#THERAPY! STAYING UP AND LISTENING TO HIM! HOLDING HIS HAND WHEN HE SEES PAPYRUS ON CUPCAKE POSTERS!

[creative-poptart]

uh...hello! stange question, no worries if you can't answer but, uh, UF boys, HT Sans and US Papyrus with an SO who, uh, happens to get a lot of "papercuts" especially in places it'd be impossible to get them? like i said no worries if you can't answer but...uh...

Hey Anon, if you feel like there’s something you need to talk about, my DM’s are always open. Anything you tell me will not be posted publicly, it would stay between us. Additionally, there are plenty of self-help services available for free at this link. Please get the help you need, if you need it.

That being said, this will be under a cut and with appropriate tagging. If I need to update my tags at the bottom, please let me know.

UF Sans/Red: At first, he’s quick to brush aside the fact that you get papercuts. Humans are weird in that their skin is both super durable and incredibly fragile at the same time. However, as more of these “papercuts” start to appear, Red clues in on what’s really happening with you. He’s not a stranger to what’s going on with your little issue, but he has no idea how to approach you about it. It’s not healthy for this to continue in the way it’s going. When he ultimately catches you with a fresh set of “papercuts,” he’s quick to pull you into his arms. You’ll get cleaned up quietly, and Red will finally sit you down and talk to you about what is happening. Whether you tell the truth or lies, he’s going to make you speak about it, and probably find you some therapy to help with this problem.

UF Papyrus/Fell: He knows right from the start what you’re doing, but he likes to let you think that you’ve got it under control. Fell usually doesn’t try to make things too complicated by inserting himself in situations, but he will if need be. There’s a careful track that he keeps on how many of these “papercuts” appear in a certain amount of time, then he will make sure you get cleaned up each time. After a week where too many pop up at once, though, he calls your bluff, demanding to know more. There will most likely be a small argument where you try to defend yourself from the words, but Fell knows better. He isn’t mad at you, but he is worried about your safety. He doesn’t exactly know where to get you the help you need, but he’s going to do a lot of research and find the best care.

HT Sans/Axe: One might be inclined to think that because Axe has memory issues out the wazoo that it would be easy to get away with this. This would be true if it weren’t for the fact that he hates it when you get hurt in any sort of manner. He’s hyper-vigilant with seeing any new kinds of marks appearing on your body, knowing that they most likely aren’t accidents. He’s not stupid, after all, but he does have trouble remembering this is an issue for a while. After the first few run-ins with him re-discovering the “papercuts” on you, Axe pulls you aside and asks you several questions about this. The whole time, he’s got a hold of your hands, tracing the marks delicately with his phalanges as he listens. You will have the best listener on your hands, but he will get you proper assistance.

US Papyrus/Stretch: From the moment he sees those marks all over you, he’s got several questions and concerns. Stretch isn’t one to be direct most of the time, but he also doesn’t want to let you suffer quietly while he does nothing. The first time you brush it off, he allows it but keeps it in the back of his skull so that he doesn’t forget about it. The next time it happens to pop up on his radar, this skeleton is not letting you out of arms reach or his sight for more than five minutes. He’s lazy by nature, but he cares so much about the people closest to him, and you are no exception. Stretch will make sure that you don’t do anything too rash that whole day, asking you what you need. He’ll be getting you a high-quality therapist and making sure that you’re getting better.

Thanks for the ask, Anon, and please, if you need help, don’t hesitate to ask.

#undertale #undertale imagines #undertale headcanons #underfell #underfell sans #underfell papyrus #underswap #underswap papyrus #horrortale #horrortale papyrus #tw: self deprecation #tw: self harm #it's not explicitly mentioned

[antarestyl]

PTA Sans: The one with Mrs. Smith

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

AO3-Link

IT'S A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE!

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

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

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

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

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

Or to wake up again in Snowdin.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“Who's there?”

“Water.”

“Water who?”

“Water you thinking in your skull, huh?”

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

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

“I uh...”

“And tense.”

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

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

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

He had to, had he?

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

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

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

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

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

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

“Would you prefer if I was more angry?”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

And in that moment, Sans believed her.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“Just Sans is alright.”

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

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

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

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

“So. What do you wanna know?”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“I see... in what sense?”

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

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

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

“Yeah, for science.”

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

“What are your qualifications for that?”

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

“What kind of work?”

“Babysitting.”

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

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

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

“Would you say the school is a success?”

What kind of questions were these?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“... in a way? I guess?”

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

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

Frisk.

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

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

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

That there was even the option of change.

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

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

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

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

What the heck just happened?

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

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

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

Why do they even seem so strange to him?

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

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

“... Sans...?”

“Hey Grills.”

“... are you alright?”

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

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

“You usually text, Sans.”

Damnit.

“Hehe... yeah...”

“So?”

“... do you think people can change?”

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

“Philosophy?”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“I know.”

“Have a nice evening, my friend...”

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

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

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

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

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

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

His soul was filled with love.

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

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

 I am.

 I am.

 I need to go home.

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

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

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

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

Time to go home.

#Undertale #PTA Sans #Sans #Toriel #Soriel #Grillby #Papyrus #Frisk #PTA Sans AU #PTA AU #fanfic #Gaster

[spacegate]

Gaster Blastober 2019 - Week Two

Participating in Gaster Blastertober 2019 put on by @gbpack-discord. I will be doing my best to write short ficlets every week. I’ll be adding them to the side stories fic on AO3 eventually. Hope you guys enjoy! Most will be kinda fluffy cause I feel icky and need some smiles <3

Prompt: TRANSFORMATION 

Fandom: Undertale

Warnings: None

Fluff-rating: 9999%

It’s crazy how fast time flies.

Grillby pondered this as he sat in his chair, surrounded by lots of other monsters. The auditorium they were in was packed, families crammed into every available space. A few whimsums and whimsalots perched themselves up in the ceiling rafters, clearly too intimidated to attempt to fight for seating below. Once in a while, he glanced towards the curtained stage along with a few other monsters, and then to their various watches.

Soon, it would begin, and Grillby would get to see something he never thought he’d get to experience.

Today, he gets to see one of his sons graduate from college.

“UGH.” To the right, Papyrus shifted in his seat, trying to be comfortable. “I WISH THEY WOULD JUST START ALREADY.”

“Patience Papyrus, this is a big day for a lot of people.” Grillby couldn’t help but softly chuckle. Papyrus was a monster who rarely hated anything. But his one true nemesis would always be having to sit still in a chair. He was simply too animated to be contained in one spot for long. He figured that out long ago, when his kindergarten teacher would call him in a panic, only to find Papyrus happily doing his schoolwork outside. How he managed to escape unnoticed proved he was the complete opposite of Sans, who enjoyed staying in one spot for hours at a time. Papyrus lived for the outdoors.

Angel above, kindergarten was years and years ago.

It was hard to believe that such a tiny little skeleton grew up into a monster that was easily taller than nearly everyone in the room. He stuck out terribly even when seated. A few monsters had to move around him just to see. It was clear how much he hated being here, but there was something far stronger keeping him there, and that was the bond he shared with his brother. Those two would do anything for each other.

Grillby allowed himself to slip back into the past for a while, tuning out the excited chatter and Papyrus’s fidgeting for now. It was difficult to understand just how much time had passed. Good memories and bad ones alike past by with speed. Nothing passed so quickly before to the old general. Not even the first few centuries of entrapment under the mountain went by as fast.

He could still vividly recall finding the two tiny skeletons rooting around in the trash behind his bar. How small and sick they both were. How long it took to get them to believe that not everyone was out to hurt them.

Sans was so fragile both in body and mind. It took years of finding the right therapy and medication before he can actually begin to live the life he was supposed to have from the very beginning. Scars faded, including those horrifying bar-codes, now only remnant grooves with no meaning to anyone else but themselves. Sans rarely spoke, rarely instigated anything, even just asking for something to drink was just too intimidating to him. There were many nights passed holding him and promising that nothing would ever hurt him again, and more time until he believed it.

But here he was now, years later, about to get his bachelors degree in theoretical physics. The first of many, he was told. Sans fully intended to collect plenty of PHDs under his belt, but this was the first stepping stone to that dream. He was happy with his smiles now reaching his eye sockets, all genuine. He had a large group of friends, including his dearest two, Undyne and Alphys. Alphys was in the same class as Sans, while Undyne went off to boot camp with Papyrus. All four made it a point to meet up as often as they could.

It was a transformation so subtle, it hit him then just how much the two have changed.

“OF COURSE IT IS A BIG DAY!” Grillby was snapped out of his thoughts by Papyrus. “BROTHER IS GETTING A PIECE OF PAPER THAT SHOWS WHAT HE ALREADY KNEW BACK IN HIGH SCHOOL.”

“Yes, Sans is very smart, but that piece of paper is what he needs in order to continue his dreams.” Grillby laid a hand on the taller skeleton’s shoulder to get him to sit still a little. “It’s like your certificate, you are now a licensed professional. His just….needs a lot more certificates.”

“FATHER, YOU KNOW THAT WE WILL BE HERE AGAIN FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES. HE’LL NEVER STOP GETTING THEM. I ONLY NEEDED ONE.”

“It’s different for you. I am sure that they do not give out college degrees for tracking lost people and digging out cave-ins.”

“AND THAT’S WHY I DIDN’T GO TO COLLEGE. THEY SHOULD HAVE THOSE! I TELL YOU FATHER, THAT IS UNFAIR.”

Grillby laughed. For someone with past like his dear Papyrus, he turned out completely different than what most people would have expected. Born to be tortured and forced to kill, Papyrus instead has turned into one of the most kindest he has ever seen. Grillby did his best to nurture that in his youngest, and he grew up into someone who would help anyone regardless of who they were. It made sense he would go into his current line of work, search and rescue. His beastly form, designed to kill humans, instead helps him dig out trapped monsters and find lost children. Even as a powerful creature, he always looked kindly, and is adored by children.

Sans’ beast form was the complete opposite. Being so short and stout, he was like a large teddy bear. He would park himself in one place and not move for hours. He often ended up as a cuddle buddy for anyone looking for a nap, as he just looked so cuddly

Gaster did his best to design creatures of violence and death, but he failed. He completely and utterly failed.

And, Grillby was happy for that.

Before he could say anything further, the lights dimmed, and the current dean of New Home university floated to the stage. The crowd hushed and Papyrus did his best to sit still and pay attention. The dean opened up one of his mouths, and began to speak, and Angel above, was it awful to listen to.

Grillby heard all the boring introductions as the dean droned on about a story of a frog trapped in a bucket of cream and something about never giving up and butter and it related to science somehow. Grillby felt himself sighing along side Papyrus as they waited for him to finish the convoluted story and get on with it.

The ceremony didn’t even start, and already Grillby could see Bertram in the row in front of him, sobbing into a handful of tissues. Frank was doing his best to keep Gnash awake as the poor guardsmen kept nodding off. The crowd was doing their very best to stay seated and wait out the terrible story.

FINALLY the story ended, and one by one they began to call students out to retrieve their diplomas. Each student was met with applause and cheering, but then….

“Sans Fire!”

Sans stepped out, his graduation cap crooked and with a size too big robe. He of course, was met by cheers, along with the howling of the Snowdin Canine unit, and “THAT’S MY BROTHER!” shouted over the noise. Sans went to shake one of the many, many tentacles of the dean and took his diploma case. There was a soft ‘bzzt’ and said tentacle was pulled back sharply, as Sans showed off the joy buzzer hidden in his palm. The dean harshly pointed at one of the seats on stage, as Sans grinned. He then turned around and scanned the crowd before resting his eyes on Grillby. It wasn’t like he was hard to find, after all.

Grillby could feel tears of magma build up around the embers of his eyes as Sans winked and nodded, and went back to sit with his fellow students.

For a moment, he was speechless.  A strange feeling overcame him. The past and the present blended together for a moment, and he could almost see that tiny six year old Sans sitting up there instead of the adult he is now.

“FATHER! THE CHAIR!” Papyrus suddenly shouted.

Grillby jerked in alarm and looked down, to see that some of his tears had fallen and started to set the chair he was on fire. Bits of flame fell down and set the tacky carpet alight. A commotion broke out around him as fellow parents evacuated the space around the flame and Papyrus went into full ‘rescue’ mode. Grillby was trying to apologize as Papyrus moved him away from the flames as to not make them worse.

From his seat up on stage, Sans watched and sighed as Alphys patted his back. The commotion at least, livened up the ceremony, as now the dean was trying to calm people down with another long boring story.

The nature of growing up is a transformation in of itself. Time passes and things must change, sometimes for good, sometimes for bad. But as Sans watched Papyrus put out the fire by dumping a container of pasta over it, he was sure that not everything has to change.

#KEETAH WRITES #gasterblastober2019 #gasterblastertober #undertale #babyblaster au #trust #sans #papyrus #grillby #dadby #good bois #get dem college #everyone needs pure fluff here and there