False host (undertale fanfiction)

chapter 11: Echoes of the Watery Depths

"Sans, wake up," a cheery, slightly high-pitched voice called.

Sans opened his eyes slowly, feeling a dull ache where his head should be. He blinked a few times, disoriented by the faint, flickering light in the room. As his vision cleared, he recognized the faded walls of his room, the worn posters peeling at the edges, and the clutter scattered across his desk. Everything looked familiar—yet something felt undeniably wrong.

Before he could process it, a bagel was shoved into his mouth mid-yawn. He choked slightly, coughing as the stale bread scratched his throat.

"Eat up, bud," came Muffet's unmistakable, sing-song voice. She held the bagel in place with alarming strength, her spindly hands pinning it against his teeth. "You need to patch up."

Sans batted her hand away, spitting crumbs onto the bed. "What the heck, Muffet?!" he croaked, his voice still groggy.

Next to her stood Papyrus, his ever-gleaming grin as bright as usual. But Sans's eyes were drawn to the jagged crack on the side of Papyrus's skull. It was raw, uneven, and almost seemed to pulse faintly in the dim light. Despite the injury, Papyrus looked... fine. Cheerful, even. Too cheerful.

"Sans! You're finally awake!" Papyrus said, leaning closer with a smile that didn't waver.

"Uh, hey," Sans muttered, rubbing his head. "What's going on? And why's Muffet force-feeding me?"

"She's just helping you recover, brother! You've been sleeping too much, as usual." Papyrus laughed, his casual tone doing little to calm Sans's growing unease.

"And you need to be in top shape," Chara chimed in, leaning lazily against the wall. Their voice carried its usual mix of sarcasm and boredom. "You've got a long way to go if you plan to save anyone."

As Sans's groggy thoughts settled, he instinctively summoned his status window, the familiar interface flickering into view before him.

SANS
DEFENSE: 37
ATTACK: 37
HP: 34/37

His sockets widened slightly as he absorbed the numbers. "Huh," he murmured, his surprise evident. His stats had shifted, stronger than before.

His sudden movement startled Muffet and Papyrus, causing them both to take a step back.

"Easy there," Chara said with a chuckle, their voice echoing softly in his mind. "You'd think you've never seen numbers before."

Muffet quickly composed herself, snapping her fingers. Two small spiders scurried into the room, each balancing a fresh, steaming donut on their backs. Papyrus's face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. He grabbed both pastries eagerly, handing one to Sans with a dramatic flourish.

"Sans, YOU HAVE TO TRY THIS!" Papyrus declared, practically vibrating with excitement. "It's THE BEST! Warm, sweet, PERFECT!"

"Alright, Pap." Sans took the donut reluctantly, eyeing it before taking a tentative bite.

The flavors hit immediately, the sweetness melting into his nonexistent tongue.

+12 HP

Sans paused mid-chew, his expression softening. "Okay... that's actually pretty good."

"Pretty good?" Muffet giggled, her small fangs gleaming as she clasped her hands together. "Darling, my recipes use only the finest ingredients. 'Pretty good' doesn't do them justice." She tilted her head, adjusting the bow atop her black hair with an air of playful smugness.

"I'll admit," Papyrus said, placing a proud arm around Muffet's shoulders, "at first, I was SKEPTICAL about letting her use the kitchen. But once I tasted THIS MASTERPIECE..." He gestured dramatically to the donut. "HOW COULD I REFUSE?"