Reset (Sans x Older!Frisk)

5- Trust

Sans was already waiting by the front door, and Frisk hurried down the stairs, suspecting that he had cheated and teleported to the door when she wasn't looking.

"Your choice, bud," he said, grinning, "I'm just here to keep tabs, seeing as this is the last reset."

Keep tabs. As in give her a bad time before she could hurt anyone, rather than afterwards. It was almost funny, to see Sans taking initiative. Or it would be, if she wasn't the reason why he had lost his sense of purpose in the first place.

Sans opened the door, letting in a gust of cold air, and facing them was Papyrus, pointing a bony finger at them. "HUMAN!" he shouted, making both Sans and Frisk freeze. This wasn't supposed to happen. Things were changing.

Various townspeople paused to shoot them cursory glances, too used to the skeleton brothers' eccentricities to care much about what was happening.

"Bro?" Sans questioned, grinning. If Frisk hadn't been close enough to practically feel him tense up, she would have thought that nothing fazed him. "I thought you were waiting for the human outside of Snowdin."

"I WAS," Papyrus replied loudly, "BUT WHEN THE HUMAN DIDN'T ARRIVE, I WAS CONCERNED THAT I MADE THE PUZZLES TOO DIFFICULT!"

"Well, it's okay," Frisk broke in, smiling nervously, "Here I am." She wondered why she felt like she'd been caught in the act- probably because she was standing in the doorway of his house.

Papyrus kept on steamrolling through his speech like she hadn't spoken. "I SEE YOU TRIED TO HELP CAPTURE THE HUMAN, BROTHER, BUT I THINK YOU SHOULD LEAVE THIS TO THE PROFESSIONAL!" He turned his attention to Frisk. "NOW I WILL CAPTURE YOU, HUMAN! I WILL BECOME A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD!"

Frisk stepped out into the snow, facing Papyrus. She figured if she had to take his attacks, she may at least try to spare his house. She dared a glance back at Sans, who was still grinning, but it was a darker grin. A false one.

Same as in the judgement hall.

He'd said that we wouldn't kill her, but that was far from forgiving or trusting her. She could practically read his thoughts, hear him saying, "This is pushing it, kid." But he simply closed the door behind him and leaned against it, watching. Frisk turned her attention back to Papyrus, who was looking between them quizzically.

"I don't want to fight," Frisk said, smiling and holding out her arms. She felt trapped, far too aware of Sans' eyes on her back. She wouldn't hurt Papyrus, but one wrong move and she could be stabbed from behind.

"NYEH HEH HEH! SO YOU WON'T FIGHT, HUH? THEN LET'S SEE IF YOU CAN HANDLE MY FABLED BLUE ATTACK!" Papyrus cackled, and Frisk stayed perfectly still, her soul turning blue and sluggish. This was the harder part. "YOU'RE BLUE NOW!"

Papyrus went through his monologue about being popular, so familiar to Frisk that she could recite it with him, leaving her full attention on dodging his attacks. He seemed to have no concern over the state of his house, as when he missed her the bones would hit the wall. At one point, Frisk dodged a flurry of bones in rapid succession, and heard a piercing noise behind her as the window shattered.

"Welp, there goes my room," Sans commented.

Papyrus' attacks got faster, more manic, until eventually he came to a halt, panting. Frisk still thought it was strange that skeletons could get physically tired.

"WELL!" he shouted, glancing around as if hoping a crowd had amassed. It hadn't. "IT'S CLEAR... YOU CAN'T! DEFEAT ME!"

He took a moment to catch his breath, then continued, "THAT'S WHY I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM GRANTING YOU PITY! YES! I WILL SPARE YOU, HUMAN!"

"I accept your mercy," Frisk said calmly, though she was winded herself. She was powerless to stop the smile that spread across her face, "Let's be friends."

"REALLY? YOU WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH ME???" Papyrus looked as happy as she did, practically tearing up, "THEN! I GUESS I CAN MAKE AN ALLOWANCE FOR YOU!!"

He started walking energetically, beckoning her to follow, "COME WITH ME, HUMAN! I CAN SHOW YOU HOW TO GET TO THE SURFACE!" Frisk hurried after him, glancing behind her. Sans was gone.

Papyrus stopped at the edge of town, giving her directions to the end of the cavern, while Frisk nodded quietly and smiled.

You don't deserve this, a dark voice in her head insisted, and her face fell ever-so-slightly.

"ANYWAY, I'LL BE AT HOME BEING A COOL FRIEND! FEEL FREE TO COME BY IF YOU WANT TO HANG OUT!" Papyrus concluded, then hurried back towards Snowdin.

Even though it was early afternoon and the sun was shining, it was still freezing cold, and Frisk had to return to town to get supplies and a jacket before continuing on her way. She wasn't one to make the same mistake twice.

As always, Sans was waiting inside the entrance to Waterfall at the sentry post. This time, however, he was standing in front of it, rather than behind it, hands in his pockets.

He grinned at her as she approached. "Good job, kid."

In reply, Frisk extended her hand towards him. "I'm going to Grillby's. Do you want to come?" She had things that she needed to talk about, and besides, she just wanted her friend back, regardless of whether or not she deserved him. She'd spent so much of her life giving Chara everything- she just wanted to be selfish.

He was silent only for a second, but it was long enough for Frisk to see the conflict on his face. Long enough to feel the sting of rejection. Then he chuckled. "As if I would say no to taking a break."

He took her hand.

A/N: Hiya guys! Just wanted to thank you all for reading! Originally, I had no idea what I wanted to do with this story. Not much, really. Sans and I have one thing in common, and it's the tendency to be a lazy little shit. If it wasn't for the support from you guys, I probably wouldn't have written more than one chapter. You are my DETERMINATION. So thank you!