Horrortale Drabble

Promise

You couldn't help the relieved smile that crossed your lips as you approached the barrier. Sans' axe hung limply from your hand, caked in blood from his previous victims and your single one: Undyne. Papyrus' long red scarf, which hung around you like a cloak, hadn't been spared a coating of dust, either. The horrid queen of the Underground was no more. Her soul was yours and you could finally leave this nightmare behind you for good.

"so...that's it, then."

No matter how often you heard that voice during your journey, it never ceased to send chills down your spine. You turned and saw a single red orb gazing at you from the shadows of the doorway leading from the throne room. Your eyes didn't take long to adjust and you watched as sharp white claws sunk into his right eye socket. You had discovered that he did that when he was upset and trying not to show it.

"i guess this is goodbye then, kiddo."

"Sans..." Your voice sounded rough from the lack of much use aside from screaming. "Sans...everything is going to be alright."

You tried for confidence, but you weren't sure if you were successful because Sans let out a bitter laugh, nothing like the laugh he'd given when you flirted with him over dinner at the MTT Resort. You didn't like this laugh.

*You are filled with EMPATHY.

You knew what it was like to be given false hope and have it destroyed. The bloody and dusty axe slid from your hand and you took quick steps towards Sans. Before he could react other than a subtle widening of his left eye socket, you grabbed his hands, easing the phalanges out of his eye. You gripped the cold bones tightly, as if you could somehow transfer warmth into something so broken.

Just being close to Sans always left you in a cold sweat, especially since his clothes were stained with blood, but you released his hands and threw your arms around his middle anyway.

"k-kid?" Sans stammered, hands hovering in mid-air where you'd left them.

His bones rattled softly and you just clutched him tighter.

"I'm not Frisk, Sans. But I promise that I'll make them fix this!"
His bones fell silent and you pulled back to see he was looking down at you, hope and disbelief and anger warring for a place on his face.

"kiddo, that's a big thing to promise," he said in a quiet, subtly threatening way.

"I promised Toriel that she wouldn't die down here. I don't want you or Papyrus to die down here either. But...you have to promise you'll wait a little but more. Promise that you won't give up again!"

You locked eyes for the longest time and a knot slowly formed in your throat when he continued to not say anything. Then slowly,shakily, his arms wrapped around you and pulled you into a bone-crushing hug.

"i... i hate making promises..." he whispered. "but just for you...i promise."

*You feel like a weight has been lifted off of your chest.

Sans lets you go after a moment and you let him take his time, since you knew this was hard for him. It was hard for you too; you've never had this much responsibility on your shoulders, but it felt nice to be useful.

You made your way to the barrier and placed a hand on the surface experimentally; your fingers slid through it easily, leaving your skin buzzing. You looked back to see Sans holding his axe, head bowed to the ground, and his free hand covering his face. That didn't hide the blood red droplets sliding around the thin bones and dripping beneath him. You knew you had to go – who knew how long it'd take to find Frisk – but you couldn't just leave him like that.

*You shout out a pun that rings through the area.

"Sans! When you're free, I want to axe you about what the Underground was like before this."

He lifted his head and his permagrin stretched across his cheeks,laughter pouring from his chest.

"it'll be a killer story, kiddo."

Morbid as the pun was, you smiled in response and finally crossed the barrier. Outside of the cavern, fresh air and sunlight had never felt so good. You wanted monsters to experience this liberating feeling too.

*You are filled with DETERMINATION.

"I'll find Frisk. Everything will be okay."

Omake (because why not?)(and Aliza is ten, two years older than Frisk):

You sat outside of one of Ebott City's cafe's, nursing a cooling hot chocolate as the winter air bit your nose and cheeks and fingertips,turning them pink. You were tired from yet another sleepless night spent trying to convince yourself that your nightmares were just that. It was hard to do when monsters had emerged from Mount Ebott not even three months ago, when you nightmares began. But as you watched the Nice Cream bunny from the park and the cat employee at one of Mettaton's fast food restaurants stroll down the street, you had a hard time comparing them to the bloodthirsty doubles from a few of your dreams. You liked to think you weren't racist, that the dreams didn't have anything to do with the appearance of monsters at all, but sometimes you wasn't so sure...

"hey,do you mind some company? i'm dying to chair a couple tales."

You slowly looked up from your steaming cup at the hauntingly familiar voice that made your heart hurt. A familiar skeleton (but at the same time not) was standing at your table, holding a paper cup in one hand while the other rested on the back of the chair across from you. You nodded numbly and as he sat down, you struggled to take him in all at once.

No longer did he have a gaping hole in his skull; no, in fact, it was smooth and whole. He had two eye lights, and both were small and white instead of the large red one you were used to seeing in the left eye socket. He wore a stained white shirt – but stained with what seemed like condiments instead of blood – and blue jacket, as well as black shorts and pink fuzzy slipped over socks. He looked much better than before--

–but had you even known him before?

"Sans...?" you croaked, and you felt your eyes begin to sting as his grin stretched wider.

"i know i wasn't the best cup o' tea last time we met, but i'd like to think we could start over...?"

You laughed, using your jacket sleeves to wipe away the moistness pooling in your eyes. "Yeah, I'd like that."

He held out a hand. "i'm sans, sans the skeleton."

  You gripped his hand; it was warm and chased away the persistent chill that'd settled into your bones. "I'm..."