Meldtale

So Close and Yet So Far

Sans' POV.

Just what were you running from? There's another question that's demanding attention, though.

What will you being running from soon?

*****

Needless to say, if I were to tell myself anything at that moment it would be that not killing the human right away was a mistake. First, she acted like some innocent know-it-all that wouldn't hurt a god damn fly, then she led Doggo right to us with that stench of her's, and, just to add in something new, she was too incompetent to move through the god-forsaken snow without bringing me down with her.

Add on the nightmares and you had the icing on the cake. Getting woken up via a hyperventilating human was never fun, but then you had the fact that her fear moved to me, clogging up my soul with images of swinging fists and incoming kicks. By the time my eyes were open all the way I couldn't breathe or think and before I knew what I was doing Doggo was unconscious and my eye was glowing.

All in all, it had been one fuckin' terrible morning, topped off by a certain someone stumbling out of a tree and nearly landing right on top of the human's head, sending my already frantic soul into overdrive.

My arm shot out, grabbing onto the human's wrist once more as my magic flared, panic flowing unchecked through my bones. I wouldn't give her the chance to hurt him. In response, the world blurred and twisted, my name echoing in my ears as everything reformed a second later, snow and trees greeting us like always. It wasn't like the scenery was ever going to change. At least, not yet. I wasn't strong enough after teleporting twice.

It seemed the girl wasn't either. She instantly pushed away from me as everything came to a halt, her body cowering in the snow as she heaved. A small prickle of guilt pushed through my annoyance as I took a step back, watching her try to force something out of her stomach. I knew what it was like to teleport multiple times in a row; I'd had the same reaction when I'd first started my little 'trick', but it had always been bad when I jumped more than once in a short amount of time. Hell, I was already near exhaustion as it was.

I forced the feeling away, though, shoving my pity deep into my soul. It couldn't be helped. There was no way I would let her near my brother. I knew, knew, that behind that goody-two-shoes act there was the monster that my father always talked about. Just because she'd spared every monster so far didn't mean anything. She'd only faced off with, like, three or four monsters anyway. I couldn't believe I even considered she could be anything else but a normal human. Pretending could only get you so far, and in my eyes, she'd already reached her end.

"hey. get up." She shook her head, not even looking at me as I spoke. My anger flared just slightly, "i said, get up." Another head shake, but she seemed to shuffle backward a little bit, sitting on her knees. She held her arms out to the side, letting me see her hands.

"I can't. Please, just give me a second." Her hands were trembling, but it was probably just from the cold. It was simply a part of her performance.

I took a measured step closer, clenching my teeth together. "no. we have to move. they'll be searching for us. we can't just flake around." I attempted to make a joke, trying to be a little bit comforting, but it sounded extremely flat, even to my ears. As expected, she didn't move and I dropped my signature smile, reaching forward and yanking her around. "would you fuckin-" The look on her face made my soul still. the rest of my sentence catching in my throat.

Tears dripped from her eyes, mixing with the small amount of spit that still coated her lips from her effort to vomit. Her eyes were unfocused, nose a running mess, and face so red it looked like those cherry-fruit things from the human story books. Her terror flowed through my bones, my soul echoing with it, making me tremble and stumble backward as I released her, falling onto my backside. Breathing hitching, we just stared at one another for a long time, her fear so palpable that I'm sure the very trees were shrinking back to try and get out of view. You didn't have to be soul bonded with her to notice it and let me tell you, you didn't want to be. The sheer fright pumping through us both was almost enough to send Undyne packing if she were here.

Shaking my head as her hands slowly rose again, my unfocused vision managed to narrow in on her movements. I had to fight back a flinch as I noticed how much worse her shaking had become. It was just the cold.

"Please. Just a moment." I only turned my head, managing a small grunt through my suddenly clogged throat. Even out of my gaze, her eyes stayed in my mind. Brown pools of strict sorrow with a black, empty island at the center. They haunted me, reminding me of the dream I'd had the night before. I could still remember the feeling of her sickness, crawling through her veins like a parasite, and the hopelessness that came with the words of the men. I remembered the bursts of dread and alarm that I could still feel even to this moment. I remembered waking up to her putting a blanket around my body, returning to bed without a peep. The warmth I felt despite having no skin to feel it with.

I didn't understand anything anymore.

It took me a moment to recognize the feeling of someone pulling on my jacket sleeve, the action pulling me out of my trance. I was almost afraid to look, letting my eyes fall back to her hands. I just... I couldn't bring myself to meet her gaze. Thankfully, they were much steadier now, her fingers moving with practiced ease, "I am ready now."

I was barely able to nod let alone stand but I succeeded anyway, trying to ignore the fact that she used my arm to help her get to her feet. I was pretty busy dealing with my relief at the moment, though. Her panic was finally returning to where it belonged. Her soul and not mine. I still didn't have it in me to shake her off, my mind slow and dare-I-say, heavy with guilt, but I did mutter a few curses under my breath at the situation. It made me feel a tad bit better.

I kept my eyes on the forest, figuring out just where we had ended up before allowing myself to relax. We weren't that far from Snowden. Thank Asgore. Yet, my mouth continued to feel like it was filled with cotton, voice soft and raspy despite my attempt to straighten it, "this way." She hummed quietly in agreement as I lead her forward, but it didn't last long. We hadn't even made it two feet before she tumbled, my eyes registering her rush to straighten herself, the muscles in her back stiff and unyielding. The shaking was back. Something strong pulled at my soul and I sighed quietly, eye flashing once more. She seemed to recognize my magic immediately, flinching as the glow of it reflected off her hair. I struggled to keep the sight from bothering me as I finished my task.

As commanded, the snow had parted for us, the new path twisting off into the distance and disappearing into the trees. I'd have to stop to do it again, but this should at least speed things up a bit. If we hurried then we could even make it to Snowdin before the afternoon storms set in. Without a word, I started walking again, feeling rather than seeing her hands slip from my jacket as she stared at my back, her gaze like a hot coal burning a hole in my spine. "let's go human. stop wasting time," I tried to keep the small quiver out of my tone as I glanced back at her, meeting her confused look with an even expression. It appeared to work, the girl shaking herself out of whatever daze she was in and scurrying after me.

We didn't speak again, the trees closing in overhead and the only sound between us that of the crunching snow under our feet.