Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Sans sighed, the little white box in his hands completely still despite the sniffles from inside.

He’d wanted a human so badly, though not like most other monsters did. They were considered a celebration treat, like a birthday cake. On special occasions, the lucky monster would get some humans for a snack.

He’d always hated this tradition, and very early on opted out. He preferred sweets to savory things in general, but…eating humans always seemed so cruel. He’d seen them in the shops, huddling together in the displays, whispering softly to each other. How upset the others would get when one was plucked out to be…prepared.

Shuddering, the small future guardsman held the box closer. Just like chickens and pigs, however, there was a new trend to have pet humans. Sans had been so excited at the prospect, even though his brother disapproved.

Papyrus had always been one to enjoy human, despite how much it upset Sans. It was the one vice Sans actually couldn’t stand of his brother’s. Sure the smoking made him worry, and the laziness and puns had their own drawbacks, not to mention the honey drinking, but….those were all so minor and harmless in comparison. Sans would always hide in his room on days Papyrus came home with a box, much like this one, but without the holes for air. Why would a dead human need to breathe?

But that was then. As he opened the door, Sans’ usual grin returned bright and cheery. He had gotten a pet human, a sweet little friend to talk to and play with and take care of. Even if Papy would be mad.

Once safely in his room, Sans set the little box down in the terrarium he’d set up for his human. He’d read all he could on how best to keep and care for humans, and now he hoped this would cheer them up. “Human! I know we are very new at this being friends business, but do not fret! For I, the Magnificent Sans, have prepared a lovely home for you. So…” He carefully opened the little flaps on his carry box, frowning at the terrified tiny body at the bottom of it, “so please do not cry anymore? I promise I will care for you more than adequately.” His soul hurt to see how scared the human was of him, though he did understand.

Even when he was as gentle as possible, the human tensed and suppressed screams when he picked them up. “oh…I am sorry, but I had to pick you up. I will put you in your new home and let you be after this, okay?” His soft blue gloves stroked their head tenderly, making them flinch, but he was trying his best. He’d read that pet humans often were afraid of their monster owners at first, but that with time and gentle treatment, they would grow to be loving companions for life.

They did seem to relax a bit when he put them in the terrarium and backed away, watching them from his rocket bed. He’d set up a little house inside the big tank, with a bedroom, bathroom (curtained off for their privacy), and entertainment area with a little shelf at the end for them to eat their food at. The entertainment room had some little puzzles he’d found at the pet store for humans, and a toy froggit that was about as big as the human was. Sans so hoped his new human would like it.

It took quite a while before the human left the bedroom, where Sans had set them down. They looked around, seeming wary at all times, even if they touched things reverently. They spread their hands on the little blanket on the bed, then held it up to their face and nuzzled it for quite a while. This seemed to be a way for them to calm themselves, because they did not look nearly so unhappy after that. They explored the bedroom, looking at the little box where Sans had put some outfits for them in case they liked dress up. This was also found pleasing, as they let out a happy sound before returning to their guarded glare.

In the meanwhile, Papyrus was coming home. What a day. He’d nearly gotten busted by Alphys napping at his station in Waterfall, and he hadn’t had a chance to sneak away to Muffet’s at all today, so he was near starving. At least Sans would be home by now from whatever little errand he’d been on today. What was it again? He was getting a pet maybe?

Sighing, Papyrus opened the door to the house, shaking snow off his shoes on the stoop before stepping in, “bro? I’m home. What kind of pet did you end up with? A rabbit maybe?” A rabbit would suit Sans, small and full of energy. Also quiet. He liked the idea of a quiet pet instead of noisy ones, since he’d be the one caring for this pet while Sans was away on duty or training.

He heard Sans call, “Just a minute, Papy! I will introduce you to them!”

How cute, his sweet little brother had already personified the animal. Taking his usual place on the sofa (as in the whole thing), the lanky skeleton flipped channels on their TV. Dapperbot, Dapperbot, and more Dapperbot. Ah well, it wasn’t like there was anything ELSE on here in the Underground. He hated the limited life that monsters had to lead.

Well, they got their revenge, in a way. Papyrus let himself indulge in a dark laugh, thinking of how the humans above had no idea what happened below. Sure, the humans that lived underground had lost the soul power to break the barrier due to being shrunken and years of hopelessness, but that was small compared to the innate rightness that they now had to feed the very beings that they’d thought to exterminate forever. He really hated humans, now that he thought about it. Oh well.

Sans kept his distance as the human got dressed in their bathroom. He wanted them to look their best for his brother, hoping to ease Papyrus’ concerns with a good presentation. His brother would surely be more inclined to like the human if they were spiffy and polite, right?

His new friend then came out in an orange dress, and Sans asked, “Oh, new friend, I forgot to ask, what should I call you?”

The human shivered despite the house being a comfortable temperature, and murmured, “I d-don’t care.”

“oh…” He frowned, thinking, “well, I suppose you could be a Jasmine, if you like. You look like a flower in that dress.”

The small being nodded, “alright…” but they were so sad still.

Sans came over very slowly, “I know you are frightened, Jasmine, but I promise to keep you safe. And we have to let you meet Papy; he is my brother and also will be taking care of you, so he needs to know.”

Jasmine did not comment.

Though disappointed by their lack of enthusiasm, Sans kept his smile on. He let them climb into his hand on their own, which he hoped let them feel a bit more agency. That was good for humans, being able to feel in control.

He kept Jasmine clutched to his chest, cupped in both hands, as he walked down the stairs to the living room. “Papy, I have a very timid new friend to introduce to you. Please be gentle with them when you see them, since they are a bit shy around us.”

Papyrus nodded at Sans’ instructions. Okay, it was something small and scared. Did not rule out a rabbit, though it would have to be a baby one to be so little. More likely a mouse. He could deal with a mouse.

“sure thing, little blue,” he added, knowing Sans preferred being addressed vocally as a sign he was really listening.

“Okay!” Sans seemed so happy, and….oddly nervous. Why was Sans worried about this ‘meeting the pet’ thing? Unless…

“Papy, this is Jasmine,” Sans carefully moved one of his hands and revealed a human in an orange dress shaking and clinging to his shirt.

“Sans.” Papyrus very slowly began to get up, “I thought we talked about this.”

Sans felt his eyelights start watering as Papyrus got up, “We did, Papy, but you were being unreasonable.”

“humans are dirty, Sans. They’re cruel and will try to hurt you and get away. They have diseases,” his older brother was coming closer, still using that voice that meant Sans had done something he really didn’t like.

“That’s where you’re wrong, Papy!” Sans backed up, protecting Jasmine with his hands again and getting a defiant look. “I read everything there was to know on humans and their care. Humans like to be clean, they talk and have feelings, and they do NOT have rabies! You lied about that!”

“Sans…” Papyrus gave a frustrated growl and swept a hand across his face, “I’m just trying to protect you. Humans are dangerous, even if some foolish monsters said they’re good pets. Just give it to me and I’ll get you a new pet that’s not gonna hurt you.”

He dodged, getting serious, “No, Papy! I know you worry for me, but I won’t let you hurt Jasmine. I promised I’d keep them safe! And I will, even if that means keeping the safe from you.”

That might have been a mistake, since Papyrus got his ‘no you can’t have another cookie’ look on.

“sans. Give me the human. Now.”

“no!” Sans was already three steps up the stairs. “I don’t know how humans hurt you, Papy, but Jasmine is not a bad person!”

“They aren’t even people, Sans!” Papyrus argued. “I don’t wanna argue with you, so please, just hand it over and we’ll pretend this didn’t happen.”

“They are a person!” Sans started crying, feeling anger well up inside him. “You’re being a poopy head, and I don’t like you right now!” He ran all the way up the stairs into his bedroom and slammed the door shut, actually locking it.

Jasmine was also crying as Sans slid down the door with them still held tight to his chest. “i-I’m s-s-sorry, Jasmine,” wept the short skeleton, big blue tears dripping down his cheekbones. “he’s a good person, really, b-b-but I don’t u-underst-stand why he, he, he HATES humans so much. C-cause I…I really l-l-like you and he….*sniff* d-doesn’t.”

The response was soft and trembling, much like his own voice, “d-don’t…don’t fight b-because of me. I…I’m m-m-meant to be f-food and I sh-shouldn’t…”

“no!” Sans was horrified to hear that, “no, J-Jasmine, you’re a p-person and we’re equals. I kn-know you’re tiny but I…” He started rubbing their back with his fingers, “I want you to be my friend. You ARE my friend. And…and Papy needs to stop hating what he doesn’t understand.”

Jasmine’s shaking slowed a bit, but they didn’t speak again.

This could have gone so much better. Papyrus stayed looking up the stairs for a few minutes, realizing he had just made Sans cry, and then put his hood up.

Gosh he hated humans. They were nothing but trouble even at tiny, edible size. Geeze, it would’ve helped if he’d had something to eat before this argument. It just didn’t help to be presented with something tasty and know you can’t eat it.

Wait.

No, even if he wanted to, Sans had named it and dressed it and was clearly attached. And if he was being honest, he had no logical reason to object to Sans having a human pet.

Stars, he was going to dust at this rate, what with all these conflicting feelings.

Jasmine had fallen asleep, and Sans put them down in their bed very softly. It hurt him that his brother didn’t accept their new family member, and that Jasmine was still so terrified of monsters. They’d only fallen asleep because they were exhausted from constant stress and crying.

Well, with the door locked, Papy wouldn’t be coming in, and Sans was tired too. Maybe it was time to go to bed. After all, things always looked better in the morning.

Chapter Text

Sans and Jasmine had been together for a month now. The human was still incredibly fearful of monsters, but Sans was slowly winning their trust. They no longer burst into tears at the sight of him, and even allowed him to carry them in a little backpack, but their speech was minimal and usually downhearted.

When it came to Papyrus, however, Jasmine was even worse than before.

After their initial disastrous meeting, there was no consoling them around the older brother. They would scream if he moved towards them, attempt to run away even if doing so would injure them from falling, and hide anywhere at all. This had caused some discomfort on Sans’ part when they once tried hiding inside his ribcage when Papyrus had walked into the room while Sans was changing clothes. It had taken two hours to get Jasmine calm enough to let go of his spine after that.

Today, Sans was going to take Jasmine for a check-up with Dr. Undyne in Hotland. “Make sure to put on light clothes. Hotland is very warm! Queen Toriel might be a bit literal with names, but I, for one, appreciate the warning!” He loved seeing what Jasmine would pick to wear each day. Today they picked out a little white shirt with a mustache on it and a pair of camouflage shorts. “You look very cute, Jasmine!” Their rare smile lit up his soul with joy, and he giggled softly.

He put Jasmine in their backpack with their blanket and Ferdinand (the froggit plush from the entertainment area; Jasmine had named him instantly), then went into his closet to put on his battle body.

There was a slight pop, and Sans turned around just as Papyrus picked up the backpack and said, “I’ll take them to the doc. Bye.” He didn’t even have time to protest before his brother and his tiny friend were gone.

“okay, human. Let’s talk about this.” Papyrus said as he walked through Waterfall. He’d teleported to his station there to get a good enough distance away from Sans. He needed some one-on-one time with the human.

They trembled and squeaked as they began crying, but Papyrus just continued to hold their little hiding bag up to his face. “Stop that. I’m not going to hurt you, at least not right now.”

This didn’t stop the crying, but they nodded at him. Okay, good enough. “You’ve basically turned my brother against me, you scream every time I come close, and it’s kinda messing with my outlook on life. I don’t like change, and you’re about as big a change as it gets.”

Jasmine nods frantically, just agreeing and trying not to anger their captor.

“ugh, you’re so spineless too,” Papyrus sighed and let the bag hang from his hand now, “what was I even thinking?” He was discouraged, honestly, that he hadn’t been able to convince Sans to give the human up, and that now he couldn’t even get the human to lash out in order to confirm his bias.

Yeah he realized it was a bias.

“So I am actually taking you to Undyne,” he spoke, not bothering to be gentle as he walked with the bag loose in one hand. “She’ll make double sure you’re not sick or anything. Then I’ll have her put a tracker chip in so you don’t get away. Or maybe I’ll just have her keep you for experiments forever and tell Sans you had to be put down.”

He wouldn’t do the latter, but he wanted this little beast to behave. Ugh…he really didn’t like humans.

After a while, he realized the human hadn’t made noise for too long, so he stopped at the stargazing room and looked inside the bag.

Jasmine was clinging to their toy Froggit and looking up at him. Okay, so it was alive.

He was about to close the bag when they called, “I’m sorry.”

“What…?” The human had never said real words to him before. Papyrus was sort of shocked to hear it, having thought that being so small had robbed them of their voices…and intellect, to be truthful.

“I’m sorry…I…” Jasmine wiped their cheeks hastily so they could keep clinging to the toy. “I d-didn’t…w-w-want to make trouble. I just…” they choked on their tears for a moment.

That desperate look sent icy needles into Papyrus’ soul. Oh stars, he’d been acting a fool. Jasmine was AWARE this whole time and he’d been treating them like a common rodent. Like a pest.

“I just want to be safe,” they squeaked finally, eyes pleading with him, “you c-can eat me if you don’t…don’t believe me but…I don’t want to hurt anybody.”

He had to swallow thickly to keep from showing too much emotion. This was a real person. That….that meant that….oh STARS how blind had he been? Had they ALL been?

He wondered with growing nausea just how many lives had been snuffed for his own sick enjoyment.

“I believe you. S-sorry…oh stars, I’m sorry. C’mon, let’s get to Undyne’s. You’ve got to be well for Sans,” Papyrus was glad his words did something to calm Jasmine down. He had so much to make up for now….now that he knew.

Undyne let him in and babbled, her vibrant red hair bobbing in its tight bun, “Oh Papyrus! I’m s-so glad you’re here! When I heard your brother had, had a human I was beside myself! Never seen one alive before. Only know their anatomy from b-b-books and stuff. And from my comics, of course.” She laughed shyly at that.

“Dyne, buddy, I…ah….we kinda had a change of plans,” he puts on his easiest smile, trying to hide the painful squeezing with each pulse of his soul. “I kinda took them without permission, so Sans will be needing them back today rather than next week.”

“You….” Her yellow eyes blinked a few times, then became stern. “Papyrus, did y-you lie about him letting me experiment with her?”

“I….” he sighed and nodded, “Yeah. Y’know how I feel about humans and….well….”

“Papyrus!” The fins on the sides of her head flushed darker blue and red with fury, “He’s your brother! How could you try to steal his pet and pass it off on me? And why change your mind now?”

He winced and held up his hands defensively in front of himself, “Undyne, I was wrong. You’re right; it was cruel and stupid. And as for changing my mind…it was more like a change of heart.” Carefully, Papyrus opened the backpack and showed his best friend the contents, “This is Jasmine. They’re….well…I finally realized they’re aware of things. Sentient.”

The fish woman before him gasped as she looked at Jasmine, then cooed, “Oh Papyrus…”

Jasmine squealed and covered themselves with the tiny blanket, still lying on their comforting frog.

“Dyne, please….I already terrified them once today. Maybe put your mask on? I think…” Papyrus sighed deeply as he set the bag gently on the table, “I think they’re convinced we’re all out to eat them all the time. Partially my fault.”

The shy scientist nodded and took out a surgical mask to hide her piranha-like teeth, “Of course. And…you’re sure they’re sentient? Like I said, I’ve never seen one alive before but…it’s a disturbing discovery if it’s true.”

“True enough, friendo,” he gently pulled Jasmine out, “hey, hey, it’s okay, little thing. I’m bad, I know, but Undyne won’t hurt you. Sans wouldn’t have let her check you out if she was going to.”

It seemed to work, talking about Sans, because Jasmine uncurled from their defensive position, though kept their grip on the blanket. Undyne smiled under the white mask, expression gentle as her voice, “Don’t w-worry, Jasmine. I’m just going t-to make sure you don’t have any injuries. If anything I do feels uncomfortable, just tell me.”

Papyrus stood back and watched as Undyne very carefully checked each of Jasmine’s limbs, the usual prickling of magic on his skull. He always felt it when medical exams were involved, either his own or someone else’s. It was an odd feeling, but not unpleasant. The tiny body twitched and Jasmine giggled when Undyne ran her finger over the sole of their foot, checking the alignment of the minuscule bones. It was the happiest sound he’d heard from them.

“oh!” Undyne chuckled softly, “ticklish. Sorry about that.”

“n-no problem…” Jasmine murmured, surprising the scientist.

Looking to Papyrus and nodding, Undyne asked, “S-so, are you hurting anywhere, Jasmine? Any i-itching or…um….”

Jasmine shook their head. They were fine.

Papyrus asks very softly, “hey, um, is there anything Sans might not have heard about, regarding keeping them healthy?”

“We’ll deal with that when it occurs, Papyrus. For now, th-though, Jasmine is perfectly healthy.” So saying, Undyne adjusted her goggles and said kindly to Jasmine, “y-you can go back to your bag, s-sweetie.”

Nodding, the human scuttled back inside, snuggling back up to their toy and sighing as they were enveloped in the soft darkness of the backpack. Papyrus picked it up gently once they were settled and actually put it on, though backwards so he could have it in front of him.

“Thanks, Undyne. I owe you one.”

“You owe me several,” she sighed and shook her head, “but I-I’ll overlook this for Sans’ sake. J-just make sure you apologize to him!”

“I will, fishsticks, don’t worry,” Papyrus chuckled and waved as he left, teleporting away.

Chapter Text

When Papyrus opened the door to their home, he was bowled over by Sans rocketing into his legs.

“PAPY, GIVE JASMINE BACK RIGHT NOW!” Sans was frantic, getting up in a hurry and trying to pull the backpack off his brother.

“whoa, whoa, whoa, Sans!” Papyrus easily pushed him off and sat up, “I will. Just calm down.”

The smaller skeleton was blue in the face, trying to look angry but only managing a wet grimace, “Papy, you took them and you KNOW how upset you make them and-“

“Sans,” Papyrus used his softest voice, “I know. I was wrong to do that.”

“y-yeah..” sniffling, Sans backed up while Papyrus stood. “so why did you do it?”

“because I’m stupid and didn’t realize you were right this whole time,” came the answer, easy and matter-of-fact. Papyrus took the backpack off and held it out to Sans. “Jasmine’s fine. Healthy and probably more than ready to be home.”

Sans’s sockets widened, taking the bag and checking inside. Jasmine looked up at him, shaken but alive. “Sans,” they seemed relieved to see him.

“oh Jasmine, I was so scared when he took you. Thank stars you’re alright!” He was so happy to see them safe.

Papyrus sat down on the sofa and sighed. “I’m sorry, Sans. I should have asked….I’m an idiot.”

“Papyrus, no.” Sans held Jasmine’s backpack close as he went to look his brother in the face. “Why are you being so hard on yourself? You saved me a trip to Hotland and Jasmine is fine. You should have asked, yes, but…”

“no, Sans, I did it to be mean.” He hated admitting that, but it had to be done. There was enough guilt inside him to fill all the rivers in Waterfall right now. “I was going to give them to Undyne as a lab rat for a week, but they managed to change my mind.”

“What?! Papy why?!” Sans could not believe that he really thought it was a good idea.

“Because….ugh.” Papyrus let his head fall back onto the back of the couch, “Sans, cause I thought they weren’t aware of things and were just a dumb animal. Just like a cow.”

Sans put Jasmine’s backpack on and frowned, “Papyrus…I’m kind of disappointed in you for that but….since Jasmine never talks to you, I do understand.”

“They talked this time,” he stopped Sans before he asked, “They were afraid and wanted to assure me they didn’t mean to make us fight.”

It surprised Papyrus when Sans sat down next to him and leaned into his chest, “Papy…thank you for confessing.” His little brother had the backpack on front-ways and was hugging it to himself. “I know you…have trouble being honest sometimes, so…I’m glad you told me.”

This was how things ought to be. Papyrus put his arm around Sans’ shoulders and nodded, “thanks, bro. I’m a terrible brother, but you always forgive me somehow. And I’m sorry to you, too, Jasmine.” He opened one socket and looked down into the backpack.

Jasmine looked up with something nearing hope, and that was it. Papyrus felt his whole soul just melt into goop. How had he ever thought Jasmine was a threat?

“Papy…are we okay now? You don’t feel angry with me for saving Jasmine?” Sans asked cautiously.

“no. I wasn’t ever mad at YOU, bro. I was too busy being mad at the humans up there.” He pointed upward and Sans made a soft ‘oh’ sound.

“there…are humans out there?” Jasmine seemed amazed.

“Yeah, tiny,” Papyrus leaned back again. “They sealed your people down here with us after some force of ours shrank ya. Then I guess we decided to take our frustration out by…well…y’know.” He gestured vaguely off to the side, but Jasmine’s eyes darted to his mouth nervously.

Sans reached into the bag and took them out, sitting Jasmine on his shoulder as Papyrus continued, “Yeah, well, I kinda carry that frustration on my shoulders, working for the king, and the guard, and hearing everybody be so miserable about being trapped down here as I wander from station to station. So…up till this point I believed the lies I’m guessing the first couple of human keepers came up with. The ones that said you little folks weren’t aware of things anymore, that you’d been turned into blank animals. Livestock. It was easier and let me take out my aggression, kind of.”

Sans was heartbroken to learn why his brother had acted so mean. It had to be hard to carry that much misery inside for so long.

“But,” Papyrus gave a rib-rattling sigh, “now I know it was a lie, something I could have learned from Sans a long time ago.” He put his hands in his hoodie pocket and went still.

This was enough for Sans. “You made a mistake. That’s okay.”

“it’s not okay, Sans, but…at least you don’t hate me.”

Jasmine added softly, “but…you feel bad so…now you can correct it?”

Papyrus turned his head a bit and gave them a small smile, “even you forgive me, bud? Heh…maybe. At least I won’t be…doing that one thing anymore.”

“well….you could but…” Sans pouted and looked away, “not the way you used to. And I’m sorry if it’s rude, but I’m glad.”

Papyrus raised an browbone, but shrugged, “Me, too, bro.”

The three of them settled there, going quiet as each stayed in their own thoughts.

Life was easier, now that Papyrus wasn’t a problem for Jasmine. They were still very cautious of him, understandably, but the screaming and hiding stopped.

Now the three of them could at least relax together peacefully, like the family they were. Sans was very glad he no longer had to take Jasmine with him to training, for instance, since Alphys saw his affection for the tiny human as ‘a weakness’ and something she wanted him to get over.

Papyrus usually was okay with the captain of the guard, since Sans admired her so much and she never actively overworked his brother. However, when Sans told him how she’d reacted to Jasmine, that changed. Now that he’d changed his view on the little humans, Papyrus was not going to let others hurt Jasmine or make Sans feel bad for loving them.

So, when Sans went to training, Papyrus kept Jasmine, either in their bag or at home. It garnered a lot of attention for him, since most people in Snowdin knew him enough to say hi. His usual visits to Muffet’s became a bit more talk-heavy, too.

“Whatcha got there?”

“A human?”

“Your brother’s pet? Aww c’mon.”

The regulars at the café began to understand eventually, even asking how the little one was doing after a week or two. The owner, Miss Muffet herself, chuckled softly once she saw how protective Papyrus had become. She never spoke much, but Papyrus didn’t mind. They were close anyway, her quiet understanding giving him a much needed support system for the worst of his troubles that even Sans didn’t know.

Jasmine took well to Muffet, at least, after being in her presence so often. They would peek out and smile sometimes, or sit on the counter by Papyrus and nibble crumbs from the pastries offered. The other regulars still sent them zooming back into their bag, or up Papyrus’ sleeve, but the spider woman had earned some measure of calm. Papyrus was grateful for that; he knew most people, even other monsters, weren’t fond of spiders and despite her reticence, it hurt Muffet’s feelings.

Papyrus and Jasmine were relaxing on the couch, the little human inside the pocket of his hoodie, when Sans walked in from training. He smiled and said, “Papy! Where’s Jasmine? Alphys wanted me to bring them along today but said it was okay to do it tomorrow….”

“ah, the fight lizard finally eased up on ya for having a human? Nice. Jasmine’s right here,” He pointed at his pocket, where Jasmine had peeked out.

“Sans!” They squeaked happily. Both brothers looked down at them warmly, and Sans scooped them up.

“Hi! Alphys said she had a way to help me get closer to being a full guard and you could help!” Sans nuzzled Jasmine gently, “I know she was rough before, but maybe she has finally realized your potential!”

Jasmine giggled and nuzzled back, making a scene that Papyrus found heartwarming and sort of saccharine at the same time. “bro, just make sure they’re wearing safety gear. They aren’t as tough and as you.”

Sans nodded, eager to have his mentor and his friend help him with his dream of being in the royal guard.

Waterfall was beautiful, as always, with the blue glowing waters and colorful crystals dotting the surfaces. Since they were calm this time, Jasmine was able to appreciate the view more as they rode on Sans’ shoulder.

The longer Jasmine was with him, the more comfortable they became around Sans, gaining confidence and assurance in their safety. Sans was always gentle, even speaking in a softer voice around them. Anyone who cared to look would know how much Sans loved Jasmine. And slowly, Jasmine was returning the affections.

Today, Sans had them dressed in long pants and long sleeves, with small pads of cotton taped around their knees and elbows. He’d even gotten a little helmet for them, just to ensure they didn’t get injured in whatever sort of training Alphys had in mind. “As soon as we get there, I’ll help you do warm up exercises, so you don’t strain your muscles or get too tired. It’s hard to be a Royal Guardsman, but I’m sure you will be just as amazing at it as I am!”

Jasmine nodded, beaming. They were excited to have something to do, some way to give back the help that Sans always gave them.

Alphys was standing in front of her house with her battle-axe, looking tough and intimidating. The yellow lizard woman grinned as she saw Sans and Jasmine bounding up, “Well, looks like you two made it this time!”

“Of course! We would not miss a special training exercise!” Sans smiled brightly, with Jasmine giving a firm nod.

Something glinted in her good eye as Alphys approached, “Okay, Sans, we’re going to do rescue drills today.”

“ooh! I love rescue drills!” Sans clapped his hands, “Where’s the training dummy?”

“We aren’t using that today,” Alphys sneered, then snatched Jasmine from Sans’ shoulder. “We’re using this!”

Jasmine squeaked and struggled, and Sans immediately felt his soul plummet, “Alphys, please be gentle with them!”

“oh, no, Sans, you’ve gotta rescue them from me. Training starts now!”

Sans tried every trick he knew. Distractions, fake outs, direct assaults, guerrilla tactics, the works, but Alphys would not release Jasmine or drop her guard. Growing desperate, Sans stood in front of Alphys, arms out wide and completely vulnerable, “I offer myself as trade for the prisoner. A Royal Guard always puts others’ lives ahead of their own!”

Alphys nodded sagely, coming over and grabbing Sans into a tight hold, “I’ve taught you well, Sansy. However, you only let yourself be grabbed once your prisoner is free, otherwise you’ve got two prisoners and no more fighters.”

“oh…” Sans pouted and looked up, “So I failed?”

“Nah, you did good. However, I’ve got one more thing we need to do before this is over,” Alphys held Sans immobile under her arm, able to use both her hands just fine to pluck the little makeshift safety gear off Jasmine.

“What are you doing?” Sans tilted his head as he watched, getting more worried as Jasmine whimpered and tried to resist.

“Getting this stuff off it. It won’t help you for the next part,” Alphys was not looking at Jasmine like a person, and the more Sans watched her face, the angrier it got. “Humans are the enemy, and these little ones are here to help teach monsters how to treat the big ones once we’re free. Harshly and without mercy! But you’re too soft on this thing, Sans, so I have to do this even if you don’t like it right now. It’s for your own good.”

Socket’s wide, eyelights tiny, Sans began squirming, “A-Alphys, please….don’t hurt them! E-even Papy’s happy with them, now. I know the big humans are s-supposed to be mean but! That’s no reason to take it out on Jasmine! They’ve never done anything wrong.”

With a large, sad sigh, Alphys stripped the last of the clothes off Jasmine, who was now sobbing, and replied, “Sans, humans do something wrong just by existing. Now stop squirming; it’ll only make it harder on both of us.”

Sans yelped as his soul was turned green, freezing him in place. In this state, it was easy for Alphys to force his mouth open and shove Jasmine inside roughly. “Swallow it! That’s an order!”

Sans couldn’t. Tears streamed out of his sockets as he tried desperately to get away or open his mouth, but with a green soul he couldn’t do anything Alphys didn’t allow him to do. Jasmine was frozen, brain blanking in panic as the one thing they’d feared was occurring, and worse, against Sans’ will. This was both a betrayal and an outrage.

Alphys shook her head, “You’re going to eat it and you’re going to like it! You’ve got to learn to hate humans!” And so saying, she smacked Sans’ spine, hard, while holding his jaw shut.

It was reflexive, but Sans still screamed after he swallowed hard, feeling every painful inch of his throat as Jasmine slid down. His screams, though muffled, were enough for Alphys to let go of him. “There. And I’ll do it again if I ever see you with another live one. They’re evil, Sans. You need to toughen up if you ever want to be in the guard.”

Sniffling, shaking and utterly devastated, Sans ran away from Alphys’ home at top speed. His soul was aching, and he needed comfort.

Chapter Text

Papyrus knew something was wrong before Sans even opened the door. He could feel his anguish in waves, coming closer until he was sobbing on the front steps. Papyrus instantly picked his brother up and held him close, heading for Sans’ room.

“What happened? Talk to me,” he murmured, gentle as he could be, carefully cradling Sans close as he sat on the bed.

“Alphys….she….” Sans could barely make words, but he wouldn’t move his hands from where they were wrapped around his middle, “m-m-made me….m-made me….”

“wait….Sans, where’s Jasmine?” Papyrus’ rage and alarm was growing as he noticed the absence of their tiny housemate.

At the mention of their name, Sans wailed, “She made me eat them!!!”

“Oh STARS what?!” he could feel the orange light flicker on in his right socket. “Sans, are they alright? Are they still moving?”

“y-yes,” he coughed, choking on tears. “b-but….”

“No, Sans, hey…” Papyrus shook his head, extinguishing the light and rubbing the back of Sans’ skull, “if they’re still alive, you’re fine. Wanna let me see what I can do about it?”

“Papy…” Sans’ voice wavered painfully, but he pulled his armor off, and held up his shirt to let his brother look.

Papyrus sighed in relief. As he’d thought, Sans’ body had rejected the idea of outright absorbing a living thing, instead storing them away, protected, behind his ribs in a small pouch of magic. “They’re fine, bro, see?”

Jasmine, seeing the light and their caretakers through the translucent cyan magic, rubbed at the barrier between them. Sure they were scared, but they weren’t hurt and they could breathe, and it wasn’t so tight as to be constricting.

This seemed to agitate Sans more, though, “H-how do we get them out, though?” He was too upset to think clearly, and Papyrus swore he’d give Alphys the talking to of a lifetime after this crisis was over.

“It’s just a little magic pouch, bro. Pull back your magic from them and they’ll just plop right out. No harm done,” Papyrus had dealt with this more often than Sans had, so he knew from experience. How many times had one of Muffet’s little friends crawled into his mouth while he was asleep on the counter? Too many times to count.

“o-okay…” Sans frowned and concentrated, and Papyrus watched the magic around Jasmine flicker and finally fade out. They yelped when they landed, but scrambled away and into Papyrus’ hoodie pocket.

“All good now,” Papyrus gave the pocket a gentle pat, then hugged Sans close again. “I’m so sorry you had to be scared like that, Sans.”

“It w-w-was awful…I f-felt like a….a h-horrible…nightmare or someth-thing,” he clung to his brother’s neck and sobbed again. “H-how c-c-could Alphys do this t-to me? It w-was so cruel and…and heartless.”

“I know, baby blue, I know,” cooed Papyrus, patting Sans’ back gently, “but it’s over now and I’ll go take care of telling her off, hm? You and J need to rest here. Just take a nap and I’ll be right back.”

It clearly took a lot of willpower from Sans to let go of Papyrus, but he did. Tenderly, Papyrus lay his brother down on the bed and tucked him in, clunking his teeth softly to Sans’ forehead in a facsimile of a kiss goodnight.

Reaching into the hoodie pocket, Papyrus was amazed when Jasmine flew into his hand and clung there. Their voice, quiet and broken, begged, “Don’t let her hurt you, too, Papy.” The term of affection, their heartbeat so fast and clear against the bones of his palm, made sure Papyrus’ rage at Alphys was all the more powerful. Pulling them out, he gave them his warmest, easiest smile, “No worries, J. I might be a lazybones, but I’m fast. Just try and rest, and watch Sans for me if you wake up before I get back, okay?”

“o-okay,” They murmured, hugging his thumb tight, “l-let me sleep on the bed with Sans? H-he might need me.”

“sure thing,” he chuckled, setting Jasmine gently on the pillow next to Sans, grabbing their blanket out of the terrarium for them and giving the same treatment he did with his brother. “Sleep tight, you two. I got this.”

They both answered, “good night, Papy,” then snuggled closer to each other and closed their eyes. It eased his mind to see Jasmine wasn’t scared of Sans after this, as that would have made things infinitely worse for both their family and Alphys. As of now….well, he wasn’t the Judge for nothing and Alphys had a sentence coming down.

Alphys didn’t know where the attacks were coming from. Too fast, too many, and she finally fell to her knees, exhausted. “SH-show yourself! Coward!”

“nah….you happen to be the coward here, captain. Tormenting someone who adores you, making him victim to your twisted worldview, using an innocent creature in your sick mission. You’re lucky they both survived that.”

“Whuh?” Alphys was confused, but finally it clicked, “this is about Sans?”

“yep,” came the dark voice from the shadows as the blue bars around her crept closer, “and you’ve got a lot of explaining to do. Apologizing to him and his tiny friend, for one. Getting educated on how the tiny humans actually work for another. Now, are you going to stop being violently ignorant or are you going to go ask Dr. Undyne about that?”

“I’ll ask! Just lay off me, okay? I get it! I did a bad thing. I felt bad enough when he was crying, but this is too much.” Alphys gritted her teeth and looked around, still finding nothing to aim her anger at.

“nope, I’d say it was just enough to get that lesson through your thick skull. You have been judged, you have been found guilty, and given proper punishment. In the future, try to learn about what you don’t understand instead of hurting others.” A single orange fire blazed up in the darkness of the cavern around Alphys and smacked her one last time with something that bounced off her spines, but it and the blue bars vanished right after.

“I….I’ve been judged?” The stocky lizard murmured. “Oh stars, that was THE Judge…..wow, I must’ve really messed up.” Realizing how severe her mistake had been, she shuffled quickly off to Hotland and the lab of the royal scientist.

In the darkness, Papyrus smirked a little and sighed, “mission accomplished. Good. Now, let’s go see what Muffet’s cooking.” He shrugged his hood back off his head and walked away, vanishing in a small ‘zap’ noise.

When he got home, fresh honey bottle in hand from Muffet’s, Papyrus went upstairs to check on Sans and Jasmine. Sans was fast asleep still, but Jasmine was awake, hands stroking softly on Sans’ forehead. Slipping in, Papyrus whispered, “Hey, J. How’s our brave warrior?”

“He’s fine. Hasn’t moved much at all since you left,” they smiled as they spoke. “I barely slept at all worrying for him. I love him, Papy. I haven’t ever loved anybody, but I love Sans.”

“I know the feeling, bud,” he chuckled as he stepped closer, “I never loved anybody but Sans till you got through to me.” Papyrus took a slow drink of his honey, then asked, “You want to stay here or you okay to come down with me and watch TV?”

“I’ll go with you. The longer he rests, the better,” they murmured, then stood up.

Papyrus scooped them into his hand, quickly zipping out and shutting the door quietly. “Good choice. Kinda boring watching Sans sleep all night. I’ve done it a few times when I was younger.”

Jasmine giggled, “I’m just glad you made it home alright. We’d have both been devastated if you’d gotten hurt for our sakes.”

He slid down the bannister and flung himself down on the couch, relaxing at last, “Ugh, I know, but like I said, I’m fast. Nobody can hit me when I’m actually trying.”

The drone of another DPB music special and the blue-ish glow of the television in the dark living room were familiar and comforting environs for both of them. Jasmine settled down after crawling to sit in the hoodie pocket, and Papyrus let his sockets drift half shut, not really awake but not sleeping either. It was warm in the house, safe, a restful place.

Jasmine found the honey bottle as they shifted their feet, “Papyrus, what’s in this little bear bottle?”

“huh?” he had to shake himself more awake. “oh, it’s honey. You ever had some?”

“no,” Jasmine pulled the large bottle upward with some difficulty.

“well, lemme fix that then,” Papyrus took the cap off and barely squeezed it, some of the golden liquid pooling on top of the spout.

Careful, Jasmine took a mouthful of the honey and swallowed, “U-um…s-sorry but that’s…way too sweet for me.”

He laughed, taking the whole thing up in his hand and smiling honestly, “yeah, it is for most people. No worries, pal, more for me. Still,” Papyrus raised a browbone teasingly, “not as sweet as you are.”

Jasmine’s whole face turned red and they covered it shyly. This just made the tall skeleton laugh more.

“Don’t hide, I’m just messing with you. But you seriously are sweet, bud, taking care of Sans and encouraging him like you do. I appreciate that you didn’t try and run that first month, even if I was being a jerk,” His phalanges stroke the top of their head softly, and they lean into it.

“I would have been foolish to leave this,” came the hesitant reply. “Sans is too kind, and compared to my life before, it was too good here. Now that you…you don’t hate me so, it’s much better than that, even.”

“I don’t hate you at all, Jasmine,” Papyrus admitted quietly, “matter of fact, I’m pretty sure I already said I loved you. Sans comes first, obviously but….you’re not too far behind now.”

They sighed deeply and relaxed against his curled fingers, “even after today?”

“especially after today.” Picking them up, Papyrus added, “You went through hell and still your first concern when you were at yourself was for my safety. I’d say that earns you some big points.”

“but Alphys used me to hurt Sans. I’m a liability,” They seemed so sad to say it out loud.

“nope. loving somebody is never a liability. It’s a privilege,” he tilted their head up softly, “so you’ve made me and Sans pretty lucky. Don’t be down on yourself. You’re pretty amazing.”

There were sparkly tears in Jasmine’s eyes, but they nodded and smiled for him.

They stayed on the couch, Jasmine now laying on Papyrus’ chest under his hand, watching TV till Sans woke up.

Chapter Text

There was a harsh knock on the door the next afternoon.

Sans had stayed home with Jasmine today, and hesitantly peeked out. His eyelights shrank to pinpricks when he saw Alphys outside, but he couldn’t be rude. So, hiding Jasmine under the bandana around his neck, he opened the door.

“Hello, Captain Alphys,” he said, the caution and pain clear on his face.

Shuffling her feet, Alphys looked at Sans, “I, um….I came to apologize. I was….ugh, this is stupid.” She shook her head and went from her sheepish stance back to her normal confidence. “I was dumb and hurt you and your friend, and when Undyne explained stuff to me I felt even more super bad, so now I’m here. I don’t expect you to forgive me but I had to at least tell you I understand.”

Sans felt the tears come to his sockets, and he zoomed forward and hugged his biggest hero, “O-oh Alphys! I’m so glad you came! It hurt so badly to think our friendship might be over! I…..” He nuzzled her unintentionally and sniffled.

“Sans….hey, it’s okay. I was a big poo-head and should’ve…should’ve thought about your feelings and safety first,” she frowned and hugged him back, stroking his skull. “I was a bad captain and a bad friend. If you like something, I shouldn’t try and make you not like it anymore just because I don’t. You don’t like weapons, but you let me polish mine all the time. I shouldn’t have hurt your human or made you…uh….yeah.”

There was immense relief in Sans’ soul now that this whole mess was cleared up. Of course he forgave her. That wasn’t ever a question! She always did what she thought was best for the Underground, and for him, even if it wasn’t always the case.

A few more pats and Alphys easily detached him from around her arm, “Hey, so are we cool? And, uh….is your little pal okay? I got worried I might’ve hurt them.”

“Oh Jasmine is fine! But, um….they are very shy. And will probably be much slower to forgive you than I was, I’m afraid,” Sans gave an apologetic smile, “But! They are unharmed! Not even a scratch.”

“Great!” Alphys beamed. She really had been concerned after hearing from Undyne about Jasmine and their kind. “But, I think we can safely say they aren’t cut out for training. Too small; but they will make a great buddy for injury treatment! You can bandage their whole arm without using too much gauze!”

Elated, Sans nodded, fists tight while he gestured, “This is a wonderful plan! I can’t wait!”

“Alright, now that we’re sorted out, I’ll head on home. Have a good day, Sans.” Alphys clapped her smallest sentry on the back, but he didn’t even flinch despite the force behind it. He was strong, and had better judgement than Alphys had thought before.

“You, too, Alphys! I’ll be back training as usual!” He bounced on his heels, stars in his sockets and full of energy.

Papyrus was late getting home, and Sans was worried. He’d said he would come home early today.

When he did walk in the door, he was holding his jaw and wincing.

“Papy!” Sans yelped and rushed to his brother’s side, “What happened? Are you hurt?”

He shook his head, sitting on the couch before speaking, “Some jerk from the capitol came in. mmmn…he thought it would be funny to use me as a nutcracker since I accidentally fell asleep at Muffet’s. Got some shell stuck in my jaw and it hurts.”

Sans got close, then frowned, “It’s too small for my fingers. I can see it but I can’t get it.” Now he was worried. If the two of them couldn’t remove that shell bit, Papyrus might be in pain permanently. Or worse, it could give him an infection! Even though Sans wasn’t sure monsters could get infections, it still sounded possible! And bad!

Jasmine, sitting on Sans’ shoulder, seemed a little pale and nervous. They looked around, chewing their lip for a bit, then said, “I-I could try to get it.”

Both brothers were surprised, but Sans replied worriedly, “But Jasmine, you’d have to get in his mouth to get it.”

“I know.” They seemed determined to help, face now set. “I can face my fear if it means helping Papy.”

Papyrus gave them a grateful look and nodded. He understood, and wanted to encourage that attitude of confidence.

Looking between Jasmine and Papyrus, Sans nodded, “Okay, but….just be careful. Both of you!”

Jasmine stood up and hopped into Sans’ hand while Paps lay himself over the couch to give Jasmine a better angle. The human took a deep breath, then climbed inside Papyrus’ mouth. His tongue was there, the magic responding to pain and manifesting in a futile attempt to remove the cause.

As Jasmine crawled carefully over his tongue, Papyrus tried not to think. His mouth hurt, he couldn’t really talk, and now this. It was so hard to just have to sit there and taste Jasmine’s hands. Just that one little contact was enough to prove they were absolutely delicious. Oh gosh and it got worse as they headed back farther to get the large chunk of walnut shell stuck in the joint of his jaw. They were in shorts, as usual for house days, and their bare legs were making his mouth water.

“Papy, stop drooling! Oh…maybe you can’t because your mouth is open. Sorry! I’ll just clean you up in a minute,” Sans quipped, making Papyrus roll his eyes as best he could. He really couldn’t help it.

Jasmine, completely oblivious, squeaked, “I can see it. I’ll try and pull it out now, so brace yourself.”

He breathed slowly through his nasal cavity. This was Jasmine, after all. His friend, his family member in fact, and near and dear to his heart. He’d have to just let them do their thing and let them back out. Even if he was aching to taste them more.

Jasmine’s small hands were able to take a firm hold of the shard of shell and pull, making it pop out with a small hiss of pain from Papyrus. “I did it!” they called, pleased with themselves. They started backing out slowly, on hands and knees.

Sans was happy now. Jasmine had once again proven themselves an asset to their family and a caring friend. Of course, they’d have to have a bath after getting covered in drool, but that was no problem. A full sink served perfectly well as a bathtub at their size.

Hopping down onto Papyrus’ chest, Jasmine stood up and beamed, showing both of them the walnut shell. Sans clapped eagerly, while Papyrus gently moved them into his hoodie pocket with one hand and wiped his mouth with the other.

“Good job, Jasmine!” Sans praised them. “You were so brave to help Papy!”

“Yeah, bud. You did me a solid. I apprecia-“ Papyrus was cut off when his stomach growled at him. All three went silent and he blushed bright orange, “uh….whoops. forgot I slept through dinner.”

Jasmine slid out of his hoodie pocket enough to look up at him, “that was loud. You must be really hungry.” They seemed a little embarrassed, blushing softly. “I guess I didn’t help much with that, huh?”

Sans and Papyrus both chuckled softly and Sans assured Jasmine, “Do not worry! I will make tacos and no one shall be hungry! I won’t even use glitter this time!” He zoomed into the kitchen and began rattling things around.

“uh, yeah, I’ll just…wait.” Pap was still blushing hard, sitting on the sofa awkwardly.

Jasmine looked up at him and began to smile, “Papyrus?”

“Yeah, J?”

“Can I ask how your stomach could growl when you’re a skeleton?” they were genuinely curious, but they also wanted to get his mind off the embarrassment.

He blinked a few times, then laughed, “ah, that…that’s a good question. Lemme getcha out of the pocket and I’ll show ya.”

Eager for information, Jasmine let him move them over to his knee.

Papyrus sighed and explained as he carefully lifted the hem of his hoodie, “Y’know how Sans made that little pouch for you yesterday? Well…that can happen two ways. One, if you eat something your body can’t just absorb like normal monster food. And two…”

Jasmine looked wide eyed at the soft tangerine surface that spread up to Papyrus’ ribs from his pelvis.

“Two is my case. I’m so dang lazy I don’t use all the magic energy I get from food and just naturally resting. So…it has to go somewhere or my bones’d burst. Sans is always moving, so he’s never had this issue.”

“C-can I…touch?” Jasmine whispered, looking up and finding the answer to be yes. They moved forward and placed their hand to the translucent construct, feeling Papyrus’ familiar magic zing through their fingers briefly. It was smooth and warm to the touch.

“Why was Sans’ magic so cold?” They wondered aloud.

“Because his magic is patience based. Different aspects give off different temperatures. Like determination would be hot, hot enough to melt and burn. Patience is the coldest, so it feels chilly to touch anything made of it.” Papyrus was just watching them, his low, soft voice sort of mesmerizing.

“What’s yours, Papy?” Jasmine found themselves leaning against Papyrus’ warm body, enjoying the slight give to the surface beneath them.

“bravery. heh. Ironic, huh?” They could hear him breathing, feel the slight movement as he did.

Jasmine shook their head, “No. It fits. It feels right…..you’ve always seemed brave to me.”

He rubbed her back with one finger, dropping his hoodie and leaving her in the soft half-light caused by his magic, “That’s it. We’re keeping you forever. Too cute.” What he hadn’t counted on was them crawling up and laying on the slight incline of his body.

Jasmine sighed softly and curled up. Papyrus, flabbergasted, just leaned back a little more on the couch, and waited for dinner.

Sans made a lovely dinner. He’d been practicing with Jasmine, and they had helped him improve the flavor. Finally, something small and normal.

Chapter Text

There was finally a lull in the craziness of their lives the next week or so. Sans and Jasmine were obviously best of friends and inseparable now, but the younger skeleton noticed his “pet” was also getting very close to his brother. Instead of being their only source of comfort, Jasmine now would look for both brothers if something bothered them or they needed help.

And Sans was glad! Of course he was, but it was also sort of sad. Jasmine had been so important for him…and now it was getting clearer and clearer that they actually WERE their own person.

But still, Jasmine cuddled into his hands when he brought them up to bed, and they would sit eagerly on his shoulder while he built puzzle designs. They were really good at puzzles.

Papyrus, for his part, liked the extra attention. It was sort of embarrassing, but he’d begun to get used to the feeling of Jasmine laying on his chest while they waited for Sans. He liked their warmth and their singing (which greatly improved DPB’s songs), and that they let him actually relax instead of forcing him to pay attention to them.

They had patience with him, and that was so important. No one besides Sans and Muffet had ever wasted enough time to get to know him this well. To let him enjoy the silences. He’d never be able to thank them enough for giving him a second chance.

Today was like any other day. The snow fell, the wind blew…but something felt off. Sans had been jumpy since he woke this morning, and it took him finally deciding to wake Jasmine to talk about it for him to figure out why.

Jasmine was lying in their bed with the covers kicked off, face red and hair sticking to them with sweat. They were clearly very sick.

Papyrus instantly stiffened around Sans’ body when his brother dropped onto him in his bed. “Papy!” he sniffled, tears dribbling out of his sockets, “Papy, Jasmine is…they’re….th-they’re sick. I failed them!”

He felt both relieved and somehow more concerned. Jasmine was alive, Sans was unhurt, but now he had to figure out how to get them better. “Hey, hey, Sans, it’s okay. You didn’t fail; it’s just something that happens to humans now and then. C’mon, we’ll give Undyne a call and see if she knows what we can do.”

Sans nodded, but didn’t get off of him, so Papyrus just sat up awkwardly, then used his magic to situate himself onto his feet with his brother held tight. Good thing Sans was so small.

Undyne had no help besides recommending soup, fluids, and rest. Papyrus took that to heart, but how was he supposed to get Sans calm enough to do something?

Wait. He had an idea. Getting up from the couch he walked into the kitchen, flipping through a book and smiling when he got to one page.

“Sans.”

“Y-yeah, Papy?”

“Can you follow this recipe I’m about to give you to the letter?” Papyrus lifted a browbone, “no additions or subtractions? It’s important.”

Sans’ eyes lit up with stars, “I can do it!”

“okay. Make this recipe exactly how it says in the book. It’s special soup that will help jasmine get better,” he gave his brother a secretive wink.

That did it. Sans grabbed the book and looked at the recipe, face set and serious. With a few flicks of his eyelights, he nodded, then rushed to start preparing. As much as his brother had…interesting ideas about cooking, if given a recipe to follow he was precise and dedicated to the art.

Now that the little brother was taken care of, Papyrus zapped himself upstairs to check on the patient.

The room was dark, and Papyrus kept it that way. Only the soft orange glow of his magic lit the area, a single orb of it in his palm. He shuffled over, looking down into Jasmine’s little bedroom. They hadn’t moved, as much as he could tell. A soft whimper of discomfort came from them, and he shushed them gently, “hey, J. ‘s okay. It’s just me. You’re not lookin’ so hot, pal.”

Their hands clenched together as they blinked awake, eyes glazed and distant with fever, “Papy…”

“shh, no talkin’ just yet,” he whispered, “I’m just checkin’ in. Sans is downstairs makin’ some soup from a recipe, so no worries there. You’ll be fine.”

“so hot…” Jasmine murmured in response.

Papyrus nodded, “I’ll get an ice cube and put it in your room. I read humans sleep better when it’s cooler anyway.” He couldn’t help the twinging in his soul as he left. Poor Jasmine was suffering and he could do nothing to stop it.

It was about eleven o’clock when Sans got done with the soup. “Papyrus! Come help me portion this out for Jasmine!”

His brother slouched into the kitchen, leaning against the doorframe. “Why not just use a turkey baster?”

Sans, ladle carefully balanced over Jasmine’s little bowl, pouted, “How did I not think of that?” He put the ladle back and got out the baster, filling it with soup and squirting it slowly into the bowl. “I’m concerned that they might not have any appetite. Jasmine eats like a bird, you know, and being sick might make it worse.”

Papyrus didn’t seem worried, “take some juice with you. If they aren’t hungry, they can at least drink something. Undyne said fluids are a must so…eh.”

He shrugged, and Sans turned around with the bowl on a small plate (close enough to a tray), “Papy, please. Jasmine…they’re so small. What if they…” the tears started pooling in his sockets, “wh-what if they f-fall down?”

“oh gosh…” Papyrus took the tray-plate from Sans and hugged him close with one arm, “hey, Sans, nah.” He nuzzled Sans softly, “Hey, they’re strong, right? Jasmine’s a fighter, like us. We got through hard times, and now we’re here to help them get through this. Cause we love them, and they love us.”

Sans clung to his shirt and sobbed. He couldn’t even imagine what it would be like for Jasmine to be gone. After so long, and so much, to have a sickness take them would be too unfair.

Papyrus kept talking, soft voice and holding his brother tight, “Now we’re gonna go in there and be the best nurses for Jasmine, and they’re gonna get better. And then we’ll all go out and get nice cream.”

“y-you promise?” Sans asked, voice wobbling sadly. He wasn’t sure if he was asking about the nice cream or Jasmine.

“y’know how I am with promises, Sans…..but yeah.”

Jasmine did eat a little, and Sans felt much better for that. Still, they would drift in and out of sleep sporadically, and the ice cube in a bottle lid seemed to be the only thing to make them more comfortable.

Sans didn’t go to training that day, or the next. He stayed home and cleaned frantically, or sat in the darkened bedroom and looked after Jasmine. Papyrus didn’t mind going out and doing the sentry duty for both of them, not at all, and he was the one to reassure a worried Alphys when the lizard warrior came to the door wringing her hands.

As much as he still held a grudge against Alphys for what she’d done to his brother and Jasmine, Papyrus knew she meant well. At heart, she just wanted what they all wanted, to see the sun and have everyone they knew see it too.

Now they just had to wait for Jasmine to recover on their own.

And that was agony.

Jasmine would lay still for hours, then wobble precariously to the bathroom, and back to more sleeping. They were only awake otherwise to eat or drink. This was horribly straining to poor Sans, who was constantly on watch for anything he could do to help. “Jasmine,” he murmured on the third day of the vigil, “you can’t fall down. I know it is hard to stay determined when you are so small, and there is so much against you. But you have me, and Papy. Even Alphys and Undyne are worried for you. I know you do not trust them like you do us, but they are still hoping for you to get well.”

Jasmine turned their head towards him, but he knew it was just a movement in their sleep. Still, he continued, “Jasmine, I love you very much. You have become my best friend, and you are my one and only human friend! You’re very important. You give me someone to protect; a reason to keep fighting my very hardest no matter what. I want to make the underground a better place for you, and for everyone.” Sans felt the tears in his sockets again, “but…I can’t do that if you fall down! So stay determined…please?”

Jasmine cooed and smiled as they slept, the first good sign they’d seen for days. This was encouraging, and Sans started talking to them all the time. He told his life story, embellishing every detail, and then he told the life story of Alphys as far as he knew. Then he started telling the stories from the human history cartoons that Undyne watched.

The world was dark when Jasmine opened their eyes. They felt gross, sticky and heavy. But they recognized the view, at least. The ceiling of Sans’ room was a comfort, the tiny glowing stars above making them smile weakly. Everything hurt, but it felt kind of good to move. They hadn’t really been conscious for most of their sickness, only vague memories of soup and orange juice remaining.

“Jasmine?” Sans’ voice was soft as Jasmine looked up from where they were trying to head to the living room of their ‘apartment’.

“hi Sans,” they murmured, giving him a genuine look of relief. It felt like they’d been stuck in their bizarre fever dreams forever. They’d missed him.

“oh thank stars,” His face finally showed up above them, and he seemed so tired. There were tears in his sockets, and his normally round cheekbones seemed sharper, more hollow. “I was so afraid you would not get better.”

Jasmine reached up worriedly, despite it hurting their arms, “Sans? Are you sick, too? Did I make you sick?”

“No, I am fine,” He picked them up gently, barely touching them with his fingers as he stroked their hair. “Monsters cannot get sick from germs. I read,” Sans sniffed sadly, “I read all about human sickness on the underweb while you were sleeping.”

They nuzzled his fingers tiredly, “sorry if I worried you. I’m better now.”

“Yes you are,” he cooed softly, the tears finally dripping down his face, “and I will do everything I can to keep you that way.”

Chapter Text

It was another couple of days before Jasmine actually recovered fully, but the fact they were awake and talking most of the day now was so nice.

Sans did not let them out of his presence at all, even to sleep. Jasmine now slept on Sans’ pillow most nights.

Papyrus didn’t mind, not at all, but it worried him to see Sans so paranoid over Jasmine being hurt.

One night, Sans could not sleep. His mind kept running through that horrible incident with Alphys, and combining it with Jasmine’s sickness.

“J-Jasmine?” Sans murmured, looking at the tiny body in front of his face.

“mmn?” they looked up, having been asleep already.

“when….when Alphys did…that thing? Did….Did I hurt you?” he was worried about it, worried maybe that was why she’d gotten sick.

“mm-mm. you didn’t hurt me at all,” they scooted over the pillow and kissed Sans between the eyes. “Your tummy was soft and kinda cold, but it didn’t hurt.” Jasmine was really sleepy, but they always had time to comfort Sans.

He hummed softly, then started to think.

Maybe it was a bad idea, but….if they were safe, and… no! no he couldn’t do it!

Jasmine was scared of that sort of thing. He wouldn’t stoop to that for his own comfort.

He turned away from Jasmine just to make sure he didn’t keep those thoughts around. It was a fitful night for both of them.

Sans decided it was time to get Jasmine out of the house. He made sure they dressed up warmly, then sat them on his shoulder before heading out the door. He’d left Jasmine home most days after they were sick, so this was a nice opportunity.

Jasmine really enjoyed patrols. They loved seeing Snowdin, especially from so high up.

They were walking past the sentry station, the one Sans had made himself, when there was a soft “eep!” and Sans felt his shoulder suddenly grow lighter.

“Jasmine?” Sans turned and felt his soul drop. They were gone.

Jasmine pushed against the white clad figure who held them, having swung down from a tree branch to snatch them away, “Let me go! Sans! Help!”

They put their hand over their mouth, then used their other hand to take off the hood over their face. They were human! “Don’t worry, friend. We saved you.”

They glared at this human, a male it looked like. He didn’t talk more, just carried them through the undergrowth and under-snow tunnels. They fought him the whole way, but he was much stronger than them, especially after their illness.

Soon enough, they were in an under-snow cavern leading into a tree trunk. Humans…there were humans everywhere. Jasmine had never seen so many in one place, milling around, performing various tasks such as sewing and…blacksmithing?!

Jasmine was brought to the tree trunk, where there were more humans in armor than outside. There was an older human sitting there, in what seemed like a throne carved from the wood. She was wearing armor, too, and reminded you a lot of Alphys.

“Oh, Bergun, you’ve found someone? They seem so well dressed…” She murmured, standing from her throne and coming forward, “Put them down, for goodness sake. They aren’t a sack of seeds.”

Bergun, the guy holding them, set Jasmine on their feet and muttered, “Sorry, my lady. They were fighting me the whole way.”

Jasmine, angry and heavily worried about Sans, glared at the woman, “I would appreciate it if I could go home now. Do you have any idea what kind of upset your guard or whatever he is has probably caused?”

The woman sighed and responded, “Ah, that explains it. Poor dear, you’ve been brainwashed.”

“Brainwashed? Wait….” Jasmine saw the pity in the woman’s eyes and felt righteous indignation flare. “I see how it is.”

“Ah, then you are not beyond reason. Good.” The woman’s face turned to a smile, “I am the General here. We all choose our own names, and have learned several skills. We’re hoping to make a raid on the grocers soon to free their supply of humans. Would you like a tour, as our new citizen?”

They stepped back, only to be stopped by the guards, “No. I don’t care about what you do, though I wish you luck on your raid. I’m going home.”

“My dear,” General shook her head, “you are home. You’re among your own kind. You can be yourself here, be respected and independent. The life of a pet is not true freedom, and you know that.”

Jasmine gritted their teeth and said in a deadly soft voice, “I do know that. But I am not a pet at home. I am family.” They smacked the guards hands off their arms and approached. “My monsters love me. I haven’t doubted that for a long time. From day one, the one who “bought” me treated me as a person, as a friend, and has never stepped a single digit beyond my boundaries.”

Bergun shook his head sadly and General held her hand out to him, telling him and her guards to hold their positons. Jasmine continued their speech, “It took a while for his brother, sure, but as soon as he realized I was truly aware, that I was a person, he’s been nothing but kind and caring. I love them, and they have spend literal days watching over me, crying in worry. I was almost dust! I was sick and useless to them, and they still cared for me.”

The older lady nodded, “We heard you, new one, but that is all circumstantial. If you had truly made them angry, what was keeping them from simply eating you and ending the annoyance? Have they ever done that?”

“No!” Jasmine glared, “In fact, another monster had to FORCE them to attempt eating me, and they had a panic attack! He was beside himself with terror, and they rescued me in the end. They had the chance to just go along with it, and it would have been easier! But they didn’t! They were both scared in fact!”

Sighing, General motioned for the guards to back off, and they left the door open. “You aren’t ready, dear. As much as we wish to keep you safe with us, you would only fight our generosity. Until you learn the hard truth, you won’t willingly stay, will you?”

“Of course not!” Jasmine flung their hands up. “I’m not selfish enough to worry them like that!”

Jasmine stormed out of the tree trunk, calling back, “And my name is JASMINE. Good day!”

Sans was sitting in the snow, sniffling. What had happened? Where were they? He’d been digging in the snow around him for hours and they weren’t there. That little yelp had been his only clue and there was nothing there.

“I….I don’t…” Sans rubbed his eyes futilely, “I don’t understand.”

He curled up in place and started to dial his phone. Maybe Papy could help.

Papyrus looked at his phone. He was at the Hotland station, making some extra gold as a merchant, but Sans needed him.

“hey, bro, what’s going on?” he answered, expecting some kind of silly story of maybe seeing a full sized human.

“P-Papy? I…I’ve lost Jasmine. They just v-vanished and I can’t….I don’t know…” his normally cheerful voice was broken.

He put the phone in his pocket and teleported instantly. It took a few jumps to get all that way, but soon enough he was next to Sans. “what happened?”

Sans hung up the phone and stood up, clinging to Papyrus as he cried, “We were on a walk and…there was a noise but I didn’t see anything! They just m-made a sound and were gone!”

Even with all his experiences, Papyrus didn’t have any idea what could have happened. Sans’ frantic digging had ruined any chance of finding footprints, and now the odd false-light of Snowdin’s days was fading out.

They both turned when they heard a struggling in the bushes and a tired, dirty Jasmine smiled up at them. “Boys!”

“JASMINE!” They both instantly turned as the tiny human scampered across the snow. Sans picked them up and held them to his cheek, sobbing anew with relief.

“kid, what happened? Where’ve you been?” Papyrus asked, honestly baffled and worried.

“I’ll tell you when we get home, but let’s hurry. I don’t want to be outside anymore today,” Jasmine held tight to Sans and nuzzled him. They honestly never wanted to see another human again.

Papyrus was amazed to hear there were that many humans living free. He’d never considered it, and now that he knew, it was disturbing. They’d been hiding in the snow for so long…scary.

“I just left, and it took me forever to remember how to get back,” Jasmine finished, still cuddled against Sans’ cheek. His poor little brother hadn’t let them go since they came back.

“You stood up for us when you could’ve left…had your own life. I don’t know why you did, but…thanks,” Papyrus sighed, rubbing his face tiredly.

They scoffed and glared at him, “Papyrus, you guys are my family. I’m not going to go off with someone else who just KIDNAPPED me just because they’re human, too.” Jasmine’s voice faded again, the adrenaline and determination fading as they relaxed. “I just….I love you. It’s not a question anymore.”

Sans asked worriedly, “Should we even go outside anymore? What if they want you back?”

Cooing softly, Jasmine stroked his cheek, “I’m going to literally tie myself to you if we ever go out again, Sans. I won’t go back. Ever.”

Papyrus nodded, “yep. We’re gonna take precautions from now on. There’s been too much happening lately for my comfort.”

Jasmine nodded. Whatever came next, they were going to have to be ready. Their little family had been through so much, but this had made it clear that they couldn’t drop their guard. A threat could come at any time, especially when one of them was so small and vulnerable.

Chapter Text

It was a week after the incident outside. Papyrus hadn’t been sleeping well at all, but that wasn’t new. So he just sat in bed, watching his trash tornado spinning. It was something, anyway.

There was a tapping noise, and he turned in time to see Jasmine squeeze under his door. “oh, hey, small fry. Didn’t think you’d leave sans’ side tonight. What’s up?”

They walked over and clambered up into his hoodie pocket, “I’m feeling weird and thought you probably knew about that more than sans. Besides, he needs his sleep.”

“so do you, though.” Papyrus stuck his hand in the pocket with them and ended up getting his fingers cuddled. “so what does ‘weird’ consist of, exacty?”

“I feel like part of me is disappointed I didn’t stay with the humans, even though I was so angry with them,” they were rubbing his phalanges absently. “I hated them, but…now I’m feeling guilty. But they said you guys had brainwashed me, and they basically said you’d eventually turn on me, like it was inevitable.”

He sighed and mulled it over. Those humans had a point, somewhat, but not in Jasmine’s case.

“kid, I get what you’re saying, but don’t worry about it. It’s natural to be a little sad when other people don’t understand you loving something. Nobody gets why we love you at first, and those guys didn’t get why you love us. Just….happens sometimes.” Papyrus wiggled his fingers in their grip, successfully tickling them and getting small giggles out.

“Papy…” their laughter died down slowly, “when I was in your mouth the other day…was that okay?”

“huh? well, yeah. you were helping me out majorly,” he didn’t really want to talk about that but they were really insecure right now and probably wouldn’t respond well to his usual subject dodging.

They climbed fully into his hand, “Then…could I do it again?”

Shocked was an understatement. “what? I mean…if you want to, sure, but why? I thought you were scared.”

“I was but…” they peered out at him, brows knit and turned down at the ends, “the more I think about it, the sillier it seems. A-at least for me. I know other humans….they aren’t as lucky as I am, that you guys love me and want me safe and…and can easily save me if something went wrong.”

He tilted his head slightly and considered Jasmine anew. Was this going where he thought it was? “well, you have several points there. But where’s this train stopping, tiny tot?”

They sighed and wriggled out, getting away from him before answering, “It’s been on my mind since the thing with Alphys. That….kind of proved something to me that’s taken this long to sink in.” Jasmine was fidgeting turning red in the face.

Papyrus felt himself start to smile, carefully booping them on the head, “Jasmine, if you want to do this, don’t do it with me.”

“B-but!” They stammered and turned even redder, “I haven’t even said what I want yet!”

“I can guess. And like I said, if you want this to go well, do it with Sans first,” he picked them up by the back of the shirt and sat them on the floor. “he’s scared of losing you, and he’s been a little jealous of how well we get along now. I’m his brother, I know him well enough by now to see he’d be crushed and also confused as to why it bothered him. Wait till Sans wakes up, then ask him. He’ll probably be just as shy about it as you are.”

Sighing, Jasmine sat down and nodded. “I guess you’re right.”

“hey, I’m always right,” he chuckled. Papyrus got horizontal and felt his sockets shutting on their own, “just try and sleep tonight, J. but go back to Sans. He’ll be pretty freaked if you aren’t there in the morning.”

“okay. Thanks for the advice, Papy. Goodnight,” a little disappointed, Jasmine hurried back to the door and shimmied under it again.

The next morning, Sans was very downhearted. He’d had horrible dreams, and even though he’d slept through the night, it was like he hadn’t slept at all. “Papy, are you sure nothing bad will happen today?”

“yeah, bro, I’m sure. You just go patrol and I’ll do my usual. Little j is gonna be with me, string round my neck like we said,” He chuckled and pushed a warm bowl of apple-cinnamon oatmeal over to him, “now eat your breakfast.”

Sans nodded, perking up a little once he got some food in him. Yeah, dreams are dumb anyway! They’re badly made movies that play in your sleep. And Sans was an expert on fine DPB films! This made the stars return to his sockets and his typical energy level rise.

Jasmine stayed in Papyrus’ hood for the day. They refused to move, only coming out when he assured them they couldn’t be snatched. They’d become paranoid now, as they used to be, but of humans instead of monsters. All the folks in Snowdin had come to expect and enjoy their presence, and a few had even rescued humans of their own. The atmosphere in Muffet’s was much clearer now, and they felt safe with Papyrus and the lovely spider lady there to help them.

But outside was a nightmare. Every shadow was a human warrior coming to steal them from their family, and every rustle of snowy wind a threat to them. They hated this, and they hated the other humans for doing this to them, and making them doubt the brothers for even a second. Sans and Papyrus cared about them; no one had ever cared about them before and they would not let anybody hurt the skeletons for this reason.

They’d rather die than be separated from their family again.

Everyone got home at roughly the same time. Papyrus and Jasmine came back from Muffet’s first, and a few minutes later, Sans walked in the door.

The family sat down together at the table, talking about their days before Sans began making dinner. It was back to normal, for the most part.

It was after dinner when Jasmine asked, “Sans? Can we go up to our room and talk about something?”

“Of course!” the happy skeleton picked up Jasmine easily and headed upstairs.

Jasmine gave a wave to Papyrus, and he winked and shot a thumbs up their way. Go little friend.

Once in their room, Sans sat on the bed and set Jasmine in front of him. “Okay! What do you want to talk about?” He smiled brightly, ready to listen.

Jasmine felt their face heat up, “Sans, I….I’ve been thinking about….ways I could be even safer outside.”

“Oh, I have too!” Sans beamed, “I think I should have Undyne invent a special little tube or something that you can be in but still see out and around. It would be great!”

“That would be cool,” Jasmine smiles warmly, but they’re still blushing. “I was thinking of something else, though, and we wouldn’t…ah, wouldn’t have to bother Undyne about it.”

“Oh? What’s your idea?” Sans was all ears, metaphorically speaking. Jasmine was so smart!

They took a deep breath and squeezed their hands together, “Sans, could….could you maybe…um….”

He blinked softly, taking in how nervous his friend was, hopping from foot to foot on the bed. What could Jasmine think of that would make them nervous like this?

“Um, I thought maybe…I could be….” their eyes couldn’t stay still, hopping anywhere but Sans himself. “I thought I could be…i-inside you?”

There was a tense silence so thick you could hear a pin drop.

Sans’ whole face went bright cyan, “Y-Y-You w-want to b-b-be where?!” Oh no, could humans read minds like in Undyne’s human history novels?!

“It’s just an idea, Sans, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you but Papy told me to try with you first and I just thought-“

“You a-asked Papy about this?!” Sans covered his face, feeling warm and sort of dizzy. Oh no now Papy knew he was a deviant! He was going to be shamed forever and ever and have to live in the dump with Jerry!

“I thought he’d be more comfortable with the idea, but I wanted to give you a chance first and- and *hic, sniff* I’m s-s-sorry,” Jasmine was starting to cry.

He instantly forgot about his own embarrassment to look wide eyed at them, “Jasmine? Why are you crying?”

“b-because I…” They shook their head, “I w-was stupid to ask that.”

“Noooo,” Sans picked them up and cuddled them to his chest. “No, you are never stupid, Jasmine. I am sorry I was reacting so much, but….I have thought about that too and was afraid you had read my mind!” He realized how silly that sounded now.

“You…have?” They looked up at him in slight awe.

“Mweh hehe….y-yes.” He had to stifle more awkward giggles. “I thought about it before you even found those other humans. You had been so sick and I wanted to make sure I would be there if you ever got sick again. And it would be so easy to carry you and have you be safe that way but…you were always so scared of that before so I didn’t want to even ask.”

Jasmine cuddled fiercely into his shirt, “Sans, I was afraid you’d be mad at me for asking. But if we’ve both thought about it, then maybe…it could work?”

He pulled them away slightly so he could look at them, “I suppose we could try? Just…please do not be disappointed if I cannot do it right away.” Sans’ cheekbones were hurting from how much he’d been smiling. “I am still new to this…inside human thing.”

“okay.” They rubbed the back of his hand gently, “I’ll be patient with you if you’re okay with me doing this.”

Sans nodded, now excited at the new prospect.

Jasmine crawled into the hand Sans offered them, nervous but happy at the same time. “Okay, so…let’s just start with me in your mouth?”

“Okay!” Sans beamed, his starry sockets almost glowing. “Just tell me if it is too cold for you. I remember you said I am cold inside.”

Jasmine giggled, “A little, but I didn’t have any clothes on when I was in there last time. I wore my warmest stuff today just in case you said yes.”

The little skelly blushed, having forgotten that particular detail, “Oh. I suppose that would be cold.”

“Yeah,” Jasmine smiled at him, “Now open your mouth, silly!”

Still blushing, Sans opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out a little. Jasmine moved forward slowly, just as they had when helping Papyrus with the walnut shell. It was…different, with Sans. This wasn’t something Jasmine had thought about before. Sans had never shown any interest in eating them, and to some extent that made it harder to continue.

“You’re a lot different from Papy. Not that that’s a bad thing,” Jasmine murmurs, “just different. Um….I guess you can go ahead and do whatever now.”

Sans reluctantly closed his mouth around her and shivered. They were so warm on his tongue, and the little movements made him both excited and nervous. It was a lot different when it was optional what to do. He could say no. He could stop at any point and be fine. But Jasmine had asked for this, and he’d thought about doing it himself. Part of him still rejected this as inherently wrong, but if it would keep Jasmine safe….

He swallowed thickly.

His fingers curled up in the sheets on his bed as he whimpered through Jasmine’s descent, the sensation alien and vaguely terrifying. Flashes of that awful day with Alphys went through Sans’ mind, but he pushed them away and took deep breaths. This was not a punishment, or an invasion. They had both agreed to it, were both sure it was safe. Safe. Sans had to concentrate on that word.

He was safe. Jasmine was safe. No one was going to hurt either of them.

Jasmine made a small “oof” sound as they landed. It was just the same as the last time, but without the panic and violence. The small pouch of magic was cool to the touch, but soft and flexible enough that it curled around their form. And just like before, the thrum of Sans’ soul was fast and nervous, though not quite as panicked.

“Sans?” they called softly, resting in the curve against his ribs.

“I-I am alright,” came a shaky answer, both echoed and muffled simultaneously. “And are you?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Jasmine assured him, “but you need to calm yourself, sweetie.”

They heard him breathe slowly and deeply, the shadows of his ribs moving away from them and back a few times as the worried rhythm slowed. “You’re right. I just….it felt strange.”

“I can imagine,” cooed the human, snuggling into the magic around them. “Is there anything I can do to help you stay calm?”

“No, no, I am fine!” Sans shifted and there was now light other than the soft cyan glow coming from the area.

Sans looked down at himself and smiled sheepishly. Yes he’d been a bit frightened by the process but now that it was done….he was happy. Jasmine looked so comfy as they beamed up at him, and the reassurance that no one could touch them without literally going through him gave Sans an enjoyable thrill. His sockets tingled as his eyelights changed shape, though he had no idea which one it was. Papy said they usually went between little circles and stars, but this didn’t feel like when he got super excited. It was warmer and made him want to wiggle his toes. “You seem very well, too!”

Jasmine giggled, and he couldn’t help a small squeak as they moved a bit, nuzzling the surfaces around them, “I’m great. But maybe we should go back downstairs? Papyrus is going to wonder what we’re doing.” This seemed to make them thing a bit, as they frowned, but then laughed. “Or not. I think he knows.”

“Probably,” Sans mused, lying back in his bed and sighing. “Papy is very smart, despite how lazy he acts. It is a shame to waste such talent on doing nothing!”

“I know, but he seems happy,” Jasmine added as they readjusted themselves to the change in gravity.

The movement sent little shocks into his spine, but Sans liked the feeling. “Well…I suppose you are right. But! It is almost time for bed, and I want to at least get into my pajamas before Papy comes upstairs to read Fluffy Bunny to me! Don’t peek!”

“I won’t!” Jasmine laughed, and Sans giggled along with them. It would be rather silly to be shy at this point. Neither of them had any semblance of modesty with each other after living together so long, and if they’d wanted to, Jasmine could see every bone in his body from their position.

It was nice, Sans thought to himself as he got into his sleep clothes, being able to open up to someone besides his brother. It was nice to know he was loved by someone else, someone who didn’t have to care about him at all.

Chapter Text

Papyrus did tease them when he came in to read to Sans, but it was soft and encouraging, “well, guess dad was right about you growing out of not eating humans.”

“PAPY! NOT FUNNY!” Sans blushed bright cyan and covered his eyes in shame.

Laughing softly, Papyrus clunked his forehead onto his brother’s, “I know, I know, but it’s so cute. You know how much they’ve gotta trust you to stay in there, right?”

Pulling back, he caught the swift shift in his brother’s eye lights as he glanced down at himself, the usual circles morphing to tiny hearts and back. Awww.

Sans sighed and nodded, “Yes, I….I’m quite flattered actually…”

Jasmine meanwhile curled in on themselves and sighed. They were so sleepy…

Papyrus chuckled, then opened the book he’d taken off the shelf, “well, good. now, where were we? Oh yeah.” His low, smooth voice drifted around the room, and soon enough both Jasmine and Sans were sleeping soundly.

Putting his bookmark in, Papyrus smiled. Sans had finally dropped off, his hands folded tenderly over his stomach and a tiny smile playing on his face. The taller skeleton turned off the light and gently pressed his teeth to his brother’s forehead, “night, you two. I love ya both.” Then, slinking out easily, he shut the door. He’d head to bed soon, too, but later.

Things were easier now. They didn’t do it often, but when either of them were nervous enough, Sans or Jasmine would ask the other if it was okay to repeat their ‘experiment’. It was still harrowing for Sans, but the discomfort and nervousness was slowly ebbing away with each success. Papyrus just smirked to himself about it. Of course his baby bro would only end up ‘eating’ human in the most unique and pacifist way possible.

But today was his day with their little housemate, and Jasmine was singing softly as they rode safe in his hoodie pocket, “hello young lovers, wherever you are~ I hope your troubles are few~”

He liked to hear them sing, and this song was sweet and earnest, especially from them. He knew his Jasmine enough to see how much of a romantic they were. He couldn’t blame them; love sounded nice when they sang about it.

Reaching the end of the woods, he knocked on the door. Jasmine quieted, and squeaked when a deep, kind voice replied, “Who is there?”

“pasta,” Papy said, having to hold back a laugh.

“Pasta, who?”

“it’s im-pasta-ble for me to open the door without your help, old man,” came the punchline. Jasmine giggled and the door opened in just a smidge. A tall goat monster looked down at Papyrus and smiled.

“Hello, my friend. You said you brought a surprise for me, for a change,” Jasmine liked this man’s voice. It made her think he’d be a great dad.

“yeah, bro. my roomie, jasmine,” Pap held Jasmine up and they did a bow for the regal looking man. “so, asgore, what’d’ya think of them? Pretty cute, huh?”

“Your roommate is a human!” Asgore seemed delighted, “Papyrus, you don’t know how happy that makes me.”

As they were held closer to Papyrus’ chest for warmth, Jasmine felt him relax, “I can guess. You were always scolding me back in the day for ‘indulging that vile custom’. This little one is the catalyst for this change of heart….or taste, I guess.” He chuckled.

The goat man stepped aside and opened the door wider, “come in, friend, and bring your human. We have much to discuss now!”

Jasmine giggled as the two of them entered the warmer venue of the room beyond the door. The chill of Snowdin left as Asgore closed the door and began walking forward, “Papyrus, friend, you have no idea how much it eases my soul to know you’ve chosen the path of mercy at last.”

Humming softly in agreement, Papyrus blushed in shame. He still hated himself for how long it took him to understand the tiny humans were actually people. It made him sick to remember how many times…ugh…

He almost jumped when Jasmine gave his hand a pat, “Papy? You okay?”

“yeah, j. sorry….bad vibes, huh?” he gave a soft laugh.

“Super bad. It’s okay. You’re a good guy now,” they grinned up at him, and Asgore gave a soft agreeing noise.

“The little one is right, my friend. Regret can eat at your soul more than anything, but the way to true repentance is continued kindness to those who remain. Focus on your current joy.” The towering goat man ducked a bit as he climbed the stairs in front of him, heading into a warm, delightful looking house. Soft warm greys filled the house, as well as pictures and many flowering plants, all in good health and color.

As Asgore leads them to a warm, fireside living room, several little faces pop out of his long hair and beard. There’s giggling, and Asgore suddenly stops, “I believe I hear peeking happening.”

More giggles from the humans, and they vanish back to hide in his hair, leaving Papyrus and Jasmine amazed. “you planning on telling me about your little friends when, old man?”

“Now, in fact.” Asgore sat down at a dining table across from the fire place and leaned down, “Everyone, come out and greet Papyrus and Jasmine. I know you’re all eager.”

Eight small humans of varying ages escaped the long beard of their friend, gathering on the table and grinning up at Papyrus as he sat, placing Jasmine in front of himself.

“that’s a lot of little buddies,” Papyrus murmured, and Jasmine shyly approached them. Clearly, these were humans who could understand liking monsters, if them hiding in Asgore’s beard was any indication.

“Yes,” came the fond reply, “I have found and saved them all in my various trips out for supplies, but I knew you would not understand before.” Asgore’s deep brown eyes looked with a fond sadness at Papyrus, whose shoulders slumped. “But now that Jasmine is here, you know. And it is safe to let them meet you.”

Jasmine was beset with hugs and introductions, as most of the humans here were children. They asked questions about Snowdin, about Papyrus, about what it was like being a grown up human. One young boy yelled, “I’M GONNA HAVE A BIG BEARD LIKE DAD!” and the rest laughed happily.

“so they call you dad?” Papyrus smirked a bit, and Asgore nodded, giving a happy hum. “heh, so that mister dad guy shirt of yours isn’t just you being self-aware.”

“Nope.” Asgore grinned as Jasmine regaled them with stories about Sans and the fun they had together. “As small as they are, I still consider them my children. I would do the same for any child in need.”

Watching the little ones and Jasmine, Papyrus felt his soul warm slowly. This happiness was something everyone deserved, really….why had he ever thought different? What was different about humans, that they had raised such a hatred in him before? He couldn’t fathom it now. Not when he imagined Jasmine at monster size, scared and alone down here, as any human would be.

“I see what you’re saying, old man,” he murmured, extending his hand when Jasmine motioned for it so the kids could examine his bones. “is there anything i can do to help?”

There was a heavy silence before a deep, tired sigh came from the elder monster, “Papyrus, my friend, I need a promise from you. A promise that, should someone come out of these ruins, should a HUMAN come from these ruins, that you will protect them out there, in my stead.”

The kids were hushed, now looking up at the skeleton with wide eyes, hands still curled around his finger bones. Jasmine, too, looked up, but for a different reason than just curiosity at his answer. She knew he did not like making promises.

“i…..i promise.” It was hard getting those words out of his jaw, but Papyrus did it. Seeing how much it had taken, Asgore smiled.

“Thank you, Papyrus. Now, who wants tea?”

“WE DO” came the kids voices, and Jasmine scrambled up Papyrus’ arm in order to koala cling to his shoulder.

“what’s up, j?” he asked while the goat man left for the kitchen.

“That was very kind and brave of you, Papy,” Jasmine’s gentle voice responded, a little squished sounding as she rubbed her cheek against his hoodie. “Thank you, and I’m proud of you. Sans would be proud, too.”

That eased the anxiety building in his soul, “thanks, cutie.” He turned his head and gently nuzzled his chin against their head. “guess even the laziest bones have to do something, right?”

“Right.” Even if he couldn’t make it out at this angle, their tone of voice was a clear smile.

The kids babbled and played while Asgore made tea, and the two or three more grown up ones made small talk. Jasmine stayed sitting on Papyrus’ shoulder, mostly, but they would answer any questions called up to them. It was nice, simple, and something neither Jasmine nor Papyrus could have imagined before. A calm, fun, easy conversation with a bunch of humans.

The tea turned out very good, and Jasmine loved the tiny cup Asgore handed them. There was a little discussion, and Asgore insisted on sending them home with a thermos of tea to share with Sans, but the visit was over before the two realized it.

Heading back toward home, Jasmine nuzzled into Papyrus’ neck, “Papy, I like your friend. He’s a very kind monster.”

“yeah. he’s the best, really. he’s been real supportive of me, since mom left, and…heck I’m glad he finally can stop that disappointed tone he got when he asked me about humans. it felt like he ripped my soul out every time.” Papyrus pulled his hood up to keep Jasmine hidden from prying eyes as they got closer to town.

“I can imagine.” Jasmine felt safer in the dark shadow of his hood, but smiled out at her snowy hometown. “I barely talked to him and you can already tell he’s the kind of person to be ‘not angry, just disappointed’ dad. Nobody wants to disappoint that kind of person; they’re too rare and special.”

Chuckling, their ride agreed, “i second that. but i really don’t think either of us are going to be disappointing him any time soon. though I do think you and me should come back pretty soon so you can have some good socialization with other humans.”

“Aww, c’mon,” Jasmine pushed gently on his jaw, “I’m fine with just you and Sans. I don’t need other humans.”

“well, you’re getting them anyway,” Papyrus opened the door to the house, “cause those little ones will have all sorts of questions you have answers for, being a free human in the ‘outside’ and all.” That’s where his mind was going, anyway, to how much potential Jasmine had to be a lifeline for the Ruins humans.

Jasmine just sighed and pouted, especially when he plucked them from his shoulder and sat them by the pet rock.

“don’t fight it, j. you’re a caring person, and those kids loved seeing you already. accept your fate. i did,” his words sound strange at the end, as if he feels them differently and it’s a sad feeling.

Jasmine looks up at him worriedly, but he smiles. “we’re good, j. i’m getting my paint shirt on and going out to the shed. you going to be okay by yourself?” He wouldn’t leave if they said no.

“I’ll be fine, Papy, you know that.” Jasmine gave the rock a pat, “Rocky and I get along just fine, and he’s a good watch rock.”

Laughing softly, Papyrus went upstairs and shut the door behind himself gently.