Reborn As A Dust Sans [Undertale Multiverse]

Ch19 - Dust

Ashe's POV

You didn’t let the other's intimidating appearance frighten you. ‘Hello! I’m Ashe. Mr Horror brought me here, I fell asleep while we were in FarmTale,’ you explained. ‘Are you Mr Dust? It’s very nice to meet you!’

Dust seemed a little taken aback by how warm and friendly you were, seemingly having fully expected for a fight to break out the moment he acknowledged you. He was silent for a long moment before his magic finally subsided, seemingly deciding you were not a threat.

“Right...” he grumbled, though didn’t really bother to introduce himself. You had a feeling he wasn’t typically the most social with strangers. “I suppose yer wouldn’t be able ta get here unless somebody took ya here. What's yer relation ta Horror, though? He isn’t typically th’ type ta make friends..."

‘Mr Horror is our big brother now,’ you let out with a smile. You were actually quite happy to finally share that with somebody, to announce to the world you had a new sibling.

Dust didn’t seem very convinced, eyeing you with suspicion and distrust. You supposed you understood the hesitance to believe. Just as the other went to speak, Papy appeared from the corner you had emerged from. 

“GASP! BROTHER, HE LOOKS JUST LIKE YOU! NYEH!” Papy exclaimed loudly, clapping his hands together. “IS HE A FRIEND OF SPIKEY SIBLING HORROR? OH! IS HE OUR BROTHER TOO NOW? I WONDER IF HE HAS A STABBY GHOST PAPY OF HIS OWN!"

Dust's eyelights immediately landed on the spirit upon hearing his loud voice, expression morphed to one of shock and confusion. It was clear he could see the floating spirit of your brother. Could he see your brother because you were both from a variation of DustTale? You watched his reaction carefully, unsure of whether it was a good or a bad thing that Dust could see him.

Papy clearly realised he was seen as well, instantly delighted that he had a new friend to interact with. If he had eyelights, you were sure they would have been shaped like stars right now with how excited his expression was. “OH! CAN YOU SEE ME? HELLO OTHER BROTHER!” He exclaimed, waving extremely enthusiastically. 

You frowned, not quite sharing the enthusiasm. Instead, you were concerned. You remembered how Dust’s phantom was apparently a hallucination, so seeing your actual spirit brother could have been upsetting – triggering, even - for the other. You might not have known Dust yet, but you already cared about him. ‘Papy, I know you’re excited somebody can see you, but I think he’s overwhelmed,’ you signed to your over-enthusiastic sibling.

“HM. YOU SEEM TO BE RIGHT, BROTHER. MAYBE I SHOULD LEAVE—”

“N-no! No, I, er, I’m fine,” Dust quickly choked out, taking a few moments to steady his breath. He wasn't all that convincing, though he did seem to be calming down a little. Maybe he just needed time to adjust.

‘Are you sure, Mr Dust? You don’t look so good...’

“Yeah, just..” he cringed at himself, shaking his head as though to dispel whatever line of thought he had been stuck with. “I’m fine, kid, just wasn’t expectin’ it.” You nodded. He probably knew himself best, though you hoped he wasn’t pushing himself for your sake.

“BUT WHERE IS YOUR BROTHER?” Ghost Papy asked. You cringed a little internally. Your brother definitely lacked subtlty.

“He, uh... he’s dead. Dead-dead, not like you. Used ta hallucinate him though. He, uh... was real nasty,” he admitted.

“OH... I AM SORRY YOUR HALLUCINATION PAPYRUS WAS NOT KIND TO YOU,” he let out empathetically. “I AM CLAIMING YOU AS OUR BROTHER NOW. YOU HAVE BEEN SURPRISE ADOPTED.”

Dust choked at the sudden explanation, and just as you moved forward to help, he dissolved into a fit of laughter.

You giggled a little as well. You weren't upset at the delcaration, but weren't sure how Dust would feel. His hysterical laughing was a tad concerning for you. ‘Papy, I’m not sure that’s how it works—’

“OF COURSE IT DOES! SPIKEY SIBLING HORROR SURPRISE ADOPTED YOU, SO I’M SURPRISE ADOPTING DUST!”

"Its, uh, its fine, I don’t... mind it,” Dusty let out, seeming rather flustered. Before you could press, he quickly changed the subject, clearly not wanting to talk more on it right this very moment. “So, uh, how old are ya, kid?” 

You hesitated, not actually sure of the answer. It wasn’t exactly something you had thought about until now. ‘Papy, do you know? I still don’t remember much before I hurt my head...’

“YOU ARE 219 YEARS, 11 MONTHS AND 28 DAYS OLD. YOUR BIRTHDAY IS IN TWO DAYS,” he answered for you.

‘How old would that make me in human years?’ you then asked. You were curious to know what the difference was like when converted.

“NEARLY 22!”

Dusty tilted his head, seemingly deep in thought. “Is that including the resets?” he asked after a moment.

Papyrus nodded rapidly. “YES! ALTHOUGH MY BROTHER WASN’T VERY SPECIFIC WITH HOW MUCH TIME PASSED BETWEEN RESETS, SO IT COULD BE A LITTLE BUT INACCURATE. THEY’RE DEFINITELY OUT OF STRIPES, THOUGH!”

You hummed a little, briefly wondering about your life as a human. How old had you been when you died? You had a feeling you were somewhere between fifteen and twenty five, but that was awfully nonspecific. Maybe you matched your current age? Adults could still have childlike qualities, after all.

“Then why are they so... er...” he trailed offz clearly having difficulty articulating his words. He was probably trying not to offend you, you realised.

"CHILDLIKE? ASHE BEHAVES A BIT... DIFFERENT... DUE TO THE HEAD INJURY, I THINK. THEY’RE DEFINITELY NOT LIKE HOW THEY USED TO BE, BUT THATS OKAY BECAUSE I LOVE THEM NO MATTER WHAT!”

‘I’m also Autistic, if that matters,’ you responded, though a little nervous at the confession. Ghost Papy probably hadn’t known about that, but he didn’t seem bothered by new information.

Dust nodded. “Ah. I am too. Sometimes I forget how differently neurodivergence can present from person to person,” he mumbled. You were thankful the three of you seemed to be getting along.