Lost and Found

Goodbye Brother

Toriel had fussed about Frisk's absence. She made even more of a fuss about the fading bruises from the attack. Papyrus couldn't even look at the angry goat woman. It had been left up to Alphys and Undyne to explain what happened in those woods while Papyrus dragged himself to Sans' room. It was still messy. He wished Sans was hear so he could nag at him to clean, only for Sans to nap or go to Grillby's or- Papyrus closed the door behind him and kicked off his boots before going to sit on the bed. It was plush and comfortable, despite the lack of sheets. He clipped off his armor and relaxed into the bed comfortably. He didn't understand the appeal of just balling up the sheets. He should have made Sans make his bed, even before Amiri came over. Maybe she would have liked to stay longer than. Maybe they would have stayed. She could have lived with her parents. Grillby and Sans could have stayed here... maybe... "paps? whatcha doing on my bed, bud?" Papyrus never got up so fast in his entire life as Sans stood tiredly in the doorway, dressed in his Allhallan garb.

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At first, Papyrus couldn't actually believe it. Was this a dream? Did Sans really come back? "we were right behind ya, you know... we just needed the opportunity." Sans walked in and sat beside his bro. "i'd never leave you..." Papyrus pulled him up into a hug, and Sans chuckled and hugged back. "What Happened After..?" Sans pulled away softly. "we followed them back. i was sure that it was the only way, staying with them, but then amiri came in and asked to sleep in my quarters. i accepted her, and we headed to bed for the night. then, after a bit of silence, she suggested sneaking out. she wanted to know grillby better, and she knew that i couldn't just leave you, so..." Papyrus hugged him again. "So Here You Are..." Sans chuckled again and hugged back. "heh... yeah. here i am..." Papyrus soaked in his attention for a good half hour. As much as Sans wanted to see how Amiri was settling in, he knew Papyrus needed him. Eventually, though... "Sans?" Sans hummed softly. "You Better Clean This Mess Of A Room Before Your Girlfriend Comes Over." Sans blushed furiously.

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Papyrus was happy to have Sans back. Sans promised him that they wouldn't have any more issues as long as they stayed away from the woods. It made sense to him. The skeletons feared humans because of the war, and they distrusted monsters. The newest reason being that Sans chose the monsters over their own kind. Papyrus was fine if they never went camping again, honestly. Living the lifestyle of the skeletons had been difficult, and they had been constantly hungry and constantly tired. It was still hard to believe that Sans had lived like that, and if he hadn't seen it with his own sockets, he wouldn't have believed it at all. Digressions aside, though, Papyrus let Sans sleep off the long journey it had been. No doubt,  Sans would probably call Grillby to check in on his 'not girlfriend' and see how she was settling in this very new culture to her. Papyrus hoped to ask Sans about helping with English lessons in the future. He also wanted to learn their home tongue, even if he never wanted to go back to that place ever again. Papyrus had to wait for Sans to get up first. He deserved to rest.

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Papyrus was happy to make dinner for everyone. He even invited Toriel and Frisk as to apologize for taking them into a dangerous situation and take the punishment for his actions. Sans was taking a lot of time, but with his space time abilities, Papyrus could only assume he was at Grillby's with Amiri now. He made sure to call and invite them both over as well. It was a special occasion now, after all. Amiri deserved a proper welcome to the family and Sans deserved a proper welcome back. He had gotten the finest spaghetti noodles in the store and carefully diced, mashed, measured, and added every single ingredient of his special spaghetti sauce to created the absolute best spaghetti he had ever made in all his one hundred and nine years of living. (He still couldn't believe he was that old, it was mindblowing.) Papyrus turned happily to get the plates out from out of the cupboard when the ground trembled beneath him and violently shifted, throwing him to the kitchen floor. Was it an earthquake?! Papyrus tried to get back to his feet, get to Sans. He could hear the ceiling breaking above him, falling, black.

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Papyrus gasped awake, a cold sweat beading his skull. Undyne stared back at him in concern. "Hey, uh, you kinda went to sleep in the wrong room..? Are you ok Papyrus?" Papyrus looked around the dark room with the socks on the floor and the trashnado and the balled up sheets. It couldn't be... "S-Sans..?" Papyrus asked tightly. Undyne averted her eyes. "It was just a dream... he's still..." She trailed off and picked up Papyrus's armor. It was dirty from their time in the woods with that blaster. She didn't want to say it... but she didn't think Sans was coming back, this time. "Come on Pap... maybe some training will help you get your mind off it?" Undyne offered. Papyrus looked hopeless though, staring at the bed as little beads of orange plopped onto the bed. Tears, she realized. "Oh- oh Papyrus..." She went to hold her bestie. "H-He Was Here... He And Amiri... We Were Going To Teach Her English Together... They Were Gonna... They..." Undyne rubbed his back softly. "I know, Papyrus, I know this is hard for you..." It was hard for all of them...