptive as always, Frisk. Well… if I must be honest, I was once afraid that he might be a spy. But then I remembered that Asgore would never have the will to organize such underhandedness.”
“If Doctor Gaster was around, perhaps I would be more careful. But, as you know, all of us forgot about him.”
You watched her smile in nostalgia.
“I suppose we sensed that we’re kindred spirits without realising it. Both of us lived in isolation, either in a literal or a figurative sense. Since we couldn’t see each other… we didn’t have any direct first impressions. It’s like making friends over the internet.”
Does Mom know that Sans and Papyrus are Seers?
“No,” she answered, “My child, most of the Seers gave up their special powers. They used a very specific magic to seal their Eyes, making themselves ‘normal’ like the rest.”
“They don’t call themselves Lichborn either. It’s an intimidating label that they'd rather do without. Generations of disuse caused their powers to vanish from public memory and their people. Only a few chose keep their Seer’s Eye.”
What about their kids? No one noticed anything strange?
You remembered Papyrus’ seal.
What if it’s done too early?
What if it’s done too late?
Toriel returned a sheepish smile. “I’m afraid you’d have to ask Doctor Gaster about it. I don’t know the specifics, but I’m aware that their parents would take their children to The Council.”
The Council?
“They’re Seers who served as the nation’s primary advisors. They too eventually faded into history.”
You thought Mom was the one who handled everything.
“Even I need a second opinion!” she laughed. “Remember, wisdom is more precious than gold. More so when you’re in a position of power. Always seek wise counsel.”
Mom then shot a glare at the general direction of Dad’s house. “It’s an advice Asgore failed to heed. That’s why we’re in this mess in the first place. Not to mention, Gaster was a disappointment compared to his parents.”
Shirai and Visigoth?
She widened her eyes out of surprise. “You know them? They were the primary leaders of The Council, and also the best. I think the only bunch of folks who even remember their names were Gerson, Asgore, Doctor Gaster and myself. When did you study so deep into our history?”
The past week.
“You’re making me very proud. Don’t stop learning.”
You blushed from her praise.
What happened to all the normal skeletons? You asked. Including the ones made out of non-human bone. You really don’t see anyone else other than the brothers and Doctor Gaster.
Mom replied with a sad frown. “My child, who told you that?”
Sans.
“Oh sweetheart, I’m so sorry to say that he had misled you. There are no cat or dog or bird skeleton people. At least, not anymore. Same goes for the human ones.”
You gasped. Then, the whole talk about a small skeleton community scattered around Ebott Town was a lie?
Mom nodded. “…Yes. When I abdicated, there were only three skeletons left in the Underground. You had met all of them as the current Doctor Gaster.”
“Please don’t blame him. Knowing Sans, he wouldn’t want his brother to realise that they’re the last of their kind. I know how he feels. At this point, I think he actually believed his own story.”
You understand: high mortality combined with low birth rate. It reminded you of all those last-human post-apocalyptic scenarios.
If that’s the case, why did those two brothers end up superpowered? Sounds like their parents descended from those who became normal.
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“Well, if I had a Surface example for you… it would be the equivalent of striking the national first prize lottery. Twice.”
Wow. Surreal. Their parents are the luckiest of lucky people in history! No one else can claim they created the two most awesome brothers in the world. Against all odds too. No amount of money can ever value them: they’re price-less!
…You shrunk into yourself, feeling way too nerdy even for your own tastes.
But Mom smiled at you in utmost delight. She said, “I’m both happy and relieved that you love your friends so much. You’d make a fine ambassador no matter the age.”
You smiled back.
When you arrived at the skelehouse proper, Papyrus answered the door before Mom could even ring the bell.
He looked a little haggard. That says a ton for a bunch of bones.
“GOOD MORNING FRISK. GOOD MORNING YOUR MAJESTY. SANS IS FINE. I’M FINE. I THINK.”
You asked Papyrus if he’s sure.
“WELL. APPARENTLY I SANG OPERA LAST NIGHT. AND--”
His explanations were interrupted by a very aggravated Undyne in the background.
Oh no.
Mom sighed. “I believe I understand your concerns now.”
Papyrus nodded. Then he showed you into the house.
Undyne had backed Sans into a literal corner. She’s performing the notorious cicada-block move of internet fame.
That blue skeleton had avoided her for far too long. Now all her pent-up frustrations from the entire week blew off like an over-boiled steam kettle.
A half-asleep Alphys waved at you from the couch, eating her breakfast of instant cup noodles. You imagined that her girlfriend had carried her over the head all the way to this house for… reasons.
“Okay,” said the strongest fish. “First, Papyrus ended up in Alphys’ lab a.k.a our closest thing to a hospital. Then, TORIEL had a migraine so bad she had to take a medical leave!”
“And then Frisk happened. We all know what the hell we went through for THAT!”
“Now YOU?! Who’s next? Asgore? Alphys? Me?? Why the fuck is everyone getting sick dammit???”
Here comes the rain of swearwords. It grated your ears, but you didn’t want to interrupt.
You noticed Mom held back too. She placed a finger on her lips to request silence from everyone else.
Sans answered in his typical Sans style. “Hey, hey, aren’t we getting a little too hasty? I mean, it’s morning. You know I’m not quite the morning skelly.”
“It’s. Ten. O. Clock.”
“Still morning. Look at Alphys. She’s not all rise and shine either.”
“That’s NOT the point!” Undyne barked. “Why the hell is Papyrus looking weird? And why did he tell me that he had to stay up all night because YOU puked your non-existent gut down the sink? How the hell can you puke in the first place??? You have no stomach!”
“Magic,” Sans answered.
“Give me any more cheeky one-liners and I swear I’m gonna suplex the TV, because I can’t suplex you. Even if I tried.”
He groaned. “Papyrus is hanging over a hangover. He’ll be fine after a while. Me? I just shouldn't mix too much alcohol with ketchup. Look. Undyne. Really, there’s no big deal.”
“…You drank alcohol.”
“Yup.”
“Strong enough to make you sick.”
“Yup.”
Undyne growled harder. “You know you’re fucking banned from alcohol or ANY mind-altering substances, right? It’s written in bold and underlined red in your personal records! For a good damn reason!”
Sans replied, “Only in the Underground. The Surface is fair game. Besides, the hypothesis is wrong. The house is in one piece, see? My powers didn’t go haywire from getting drunk.”
“They didn’t go haywire THIS TIME! What about the next? And the next next? And the next next next? What if you end up in a drunken brawl and seriously hurt someone? ONE ATTACK was all you need to completely obliterate someone’s limb! Or destroy the fucking establishment!”
“C’mon Undyne, I may be bald but I’m not that powerful. I have only 1 HP.”
“More reasons why you shouldn’t be SO FUCKING CAREFREE!!!”
Undyne in all her Undyne-brand of rage, punched a hole into the wall with her bare fist.
Sans faceplanted. Now he’s the exasperated one. “And you just wrecked my house. While sober.”
She didn’t listen. “Fine! Papyrus, where’s the trash bin? I’m gonna take whatever’s left of that drink and tell them humans that their shit made a skeleton puke!”
That’s when Mom had heard enough. “No!”
Undyne tensed up in an instant. Nobody wanted to get in trouble with Mom, especially not your fish friend. She stopped doing her cicada thing and stood up straight like a good soldier.
“Ma’am?” she muttered.
“You cannot tell the humans that their product is a problem. More so with your trademark temper,” said Mom. “Causing a ruckus will give the extremists more reasons to further demonize our kind.”
Everyone froze.
“W-wait,” Alphys spoke up. “Your Majesty, did you just say… extremists? Like. Anti-monster extremists?”
You couldn’t believe your ears either.
“Yes, I did,” said Mom. “Miss Caraway warned me about them. To be exact, they’re anti-Magi extremists.”
“These people had long believed that the Sealing was a ploy. Trickery. The main propaganda states that they’re keeping weapons of mass-destruction underneath Mount Ebott, waiting for a day to unleash them on the common populace.”
What. But, the Magi had always been the front-line defenders of humanity.
Mom nodded at you. “I know. But these people never trusted anyone with the power of magic. If word gets out that Asgore once declared war, it will only confirm their worst fears. They won’t hesitate to twist the story to fit their agenda. The same goes for any perceived violent behaviour from our side.”
“Until our legal civic rights are secure on the Surface, it’ll be wise to not take any rash actions.”
So that’s what she’s been discussing with ‘Aunt’ Cenna? Or rather, ‘Sister’ Cenna.
“That and many other things, my child.”
You saw Alphys lift her hand in the slowest, shiest way imaginable. “M-m-may I have a word, everyone…?”
“Yes,” said Mom.
Undyne crossed her arms and sighed. How can she decline? “Go ahead, Al.”
“About the sickness… I-I believe this is an end-user problem. Sans and Papyrus never drank human alcohol before. Or anything harder than Muffet’s Spider Cider for that matter. And those are Frisk-friendly. T-they won’t be used to the effects or know their limitations. S-so… an adverse newbie reaction isn’t unusual at all.”
You agreed with the smart lizard. In the back of your head, you crossed your fingers hoping that Undyne would come to her senses.
Thankfully, she did.
“Okay, I get the point. But I’m not done yet.”
Undyne turned to her childhood friend. “Look, Sans. I know you don’t have a high opinion of yourself. And I’m finally understanding why. But. People care about you, Sans. All of us in this room right now? We give a damn.”
“I just don’t want you to fall into an endless spiral of this thing humans call ‘depression’. You’ve been showing some really, really, REALLY worrying signs, mister!”
After taking a deep breath, she finished her speech with the following statement: “As a friend, I want you to get better. Not worse. That’s all.”
“Sorry,” Sans replied. Though, you’re not sure if the words got through to his heart.
“I’m gonna go outside,” said Undyne. “Be back for lunch.”
The next thing you know, she’s suplexing boulders. You had a suspicion that she moved them to the yard over the week for this very purpose.
You whispered Papyrus a question. Didn’t Undyne fall into depression in one of the timelines? A very bad one until she became a Sans?
He nodded. “I THINK SHE HAS SUBCONSCIOUS PERSONAL FEELINGS ABOUT THIS ISSUE.”
You think so too.
Papyrus helped Mom make the chicken soup. You had to sit outside since the kitchen isn’t big enough for three people, more so when Mom technically occupied the space of one and a half.
He’s no longer the bad-chef of the Underground anyway. You still thank Gaster and the skeleparents for guiding him down the path of true deliciousness.
You watched TV with Sans and Alphys. It’s showing some Saturday morning cartoons that don’t quite interest you. The anime you stream online aligned much better to your tastes.
There’s also a promotion for Mettaton’s upcoming concert. He’s really making use of the Surface’s advertising system. You wonder how his preparations are coming along.
Alphys tried to talk to Sans. He replied in his typical manner.
By now he would be tired of questions about his health, so you decided to take a different approach.
You asked Sans about the ‘big quiz’. That’s the most you could conjure without triggering alarms.
He caught the drift. “Uh, kid. I’m afraid you got to postpone that. I’m really not feeling up to snuff right now. Sorry.”
“What’s the quiz about?” asked your lizard friend.
“Human history stuff. An ambassador’s gotta know both sides, y’know.”
“Aaaah.”
Smooth, Sans. Smooth.
You noticed that he’s not paying attention to the show. Half the time, his eyelids were closed. You don’t know if he’s sleeping or thinking. Maybe both.
At the stroke of noon…
“LUNCH IS READY!” Papyrus announced. He then went out to get Undyne.
She returned from her two-hour boulder wrestling workout. That’s more than enough to make a fish person sweat even in the chill of winter. At least she’s happy enough to call you punk and ask if you finished your homework.
You tell her that you’ll start working on it the moment you get home.
The pot of chicken soup was reserved for the skeleton brothers. Everyone else had vegetable macaroni.
In the middle of the meal, Sans spoke up the most shocking of all shocking statements: “Papyrus, I want to talk to Mom and Dad.”
The younger brother dropped his spoon. You watched his shock and surprise turn into pure ecstatic joy.
“OH! MY! GOD! ARE YOU SERIOUS, SANS???”
Sans nodded.
You squealed together with the tall guy. That’s a nice change from the grim tension of this morning. Everyone’s happy about this new development. After all these years, Sans finally accepted that his parents are well and alive.
“That reminds me…” Alphys muttered, “I should call my parents tonight. Um, come to think of it, I’ve not introduced Undyne to them yet. Oops.”
The couple immediately started discussions that should have happened months ago.
You asked Sans if he’s nervous.
“Heh. Of course.”
Being the good brother, Papyrus offered: “I SHALL KEEP YOU COMPANY AND HELP YOU BRIDGE THE GAP!”
“Nah,” he replied. “I wanna talk with them alone. Just. Prodigal son with his parents. And one annoying mentor.”
Mom frowned in worry. “Are you sure you’ll be fine? Doctor Gaster…”
“I’m okay Tori. I can handle him. Did so for my entire pre-Core life.”
When it comes to Sans, it’s hard to tell if he’s telling the truth or not. But… no pressure.
You wished him good luck in his familial rebonding.