Human versions of the Sans AUs. This is based on a chapter yet to come in my other book/work The Stage is Set. Simon-Swap, Dylan- Dream, Beau- Blue, Evan- Error, Nathan- Nightmare, Chris- Cross, Keith- Killer, Isaac- Ink
Remember, that this was for class, so the ships are different and the way this will actually play out will be very different. (Background information, Ink/Isaac had loved and lost Gin and Simon. He loves Evan/Error, but isn't fully aware of it. Same with Error/Evan)
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The six of them stand in the anti-void staring at the pulsing ink mass on the ground. Dylan huffs in pain as Beau adjusts his hold on him. He tries to keep Dylan's upper body elevated because of the arrow wound in his upper chest as he holds Dylan's arm over his shoulders. Evan looks at the others before taking a deep breath and stepping forward.
Too shocked to move at the time, Evan had seen the whole thing, and now he wants to save his friend. His foot makes contact with the spreading ink, and he yelps before stumbling back. His glasses are thrown off-center as he falls back to see his black sandal being liquidized. He stands up and hurries back to the group with a nervous glance back to the spreading ink.
"No good. Creation magic is dangerous to Destruction magic. We may be the balance, but I can't help him." He grips his burgundy scarf and wrings it in his hands. "Someone else has to." Nathan shakes his head.
"I can't. Creation is a positive ideal, and my magic is based on Negativity. I'll melt like your shoe did." Nathan sighs as he stares at the way small serpents of ink slither closer to the group. "And we should find a way to stop it before the ink has a chance to hurt us." Evan nods as he pushes some strands of his black hair behind his ear.
"I can-" Dylan is cut off by Chris.
"No, you're staying out here." Chris points to the arrow wound he has. "And you're going to explain that later. But right now, we need to help Isaac." He looks at Evan and Nathan. "You two wait here, and watch Dylan." He turns to Keith. "You, stay here. I don't trust you enough with my brother." Keith nods his head in an understanding way. Chris pinches his nose before turning to the ink. "I'll-"
"I'll go." Chris and Dylan turn to Beau. "You may be his brother, but you never fully bonded with him. I know him best." He hands Dylan to Nathan as he steps up to Chris whose arms are crossed with his chest puffed out. Beau stares down at him. "I owe Isaac a lot for everything he's done for me. Now I want to start repaying him." He sharpens his stare, and Evan blinks. He sees Simon, just like Isaac had told him. "Chris. I know you care, but you know the bare minimum about Isaac. I know him best. I can bring him back. Just wait out here with the others." They hold eye contact for a moment longer before Chris sighs.
"Just bring my baby brother back. Okay?" Beau nods.
"I promise."
He smiles sadly at him before sprinting to the ink. He stops as he stares into it, searching for the deepest part of the pool of ink. He smirks as he notices Isaac's touch and starts to wade through the ink towards it. He grabs his staff, which had been sucking into the ink, and wedged it between the smooth solidified inkstones. Only Isaac could manipulate ink this way, he takes a step back before diving into the opening. Through a layer of liquid ink, he comes to an air pocket, similar to a cave, of solid ink. He steps inside, noticing how the ink on him shrinks off his clothes and into the floor. He quietly walks around looking in the darkness for his friend.
"Isaac?"
"Beau... What are you doing here? Why are you here?"
His voice is soft yet echoes through the cavern. The whisps of his breath curl in a fog in front of his face. Beau moves closer to Isaac. He sits down in front of Isaac and looks at the chains holding his friend in this dark cavern before making eye contact. His baby blue eyes staring into Isaac's gold and blue. Isaac blinks, and for an instant, he sees Simon. The way his dark brown hair is tied up into a fluffy ponytail. The way his freckles are sprinkled on his cheeks and across his nose. Simon's expression filled with worry for him. Then, it falls back to Beau.
"I'm here to save you, Isaac. Come on, everyone is waiting for you to come back." Isaac looks away with his mouth in a firm frown. Finding interest in the pool of ink beneath him where the chains come from. "Isaac? What's wrong? Are you hurt? I can carry you!" Beau's voice booms compared to Isaac's. Isaac stares at his blue scarf before looking away again. Simon had a blue scarf too, and Beau's reminds him of it.
"No. Leave, Beau." He turns around as much as he can, and the chains move out of the ink and around Isaac. As more chains stretch from the pool, they dribble with fresh ink, not entirely solidified. "You can't save me." The ink starts to bubble with the emotions rolling off of Isaac. He remembers this conversation with Simon, who had also refused to let go of Isaac.
Beau pulls away in confusion. What did Isaac mean? Of course, he can save him. Beau would never turn his back on his friend. He tries to reach for Isaac's hand, only for Isaac to pull away. He stares at the luminous tears tracing Isaac's face. They're one of the only light sources in this cave of paint. Isaac's magic swirling in his tears giving them a milky white tint. Beau looks down at his lap as he tries to think of what to say. His soft breaths puff out like clouds, and the crisp temperature causes the scar on his lower lip to throb with a muted pain. The silence is deafening, but the only sound there is their breathing.
"Come on, Isaac. Where's my friend, Inky?" Isaac abruptly stands up, cutting Beau off, and he ignores the urge to run into his friend's arms at the nickname. Simon had called him that, all the time.
"He's gone, Beau. Gone forever. Grow up and leave me be." Isaac clenches his fists as his tears become an icy blue. Beau sits there in shock, and he wants to scream at his friend. He won't, but he can't lose his best friend. Not again.
"G-grow up? Isaac, I'm not a little kid, and I'm not him." He stands up and stares at the back of his friend. "Now come on. Everyone is waiting for us." A forced laugh bubbles out of Isaac. The sound becoming distorted by the cave.
"No, they're not. They're waiting for you, Beau. After what I just did, I'm a monster. Just go." Isaac looks over his shoulder at his friend with a pain-filled glare as the chains rattle softly with the movement and the temperature drops once more. Beau hugs his arms closer for warmth. He realizes that while he's cold, Isaac isn't wearing a jacket or his scarf. "And Beau... You'll always be childish. That's how they created him, and then he tainted you." And now, you're nothing like Simon.
The unsaid sentence is left there hanging between them. The emotions dripping off of every word as the darkness grows darker. Beau lets his tears fall. He knows it's a death wish to give mercy to everyone. He knows some people are not worthy of a second chance, but he isn't as naive as many think. He knows he isn't Simon. He's only the scraps of what was left of Simon, put together with glue and hope. Isaac had tried his best.
"Isaac Comyet. Cut that out. Come on, you know that I'm not leaving without you. No one thinks you're a monster. You are Isaac, Ink, Inkblot. The Guardian of Creativity and the Multiverse. You're the balance to Evan... And he's worried out of his mind about you. Come home." Beau spreads his arms out to Isaac for a hug. Beau's tears glow a soft blue in response to Isaac. The warmth radiating from his body sticks out like a match surrounded by ice.
Isaac grits his teeth before punching Beau in the ribs. "Stop it, Blueberry!" The nickname hurts Beau more than the punch. The one that Isaac had threatened that he'd punch anyone if they called Beau that. Blueberry and Simon aren't here. He is only Beau. "You don't care about me! You just want to be the hero of this story! All of you think that you can just use me, throw me to the side, and then expect me to come back?"
Beau falls back into the pool of ink in pain. The words cutting deeper than any wound he's ever had. The chains tighten around Isaac's arms. Taunting him with their whispers. Murmuring to him how dangerous he is now. That he just hurt one of the people he swore to protect. That Beau didn't deserve that treatment. Screaming at him that he's a monster that shouldn't go back. He accepts the pain in his arms from the chains squeezing his flesh. Beau notices the spiral and the tightening grasp of the chains. He tries to grab Isaac, only for Isaac to move out of the way. Beau's faintly aware that his hair and clothes are now soaked in ink.
"That's not true, Isaac! You're one of my closest friends! I'll always help you!" Isaac shrinks back from Beau. He can't even look at him. He looks so much like Simon. He drops to his knees and curls in on himself. He had always hated how he responded to Simon during that argument. "Come back to me, Isaac! Please! Let me save you! I've never used you! Unless being friends also counts as using you."
Beau crawls over to Isaac's curled figure. He gently holds Isaac in his arms. Isaac doesn't know what to do. Beau wants to be a hero, but that means there has to be a villain or a monster. He's so tired of others setting him up as the villain in their stories. He never asked for this. He doesn't move to hold Beau. Not when all he can think about is Simon, his second friend. He can't lose Beau either, not when Beau is all that Isaac has left of Simon. Beau can't be the hero, not for him. A hero in this Multiverse means to give your life for a person or cause. Isaac will not accept that. He's lost his friends so many times because they wanted to be the hero, and so many times he had to go back and fix it. His silent tears turn to sobs, and his magic gives his tears a deep ocean tint. Beau watches in sad wonder as the darkness seems to feed on the light from his and Isaac's tears, and he pretends not to feel the chains poking at him. The sobs reverberate through the cave.
"S-stop playing with my mind, p-please." His whimper rings out through the cave, and Beau just holds him closer to his chest.
"I never did." Isaac tightens his grip on Beau's sweater. "And I never will. Inky, they're all sad. You need to go back, I'll guide you." Isaac's eyes snap open with shock and growing anger. Does he need to? Why does he need to? What if he doesn't want to? It's safer for everyone if the monster stays here. The chains tighten around his chest and neck, but he pays no mind to them. The temperature drops again, and the ink at their feet starts to boil.
"I need to?!" He seethes with anger. "Why is it that I need to do everything to keep everyone happy?!" He shoves Beau away. He doesn't want to repeat what he said in the last argument. "What about me?! Huh?!" He stands up and glares down at Beau. The remaining tears in his eyes become a crimson red. He can't seem to stop speaking, although he wishes to.
"I'm sorry!" Beau's vision fills with tears as he tries to reach for Isaac.
"What about my world?!" Isaac tightly grips his shirt, right over his heart. His world was never saved. Never finished. Crumbled apart in front of his eyes, and no one but Isaac cared.
"I'm sorry!" Beau closes his eyes, and he lowers his head.
"What about my feelings?!" Isaac screams, and the others outside of the ink hear him. Evan chokes over his tears as he listens to Isaac scream. He wants to help Isaac so much, but he doesn't want Isaac to blame himself if he gets hurt.
"I'm sorry! Isaac, please! We don't need to end this way! What about us?!"
He pulls Isaac back into his chest. Holding him as if he lets go, he'll lose Isaac forever. He's so tired. He wants Isaac to come home with them. With him. They haven't had a bonding day in so long. Beau wants to tempt him with the promise of movies, snacks, and not leaving the couch for a whole day. Maybe to paint portraits of their friends with Isaac. Or just to train with him. Anything to get Isaac to stay with him. To fight this darkness and come back to the rest of them. His tears fall onto Isaac's cheeks, who hides in Beau's navy blue sweater.
When did Beau get so tall? When could Beau curl his body around him? Simon couldn't do that. He barely grabs onto the sweater. The soft fabric called him to come home, but he can't. He's scared to touch Beau. He's a monster now. What if he hurts him? The chains tighten around his throat, making it hard to swallow the lump in it. He's a monster, a villain, he can't be saved now. Nor should he be hugging the hero.
"I know they've hurt you in the past! I know-" Isaac shoves him off. Isn't it best to keep him away from the monster anyway? Huffing in anger as his tears glow a deep crimson again.
"You know nothing of me! You think you're a hero!" Beau flinches from the glare. "And Dylan will tell you that you are." He moves his head to stare at the ink below and his hair falls in front of his face. The void growing darker as the air bubble seems to become smaller. He remembers when he was called a hero once. "Stand up, and leave me alone." He turns around and starts to walk as far as the chains will let him. He doesn't stagger even with the chains choking him.
"You aren't a villain, Isaac!" He pauses but doesn't turn to face Beau. "You're not a monster! Please believe me!"
Isaac screams in a moment of pain, anger, and reminiscence. His voice rings out through the cavern, and the echoes bounce back. "You can't be my hero, Simon!"
Both go silent as Isaac covers his mouth before sobbing again, the line repeating as the echo dies out. He can't do this. Isaac can't be the villain, it hurts too much. He cares too much. Beau's heart almost shatters at the sobs Isaac creates. Isaac hides his eyes with his hands to hide what he's feeling, but the violet tears betray him as they drop into the ink. The luminosity of the tears dispersing as they infuse with the darkness, and he falls to his knees.
"You don't know how it felt, Beau." His voice soft as the coldness slowly disappears, becoming a neutral temperature.
Beau's heart hurts more at being separated from Simon. He knows he could never replace Simon, but it still hurts knowing that this has poisoned his friend for so long. How long has Isaac been keeping this in? He pushes through the pain of the thoughts to comfort his friend. He crawls over to Isaac and reaches out to him.
Isaac can only see what he had messed up. He failed to protect this Multiverse. He failed at creating a perfect lock to protect it, that's how they got into this mess. He flopped at being a Guardian and at staying out of their lives. He failed at creating Simon again. He failed to keep Gin alive and to keep Gin's world alive. He's failed at everything he's done.
However, Beau can only see a hurt, broken, but kind Guardian in front of him. A Guardian who needs more love than Beau thought. Isaac has given enough for everyone in the Multiverse to be comfortable but has gotten close to nothing in return. Someone that would willingly die over and over again if it meant giving anyone else a fighting chance. One that helped keep their friends together, and the one that helped him be alive today. Someone who made themselves a target so the rest could live peacefully.
So he repeats it. "You are not a monster."
Isaac looks up at Beau, startled. His tears take on an orange tint of shock. He sees the sad, kind smile on Beau's face and only sees Beau. Yes, there are hints of Simon, but this was Beau. A beautiful amalgam of Simon and his attempts at recreating Simon. It's as close as Simon as he could get, but he knows that this is HIS Simon. This is his second-ever friend. This is the one who knows his spirals into this type of thinking. Beau is his Simon, and that's enough for him to want to fight to come home for now. He has to protect Beau. He wants to spend more time with him. Not in these chains. Beau takes Isaac's hands into his and holds them close to his chest.
"You once held my hand, and now I ask you never let go." Isaac's smile wavers through the light orange tears. He smiles sadly as the ghosting touch of Simon's hands engulfing his. He gives a faint squeeze to Beau's hands as the chains loosen. They become malleable once more with the warmth of Beau's body.
"O-okay."