Chapter 1: The Selkie and the Skellie
Chapter Text
The waves crashed violently against the rocks, sending spray up and over, splattering against the stones, clothes and the bones of the monster that stood there, calmly observing the coming storm. He was on holiday with his brother, Sans, who was in the village, probably waiting for him to come back. But he didn’t particularly care; he just wanted some space from just about everything. Family had been pushing him to marry someone for ages and he just didn’t care for any of the humans or monsters that they paraded around him in the guise of balls and feasts. He wanted a simple life, a quiet life. Not entirely for someone who’d been in the guard for so long, long enough to be wounded and then have to leave. His cane dug into the soft shifting gravel and stones as he shifted his weight and sighed.
“What is the purpose of avoiding it?” he murmured, eyelights dulling as he fixed the collar of his tailcoat. “At this point, I may as well give into Father’s wishes. Sans has yet to settle either and yet he is allowed to go free as he pleases.” he huffed and shook his head. Such was the curse of being the eldest. He made to turn when a cry made him pause and he made his way a little closer to the edges of the rocks. A seal had been trapped against some of the rocks, it’s tail half crushed. His eye sockets widened and he picked his way quickly as he could down the slim path to the poor creature.
“Hold on, I’ll help you!” he called and the creature turned its head at the sound of his voice, dark brown eyes staring at him in fear. It barked a few times, but it almost sounded like a scream as he scrambled down the narrow path, shoes dislodging bits of shale and gravel before he managed to reach the poor thing. “Shhh, it’s okay! I won’t harm you, I promise!” he called over the rising wind, trying to seem non-threatening as possible as he got to his knees, laying his cane down and shoving with all his strength against the boulder. He was a strong monster, despite being made of bone and magic. His bones were thick and he was in excellent shape, magic fluctuations aside. But it wasn’t working. He huffed and summoned a bone to use as a lever, bracing it against another rock, and trying again. The seal looked at him with an almost human expression, one of wonder and confusion but it had stopped struggling. With one final heave, he managed to get the rock to tumble away and into the ocean. He was shaking slightly, breathing hard.
“Damn…” he looked down at his hands, the bones clinking together from even that small amount of magic. He struggled to stand but he felt a wave of exhaustion rush over him. The seal barked frantically, moving towards him instead of the ocean. It was nudging him further up the path, almost out of desperation it seemed but he couldn’t get his feet under him long enough to make any headway. Suddenly, there was a young woman beside him, her hair a rich wavy mop that went around her shoulders, her skin a dark grey, that was slowly turning lighter, and something wrapped her around her waist like a kind of kilt.
“Come on!” she yelled over the wind, though she was hobbling badly. He stared at her face in mild shock, blinking slowly.
“You- You are a selkie…” he mumbled.
“Yes, we can talk about it later, now move!” she tried to haul him to his feet but it wasn’t working. Normally she would have been strong enough to get him to his feet and up the cliff side but her leg was broken or fractured, and it hurt like a son of a bitch to put any weight on it. She had to bite back yelps of pain with each step, the narrowing of the path wasn’t helping and the skeleton was much taller than she was, not to mention heavier. She swore under her breath before finally settling on dragging him up the path, if only to get out of the way of the waves and strong currents that would kill them both. He had saved her life, she owed it to him to save his. It was difficult, the sharp rocks cut into her calloused feet and her leg was bleeding, throbbing with every step like she was stepping on knives, the blades slicing her nerves like humans sliced fish. She was crying from the pain, pulling the bag of bones best she could until finally he seemed to get his strength back and managed to start moving under his own power.
He didn’t say a word, his jaw was clenched too tightly for more than a few grunts to slip past. Finally, after much slipping, sliding and the wind pushing against them, the pair made it to the stop of the cliffs where he had been standing. The wind and rain began to lash at them as they stopped, the skeleton bent double, hands resting on shaking knees as she fell to the ground, tears falling steadily as she tried to contain her whimpers. He got his breath back and straightened, before he made his way over to the completely naked woman, aside from a dark grey, near black pelt wrapped around her waist. She flinched away from him and screamed, but he stopped and gave her as soothing a smile as he took off his jacket, shouting over the wind,
“My name is Papyrus! Come on, we need to get someplace safe!” and wrapped her in his jacket before he picked her up and slowly picked his way down, hunching himself over her to keep the worst of the wind off. With his skull so close, she didn’t have to yell to be heard.
“....Why are you helping me? Don’t you know I can eat you?”
He stared at her for several long moments before he laughed. It was strange but oddly adorable, a loud,
“NYHEHEHEHEHEHE!! I doubt you’d like to eat a bag of bones whose magic is highly unreliable, and you did just save my life. I’m helping you because it’s the right thing to do. May I have your name?” he paused to catch his breath and get his bearings, squinting through the rain that came down in silver sheets.
“Rosi, my name is Rosi.” she said after a few minutes of silence, pulling the jacket a little closer around herself as Papyrus shifted his grip on her, making sure to support her upper back and that his arm that carried her legs stayed away from the worst of the break and that his hand wrapped around her knee, both for her comfort and for propriety. He’d heard about selkie’s and how some of them attacked Monsters for their flesh, their magic or both, and how they sometimes ate humans that came too close. Other times they gave up their pelts willingly to live on land, other times their pelts were stolen from them, hidden by the ones that then forced them to marry them. He shuddered at the prospect and looked at Rosi, who was watching him with wide, scared eyes that also had a slowly rising fire. And, strangely enough, a hint of gratitude.
“Rosi, I won’t keep you on land forever. Nor will I force you to marry me, I’d rather avoid that whole business if I can.” Papyrus said as he started walking again. “I will only keep you on land long enough for you to heal properly so you can swim and walk again, and then you are free to do as you please.” he smiled at her, kind and gentle, adding, “I know what it feels like to be trapped with something you don’t want to do, and I would never forgive myself if I trapped someone to the same fate as I.”
“...You’re a very strange man,” she said, at last, smiling just a little bit. She didn’t trust Papyrus entirely, or even really at all, but it seemed he was nice enough. He laughed again, freely, the sound carried by the wind and snatched away before she could hear it. She smiled a little. She made to say something when he stumbled and fell to one knee, crying out in pain.
“Papyrus?!” she cried, alarmed but he shook his head and gave her a shaky smile.
“It-It’s nothing… Just… some magical backlash- AUGH!” his eye socket began to crack, a faint, sickly green light erupting from the thin fissure.
“That isn’t nothing!” she snapped back but Papyrus shook his head, grinding his teeth.
“It is. Nothing. That I cannot. Handle.” He said slowly, more to himself than to Rosi, but she just huffed and growled, sharp teeth on display as her lips peeled back. However, before she could do more than that, there was another voice and a slightly shorter figure came into view.
“Paps! Where the fuck are you?! Papyrus!!” the newcomer’s voice was deep and seemed to resonate more than Papyrus’, and he was moving quickly. Papyrus relaxed almost immediately and he called,
“Brother! Over here!”
The figure turned at the sound of his voice and came running, a coat held by his arms over his head to keep himself dry as he ran towards the pair. As he came closer, Rosi could see he was a skeleton but more slender than his brother, and a little shorter. He had a single, near golden yellow eye glowing in his socket, the other empty, like a void. He was wearing heavy boots and dark trousers, a grey sweater and his coat, which seemed to be treated with oil of some kind as the water was sloughing off it easily.
“Where the fuck were you? What were you think-Who’s she?!” he demanded over the wind and Papyrus shook his head, eye closed, the strange green light still leaking out.
“I will explain later, Sans. For now, can we please just get to the house?” Sans gave Papyrus a long look before he nodded and Rosi felt her eyelids getting heavy as they walked along. She didn’t want to sleep, but she was steadily feeling more and more exhausted as they went on. And so she curled up, best she could, in Papyrus’ surprisingly warm body, despite being made of bone and having such unstable magic. She felt, oddly safe. Like what he had said earlier was the truth.
_-_-_-
When she woke up again, she was in a warm bed wearing a too big shirt with her leg wrapped in faintly glowing bandages that were propped up on a pillow. She hissed as she tried to move it and a voice came from her bedside,
“You’re awake finally it seems.” Her head snapped around to see Sans staring at her, a permanent smirk-grin stretched across his face but he didn’t move from his chair. His legs were folded over the other, his fingers stapled together as his elbows rested on the arms of the chair. He wore a white turtleneck sweater now, but his eye still glowed with that same near golden light, and he wore the same dark pants, a silver chain hanging from his pocket, a hooded jacket lined with fur flung over the back of the chair. She slowly looked around the room; her bed was warm and soft, layered with quilts and blankets, a woven carpet under the bed that stretched near the door, a small fireplace on the opposite wall that was giving off a substantial amount of heat but not so it was was swelteringly hot. There were bookshelves with numerous books overflowing on them, some piled on top of shorter books horizontally in order to keep them from being piled on the floor. The window was a large bay window that overlooked the pasture area they were in, and faintly, through the rain, she could hear the sea.
“My pelt-” she stopped herself too late in her sudden spike of fear and Sans smiled at her. It was a little unnerving.
“It’s safe, don’t worry. We’re soaking it in sea water for the moment, didn’t think it would be a good idea to let it dry out. Then we’ll put it in a couple of wet towels in a metal basin and keep it damp. We’ll move it to your room once the cracks have completely healed over. Paps was real worried about you.”
“You...You’re not going to keep me here? Or… Force me to marry you?”
Sans stared at her like she’d lost her mind and barked a laugh, shaking his head, shoulders shaking as his laughter grew.
“Holy shit, I thought he was kidding!” Sans laughed, almost crying. He stopped when he saw Rosi’s glare and sobered. “No, we aren’t going to keep you, or force you to marry either of us like you’re a pet or like this is a fairytale.” he gave her a softer, more genuine smile and she relaxed slightly. “We’re going to help you get better quick as you can and then we’re going to give you back your seal pelt and let you do as you please. Paps told me how you saved him, I wanted to thank you for that.”
Rosi shrugged her shoulders, leaning against the pillows. Sans lifted a few more pillows using his magic and she leaned forward letting him situate them behind her so she wasn’t lying against the hard wood of the bedrest. “He saved me, in my seal form, first. He… He came down the cliff side on a nearly non-existent path so he could help, what he thought was, a seal that was trapped by a rock. I was… I was going to come to land to see the sights and before I could change, the rock landed on me and crushed my tail.”
“Yeah, that sounds like Papyrus. He honestly wouldn’t care if you were a Selkie, a demon or a seal; he’d still help you. He’s just that good.” Sans’ expression softened into a kind of admiration. “He’s the best kind of Monster; he’s selfless and so kind… He’s the coolest, honestly. He forgets to take care of himself first, though, sometimes and gets himself hurt trying to help another. Or he’ll get carried away and forget that he’s supposed to be the older brother and I have to reel him back in.” Sans sighed and shook his head. “Sorry, I don’t mean to ramble at you. I’ve been awake for about three days with six hours of sleep, not that that’s a record but I’ve been keeping an eye on you and Paps.”
“Why?” Rosi asked, thoroughly confused.
Sans relaxed and leaned forward, letting out a long sigh as his head rested in his hands, one scratching gently at the back of his skull. “You had a nasty break and compound fracture in your leg, I tried my best to heal it but I’m not the best at healing magic. A friend of mine will be out in a few days, she can help you out. Won’t heal it completely, but it may help get you on the right path. You were feverish, and Papyrus is sleeping off the magic strain. Has a new crack too,” he lifted his head and gestured to his left socket, the one that was empty, “Right down the middle. He can still see, thankfully.”
Rosi felt a strange sinking feeling in her gut and found herself asking,
“Is he… Is he going to be okay?”
“He should be, just going to be exhausted. He’s going to be insufferable for the next few days... “ he chuckled, shaking his head. At her confused look, he explained, “Paps hates being a lazy bones, even if it means he gets to stay in bed and read. He says it’s my job to be lazy, and he’d be right, but it seems I won’t be getting much sleep.”
“...You two are weird.” she was smiling faintly at the skeleton in front of her, at ease with the atmosphere now. Sans chuckled and shrugged.
“Eh, what’re you gonna do?”
Rosi thought about it then shrugged and smiled slightly, then yawned. She felt drained.
“Tired?” Sans asked with a small smile and she nodded.
“A little.” She admitted, settling into the blankets once more, comfortable now that she knew she was safe. Sans, and in extension, Papyrus, felt like they were good Monsters. She could always break their necks if she had to and hobble out back to the sea. It would be painful but she’d make do. She always had. The thought of going back to her family made her shudder slightly; the thought of being forced to have sex with anyone and drag them into the sea, or even being trapped on land with them forever made her skin itch and crawl. Sans, however, noticed and raised a brow bone.
“You a’right there, Rosi? Can I touch you? I want to check your temperature.” she shrugged and Sans moved slowly, reaching out one hand to check her forehead, humming. She noticed how his hand had a perfectly circular hole in the center and it felt like it was leaving a very faint impression on her forehead as he pressed. “Hmnn.. You don’t seem to have a fever… Bad thoughts?” he gave her a wry grin and Rosi nodded, sighing.
“Yes… Things I don’t want to remember or think about…”
“Hey, I get that.” he said, leaning back in his chair and picking up a book. “I’ll be here, reading if you need something.” Rosi snorted and shook her head, amused, but she could feel the exhaustion pulling her back. With one more yawn, she settled against the pillows once more and fell asleep.
When Rosi woke up, she could hear soft voices. However, instead of immediately opening her eyes, she decided to stay “asleep” and see if she could glean anything from the conversation.
“How is she?” That was Papyrus’ voice, and he sounded concerned.
“Bout as well as a selkie can be, I suppose.” that was Sans. He sounded exhausted, his voice heavy and almost dipping, like it had actual weight. “She woke up the day before last, we talked for a bit, checked her temperature, she fell back asleep. I moved her pelt under the bed in a metal basin with a buncha towels to keep it from crackin’,” he paused, yawning hugely. “Fuck, I’m tired…”
“How long have you been awake, Sans?” this voice was female, gentle but with a slight edge to her voice, possibly worry. She could almost hear his shrug.
“Dunno.”
“Brother, this is serious, you need sleep.”
“Yeah, and who’s gonna be awake to keep an eye socket on you two?” his tone light, but it sounded forced, like he was trying to lighten the mood with a joke. Papyrus huffed and sighed.
“Sans, please. You need sleep. I know you don’t sleep that often but you need it. You won’t be of any use to anyone if you’re running yourself ragged all the time.”
“Yeah… I know tha’ Paps-” he broke off with a loud yawn, “But I doubt she’ll be very happy with just you and Tori in the room. She seemed scared.” Rosi tensed slightly and shifted when an unfamiliar hand touched her bandaged foot.
“Well, I do believe she’s waking up.” Tori sounded relieved. Rosi blinked and looked up, feeling her eyes widen. In front of her was a goat-like creature, her fur milky white and a kind air about her, her dark eyes looking over Rosi like she was scanning for more injuries. She wore a beautiful but simple lavender gown, a light grey shawl wrapped around her shoulders and large, fuzzy paw-hand like appendages were clasped in front of her. She stepped forward, her foot making a soft sound, meaning she wore no shoes. Rosi took in the entire gown; there was like a quarter corset around her ribs, the cloth around her bodice was more like layered fabric, crisscrossing and tucking into itself like a basket weave. Her skirt flared out a bit from petticoats, and its sleeves were a softer lavender than the rest of the dress. Papyrus was just behind her, wearing a simple white button up and black pants, his left eye was wrapped with bandages that were a little red and sparked green magic on occasion. She couldn’t see if he was wearing any shoes. Sans was at the foot of her bed, wearing a grey sweater this time, along with the hooded jacket, the soft fur fluffed out around the hood. He wore the same black pants as his brother, and like with Papyrus, she couldn’t tell if he wore shoes.
“Hello my dear, I am Toriel, a caretaker.” Toriel’s voice was calming, her tone shifting so it was gentler. Rosi nodded and found herself relaxing. Toriel smiled at her sweetly, genuine love and kindness radiating off of her.
“H-Hello…” she mumbled.
“How are you feeling? If I may, may I touch your leg so I can see what I can for speeding up your recovery?” Rosi gave another soundless nod and simply stared at Toriel in mild confusion as the woman sat on her bedside and closed her eyes, reaching out to touch her leg. Rosi flinched at the initial contact; Monster magic hurt when it was applied directly, at least the first couple times. Toriel didn’t stop, however, and simply ran her hands slowly up her leg till she reached her knee. There was a faint tingling in her leg as Toriel worked, her large, warm paws leaving trails of heat underneath the strange tingling sensations.
“Alright,” the healer pulled away and stood before she sat heavily in the armchair. “That’s the best I can do, without causing harm that is. Selkie’s magic is very different from a Human’s or a Monster’s. Unconsciously, my dear, I believe you were drawing on my magic and draining me. It’s no fault of yours!” she rushed to add when Rosi tensed and leaned away slightly. “It’s simply that Monster magic is so heavily concentrated and your magic tends to flow and move more freely.”
“So, it’s like when one substance leaves, another comes to take its place?” Sans murmured, looking interested. He pushed off the wall, yawning. “That’s fascinating-” he was cut off, however, when his eye light winked out and he crumpled to the ground. Rosi cried out in mild shock and worry while Toriel was on her feet in a moment, though Papyrus had already caught his brother, holding him easily in his arms. Sans mumbled something and pressed his face into his older brother’s chest. Papyrus sighed and shook his head.
“I will return in a moment. I need to get him to a bed.” he was exasperated, that once again, his brother managed to forget that he needed to take care of himself first and foremost. “Toriel, Rosi, I will be right back.” he gathered Sans into his arms and stood slowly, careful with his own mending body, and made his way out of the room and down the hall towards Sans’ room.
He pushed the door open with his hip and stepped around the haphazardly piled clothes, books and notes, settling Sans on his bed and undressing him quickly. He folded his clothes up and put them away, leaving the jacket on the bed post like Sans preferred, and dressed his younger brother in loose sleep pants and a baggy sleep shirt, though he knew Sans preferred to sleep without one. It was cold outside, and his bones had always been sensitive to the cold. Once he was sure Sans would be comfortable, with the ease of someone who’d done the same thing for years, he picked Sans up and managed to get him to stand, leaned against him, as he turned down the covers enough to pick Sans back up and lay him in the bed and cover him with the thick blankets and duvet. He smiled faintly at his baby brother and ran a gentle hand over his younger brother’s skull, thumb rubbing between his brow, softening the already forming frown. His nightmares had returned then. He felt guilt stab his Soul once more, looking at his sleeping brother. Sans was constantly taking care of him because he was so forgetful, and a little self-destructive, if he were to admit it privately to himself. It wasn’t fair to Sans to have to deal with his older brother, broken as he was- He stopped that train of thought immediately.
He wasn’t broken. He simply… Didn’t feel romantic feelings towards anyone, nor really any sexual urges. Some thought that fighting had turned him to men more than women, others thought he had someone already of a lower class, and still, some thought he was simply sick. Or stubborn. And a few whispered that he and Sans had some sort of… relationship . Sans, thankfully, hadn’t heard such accusations, or else he would have quite possibly done far worse than Papyrus had. Which, quite frankly, may have been slightly over the top but really, what else was he supposed to do? It certainly wasn’t his fault, entirely, that they became violently ill when they drank at his party, nor that when they saw him, they couldn’t seem to control their fearful responses, faces paling and making quick excuses to leave his general vicinity. Undyne helped. He rubbed Sans’ skull a few more times before he made his way back to Rosi’s room, limping ever so slightly and making a mental note to get his new cane soon as he could. As he came near, he could hear them laughing. A smile spread across his face at the sound; he liked the sound. It was a cross between soft bells and barking, it was odd but almost adorable.
He knocked and called, “May I come in?”
“Oh, there you are!” Toriel called, opening the door for him, a smile on her face as she hid a giggle behind her hand. “Rosi is a very spirited Selkie, I wish you luck withstanding her jokes my dear.” Papyrus paled slightly and winced, causing her to laugh once more and shake her head.
“Her leg should be healed up properly in a month or so, I did the best I could but she may heal slower or faster depending on how much she moves around. I’ll be back in a few weeks to check on her.” and with that, she left.
Papyrus made his way into the room and sat on the chair, smiling faintly at Rosi as she yawned, flashing her large, sharp teeth once more.
“Are you hungry? Or thirsty? I can make you something if you’d like.” he offered.
“Water would be nice, actually.” Papyrus nodded and fetched the pitcher, filling a clay mug halfway before giving it to her and settling back in the armchair, picking up the book Sans had been reading as he waited for Rosi to speak or to simply ignore him and fall back asleep.
“Were… Are you and Sans serious about what you said?”
“What about?” he asked, tilting his head slightly. Rosi gave an agitated huff and made a motion with her hand.
“About helping me to heal and then letting me go back to the sea?”
“Of course! The Great Papyrus always keeps his word! And Sans is always serious, unless he’s telling a terrible joke, then he’s annoying.” That startled a barking laugh from her and Papyrus grinned at his own success.
“That was actually good.” She said with a smirk and Papyrus shrugged, crossing his ankles as he propped the book on his leg.
“Thank you. I do try to make up for the terrible puns and jokes that my brother attempts to pass off as humor.” He was smiling as he said it, however, and Rosi could tell that for all the ribbing he was giving the younger, Papyrus did enjoy his terrible humor. She’d have to be the judge of how “terrible” his jokes were, as a joke that couldn’t make at least one person cringe wasn’t worth the telling. She put down the mug and ran her thumb over the rim, idly, for a few moments. Papyrus waited patiently before he picked up the book once more and began to read.
“...What are you reading?” she asked, curious.
“An installment of Sherlock Holmes. Sans does love his penny novels, and I have to admit I’m fond of them too.”
“...Could you read some to me?” she asked.
“Can you not read yourself?” he asked before seeming to catch how rude that was and fumbled to correct himself. “I didn’t mean to imply that you were illiterate or that-that you weren’t able to read- Or to sound rude and ask why you would have me read to you when you could read yourself- Damn… uh…” he trailed off, thoroughly embarrassed, a faint green blush spreading across his face. Rosi was biting her lips, trying very hard not to laugh at the fumbling skeleton but a soft snort escaped her. And that was it. She couldn’t stop laughing. He was frankly adorable, riled up like that. It was funny to see him so flustered when he’d been nothing but put together the whole time. After a moment, she could hear his own laughter joining her’s and she laughed all the harder, tears of mirth leaking at the corners of her eyes. Finally, after several attempts to calm themselves, Rosi managed to reign in her barking laugh, snorting a few times. Then, she stuck out her hand, still giggling, said,
“Hello. My name is Rosi. I’m a selkie with a broken leg and currently half naked in your home as I heal. Shall we be friends?” Papyrus grinned and took her hand firmly in his own, feeling her squeeze back, a glint in her eyes that was both challenging and amused as he answered,
“Hello, Rosi. My name is Papyrus. I am a skeleton with defective magic and a fucked up eye light and socket. Pleased to meet you. I do believe we shall.” they managed to keep straight faces for about thirty seconds before dissolving into giggles once more. Papyrus calmed down first and settled in the chair, ankles crossed as Rosi settled herself against the pillows and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Well? Are you going to read to me or not?” she asked and Papyrus coughed, picking up the book and turning to the first page and began to read.
_-_-_-_
The pattern continued for the rest of the month while Rosi healed, slowly. Sans or Papyrus would be waiting for her to wake up, usually reading, and always with food and something warm to drink, as well as water. While she was forced to lay in bed, one brother or the other would read aloud from Sherlock Holmes, or a textbook, or any other assortment of books. Almost startlingly quickly, she found that the brothers had become her best friends and that with the amount of time she spent with them, she didn’t have time to think about what some called Land Fever, or even think about how she’d been stuck in bed so long. Rosi, at first, thought the brothers were almost disturbingly similar, but very quickly figured out how wrong she was.
She found that Sans was either always awake or always asleep, sometimes dozing off in the middle of a sentence only to snap back awake minutes later and carry on as if he’d never dozed off. It was amusing, to say the least. He also told absolutely awful puns and jokes, based on various topics; sometimes puns of his bones, other times objects or topics they’d been discussing, and usually made her cringe. She loved them and made sure to commit them to memory. He was also rather guarded behind his smile and easy laughter and kept the topics at a surface level unless he was interested then he was more animated and fell asleep less often. He was kind, however, and smiled more genuinely after the first few days, and told her stories that she’d never read or even heard of. He also didn’t pry into her life, which she was grateful for. Neither brother did, accepting that she would talk about it in her own time.
Papyrus was calmer, but only on the surface. Like Sans, he was guarded but she could tell it was for different reasons that his brother. Sans had a sadder light in his eye than Papyrus, but he looked more haunted, hunted even. She learned that he’d been in the war, in the Guard even, and that he’d been hurt, which was why he walked with a cane. When the bandages came off his socket the third day in a row she'd been awake, he had to blink several times to get used to it. Papyrus was, when he was mentally stimulated, very animated and could even get loud, almost to the point of shouting before he toned himself down.
It was interesting to watch him swing from extremely animated, his hands moving in almost incomprehensible patterns, like an entirely different form of language, then slow down before stopping entirely. Sometimes, to keep them occupied, he would pick up knitting, working steadily on a bright red scarf that looked soft as kelp. He would talk with her for hours on end, on a variety of topics; everything from the latest stack she’d managed to get through -- the brothers supplied her with stacks of books to read when she wanted, no two books distinctly similar and on a variety of topics and fictions, many nonfiction, and she was a voracious reader. She finished books in two days, sometimes three when she was tired -- to the weather, cooking, gardening, fashion, and what they thought about. He was sometimes awkward, but not in a way that people who had a romantic affection for someone were; but in a more general way. As if he never knew what to say or do to express something and he’d trip over the next few sentences before he managed to organize himself once more. It was endearing.
Toriel came by a little more often, occasionally with clothes for Rosi to wear that ranged from trousers and button down shirts to flowing dresses that were simple and comfortable but also elegant, and always with a baked treat. Usually it was pie. And, more often than not, with a small child named Frisk. She wore trousers and tunics, dresses, skirts and sweaters, and had rich almond skin, her eyes a dark brown, hair a dark brown mane. She smiled when she first met Rosi and she felt her heart melt a little. Frisk was a sweet child, no older than ten, but very intelligent though she didn’t speak and instead used hand signs. Rosi didn’t quite understand and had to rely on Papyrus, Sans or Toriel to translate for her, but Frisk didn’t seem to mind. If anything, she slowly taught Rosi how to read the hand signs so she could understand what Frisk was trying to say. They got along quite well when Toriel brought Frisk with her, and Rosi loved reading to the child.
Toriel helped Rosi bathe once her leg was able to be moved, and helped her to and from the loo when she had to go. Thankfully, most of the food she ate was magically so it was a rare occurrence. A few times, Papyrus had helped her bathe or make her way to the loo, but it didn’t feel as… Odd as she was expecting. He never treated her with anything less than the utmost of courtesy and respect, never ogled her naked form, not that she really cared, often joking with the brothers that she was so used to being a seal she forgot that her human form was meant to be clothed in more than skin. He talked to her and made sure to be gentle with her leg but he didn’t treat her like an object either. It was just him, helping her get clean. This time was no different.
“Sans is heading into town later today to buy more notebooks, he’s run out of room in the other ones.” Papyrus was saying, snapping her from her thoughts as he gently washed her light grey skin. She turned her head a little and raised an eyebrow.
“Already? Doesn’t he write on both sides?”
“And in the margins,” Papyrus said with a nod, carefully avoiding her still splinted leg as he stood to get more soap, which was propped at a slightly awkward angle on the edge of the tub. “You’d think he would have more room, given that he writes in all lower case.” he snorted, settling once more on the stool and rubbing the soap onto the cloth and handing it to her while he started into her hair, careful not to get his bones caught on the strands.
“Hmn…” she almost wished she could purr at the sensation of his boney fingers scraping across her head and digging into the roots of her hair.
“Oh, am I pulling again?” he asked and Rosi flapped her hand.
“No no, it feels fine,” she assured him before she started to lather up her front, scrubbing at a few spots here and there. A companionable silence fell, the soft sound of his hands scrunching her wet hair and the water shifting occasionally from her movements filled the room.
“Hey, Papyrus…” she finally said. He hummed. “How did your magic get to be so… fucked up? You and Sans, and Tori, have all said at some point or another how it’s defective. What’s that mean? How can a Monster’s magic be defective?”
Papyrus was silent for a long while before he said,
“Why don’t we finish your bath and get the splint off your leg, then I’ll tell you.”
“Alright. But I’m holding you to that. Or I’ll tell Sans where you keep the bourbon.” she threatened. Papyrus paled, and for a skeleton, it was rather impressive and nodded hastily. A drunk Sans was a punny Sans and a punny Sans never shut up.
“Of course.”
“Good.” She said with a self-satisfied smirk. She leaned forward and he poured a bucket of lukewarm water over her head, washing out the soap, making her hair plaster itself to her skull. Papyrus held out a hand, towel over one arm as she maneuvered herself to get ready to stand. She pulled the drain cover up before grabbing his hand and standing slowly, balanced on one leg as Papyrus wrapped the towel around her then picked her up and carried her back to her room. There, he took another towel and semi-dried her hair while she sat on a chair, legs outstretched. Then he helped her balance as she dried her body off and helped her sit once more before grabbing from the looser clothes that Toriel brought for her, a simple blue dress that accented her skin quite nicely. He finally laid her out on the bed, Rosi grabbing the knife Sans had left there earlier as Papyrus settled on the bed, resting her leg in his lap.
She watched, tense, as he slowly but surely cut it away, revealing a smooth grey leg that had but a faint blue bruise. She bent it slowly and flexed her toes, but it seemed the magic that Toriel had worked into her leg, as well as all the bed rest, and her own Selkie magic, made it heal with no incident. She grinned widely and clapped a few times, wriggling her toes.
“Paps, look! I can feel my toes all at the same time again!” she laughed, wriggling them in his face. He snorted and smiled ruefully at her before plastering a slightly more fake smile on his skull and forcing a laugh as he tickled the bottom of her foot gently. He received no reaction other than a faint chuckle; her feet were heavily calloused and the light tickling did nothing.
“Yes, and they’re all faintly blue too,” he teased, settling against the wall as she refused to let him up. He knew he could just as easily of moved her legs himself but there was no fun in that. And besides that point, he didn’t mind sitting there with her. He didn’t usually like it when other’s touched him but a few had exceptions; Undyne, Sans, Rosi, Frisk, Grillby, Toriel, Muffet, Asriel, Alphys, Mother and Father he didn’t mind. He didn’t mind giving hugs or comforting people either, it was just that prolonged contact for no other point than to touch that made him itch faintly. But then, select few had the ability to touch him outside of a hug, or a comforting gesture, or even a dance.
“So? Are you going to tell me?” He blinked and looked at Rosi, who added, “I was joking about telling Sans where the bourbon was.” he smiled and shook his head, sighing.
“No, I was merely thinking of where to start. It isn’t a dreadfully long story.”
“That’s alright, a story is a story.”
“Very well.” he took a breath and leaned his head back so he was staring at the ceiling, the warmth of the fire brushing over him and the heat that rose slowly from the small nest Rosi somehow managed to make made him relax faintly. Rosi herself made him relax enough to actually explain. “You know how I was in the Guard, how I managed to rise to the rank of Vice Captain. The job in and of itself wasn’t especially glamorous, just slightly less paperwork that Undyne had to deal with but the same amount of tactical meetings, training, and various meetings to attend. My magic, before what happened happened, wasn’t entirely stable either. But after the events that transpired-”
“Paps, you’re stalling,” Rosi said gently, giving him a look. It was hard to read. Like she understood the pain behind what it was that he wanted to say, but for a different reason.
“You’re right. Alright. My magic became, I guess what is known as defective because I was badly injured. My spine, my cervical vertebrae, was nearly severed. It disrupted my already unstable magic flow and now using even minor magic can be taxing, despite that, I have deep wells of magic.”
“How did it… happen?” Rosi asked, voice a little softer and Papyrus gave out a long breath of air.
“A fight. I… I used to be very idealistic. I still am, really. But, I went into the fight thinking that I could change my opponent's mind, that we didn’t have to fight and that if they’d put the knife down we’d be able to talk. Sometimes, it actually worked. Other times, I had to fight and subdue them. Or straight out kill them. It was a very gruesome business. And it was one that I’d wanted to know, for some ungodly reason. But then, I believe the young me would have still wanted to join the Guard knowing what I do now. Young me would believe that anyone can be good if you just try.”
“And now?” Rosi asked.
“Pardon?”
“And now? What do you believe now?” she was almost scared of the answer.
“I believe that anyone can be good, just as anyone can be evil. But you have to give them a chance to grow and change before you try to understand them. Beings are rarely what they give you at face value.”
They fell silent for a long time, merely thinking.
“I didn’t exactly leave to escape, I just wanted to try and change my ideas,” Rosi said suddenly and Papyrus stared at her for several beats.
“What do you mean by that?” he asked, voice tilted in curiosity.
“I’m a selkie. It’s expected of me to eat the flesh and magic of whatever creature I manage to catch. Other’s expect that I’ll marry them if they take my pelt, and other’s expect to have my body for their own personal toy or exotic wife.” she snorted. “I wanted to get away from the expectations as well, of my family. I wanted to get away from it all, really. They all hate land lovers, Selkie’s who’ve given up the seas willingly, and those like you, who live on the land all the time. They eat the flesh, like kelpies, and started a new string of myths about selkies. It’s a little disgusting, actually.” she sighed. “I… I wanted to believe that I could find someone I love, land or sea, and that I could return to both. I wanted to find a home on the land and in the sea. But if a selkie gives up their pelt, any attempts to return to the sea will be met with attacks from other selkies and usually a body washing up on the rocks. Or being eaten.” at Papyrus’ grimace, she laughed harshly, the oddly endearing bark sharper, harsher. “Oh yeah, some can be cannibalistic. I saw it happen a few times. It wasn’t pretty.”
“Then what do you wish to do? Your leg is healed, and your pelt is under the bed, where it’s been the whole time. Would you like to leave and return to your home?”
Rosi didn’t answer for a long while. When she did, her voice was heavy with the weight of unsorted emotion. “I...I don’t know what home means anymore. I used… to think that it was the sea. It was all I knew. All I know. Land… Land is strange, but also strange.” her voice was filled with wonder at that, her eyes almost holding stars they were so bright. “You and Sans… You two are weird and quirky. He falls asleep or never sleeps, spends days writing out notes for science experiments and when he’s stressed, he’ll bake. He’s turned me into his delta taste tester from that. You… You don’t make much more sense. You fake confidence sometimes, and you’re awkward, but then you’re real and very kind and sweet. You spend hours with me instead of going out to see the world you have at your fingertips and you’ve spent days on end dissecting a book to the point where I can’t even remember the original plot. You knit as well! This room, this house… It’s quiet and yet also loud and I...I don’t know. I don’t know… I’ve gotten used to being here, but I want to return to the sea and I also want to stay here.” She blinked when he reached over and gently wiped away the tears that started to fall, rough bone leaving faint score marks under her eyes.
“You’re crying…” he mumbled.
“I… I don’t want to leave my best friend. I don’t want to leave you,” she whispered.
Papyrus stared at her for several moments before he maneuvered himself and managed to awkwardly flop to one side, squirming a little before his back rested against the wall and he was able to pull her close, pressing his teeth to her hair as he hugged her warmly, arms tight around her middle.
“Don’t cry over me, you silly selkie. You’re always free to do as you please. I won’t ever blame or fault you for what you choose, but… I want to be selfish and beg you to stay here with me. Because I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want to lose my best friend either.”
She sniffed and turned so she was pressed against his chest, curling up in his arms. He was warm and safe. He was safe . Rosi closed her eyes and wrapped her arms tight as she could around his ribs, squeezing till they groaned faintly and he squirmed, making her loosen her grip.
“I… I don’t know what I want,” she mumbled finally, muffled by his shirt. “I want to be here, with you, and Sans, and Toriel. I want to see forests and travel as far as I can. I want to be with you.”
Papyrus simply hummed and closed his eyes, pulling the blankets a little closer around them, like it would shut out the world. “I would rather you be happy than miserable, Rosi. I… I… I don’t know what I feel. I just want you to be happy.”
“And not yourself?” she snapped back, ire rising. “You’re a moron if you won’t let yourself be happy either! What the fuck, Papyrus! Take care of yourself-”
“Please, Rosi… If this is the last time I get to talk to you, I’d rather it not be in the form of a fight,” he said quietly. His shoulders shook faintly. It felt like his Soul would break. Another friend, lost. Another he was unable to keep. He wanted to be selfish, demand that she stay, steal away her pelt- he blocked those thoughts immediately. That would be unfair to her and she would never be happy, stuck like he was.
“...Alright, Papyrus.” She sighed, calming down as she settled once more. They stayed like that, cuddled with the other until there was muffled yelling heard downstairs and a door being slammed. Sans’ boots stomped up the stairs and he grumbled expression dark.
“Brother?” Papyrus asked, propping himself up as Sans sat down heavily on the arm chair.
“Sans?” Rosi asked, a bit tentative as she rolled back over and saw the way Sans slumped in the chair, rubbing his skull and growling, gritting his teeth together.
“Father and Mother are in town,” he stated blandly. “They want us to come back and celebrate your twenty-eighth birthday with yet another ball. They’re insisting and you know how they’ll get. And to make matters worse, they’re threatening to marry you off in an arranged marriage.” Papyrus stiffened.
“Why are they insisting that you go? Why are they trying to marry you off, even?” Rosi asked, confused. She knew a little of Papyrus’ situation, his family was trying to get him to marry someone before he was a bachelor forever, but he had no interest in being married.
“Because we skipped most of the Season Balls and Feasts where Monsters and Humans flock to the manor and dance, eat and hunt for a period of time with the latest of fashions. And usually, flaunt their sons and daughters at us like they’re fresh cattle. And then there’s the displays of fireworks and such.” Sans said with a long, defeated sigh. “It’s fucking pointless, honestly. I get out of it because I’m the younger son, but unlike Papyrus here I want to have sex, get married and fall in love.”
“...You don’t want to fall in love?” Rosi asked, curious. She’d known other’s who refused to fall in love, for a variety of reasons, but Papyrus seemed to be filled with nothing but love.
“It’s more like I can’t. At least, romantically. I can’t feel romantically for another. It’s caused more than a few issues, to be quite frank. I...I want to be able to feel romantically for another, but I can’t. I feel deeply for my friends, few as they are, and I feel deeply for Sans. But it isn’t a romantic notion as many think.” he sighed. “I am more or less broken.”
“Shut up.” Sans and Rosi said firmly in stereo. Sans gestured for her to continue and Rosi blushed faintly as she took a deep breath before saying,
“You’re not broken. Don’t you fucking dare even think that way. I don’t want to ever have sex, I have no interest in it, I feel no sexual feelings towards anyone, no matter what. I can feel love, romantically I mean, for another, but I never want more than close, easy contact. It’s not you that’s broken, Papyrus.”
“You know she’s right Paps,” Sans added. “It’s not you that’s broken but the way you’re thinking. You’re fine. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to, you know that. Father and Mother can learn to accept that.”
“I’m not bro- I think I just got an idea,” Papyrus said, sitting up fully, pulling Rosi with him. She let out a startled noise but settled on his lap easily enough after a moment, her legs over his thigh, her back resting on his arm. Sans looked a little worried and raised his eyebrows in growing worry.
“Uh… Bro?”
Papyrus stared down at Rosi with an almost feverish look in his eyelights, a wide smile on his face as he said,
“Marry me.”
“Pardon you?” Rosi asked, more confused than outraged. Sans simply stared, his jaw hanging open a little. Papyrus rushed to explain.
“I mean, stay with me. Marry me as my best friend, I hear some couples are their spouses best friend anyways. I don’t want to marry some Human or Monster and trap them in a romantically loveless marriage, and I really would rather avoid sex or a political arrangement like they’re planning. You can keep your pelt, you can leave at any time for the sea. I usually live here, with Sans, to avoid home. But we can move closer to the sea, we can do anything you want. I just… I just don’t want you to be ripped to shreds, or be trapped by someone else. I don’t want to lose you, I can’t lose another friend.”
“Uh… Bro, I think you’re over reacting. I mean, I know this is a bad situation but it’s a bit sudden to ask her-”
“Yes.” Rosi cut Sans off almost immediately, a smile crawling over her face. How could she ever think that Papyrus would go against his word? After spending every day with him for a month, after countless hours of talking with him, how could she have thought he would go against his word? “Yes, I will marry you. We can do anything and go anywhere.”
“Best of all, it’ll be a fuck you to Mother and Father.” Sans laughed, making the pair giggle, then start to laugh until Papyrus was faintly green in the face and Rosi’s cheeks were a dark grey, ash colored skin flushing as she fanned herself with a hand. She blushed all the harder when Papyrus pressed his teeth to her forehead, nuzzling her cheek, chuckling.
“Sans, can you contact Toriel for us? I’m sure she and Frisk will be more than adept at helping us pull this off.” Sans’ grin was near evil as he nodded.
“She’s staying in town, I’ll go see her now. She can whip something together in the three weeks we have before the party. Make sure to make your story believable you too.” and with that, he left.
The whole night, they talked, content to spend it in each other’s arms, simply laying there on the bed. After a bit, Papyrus suggested that they walk around the house to get her used to it once more and Rosi accepted, but she didn’t really see the cottage. She knew the upstairs had a bathroom, Sans’ room, Papyrus’ room and the guest room, and downstairs was the kitchen, a large, but cozy living area that was filled with bookshelves and the brother’s combined lab and study was just in a room off to the left, locked at all times. Papyrus had told her about it, as had Sans; they tested various chemicals and ran experiments almost nonstop, building and tinkering with whatever they could get their hands on, Sans more so than Papyrus, who preferred to study the biological side of things, flora and fauna.
As they walked and talked, they discussed how they would make the tale true as possible. She would reveal herself as a Selkie, but claim that Papyrus had no idea that she was one as they corresponded through letters, Toriel their messenger until she managed to make it to him and they spent time talking and reading. He found out she was a selkie when she failed to appear one day and he went to look for her in a storm, instead found a trapped seal and being a biologist and general animal lover, went to help. It was only when he managed to get the boulder free that she removed the pelt and helped him up the cliff. Sans then helped them both, and she was nursing her broken leg for the past month. Rosi laughed and shook her head when Papyrus presented her with stationary, aged slightly, about a week later. Toriel and Sans were talking softly with each other, looking over designs of some kind but they refused to let her see.
“What’s this for, then?”
“My mother will no doubt ask to see some of the letters.”
“Hmn… That would be troubling.” He nodded and smirked.
“However, who said that they had to be anything more than simple letters? Just write about what you’d like me to know, something you’d tell someone you couldn’t see.”
Rosi nodded and took the offered stationary and began to write. She wrote how she longed to see him, not just a sketch, how she wished to talk with him about the various subjects that had so little meaning on paper and how he was charming and kind. She wrote pages and pages of letters, some short, others several pages long. Toriel gave her a timeframe of six months and she made sure to carefully date each letter, making each one a little more personal, a little more detail oriented as the “months” went by.
Papyrus did the same with his own letters, writing how she sounded like a very intelligent woman, how he wished that he could show her the libraries at the universities, the woods and the rivers that he regularly explored, the small cafe that he visited, the topics and the books that couldn’t be explained in writing, at least not properly. He asked if she’d received a gift, a simple gold chain with a beautiful gem to compliment her beautiful smile. She wrote that she had received it and that his attempts at flirtation needed improvement. His next “letter” was simply a sketch of a serene river with a weeping willow and a stone, covered in moss and the simple words, I wish that I could sketch you here, happy and relaxed as we talk about anything that comes to mind, my dear Rosi. But I hope this sketch will suffice.
It was rather entertaining. Over the next three weeks, they were inseparable, walking around town, arm in arm, chattering and laughing. Folk noticed, very quickly, and began to ask questions. The baker, an older woman named Mrs. Terri, asked first.
“Papyrus! I didn’t know you had a… companion. A selkie at that.” her expression was hard, a glare leveled at the tall skeleton as she dusted her hands on her apron. She was known for her hard temper, but also for her warm, mothering nature. It was unwise to trifle with her. Her workers, on the other hand, were like foxes; they heard everything and spread news fast.
“Actually, Mrs. Terri, she is my fiance. She’s been recovering for the past month.”
“Oh?” she looked curious and intrigued now. A younger girl stopped and stared at the trio with wide eyes as her sister kept kneading but kept an eye on them, listening intently. Rosi nodded and patted Papyrus’ arm as she pulled the coat a little higher. Fall was ending shortly and winter had always bothered her.
“I broke my leg when I was trying to get out of the water. A rock trapped my tail, but thankfully Papyrus came to look for me and found my seal form. I’m grateful that he has such a large Soul for animals or I dread to think what would have happened. He got me free, but he lost his footing and hit his skull. That crack is because of me.” She adjusted the bright red scarf he'd knitted for her, looking mildly dejected and feeling guilt stab through her Soul.
“I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times, it’s not your fault, Rosi.” Papyrus said sternly, picking up on her actual guilt. She sighed and hummed, shrugging. She blushed faintly when Papyrus pressed his teeth to her head and made her look him in the eyes as he said,
“I would take a hundred cracks, a thousand, if it meant you would be safe, my dear.” he smiled as he said it, making her scrunch her nose and pull him down just a little bit so she could reach his chin, pressing a kiss there. They had agreed on what was okay to do in public for affection, to make it believable and what they were both comfortable with. Mrs. Terri seemed to melt a little at the display as the girls had to bite their lips to contain their noises. Papyrus blushed and coughed, straightening as Rosi smiled sweetly and leaned against him once more, wrapping her arm with his.
“Well then, it seems you two are right happy.” she said with a smile as Rosi nodded.
“Yes, we are. It’s nice to be out and about, out of bed for once. I thought I was going to go mad.”
“I brought you books and kept you company!” Papyrus protested and Rosi smiled placatingly, patting his chest.
“Yes, and you are lovely for dealing with my cabin fever. But I love the sea, dear. I hate being in bed.”
“Pah, I can’t get my Earl out of bed some days.” Terri laughed and Rosi laughed with her, the odd barking giggle making Papyrus chuckle his, “Nyhehehehe,” which made the two women laugh all the harder. His laughter was infectious.
“Are we going to see more of you two? And the ring that you’ll be giving her?” Terri asked as they managed to calm down, smoothing back her dark brown, slightly greyed, hair, the fly ways from her braid frizzying in every direction.
“The ring I have yet to find. We were going to pick one out weeks ago, but then, well you know what happened. So we figured our first day out on the town would be a good idea.” Papyrus explained.
“Oh, Jamison has a fine set of rings in his shop. It’s where Earl got my ring, from Jamison’s papa when he owned that shop. Bonnie!” She called and a blue furred rabbit came out, a happy smile on her face as she saw Papyrus and Rosi.
“Oh! I heard from the back, congratulations you two! How did you two meet?”
“Toriel introduced us, actually. She didn’t know I was a selkie, either, but then I had to leave and she acted as a messenger for us until we could meet in person. Which, rather unfortunately, was with both of us getting hurt.” Rosi supplied. Bonnie sighed and nodded, straightening her tunic and apron.
“That’s so sweet.” She smiled and looked at Terri with raised eyebrows. “What’d you need, Terr?”
“You got your ring from Jamison too, didn’t you? The love birds need a proper ring or else it won’t be very official. Love may carry you far, but a ring will show it for all the world to see.” Terri stated, arms crossed as she gave a firm nod.
“Of course I got my ring from him! He’s the best jeweler in town, by rights the only one unless you want to travel four or five days to the city and have to deal with all those competing barkers.” Bonnie snorted, shaking her head. “No, Jami’s the best you have for a piece of jewelry.”
“Have you set a wedding date yet? Or started to plan?” one of the girls asked excitedly and Papyrus laughed.
“If I’m perfectly honest, I believe Toriel, Frisk, and Sans have summarily taken over the whole business.”
“Tori is designing something but she won’t let me see it.” Rosi added, rolling her eye’s with a small smirk. “You’d think I’d make her jump out of her skin when I tried to ask. All I got was a rushed excuse before she gathered everything up and left. It may be a dress.”
Papyrus nodded as Bonnie hummed, looking thoughtful. “She’s a regular jack of trades, that one. Very talented healer, but she teaches at the school for Monsters and Humans and she bakes enough to almost go into competition with Muffet and sews when you ask her.” she laughed and shook her head. “Alright, off with you two! We have work to get done and you have a ring to find!” and with that, the pair bid the bakers good-bye and went off to buy the ring, and necklace.
By the end of the week, everyone in town was buzzing with the news that Papyrus was engaged to Rosi, and not because she was a selkie, but because she was a charming and witty young woman that was kind to everyone she met. The ring she wore was a simple band of gold with a dark blue amethyst imbedded in it, her necklace a golden chain with a sapphire that hung in the hollow of her throat. She and Papyrus smiled and laughed, ate out at Grillby’s, and the elemental was a little quiet but very sweet. He had apparently been talking with Sans about the whole arrangement and smiled, giving them a nod and a hearty congratulations. Rosi, one day, managed to sneak off with Toriel to go and find a good dress for the party and wound up buying a lovely sketchbook for Papyrus’ birthday, and as a thank you. It had thick paper and was bound in leather, the soft, rich brown leather waterproof. Toriel went to pay for it, despite Rosi’s protests, and both women were surprised when the shopkeeper simply laughed and shook his head.
“Have it as an early wedding gift, dear.” the old tortoise, who Rosi had learned was named Gerson, said with a wry smile. “Papyrus is a striking young skeleton and his fiance needs to have a gift for him for his birthday.” he winked and laughed as she blushed, thanking him and leaving with Toriel quickly.
By the time the party approached, the entire town knew and had stopped to talk to them at some point of another, asking for all kinds of details about how they met, when the wedding was, and anything else they could think of. Papyrus and Rosi managed to answer them all, knowing if they didn’t that the townsfolk would come up with their own assumptions. And those would be worse than anything they could think up. Thankfully, they were easily satiated and once the initial shock wore off, people began to treat it as a normal sight, though an underlying buzz of excitement laid across the town like a blanket. The day came, near the end of the third week, that Papyrus packed up two trunks with Sans and Toriel, Rosi and Frisk simply gathered Papyrus’ gift and a few books in a small satchel that Sans had given her.
“Ready to leave?” Sans asked, smiling as Rosi nodded.
“Yes. How are we getting to your manor? Where is it even?”
“Out a little further into the country, a good week or two’s worth of travel.” he said with a thoughtful look in his eye. Rosi’s jaw dropped.
“A week or two ?! You mean you don’t know?!”
“Well, we rarely go to the manor. Now, do me a favor and hold onto Papyrus for me, and that trunk.” Rosi grumbled but held onto Papyrus, who swept her into his arms and sat on the trunk. Sans laughed, sitting beside his brother, propping his leg on the other trunk as he held onto Papyrus’ shoulder and Toriel held onto the trunk, Frisk perched on her lap, and Sans’ other hand. He winked at Rosi’s confused expression before they were in a very dark, abyss like area before they were in a large, very comfortable looking room.
“What-I-How did… What?!” Rosi stammered, looking around but Sans had disappeared again before he reappeared moments later, holding the metal basin with her pelt.
“Heh, thought we could take a shortcut.” he winked at her outraged expression and laughed, shaking his head. “We’re in the room Papyrus usually sleeps in when we’re here, I figured it would be easier than transporting us to the individual guest rooms. Mother and Father expect me to arrive this way at any rate, so the rooms were already made up and ready.” he shrugged and set the pelt under the bed after checking the towels. “No one comes into his room, they know better than to enter it. He’s usually conducting some experiment or another. And one servant lost his eyebrows from trying to clear his work desk.”
“It smelled of roasted hair for weeks.” Papyrus shuddered and shook his head, setting Rosi down. Her shoes sank into the soft carpet, much like it did in her room at home, but this felt a little different. Less lived in, though it had Papyrus’ cozy personality everywhere. The warm coloration of the wall paper, the soft cream of the bed covers and brightly colored blankets, the dark hardwood floor beneath the bright carpet, large windows and thick curtains to let in sunlight, and bookshelves were everywhere, as well as a large desk, beneath a window. It was covered in pages and notes. Papyrus and Sans moved the trunk to the end of the bed before Sans waved his hand and the other trunk floated, starting to follow him.
“I’ll help Tori and Frisk get settled, then go meet Mother and Father with you two.” Sans said before he opened the door for Toriel and Frisk, following them and closing it behind him.
“Well… That was…” Rosi tried to find the words and failed.
“Odd?” Papyrus suggested with a snort and a smile before he sighed. “Mother and Father will no doubt want to talk to you before tonight, not that there’ll be much time before the party starts… And I will be expected to wear my uniform…” he sighed and Rosi tilted her head.
“Your guard uniform? What’s wrong with wearing it?”
“Nothing it’s just stifling is all.” he sighed then gave her a nod. “By the way, Toriel made you a dress and got you shoes to wear with it.”
“I knew it!” Rosi cheered triumphantly. “Let me see!”
“Nyhehehehehehe!! You’re surprisingly on board with this whole thing.” Rosi rolled her eyes.
“I like wearing pretty dresses, so sue me. I’m used to traipsing about nude, Papyrus. Now let me see the dress.” he laughed again and opened the large trunk before pulling out a floor length ball gown and laying it on the bed, along with a shawl and the shoes. It’s skirts weren’t too full to be heavy, but it was beautiful. It looked to be some kind of silk, the rich dark blue with soft, icy blue and gold thread stitched over the bodice in loose floral patterns. The shoes weren’t the high heels that were in fashion, but instead soft black flats that looked like they would fit her perfectly.
“It’s beautiful.” she mumbled, running her hands over the fabric of the dress. It slid over her fingers like water. There was a shawl that went with it, heather grey with dark blue patterns woven into it. Rosi immediately began to pull off her clothes to get into the dress and Papyrus laughed, shaking his head as she flung her trousers, scarf, and buttoned up shirt at his skull, folding them and setting them in the trunk easily as she pulled the dress on. The sleeves came down her biceps and covered her shoulders with a sweetheart neckline that left her neck and top of her chest bare, unlike other dresses that went up to the base of her throat.
“Help me with the corset part, Paps?” she asked and Papyrus nodded, tightening the back slowly, pausing every now and then to ask if she were still okay. Rosi nodded and he finished tightening it, tying it off with a lovely bow. She twirled around a few times and laughed, shaking her head.
“This is a very surreal experience,” she said, coming to a stop in front of him as he pulled out his uniform.
“You’re telling me…” he muttered. “Shit, I think I misplaced part of my uniform. I’m going to be a while, Sans is just down the hall, why don’t-”
“Paps? Rosi? You two ready yet?” Sans’ voice called through the door before he walked in. He nodded appreciatively at Rosi and gave her a smile. “You look wonderful.”
“Brother, can you take Rosi to meet Mother and Father before tonight? I have to get dressed.” Sans grimaced but he nodded and offered her his arm. Rosi pulled on the shoes first and wrapped the shawl around her shoulders before taking his arm and letting him lead her out of the room and through the halls. There were paintings, tapestries, and windows overlooking the grounds, high ceilings and stunning view of the woods and the long dirt road that lead, to what she assumed, was the main road.
“Our parents are a little formal, and they’re incredibly annoying, but since they got Papyrus’ letter they’ve been a bit calmer. Though they may interrogate you, but I won’t leave you on your own with them.” he assured at her worried look. Down a flight of stairs and down yet another hallway until they reached a parlor where two skeletons were sitting, drinking tea. One was slightly taller than the other, dressed in a charcoal suit with a bright purple tie, his eyelights a rich purple-grey as he read a book. He looked more like Papyrus; sturdier bones and narrower eyelights. The other, who Rosi assumed was the mother, was dressed in a lovely peach gown that brushed the floor, her eyelights a bright green as she sipped at the tea. She looked more like Sans, slightly shorter and slimmer than her husband, but not exactly dainty. Her eye lights were round and her skeletal grin had a softer look to it.
“Father, Mother, may Rosi and I join?” Sans asked, prompting them to look up, as if startled, and the father stood quickly, nodding.
“Of course, of course! Come, sit, sit!” Sans let Rosi make her way over to the couches. She settled next to the mother, who gave her a warm smile.
“Hello my dear, I’m Doctor Helvetica. That is my husband, Doctor Gaster, but please, call me Hel. My husband may be a doctor, but Gaster is fine, isn’t it dear?”
“Seeing as she’s marrying Papyrus, I don’t mind if she calls me Gaster or Father.” he said, settling once more. Sans sat, a little on the edge of the couch, and served tea for Rosi then himself.
“So, tell us about yourself Rosi. Papyrus said so little in his letter.” Helvetica said idly and Rosi took a careful sip of her tea to hide her nerves.
“Well, I’m sure he told, but I am a selkie, however he didn’t know I was until last month,” and so she told them the story they had come up with, making both Gaster and Helvetica relax, smiling a little easier. Sans looked almost astonished but kept it hidden rather well, yawning hugely every now and then.
“Sans, are you still having trouble sleeping?” Helvetica asked at a lull in the conversation and he shrugged, blinking blearily.
“I guess. I did transport myself, Papyrus, Rosi, Toriel and Frisk, plus two trunks, here. That would put a strain on my magic.” he yawned again and Rosi frowned at him.
“You know Papy worries when you don’t take care of yourself, Sans. You need to sleep, especially if you’re going to dance tonight.”
“She’s right, you know, brother.” Papyrus said from the doorway and Rosi felt her heart skip a beat. He looked very regal in his dark blue and purple coat, the black pants stuffed into tall boots. The trim on the coat was silver, with several medals pinned to his chest and a cane in his left hand, reminding her how he got those medals. She managed to meet his gaze and smiled, saying,
“You look very handsome, Papy.” he blushed and rubbed the back of his neck, but he was smiling nonetheless.
“Thank you, though you look stunning. Sans, how about I help you to your room while Toriel and Frisk show Rosi around the grounds?”
“Actually, I’m rather tired myself.” Rosi said, standing. “Thank you for the tea, Hel, Gaster. But I should get some sleep or else I think I won’t be much for dancing.”
Helvetica nodded and waved her hands.
“Of course! Go and sleep, we’ll catch up later tonight.” and with that, Sans, Papyrus and Rosi made their way back up the rooms. Sans barely made it to his bed before he was out like a light, his legs hanging over the edge of the bed comically. Papyrus sighed and simply stripped his brother while Rosi waited patiently, smirking faintly at the soft snores from Sans.
“He sounds like a tiger shark.” she snickered and Papyrus paused for a moment, brow bones rising.
“Do they make noise?” he asked as he dressed his brother in sleep clothes, folding his trousers, shirt and vest, placing them in the trunk.
“They sound like a very angry, very hungry mouthful of teeth.” she teased as Papyrus covered Sans with the blankets. He huffed and she smirked, giggling.
“In all seriousness, though, they sound like a kind of gurgle and a growl, like what he’s doing but underwater.” Papyrus chuckled and closed the door as they left. Once they reached their room, he helped her get undressed and carefully laid out the dress once more while she pulled on one of his shirts and crawled into bed, falling asleep almost instantly. She felt the bed dip, which made her wake up a little, and then there was an odd sense of warmth as Papyrus pulled her close. She smiled sleepily, pecking his sternum, and curling into his hold, enjoying the stillness of the moment.
_-_-_-_
Papyrus had warned her about the number of people. Sans, Toriel and Frisk had warned her as well. She thought they had been exaggerating, even a little bit. It felt like they were underestimating, if anything. There were Humans and Monsters alike in the large hall, all in very fancy, wonderful outfits, laughing, talking and dancing, the sound filling the air like the waves. However, she was adrift. She’d been alright for the first hour or so, having been with Papyrus as people asked questions, or simply wanted to talk to them about their engagement, or ask her about herself. She found it was a little easier to deal with Papyrus by her side, her best friend dealing with the too nosey people by giving them a sharp look that sent them on their way. He then was called away by a spider woman named Muffet, who wanted to dance, but she managed to find Sans, who was chatting with Toriel. The pair helped calm her down, keeping her on the edges of the crowd. People ebbed and flowed towards them, complimenting her dress, her hair, her everything. Some stayed to talk, and she met a young goat monster named Asriel, who she found out was related to Toriel, and her husband, Asgore. He was their son, Frisk their adopted daughter, though she was hiding upstairs with her books. Rosi wished she could join her. Asgore was kind enough, but he was whisked away by Toriel for a dance and later by Gaster to talk.
Now, an hour later after having been able to keep to the back and talk with Asriel and Sans, and the occasional person or Monster who was curious, she was alone. Helvetica was nowhere to be found, neither was Sans, nor Papyrus, Toriel, Asriel, or Asgore. People were everywhere, the noise almost deafening as she tried to find a quieter space in the hall but there wasn't one. It was just a wall of noise, like a wave that threatened to drown her. She felt incredibly overwhelmed by it all and nearly screamed when a hand clamped down on her shoulder.
“There ya are! I’ve been looking for you!” A loud voice said and before Rosi knew what was happening, she was linking arms with someone else and being dragged outside to the terrace where the noise was a little less. The person who dragged her out there was dressed very much like Papyrus, with a few more medals, a sword at her side and shorter boots. She had crimson red hair that flowed down her back in a ponytail, a sharp grin and an eye patch. Her scales were shining slightly in the light from the hall, the dark blue almost a teal, the crimson red of her fins slightly lighter than that of her hair.
“My name’s Undyne and you’re the punk that’s marrying my best friend.” Rosi simply nodded, wordless. She felt a little overwhelmed and speaking was no longer on her abilities. Undyne’s smirk lessened and a worried light came to her eye as she asked,
“Are you okay there?” Rosi opened her mouth to make a sound, then closed it and shook her head. Undyne pursed her lips and sighed, forcing her to sit and rubbed a hand up and down her back. “Breathe, punk. You need to breathe. There you go… Where’d that damn bone head go? His fiance is havin’ a panic attack and I’m stuck helping her through it stead of him…” she muttered, more annoyed at Papyrus it seemed than Rosi.
“S-S-S-” she couldn’t even get the word out.
“Don’t be, and don’t try to talk if you don’t feel like it,” Undyne said softly, her rough voice a little softer, easier to listen to. “Just breathe.” Rosi nodded and took a few shuddering gasps of air. Faintly, she could hear Undyne talking to her.
“You’re a little like my girlfriend, Alphys. She’s not here, too many people. I’m surprised that Papyrus was boneheaded enough to leave you on your own when you obviously don’t handle crowds. I love him, I really do, but he can be quite the bonehead. There you go, it’s okay.” she let Rosi hold one of her hands and squeeze till she was sure Undyne’s hand would have broken but the other woman didn’t so much as flinch.
“Nice grip. If you know how to fight, you’re gonna have to fight me some day.” She said with a laugh, making Rosi snort. Slowly, her heart rate slowed down and her breathing calmed down.
“Undyne have you seen-Rosi?! What’s wrong?!” Papyrus’ voice was suddenly right there and she lifted her head, seeing her friend’s face inches from her own. She gave a small grin but it looked more like a grimace.
“She’s having a panic attack, you numbskull.” Undyne chastised. “What the fuck were you thinking, leaving her on her own?!”
“I didn’t want to! I lost track of her-”
“How do you lose track of your fiance?!” Undyne demanded. “Seriously Papyrus, you have a better head than that.”
“Yes, and I’m sure Sans will debate that point with you later should he hear about it, but right now I need to take care of Rosi.”
Undyne smirked and patted his shoulder. “I’m happy for you, Papyrus. You deserve someone who makes you happy. I’ll talk to you later when she’s okay. We’ll all do lunch.” and with that, Undyne left, Papyrus taking her place in seconds.
“Rosi, what do you need?” His voice was calming, easing her nerves. Shakily, clumsily, she signed Room. Quiet. Too noise.
“Too much noise?” He guessed and Rosi nodded. “Alright, hold on, I’m going to pick you up and carry you around the back entrance.” he swept her into his arms and held her close to his chest like he did the first day they met. Only it was a clear Autumn night, the full moon guiding them this time instead of pounding rain. He hummed softly as he made his way around the manor and back inside, servants scurrying to help but he simply shook his head and asked,
“Please bring some light food and water to our room, and let my parents know that Rosi wasn’t feeling well so we retired early.” The young man nodded and scurried off. When they made it back to their room, Papyrus helped her undress and pull on a simple nightgown before he dressed himself for bed as well, then curled up with her in bed, grabbing a book along the way. She curled against his chest as he propped them up on the pillows, pulling the blankets up close. He ran his hands through her hair slowly, soothing and read softly until she managed,
“Thank you, Papy.”
“Of course, Rosi. Are you feeling better?” She nodded and sighed.
“I’m sorry-”
“Don’t apologize, you silly selkie.” he cut her off. “It was my mistake for leaving you. You aren’t used to these kinds of things like Sans and I are. Undyne seems to like you, though I don’t doubt she’ll get you by yourself again, though it’ll probably be to be sure that you’re okay.” he snorted. “She worries, for all that she acts like she doesn’t. She is very loyal, and a wonderful friend.”
“She seemed like.” She yawned, suddenly exhausted. Papyrus nuzzled her head and said,
“Get some sleep, Rosi. I’ll wake you when food is here.” Rosi nodded and hummed. As she was falling asleep, she was struck by a funny thought. Here, in an unfamiliar place, miles from the sea, the only home she’d ever truly known, she felt safe. It hit her then. It wasn’t the cottage or the sea that made her feel safe. It was laying there, in the arms of her best friend, in Papyrus’ arms, his Soul thudding softly. He was home. She smiled, feeling happier and lighter than she had in years with that revelation and she fell into an easy, deep, dreamless slumber.
Chapter 2: What is Left? Will You Still Be There in the Morning?
Summary:
Rosi learns more about Papyrus and Sans than she thought she would in the course of a few days, and Papyrus is not as sturdy as he thinks he is. There is much cause for worry, and more than a little concern.
Notes:
*gasps for air* I AM SO SORRY!!! I took so long to get this chapter out, I've been so busy so I hope this extra long chapter helps soothes over any frustration. ALSO!! THANK YOU, EVERYONE, WHOSE READ, BOOKMARKED, COMMENTED AND LEFT ME KUDOS!!! IT ALL MEANS SO MUCH TO ME, THANK YOU!!!! Thank you from the bottom of my heart, it means so much to me that you love it this much to even read it, let alone leave me kudos and comments and bookmark it. I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations, I am trying out a new way of writing, and I've been a little stressed out from fireworks going off fairly often. BUT I hope that, none the less, you enjoy this mess of plot and shenanigans.
As always, I am my own beta, so if you see any plot holes, grammar, misspellings, or just general mistakes, please leave me a comment and tell me! I will fix it soon as I can!
Alright, that's enough from me! On with the story!
No, wait, I lied.
DISCLAIMER!! I OWN NOTHING!!! UDNERTALE BELONGS TO TOBY FOX! I OWN NOTHING, aside from the oc's and plot of this fic, I OWN NOTHING!!!
Okay, now on with the story!!
I hope that you enjoy!!-RR
Chapter Text
Papyrus woke with a jolt before he calmed down, blinking away the blur of sleep and the flashing scene’s of blood and dust falling to the ground like snow. Taking a deep breath, he sat up slowly and looked down at Rosi. She was curled against his chest, snoring softly and making occasional soft yips in her sleep. He chuckled quietly to himself and ran a hand through her hair, mesmerized at the softness against his rough bones, a very faint sensation that tickled his joints as the wavy strands were caught before he gently pulled them free. He was fascinated with the color difference against his white bones, how her rich auburn, streaked with grey and brown, hair contrasted so much. Rosi snorted and let out a faint trilling purr as he gently scratched her head, pulling his hand down to her nape and rubbing the vertebrae just beneath her ashen skin. He knew that to another couple it would seem almost a sensual experience, teasing the other slowly awake, but for him it was an affirmation that Rosi was still there. That his dreams were simply dreams and that when the sun would rise, he would be greeted with quiet pastures and waking autumn woods, not screams and the horrible sound of gunshot.
“Mnpf… Papy?” Rosi yawned, opening an eye slowly, rich amber unfocused as she was still half asleep. He looked down at her, taking in every detail. The soft curve of her nose, the light ash color of her skin, the dark grey freckles that dotted her nose and cheeks, the faint indentation marks from her sharp teeth worrying her lower lip when she became anxious, or was in deep thought. The faint scarring along her neck and shoulders from a fight long ago, though with what or whom she didn’t say, the swell of slowly returning muscle as she grew stronger from her month spent in bed.
“It’s nothing, Rosi. Go back to sleep.” he murmured, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead, making her eyebrows scrunch.
“You’re lying…” she yawned, showing off her pearl white, serrated teeth mixed with a few human like teeth, though all of them were viciously sharp. He found her smile’s endearing none the less, and the soft whine she made when she yawned was hilarious as it was adorable. “You’re looking at me like I’m going to disappear on you. What’s wrong?” she pressed a soft kiss to his clavicle and hummed.
“It’s just bad dreams, nothing important.” he pulled her close and tucked her head underneath his chin, arms wrapping around her shoulders as his hands went to her hair and neck, rubbing soft circles with the pad of his thumb along her nape, the rough bone leaving faint scratches as his other hand just held her against his chest. He didn’t realize his bones were shaking faintly, nor that his magic was sparking along his joints. Rosi could almost taste the ozone, the sparks shooting down her spine and making her own magic flare up in response, slowly absorbing what he gave off. She immediately severed the link and ignored the side that whispered for more of that addictive feeling, the spark and the tang that fueled her magic.
“Papyrus, look at me.” She pulled away a little to stare at him, smiling softly and pressing a gentle kiss to his chin, then his cheeks, stretching up to reach. “Listen to me, and slide your hand to the front of my neck. What do you feel?”
He did as asked and pressed two of his fingers against her neck, feeling the steady thump of blood easily. Her heart was slightly bigger than a regular human’s, and far bigger than a seal’s though it was pumping almost the same rate. He could also feel the fainter, much gentler beat of her Soul, the push and pull of magic reminding him of the sea.
“Your carotid artery pumping at a rate of one hundred and ten beats, I assume per minute. And your Soul is pulsing at a rate of fifty beats per minute.” He said, almost clinical in his description as he focused on grounding himself. Rosi smiled and nodded, though it was still a bit of an odd experience when he slipped into the more scientist side of himself than the Papyrus side.
“Very good, Paps. Do you see? It’s okay. I’m right here. I won’t leave. I can’t leave my home, cause I won’t leave you.” She promised, almost surprising herself with the admission. But then, Papyrus was home. He was safe.
“I… I’m home for you?” He asked, voice soft with disbelief.
“Of course, you silly skeleton. Where else would I feel safe but home? You’re my best friend, my fiancee. I can say that you’re safe, that you’re home. Because you’re you.” she trilled, feeling sappy for the early morning wake up call. Papyrus dusted a light green and chuckled to himself, shaking his head.
“Thank you, Rosi. You’re… You’re wonderful.” he meant so much in that one word, but he couldn’t find the proper ones to explain the full weight of the meaning behind it. Rosi looked into his bright green eyelights, which despite the early hour, were shining with sheer joy and a slight feverish light, the emerald green a lighter jade color showing his high emotional state and the happiness he was feeling. Rosi smiled and yawned, pulling him back to rest against the pillows instead of the headboard, wrapping her arms around his ribs.
“Glad we have that sorted then. Now go back to sleep.” She closed her eyes and felt more than heard, the vibrations of his chuckle and soft “Nyehehehehehe!” as he laid back down and turned onto his back so he could wrap an arm around her shoulders, the other holding a book. Rosi snorted and let herself fall back asleep.
She woke again when sunlight slanted across her face, the sharp sound of curtains being pulled back making her whine and burrow into the covers. It was then she noticed the distinct lack of Papyrus and she groaned, finally opening her eyes.
“Papyrus, what time is it?”
“I would say about seven o’clock. Why?” He answered, moving from the windows to his desk to make a note of something in a notebook.
“What did we say about waking me up before eight o’clock in the morning?” She asked patiently, not pushing herself up to get dressed, probably like Papyrus expected.
“I thought it was seven?” he asked absently, putting the notebook down as he finished with it and made his way to the trunk with their clothes, pushing it out of the way and pulling out the metal basin with her pelt. He checked the towels and, satisfied, slid it back under the bed.
“No, it was eight.”
“Oh…” he paused for a minute, half crouched as he made to shove the trunk back into place. “I… believe you said it was a bad idea. As selkie’s get hungry and are likely to eat whoever dares to wake them. However,” he pushed the trunk back into place and made his way towards the bed. “You are already awake.”
“Mnph… no I’m not. I refuse.”
“You can’t just refuse to wake up when you’re already up and about, my dear.”
“Well I can. Selkie magic. I need at least ten hours of sleep to function.” She buried her face in her pillow so her voice was incredibly muffled, more a string of garbled sounds than a coherent sentence. She was also struggling to hide a smile and she knew Papyrus knew it.
“Really? Well then, how about some rib tickling skeleton magic?” was the only warning before he pounced, tickling her mercilessly as she squealed and squirmed, laughter quickly becoming breathless as her bark turned into a slight wheeze.
“P-Papy! M-Mercy!” She squealed breathlessly and Papyrus huffed a laugh but relented, letting her calm down as he settled back next to her.
“Come on, dear. Mother and Father are probably expecting us at the breakfast table.” he hummed as Rosi rolled her eyes and pulled him back to her, sighing with contentment before she opened her eyes once more and pulled back.
“You used one of Sans puns.”
“No, I didn’t- Oh good god…” he groaned as the horrible pun set in and Rosi struggled not to laugh as she pressed her hands against his skull and neck, asking,
“Are you feeling alright, love?” she teased before she blinked and pressed her hand a little harder against his skull. He felt warmer than usual, and it wasn’t from the magic humming through his bones that occasionally caused him to overheat and a cool dip in a bath would fix. This felt more persistent and much warmer than even the time he’d overheated.
“Rosi?” Papyrus asked, pulling away from her touch and taking her hands in his, which weren’t shaking as badly as they had before, though it could have been for any number of reasons.
“Are you sure you’re feeling alright, Papyrus?” she asked, sitting up and looking down at him, legs tucked underneath of her.
“Just fine. Now, come on. Mother and Father will start to become… Insistent if we stay up here any longer and I’d rather avoid rumors among the servants starting. Not that I’d mind, seeing as you’re technically my fiance, but for some it would be improper and I don’t want to appear unsightly, that is, I don’t care if I am perceived as unsightly, but I don’t want you to be-” He cut himself off and rubbed the back of his neck, a faint emerald blush spreading over his cheekbones. Rosi smiled softly at him and kissed his cheek. Papyrus worried too much.
“You’re sweet, Papy. Don’t worry, I doubt anyone would try to defame me. After all, can’t ruin a reputation when your entire species has made sure you can’t have one.” She shrugged and got out of bed, pulling her nightgown off and tossing it onto the bed, making her way to the wardrobe where their outfits were stored.
“What to wear? Are your parents excessively formal for meals?” She asked, turning to look over her shoulder, almost entirely nude. Papyrus hummed and stood, grabbing his cane as he made his way over to Rosi and rested his head on her’s, completely used to her wandering about without clothes.
“Mother would probably appreciate it if you wore a dress, unless you mean to go out and explore the grounds, then I would suggest riding clothes. Father wouldn’t mind anyway, but I did hear him saying if you wore anything with purple that he would buy you an entirely new outfit just to get the color off of you. Mother called him overly dramatic and they went off to do… whatever it was they did. I wasn’t able to stay very close.” He moved back to the trunk after giving his opinion, rustling around as he looked for something.
“Eavesdropping on your own parents, Papyrus? How rude.” Rosi teased before taking down two dresses; one was a soft blue with a ribbed, quarter corset that helped her back, with pleat at the hem of the skirt. It was reminiscent of the dress she wore last night, but with shorter sleeves and less ruffles in the skirt, and a darker shade of blue. The other was a jade green with a split skirt, the ivory of the skirts beneath offsetting the green of the dress. The sleeves went down to her elbows and had a lower neckline than she was used to wearing, but then Toriel hadn’t given her a chance to wear the dress more than once. She also eyed the dark brown trousers and white Oxford, which she could wear with her boots and run about the fields with Papyrus and Sans, at least better than she could in a dress.
“Paps, are you and Rosi ready yet-” Sans’ voice came from the middle of the room, meaning he had short cut in. She turned and held up the dresses.
“Which do you think, Sans, Paps? Or should I wear my trews and shirt?” Papyrus squinted and pointed to the green dress.
“I would say the green, it’s such a lovely color on you.”
“Are you just saying that because it looks like your magic?” Rosi asked, putting the other dress away and taking the other off it’s hanger, stepping into it as Sans snorted.
“You shouldn’t be running around the house nude, Rosi. You may frighten someone.” He teased and Rosi cheerfully held up her middle and index fingers at him, sticking out her tongue for a moment.
“Fuck off, Sans. I wasn’t entirely naked, I’m wearing my underthings.” Sans rolled his eye and chuckled.
“Semantics, Rosi. Semantics. But seriously, if a servant had walked in on Papyrus and you, not that they would have, mind you, but in an instance that they did, rumors would be flying before breakfast was done.” Rosi looked over and pulled the sleeves up and to her shoulders, settling the dress comfortably at her chest.
“Mind helping?” She asked, turning around to have the back laced up.
“Not at all.” Papyrus stood and from his footsteps, he wasn’t using his cane. Rosi huffed and made a mental note to berate him about it later. His usually nimble fingers were a little clumsy, despite having laced up her dresses several times.
“You feelin’ okay, Paps?” Sans asked, moving a little closer.
“Fine, just didn’t sleep very well. Probably a carry over from that.” He said, waving his hand and Rosi pursed her lips at him but didn’t argue. It would be futile to try, though she didn’t believe him. From the look Sans was giving him, he didn’t believe his older brother either but let it go.
“Shall we?” Papyrus asked, offering his arm to Rosi as Sans tossed him his cane. Papyrus caught it and spun it around his fingers deftly, showing off as Rosi giggled and rolled her eyes, shoving his shoulder slightly.
“Come on, let’s go Papyrus.” She took his arm, rubbing the simple white shirt in between her fingers for a moment before they set off for breakfast. She looked over at Sans and smirked, shaking her head.
“Do you ever wear anything other than that sweater and black trousers, Sans?” she asked and he shrugged.
“Well, depends on what occasion it is. I don’t see much point in changing at this point, seeing as we’re almost late for breakfast and if I try, Mother will eat me for breakfast and I’d rather avoid that.” he yawned, jaw cracking faintly. “Besides, Paps is wearing what he wore yesterday when we arrived, so I don’t see the point in having to get out of my comfortable clothes.”
Rosi just sighed and grumbled to herself about skeletons and fashion as they walked. Three halls, a flight of stairs and through two set of doors at the end of long halls landed them in the smaller dining area, a large sunroom with a beautiful table set out with fruits, eggs, toast, crumpets, butter, jam, bacon, sausages, oatmeal and sugar, as well as two tea pots and a large jug of orange juice.
Helvetica and Gaster were seated near each other at the round table, waiting patiently, Helvetica was reading the paper and drinking a cup of tea while Gaster read a book, propped on his leg and the edge of the table, his plate moved aside so he could take notes in a strange shorthand, at least what could have been shorthand. Toriel, Frisk, Asgore and Asriel sat on Gaster’s left, Frisk reading another book, barely noticing their arrival, Toriel chatting quietly with Asgore while Asriel seemed lost in thought, fingers tapping out a soft rhythm on the table top. When they arrived, Gaster, Asgore and Asriel stood immediately and after a moment so did Frisk.
“I’m glad you could find your way downstairs, Papyrus, Sans. And here I thought you were lost from not having been home.” Gaster said as Papyrus pulled out Rosi’s chair for her and she settled next to Helvetica, Papyrus on her right and Sans next to Frisk.
“Oh, hush dear. We can have time for such discussion later. Right now though, I believe we’re all hungry.” Helvetica said, folding her paper and giving an easy smile. She was dressed in a light purple and grey dress, a shawl wrapped around her shoulders as a faint breeze blew in from the open windows.
“Yes, that’s true.” Gaster said as he and the other’s sat back down. “Well, bon appetit.” He said with an easy smile, reaching for the plate of eggs. Asriel tapped Frisk’s shoulder and she set down her book with a soft frown and a small pout before taking some of the oatmeal and sugar, adding it to her plate. Toriel gave Rosi a smile and a,
“Good morning, my dear.” Before she began to pile food onto her plate. Sans and Asgore copied her, and Rosi happily took several servings of the offered food, her stomach growling quite loudly. There wasn’t much conversation as they ate, everyone too busy satisfying their hunger to talk.
“How are you feeling?” Helvetica asked Rosi as a lull in the meal came, the rhythm of the cutlery against the plates and sound of tea and coffee being stirred growing soft.
“I’m sorry?” Rosi asked, eyebrows rising, but Helvetica gave her a patient smile.
“Last night, you and Papyrus retired early as you weren’t feeling well. Are you feeling any better today?” She asked and Rosi nodded.
“Much, thank you.”
“If you’re still feeling ill, I could easily take a look if you wish,” Gaster offered. “I am a doctor.”
“Dear, you’re more likely to harm her than to help her.” Helvetica chastised with a small smile and Gaster huffed, rolling his eyelights.
“I am not! All of my patients are satisfied, each time I work with them.”
“Well, they usually aren’t breathing, Father.” Sans interjected.
“That is a fair point, Gaster,” Asgore said with a chuckle. “Though I don’t think the discussion of science is a good topic for those who are unused to such things.”
“Yes, you’re quite right. I do apologize, Rosi. Forgive an old man and his inability to keep his mind from curiosity?” He gave her a long, even look that, for some reason, made her spine crawl and she nodded, if only to keep that look off of her. Gaster smiled and something about it was a little disturbing.
“Well then, I am lucky to have a forgiving daughter-in-law.”
“Wait, daughter-in-law?” Asgore asked, his voice a rich, rolling rumble in the base of his chest. From what Rosi could remember last night, he was prone to laughing often and being in generally good spirits. It seemed now was no different, though mild confusion marred his features.
“Oh? Did Papyrus not say? Rosi is his fiance, they’re to be wed in a few months, actually.”
“About four months, actually. Once the spring arrives.” Toriel said with a chuckle. “I’ve been helping plan the start of it while Rosi started to heal.”
“Oh? Papyrus, you should have told us sooner! I don’t see why it took you so long to tell us about her, she’s very intelligent and very beautiful. I cannot wait to find out more about you.” Helvetica said with a slight lean forward, propping her elbows on the arms of her chair, bright green eyelights sparking faintly. Rosi found herself nodding along without realizing it, a strange feeling washing over her for a moment. Papyrus put a hand on her’s and squeezed tightly, grounding her once more.
“Yes, well, we will be here until the end of the season, as you invited us. That is another week and a half to get to know her, Mother, Father. For now though, I believe we have eaten our fill and I would like to show Rosi around the grounds. Are you coming, brother?” The look in his eyes was harsh, a silent conversation occurring as Sans’ own eyelight shrank ever so slightly and he gave a shallow nod.
“I don’t see why not,” he made to stand but Gaster gave him a sharp look.
“No, you’re not. You and I are having a conversation about your magical output, it’s been drastically changing again. Alphys and Undyne will be here soon. Alphys has some documents she wanted to go over with me, and she will also want to do your readings. We have a party tomorrow night, I would rather you be healthy and not ten minutes from unconsciousness.”
“I’ll go with you,” Asgore said, standing as Frisk hopped to her feet as well, book tucked under her arm and a sunny smile on her face. She was wearing dark brown trousers, boots, and a button up shirt, hair a little shorter than Rosi remembered it being, brushing just over her shoulders.
“Shall we?” Rosi asked with a small smile, offering her arm to Papyrus who took it with a smile of his own and a nod as Asgore swung Frisk into his arms and they made their way outside. Papyrus didn’t speak as they walked, his eyelights wavering faintly.
He knew his parents were manipulative, but he hadn’t expected his mother to go so far as to blatantly use her magic to work against Rosi’s, making her, in the moment, more susceptible to suggestion. He could feel the faint residue of it, working on his own as it faded. It was irritating, to put it in mild terms, how well his parents could work the loose magic that every creature gave off to make things just a little smoother, and one never knew it was happening, or if it had even happened, unless they’d been paying attention to an obsessive degree. His hand slipped from Rosi’s arm to her hand, winding their hands together as they made their way out the front hall and out the door to the front lawn, towards the gardens. Asgore was humming, five steps behind and slightly to his left, Frisk reading as he sat on his father’s shoulders. He took a few deep breaths, trying to focus on what was going on around him without slipping into his annoyance and letting it spoil a perfectly nice late autumn morning.
“Papyrus, what do you think?” He blinked when he heard Asgore’s question and shook his head.
“I’m sorry, what did you ask?” He apologized. “My mind was wandering.”
“I asked what you thought would be blooming in the gardens when summer comes.” Asgore said with a furrowed brow, adding, “Are you feeling alright? You don’t look so good. Would you like to sit down? We have been walking quite a while, is your leg bothering you?”
Rosi looked around and found a bench to sit down on, among the boxwood and a few of the later blooming flowers. They were beautiful, giving off a faint smell that reminded her of roses and sugar.
“Come and sit, Papy.” She tugged his hand and tightened her hold when he made to let go, forcing him to come and sit beside her on the wrought iron bench.
“I feel fine, I assure you.” He pulled her hands away from his face as she lifted them to check his temperature. “We did just have a rather large breakfast and I didn’t sleep much last night. I’m fine, Rosi, Asgore, Frisk.” he promised, his tone leaving no room for argument. Rosi leveled a glare at him but Papyrus nuzzled her hair and hummed. “I swear, my dear. I’m quite alright.” She huffed and stood.
“Fine. Frisk, let’s go. You can show me around then.”
“Wait, I thought-” Papyrus didn’t get to finish his thought as Rosi tossed her hair over her shoulder and took Frisk’s hand.
“No, you can stay with Asgore and talk about your fauna and flora, or whatever you want to talk about so long as it doesn’t involve you moving. Frisk and I will go and have an adventure. When you feel better, you can get up. Watch him for me, Asgore?” he nodded and chuckled, bowing slightly.
“Not a problem, Rosi.” She gave a toothy smile and nodded.
“Wonderful. Now, shall we Frisk?” Frisk nodded and tightened his grip on her hand and lead the way through the rest of the garden paths. They were truly beautiful, given the early spring weather. Boxwoods were large but manicured to leave room to walk between them, and unlike the mazes she had heard about, they were a little shorter. The paths were gravel, the small stones crunching under foot and branching off to the gardens were flowers were blooming spectacularly.
There were flowers of almost every color it seemed, the smell almost overwhelming. She sneezed once or twice when Frisk pulled her along to the more heavily planted areas, guiding her past explosions of color and flowers of all shapes and size, names of which she couldn’t even begin to guess. They were all beautiful, though, and she wanted to stop and smell each one but Frisk wouldn’t slow down and Rosi didn’t have the heart to pull her hand from Frisk’s.
“Frisk, where are you taking me, silly girl?” Rosi laughed and Frisk paused long enough to sign,
I’m a boy today.
“Oh? How do you know that?” Rosi asked, genuinely curious. She hoped she wasn’t being rude, she knew that humans and monsters had a different system of classifying things and their manners were different than those she was used to.
Because I felt like a boy when I woke up. Frisk signed, finally stopping. He gave Rosi a shy, nervous smile and kicked his boots. If it’s easier, you can just call me a girl. I was feeling like a girl for the past week, so… He shrugged and Rosi rushed to amend what she said, kneeling so she was on his level.
“No no no! I just wanted to know as human’s and monster’s have such strange manners and customs, I’m not used to them. I just wanted to be sure that I wasn’t about to offend you, or make you upset,” She smiled and didn’t add that under the sea, if you made such an error it was likely you could be eaten, or at very least, bitten and have a piece torn out. Land dweller's were so strange and intricate.
Oh! Well, then thank you. Frisk said with a smile. Do you want me to show you how to make a flower crown? Chara and Asriel showed me how to make them a few weeks ago, I just never had enough flowers.
“Flower crowns?” Rosi asked, tilting her head. She was getting better at reading Frisk’s signs, but when they became excited it was a little difficult to keep up. He nodded enthusiastically and signed, slower this time,
Yes, flower crowns! You make them by putting together chains of flowers and it’s really fun. I can teach you. We have a whole field of flowers. Frisk gestured to the area they finally stopped and Rosi really looked around, feeling her breath catch. It was a sea of bright yellow and orange flowers, buds that waved lazily in the early morning breeze. There were occasional patches of green, like islands in the ocean, the sweet smell faint enough that it didn’t register until she took a deep breath as Frisk lead the way to a small island of green and they settled there, her skirt’s spilling out as she sat beside Frisk.
“How do you make a flower crown?” she asked, watching Frisk set down his book and run around, picking several of the flowers at once and gathering a few handfuls before coming back to sit. He laid them on her skirts, expect for a good handful which he set in his own lap and began to tie the stems together.
Rosi watched before she copied Frisk, working slowly so the fragile stems didn’t rip or tear as she pulled them tight. Frisk worked quickly, deft fingers making two crowns in a few short minutes when she had barely finished her first, which was a little lopsided, the large petals hiding the mistakes she made in tying them together, but it was functional. She giggled as Frisk tugged her skirt gently, motioning her to bend down and settled the crown he had made on her head.
“Awww, thank you, Frisk,” she pressed a kiss to his nose, making him scrunch it in mild distaste and rub it playfully, dark brown eyes glinting with mirth as a hoarse giggle came out. “Oh my gods, you’re so cute.” Rosi cooed, scooping Frisk into her arms and nuzzling the small child happily. Frisk squirmed and let out another rough giggle, nuzzling into her hold. She stopped when Frisk tried to get free and sat back on her hands, breathing in the perfumed air.
It was so different from the air near the sea, which smelled of salt and rock, of beach and kelp, the almost bitter taste and salt heavy on the air at all times, though the town smelled of a faint layer of ozone and mud, mixed with baking goods and sugar, and the cottage smelled of old books and warmth. The wind out here, however, smelled of nothing but rich dirt and flowers, their scent, though light, was heady so close to the ground. She let her arms go lax beneath her and winced as her back hit the ground, air rushing out of her lungs for a moment before she could breathe again.
Are you alright? Do you want me to go get Dad? Frisk signed, moving so he was by her head so she could see. Rosi waved her hand and shook her head.
“No, no, I’m fine,” she wheezed faintly. “Just not used to my weight on land. It’s weird, laying back and not having the weight of the water to catch me, or moving a little slower because of my seal body.” she slowly got her breath back and sighed, shielding her eyes. “I think I’ll lay here for a moment, and besides, the clouds are beautiful.” she giggled to herself and Frisk gave her a look but nodded and went back to making flower crowns. Rosi smiled and let herself fall into a light sleep as the sun warmed her cooler body. Sometime later, she heard her name being called faintly before she sat up and saw Sans running towards her and Frisk.
“Rosi! Where the fuck were you?!” It was strangely reminiscent of the time they first met and she stood, Frisk already jogging over to meet Sans, flower crowns abandoned.
“Sans!” She called, picking up her skirts and making her way towards him, much slower than Frisk was. Sans seemed worried, however, not ecstatic like she had expected. He picked up Frisk and sprinted towards her, his whole body a line of tension as he crossed the rest of the distance in an almost surprising speed, given that he was barely awake at the breakfast table.
“Sans?” She took in his taut shoulders and the way his eyelight had shrunk to almost a pin prick, the nervous way he flexed his free hand, the other holding Frisk to his chest. “What’s wrong? What happened? Where’s Papyrus?”
“He passed out, coming to find you. Asgore brought him back to the house, but he’s not looking too good. Father’s with him right now, but he’s been letting off more magic than we’ve seen- Just,” he cut himself off and grabbed her around the waist and didn’t so much as warn her before he pulled her into a short cut and left her breathless for a minute that lasted an eternity, before they were in Papyrus’ room. Sans let her go and Rosi barely had her feet underneath of her when he disappeared once more.
“Rosi, you’re here. Good.” Gaster said, sitting with his back to her, but she didn’t ask how he knew she was in the room. “Come here.” His voice was a little lower than before, the kind of rumble that carried a weight of an unspoken command. She found her feet moved without hesitation even though her mind was still reeling from the sudden change and she was trying to ground herself once more. Her magic reared against what magic was coating Papyrus’ still body as she came near. It felt… alive, but defenseless. It felt like the same addictive tang she’d felt when she accidentally took some of his magic, her magic, her nature desperate for a taste of the brittle magic that kept her fiance together. She wanted it all.
“No!” She cried and took several steps backwards, chest heaving as she stared at Papyrus. He was defenseless, chest moving in frantic, shallow gasps for half needed air. His magic was almost a physical thing, the taste almost on her tongue and shooting down her back. She could practically taste it, like blood, rich and bitter, heady and making her a little light headed.
“Well, that’s a very interesting reaction,” Gaster murmured, standing and making his way towards her. Rosi stared at Papyrus until Gaster was in front of her and tilted her head up gently, forcing her to look him in the eyes. She didn’t realize he was taller than Papyrus until her neck began to hurt from staring up at him, his form slightly hazy as she blinked. It was almost like it was losing form, or her eyes were straining to see him. She felt incredibly small. “Your pupils are almost completely dilated as if in response to the excess magic my son is giving off. You look almost like an addict, craving magic, is it? Or is it blood?” he leaned down a little so he could get near her face, a dark light in his bright purple-grey eyelights, a strange look crawling over his face. “You hunger for both, don’t you?”
His voice was like oil, dripping over her and making it hard to breathe properly. Where Papyrus’ magic was warm and familiar, this was almost sentient, oozing and slithering around her and making gooseflesh rise. Her instincts screamed danger but she couldn’t move. His fingers on her chin spread a chill through her body, part of her recoiling from the invasive and strange magic, another part of her almost thankful for the freezing touch as it was grounding her from her instincts. “You know skeleton’s have a lot of marrow, we bleed just the same as other beings, but we also bleed magic, it makes it more potent. Have you siphoned magic from my son, Rosi?”
“N-No…” she stammered, clawing at the instinct to bite and drain the magic and the blood, chew the bones, feed on that addictive taste and pushing it down. She wasn’t going to live up to the expectations. She refused. Papyrus was her best friend, she wasn’t going to use him, or anyone else for that matter, as food.
“Oh? But you look like you could eat him alive. Or would you rather drain the magic from him and leave him to turn to Dust?” Gaster mused, tightening his hold as his voice reached a dangerous tone, the dark look seeming to spread to the rest of the room. “You should know, I don’t like what I don’t understand,” he slowly looked her over, like he was pulling away the secrets and mystery, peeling away her everything. It made her want to cover herself but her body wouldn’t respond. “But I despise what could threaten my sons. Are you a woman or a selkie, Rosi?” he let go of her chin and walked in a slow circle around her, reminding her much of a shark. There was a kind of afterimage, like a mirage almost, with tendrils of dark, smoke-like magic waving lazily off and vanishing a second later. “Or, are you a beast, sizing up your next meal? Be careful about shark-infested waters, my dear, you don’t want to be eaten.” he hissed by her ear, making her shudder faintly before she felt something snap into place and she growled, lips peeling back in a snarl,
“I am Rosiline, a selkie and a woman, neither of which should be trifled with. Papyrus is my best friend and my fiancee. I’ve fought off worse than a shark in my life, Doctor Gaster.” She snarled, fire blazing in her eyes as her resolve came through her instincts to drain Papyrus dry and that part shrank back to the small corner where it belonged. “I will not be bullied by the likes of you, or your wife. I am going to help my fiancee best I can and when he is better I will still take care of him.” She held her head high and her shoulder’s back, staring Gaster full on in the face, snarl still pulling her lips back as a low growl built in her throat.
Gaster gave her a long, silent look. It was like an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object, the battle of wills of who would back down first had begun. Papyrus, however, broke the spell when he thrashed and cried out in his sleep, magic sparking faintly. Rosi broke her staring contest with Gaster to get to his side, perching on the side of the bed and holding his hands in her own, pressing them into the bed as she whispered near his skull,
“Ssshhh, it’s alright love, it’s okay. It’s just a fever dream, it’s not real. Come back to me, come on Papy. It’s okay. It’s alright. I promise it’s alright. Ssshh, I’m right here sweetheart.” She hummed and kept up a litany of sweet nothings as he slowly calmed down, jade tears pooling at the corners of his sockets. She let go of his hands and wiped them away with the pads of her thumbs, pressing a kiss to his forehead as they slowed.
“Come back to me, Papy, it’s alright. Don’t worry, it’s okay. I’m right here,” she whispered.
“R-Rosi?” He croaked, eyes fluttering open, eyelights struggling to stay lit.
“Hey, hey… I’m right here, Papyrus. I’m right here.” she soothed, running her hands over his cheeks and down his jaw.
“You’re not real…” he mumbled and she took his hand in her’s and pressed it against her heart.
“But I’m right here, love. Feel that? You felt that same beat this morning. I’m not going anywhere.” Papyrus gave a weak nod and his eyelights winked out once more and his eye sockets shut.
“Will he be alright?” She asked, winding her hand with his and pressing a light kiss to his fingers.
“Well, he should be.” Gaster sounded much calmer now, almost pleased. She didn’t see the happy smile that crossed his face as she brought Papyrus out of the fever dream so quickly, and how well she handled his own magic. Most would have succumbed to their baser instincts almost immediately, out of sheer fear and want to survive. He’d never had the chance to study a selkie up close before.
Her reactions to his sons excessive magic were impressive, as was her control over herself. Though, to be fair, much of the “excess” was his masquerading as his sons to see if she would react with her instinctual response and drain “Papyrus” of the magic Gaster was giving off or if she would fight them. It seemed her will was stronger than he or Helvetica had given credit for. He gave a slightly sharper smile and a quiet chuckle. This would be interesting, and he knew Helvetica would appreciate such an addition to their family. Now, if they could figure out a way to get Papyrus to have children with such a strong woman, and Sans a wife, or a husband, they would be happy.
“That doesn’t answer the question.” she snapped, not looking up from Papyrus.
“Well, he’s overly exhausted, stressed his magic and his body to the limits and probably past, despite believing he is alright. Sans was much the same a few months ago, and he slept for a good two months. Did Papyrus not tell you this?”
“His letters were shorter during that time,” Rosi lied smoothly. “But he never mentioned it, no.”
“Hmn.” Gaster nodded and made his way towards her, almost seeming to float as he made his way over to the bedside, his feet barely making a sound. “Well, I would say he will be alright. His magic has a tendency to overwork itself when it feels there is a need to compensate for injuries that no longer exist. Alphys will be here soon, she will be able to do readings on him and tell us exactly what to expect. We shall have to cancel the gala for tomorrow, as Papyrus is so sick, that kind of noise will be stressing and I would rather avoid so much noise.” He hummed and leaned over Papyrus, pulling down his shirt collar and tilting his head gently side to side to get better access to his neck, his other hand running over a deep crack in his neck.
“What is that?” Rosi asked, eyebrows scrunching in worry.
“That is the reason my son’s magic is further defective and what nearly killed him.”
“The Guard..” Rosi murmured and Gaster nodded.
“Yes. He is a soft Soul, with a large heart and I do not fault my son such wonderful qualities, but in the time of war, as he experienced, it was not a good thing to display. At least, not on his sleeve. He should have killed her when he had the chance, but he didn’t. And now he’s in danger of these fits of illness when his magic is unable to be controlled. He is lucky that Helvetica and I pursued fields that enable us to help him, and Sans.” He sighed and sank back into his chair and in that moment, he looked like a very worn, and worried, father. His shoulders sagged faintly, his mouth drawn to a thin line and eyelights dimming to the point of losing their shape and color. His hands steepled in front of him, elbows resting on the chair’s arms and leaving a faint indent. She had to wonder if his bones were thick as Papyrus’, which were already thicker than a normal Human’s skeleton. His body looked like it had a mass, a defined shape beyond that of his bones.
“I worry about him, and Sans.” Gaster continued, startling Rosi from her wandering thoughts. “I worry over my children’s inability to properly take care of themselves, and their magic causing more harm than good. I worry over their lives, we both do. But, I am glad Papyrus has someone like you, Rosi, to keep him in line. Such a strong, independent woman like yourself is well suited for the life of an adventuring scientist. Curiosity suits you more than the air headed role you attempted.”
Rosi blinked and stared at him, unsure as to what he meant but Gaster simply gave her a smile, this one almost soft at the edges as it tried to be, and then straightened in his seat, calling,
“Sans, it’s rather rude to listen in on other’s conversations. Haven’t your mother and I taught you better?”
“I don’t know, you always taught me to follow my curiosity.” Sans voice seemed to come from the shadows as he appeared at the foot of the bed, Undyne and Alphys just beside him. Alphys was a small yellow draconic, barely brushing up to Rosi’s chest, who seemed nervous, holding a doctor’s bag. Her glasses were skewed, like she’d been in a rush before Sans short cut them to Papyrus’ room. She didn’t wear a dress but instead wore dark trews and a button up shirt, vest and a lab coat. Undyne, whom she’d met the night previous, was wearing heavy boots, black pants and a shirt tucked in with a vest. She scowled at Sans before she saw Papyrus’ still form on the bed and her eye widened.
“Hmn, that is very true.” Gaster chuckled, the sound rolling through his chest and filling the room almost. “But curiosity could kill the cat.”
“Satisfaction brought it back.” Sans countered just as quickly before he let go of Alphys’ shoulder, keeping a tight hold of Undyne as she tensed like she were about to run to Papyrus’ side. “Rosi, come on. Mother wants to speak with you.”
“But-” she didn’t want to leave Papyrus alone, though Alphys was already setting up on a small side table, her nerves gone. Gaster just shook his head.
“You will get in the way, my dear. Go with Sans and Undyne, Alphys and I will take good care of Papyrus.”
“Fine.” She sighed, leaning down and pressing a kiss to his forehead before standing and making her way to Sans and Undyne. Sans wrapped his arm around her waist and they were in that dark space for a heartbeat but it felt like it lasted an eternity. When she took a breath, the lack of air almost made her choke before they were in a sitting room and Sans all but collapsed between them. Undyne reacted a second faster than she did and hauled Sans back to his feet before he could hit the ground and grumbled as she wrapped an arm around his waist and then made him sit down on the couch, gesturing for Rosi to follow. When they’d settled on the surprisingly comfortable couch, Undyne let Sans go and he let out a long groan and yawn.
“Fuck, I’ve gotta stop tryin’ that…” He mumbled, eyes closing for a moment as his arms came up to rub at his skull, the soft sound of bone grating filled the room for a moment. “Are you a’right, Rosi?”
“She was alone with your father, numbskull! He’s more than a bit… Fuck, what’s the word…” Undyne paused for a moment, waving her head in a circular motion to try and think of it.
“Disturbing? Dramatic? Odd? Manipulative? Scary? All of the above?” Sans offered tiredly, lifting his head a bit. “I wouldn’t have left her alone if I didn’t have to get you and Alphys, and if you two had actually been where I needed you to be, she wouldn’t have been alone with him for so long. Did he do anything to you?”
Rosi shook her head slowly, shuddering faintly. “No, nothing… extreme, anyway. Papyrus was just giving off so much magic, I…”
“You wanted to drain him, didn’t you?” Sans guessed quietly. Undyne stared at her like she had three heads and bared her teeth in a vicious snarl, jumping to her feet.
“Now you listen here, selkie, if I find even a drop of Papyrus’ magic gone, your pelt is mine. I will not see some sea bitch draining my best friend for food. Do you even like Papyrus for more than food?!” She demanded.
Rosi jumped to her feet and felt her anger rise like a violent storm, her own snarl peeling her lips back as tears burned her eyes.
“I will not drain him!” She snarled. “I won’t ever drain him! Papyrus is my best friend, I love him! Why would I love what I was supposed to eat?! Do you know what it’s like, wanting to drain the person you love? Do you know how much I wish I was a normal woman, not a Selkie?! Do you realize how hard it is to fight against my nature, how much I hate myself? I don’t want this! I never wanted to be what I am!” Her chest was heaving, anger rolling off her like waves as tears blurred the edges of her vision. “I hate it.” Her voice went a little softer. “I hate that I want to drain his excess magic, any of your magics. Part of me wants to drain everything and convert it to my own power. It wants to eat you. Do you know what that feels like? I’m disgusted with what I am.” Her voice was shaking with anger, disgust and sadness, her shoulders back and head held high as tears started to leak down her cheeks. They barely stung and tasted like the sea, only further to remind her of her nature.
“Undyne, shut up and sit down.” Sans snapped, standing on shaky legs and pulling Rosi into a hug. When she made to protest, his eye flared an acidic yellow and she sat heavily on the couch, staring and silent as he pulled Rosi into a hug.
“It’s a’right. I know you won’t hurt Paps. I know, Rosi. You know that too. You’re too good to hurt him, you won’t fall to your nature’s base instincts. You’re alright. Don’t cry, it’s okay, I trust you. Undyne’s just jumping the gun again and forgetting her manners,” he gave her a harsh look that made her skin crawl and nod slowly, still unable to make noise as Rosi cried silently, finally letting out the stress.
It surprised her to see such a strange creature as a selkie trying so hard to not fall to her instincts when most just didn’t care. She was surprised in a few other ways, though; Rosi had stood up to her anger and yelled back at Undyne, unlike the nervous mess she found the night previous. She was far more than Undyne had expected, and she already expected quite a bit but the air headed mask Rosi wore last night when she wasn’t near Sans, Papyrus or Toriel was annoying. Though it was good to see more of the real side of her, she felt bad that she hadn’t thought it all the way through. Of course Papyrus wouldn’t propose to just anyone, and certainly not in haste. He was a careful being by nature, for all his intellect and large Soul. He wouldn’t have proposed if he didn’t think he was safe with Rosi. Undyne felt bile rise and was disgusted with her own prejudice.
She tried to speak, to apologize, but her voice wouldn’t work. Sans gave her a sharp look and she felt fear crawl down her spine despite herself. Of course he was working his magic, since he didn’t know how she’d react after that kind of situation. She lowered her head a bit and looked away in shame, cheeks burning as Rosi’s tears slowed. She’d comforted her last night, she saw how much Rosi needed Papyrus and how protective he’d been of her. It wasn’t because she was an exotic thing, but because she was scared. And Undyne had only added to that. She would be lucky if Sans didn’t tell Papyrus and luckier if Papyrus forgave her for allowing prejudice and anger to cloud her thoughts. Hadn’t she faced more than her share of both from Humans and Monster’s alike? For being a woman? For being in the Guard? For pushing everything she had to be the best? For being with Alphys? She gritted her teeth slowly, feeling the need to scream rise. Damn her quick judgment. She was better than that.
“Are you feeling better?” Sans asked the room, talking to them both. Rosi nodded and he gave her a lace lined handkerchief that she used to wipe her tears and blow her nose. Undyne found she could move again and released a long, slow breath.
“I’m sorry, Rosi, for jumping to conclusions that weren’t there. You don’t deserve that. My anger and worry got the best of me and I know how selkies and kelpies can be, but I should have known you weren’t like that. Please forgive me?” Undyne asked, her voice much softer, the rasp almost husky as she stared up at Rosi, yellow-gold eye softer than she had seen it.
“It’s fine, Undyne.” Rosi said, giving a shrug and a long sigh. “I know my species aren’t known for being anything other than killers, and that you’re very protective over Papyrus. But, please, trust me. Trust me enough that when I say I love him, I do. I won’t hurt him. He saved me. I saved him. I love him.” The conviction in her voice surprised even her, but a small smile crossed her lips as she thought of his laugh, the way his bright green eyelights sparked when he was talking about anything he loved, or held an interest in. The way he treated her like an equal, not something to be feared, or put upon a pedestal, his large heart and the warmth she felt bloom each time he hugged her, like she was coming home.
Undyne nodded and rubbed the back of her neck, feeling a little sheepish. “Still, I should apologize. I know what it’s like to be judged for things you can’t help but try to control.”
“It’s okay, I know.” Rosi said, feeling something settle in her chest. Papyrus hadn’t been lying when he said Undyne was a loyal friend. Though it was a little upsetting she had jumped to such conclusions about her, it made sense. She’d only met Rosi once and she didn’t know if Papyrus had told Undyne anything about her. She could only hope that Undyne would want to get to know her and she could get to know her.
“Well, know that that’s settled, there isn’t a reason to fight. Too much magic.” Sans said, sitting back down and lounging slightly.
“You need to see Alphys,” Undyne and Rosi said in stereo. Both women blinked at each other and grinned a little.
“I will, once she’s done with Paps. He’s a little more important than me.”
“Shut up Sans.” Undyne snapped. “You’re just as important as Papyrus. Let’s not forget the last time your magic went haywire.”
“...I know…” he mumbled, rubbing his palms, the circular holes barely making a sound.
“What happened?” Rosi asked before she could stop herself. She knew Sans’ magic wasn’t stable, and that he didn’t sleep enough, or really at all, unless he passed out. And that when he did sleep, at least over the last two weeks when her leg healed and Papyrus shared her bed, cuddling her, he wound up in their bed, cuddled between them like a child, shaking so hard sometimes he woke her from a dead sleep only to see Papyrus pulling him close and soothing his rattling bones with soft words. When she asked, she only received a head shake and a mouthed, I’ll tell you later. But he never explained.
Sans let out a long sigh and a mirthless chuckle. “Ya know how Pap’s magic is fucked up? Fluctuates and never seems to react very well?” Rosi nodded. “You know how he has a crack on his right eye?” She nodded very slowly as the realization came. “That was my magic. I… I can’t control my magic. Where Papyrus doesn’t have enough, as his magical core was disrupted, I have too much. I can’t control it when I sleep, it reacts to my emotions. And, when I sleep… Bad things tend to happen. Memories, terrors.”
“...Sans?” Rosi wasn’t sure what she was asking, if she was trying to call him back to the present or prompt him for more.
He shook his head and took a deep breath. “There’s… things I do when I sleep. People get hurt. So, I don’t sleep, as long as possible. My core is unstable, unable to react well with the magic I have. And well, wasn’t always half blind. Sometimes the pain gets too much, the memories too vivid. And what you don’t want to remember comes back in full force.” He touched the crack over his dark socket. “There… There are things I would do to a certain person if I ever saw them again, repay them for the pain they wrecked on Papyrus and Grillbz, and on me. I’m not an entirely nice Monster, Rosi.” He said softly.
She gave him a long look and sighed. “It’s okay Sans. If you ever find them, tell me so I can give them a piece of my mind.” She gave a vicious smile, teeth glinting in the low, warm lighting of the room. Undyne snickered and shook her head, punching Sans in the arm.
“You already know to call on Alph and I as well, numbskull.” Sans chuckled and sighed, closing his eyes.
“Yeah, I’ll remember that.” He sighed, deflating a bit as he settled there on the couch between them. Undyne laughed and Rosi chuckled, rolling her eyes.
“You better.” She poked Sans’ ribs and he gave her a look and a slight smile.
“What? Think you’re gonna tickle me? Tibia honest, not that ticklish.” Rosi snickered and said,
“Just wait, I’ll find a spot.” Sans sighed and shrugged, smiling just a little bit.
“Whatever you say, Rosi, Undyne.”
Just outside the room, a serving girl slowly removed the glass she had pressed against the door and slowly crept away until she was far enough away to walk normally, her footsteps making barely a sound as she expertly avoided the looser boards and thinner sections of carpet, barely noticeable, and made her way towards the library and study of her mistress. She knocked and heard a faint,
“Come in,”
Pushing open the door, she weaved her way through the organized chaos of notes, books and papers strewn about the area. She was always in awe of her mistress’ ability to keep such a calm front when her mind worked at such high speeds and her lack of organization, at least the normal way, never hindered her studies.
“My Lady, I heard something interesting.” She gave a small bow as Helvetica looked up from her notes, an interested look on her face as she raised a brow bone.
“Oh? And what would that entail, Samantha?” She clasped her hands in front of her and smoothed the front of her dress, taking a deep breath before relaying all that she had heard.
“And then Master Sans told Miss Rosi and Captain Undyne, Whatever you say.”
“Very good, Samantha. Thank you for telling me, you’ve done your job well.” Helvetica said with a gentle smile, her soft green eyelights almost hypnotizing. Samantha beamed and curtsied.
“Thank you, My Lady.”
“You are dismissed, and please remember to tell Mr. Gibb that he is to send notice to our guests the gala is postponed until further notice due to Papyrus’ unseen and sudden illness.”
“Yes, My Lady. Shall I bring anything for you to eat?”
“No, but thank you. You may go.” and Samantha gave one last curtsey before leaving quickly. Helvetica gave a sharp smile. It seemed Gaster was correct about Rosi and Papyrus; they were quite a pair. And she was happy that Rosi felt the need to defend herself and that she had finally dropped her pretense of being a little silly. It didn’t suit such a bright Soul to hide. She hummed to herself as she worked, rewriting her notes and making a mental note to talk to Gaster later.
It would seem cruel to others to eavesdrop on her children’s conversations, but she did it so rarely it was hardly that they noticed, and with a creature like a selkie so close to such powerful magics, it was better to be on the cautious side than the trusting side. She would leave the trusting side to her children. Her grip on her pen tightened till the metal creaked in protest and ink spilt across her hand. With a sigh and a mildly annoyed huff, she took out a cleaning cloth and wiped away the ink before it would stain her hand and threw the broken pen into the waste bin with the others.
“My dear?” Gaster’s voice was suddenly over her shoulder and she relaxed, turning slightly to face him. “What’s the matter?” he asked, turning her chair a little so he could be closer, taking her hands in his own and cleaning away the ink gently.
“Just remembering what that bitch did to my beautiful sons.” She said with a slight shrug and a low growl, her calm breaking for a moment. “Though, she won’t be coming back.”
Gaster chuckled and tightened his hold on her fingers for a moment, nodding. “Indeed she won’t, my love. She is dead and gone, she will never touch Sans or Papyrus again. You and I took care of it, and Undyne… Well, she had her share of blows as well. After all, we are not as young as we once were.” Helvetica nodded and kissed his cheek.
“I know she’s dead. But I will never forgive her for what she did to Sans, or the pain she brought upon Papyrus and Grillby, though he was lucky enough to only have a little bit of damage and recovered nicely. I want our sons to be happy, Gaster.”
“Papyrus is, love. Sans may be a bit more difficult, given his nature, but I don’t doubt he will find someone, with our help or without.” He soothed, rubbing her knuckles with his thumb slowly. “Have hope, they were raised by us, we taught them well. And well, if any problems arise again, we shall dispose of them. Her brain was fascinating to dissect, and her Soul lasted far longer than I had assumed. I wonder if I’ll find another so soon, though I do hope Rosi stays true. I do like her.”
“Hmn, I do as well. How is Papyrus, by the way?” Almost immediately her harsh anger had turned into motherly concern and Gaster chuckled. How he loved his wife.
“He is doing better. Alphys says her readings indicate his Soul is simply overloaded and in about a week’s time he should be alright. Which, actually coincides with his birthday. We should inform our guest’s to come in a week and two day’s time; we can have his birthday celebration and announce his engagement to Rosi in the same night. Then that will conclude the season, and they will return home. We will be having the wedding at the nicer chapel, I assume?
Helvetica nodded and gave a small smile. “Yes, Toriel has been planning the wedding with Muffet, you know how those two get. It’s a lovely service that they’ve drawn up. We won’t be inviting too many people, for the sake of both of their comfort.”
Gaster nodded and hummed. “That sounds like a good idea. Now, what are you working on?”
Helvetica smiled and used her magic to pull up another seat for him and began to shuffle through her notes for the starting pages. She really loved her husband, he knew exactly how to draw her back to herself before her anger took over.
_-_-_-_
For the next several days, Rosi barely left Papyrus’ side. She wiped away the faint jade sweat that appeared on his forehead and barely slept herself. She had been awake for three days straight, taking only a two hour nap when her eyes couldn’t stay open another minute, having barely eaten or drank, worry eating away at her when Helvetica found her, hands shaking as she worried.
“My dear, is this where you’ve been for the last few days? We’ve been worried sick!” She fussed, putting her warm palms on her cheeks, making Rosi blink and startle slightly.
“Oh… Sorry, I just worried… He’s been asleep for three days now..”
“My dear, he’s been asleep for almost four, you’ve been awake far too long. That is not good. Here, I brought some tea with me, I was coming to find you.”
“Did you not look here first?” Rosi slurred and Helvetica sighed.
“I thought Gaster was here with Papyrus, and that you were with Toriel, planning out your wedding, but when I found Gaster asleep in his lab, I sent him to bed and Toriel said you hadn’t come to see her for at least three days. She thought you were with Sans and Undyne, or with me. Sans said you were here when I asked him,” she started to pour two cups of tea, stirring a sugar cube into Rosi’s drink and then one into her own, “And that he wasn’t sure you had eaten much. The servants had dropped off food and taken it away, but you barely touched it. You will become sick if you keep this up, Rosi!” She handed her the cup and Rosi took a small sip before realizing how thirsty she was.
“Yes… I suppose you’re right…” she mumbled.
“Of course I’m right, my dear. Now, drink up. I have some food for you as well.” Rosi did as she was told, drinking three cups of the light tea and devouring the meat and greens sandwiches that Helvetica passed to her, her stomach growling loudly for the food. She yawned as she finished off the fifth one, her stomach full as the magic settled.
“I feel… very strange…”
“Oh, that’s quite normal, sweetheart. You’ve been awake so long your body is starting to shut down so you will sleep. Now, I did slip you some sleep medication but it was just to get you to sleep before you wound up hurting yourself. Now, come here.”
“You… drugged me!?” Rosi demanded as Helvetica helped her up and out of her clothes and into a simple night shift, and then into bed beside Papyrus.
“Well, not very much. I do apologize, dear, but to be fair, I know my son’s did the same thing to you while you were healing your leg. I know they told you about it as well. You selkie magic is very potent, and your more animal instincts enable you to go for several days without sleep. However, this is detrimental to your human side’s health. It wasn’t very much, it makes it easier to sleep. Now, just rest.” She hummed softly, sweetly, her voice rolling and sweeping over Rosi and calming her down. She fell asleep in minutes.
When Rosi woke up, Toriel’s magic was heavy in the air. She blinked away the blurriness and Toriel was running her hands over her and Papyrus, humming just under her breath as her dark eyes fluttered every now and then. When Rosi moved to sit up, Toriel seemed to come out of her trance and looked down at Rosi.
“Oh, hello Rosi! How are you feeling?”
“I’m… Alright, I guess.” Toriel nodded and gave her a cup of tea, but Rosi gave it a doubtful look. “It isn’t drugged is it?”
“Why would it be drugged?” Toriel asked, tilting her head in mild confusion, still holding out the teacup.
“Because Hel drugged me not even a few hours ago! What day is it?!” she demanded, sitting up. Toriel blinked, then chuckled and shook her head.
“Forgive me for laughing, dear, but Helvetica didn’t drug you. She may have said she did, but at worst, she gave you a relaxant tea known as golden flower tea. It’s a Monster Tea, that in longer steeping, can act as a mental relaxant and make someone more open to easy suggestion and relax them. She wouldn’t drug you, she likes you.”
“....It worries me that you know her methods well enough to know.” Rosi mumbled before taking a sip of the tea and finding it a little bitter but drank it down anyways.
“Now, come on. You’ve been asleep for about a day, you needed it. Now, let’s get up and dressed, Sans, Frisk and Asriel are waiting for you outside and they have someone they want you to meet.” Rosi grumbled and looked down at Papyrus but he looked mostly alright. He wasn’t sweating anymore, and he was breathing slowly, evenly. She worried her lip for a moment then sighed.
“Fine. But come and get me the minute anything changes. I don’t like seeing him so…”
“Dead?” Toriel offered gently. “I understand dear, don’t worry. Now, get dressed you silly girl.”
“I’m twenty-six, I’m not a girl…” she muttered but did as Toriel asked. She stripped off her nightgown and made her way to the wardrobe to pull out a pair of trousers, a button down shirt and her scarf. She dressed as Toriel laughed,
“Yes, and I’m forty. You are rather young to me, my dear.”
Rosi simply rolled her eyes and pulled on her boots, lacing them up and then making her way to the door, giving Papyrus one last lingering look. Her heart hurt but Toriel gave her a playful glare and flapped her hands.
“Off with you. Sans and the rest are just outside, in the back. You can’t miss them.” Rosi sighed but nodded and made her way towards the back, getting lost once or twice before finding her way. The manor was almost monstrous in its size, but it somehow managed to retain an almost… Homey feel. It was odd, given that she was used to the small, contained space of the cottage, with only two floors and three bedrooms, Papyrus and Sans’ added on laboratory and the bathroom upstairs, kitchen and large living room downstairs. It should have been too big to be anything other than terrifying. But it gave off a warmth she wasn’t expecting.
The halls were adorned with tapestries and paintings, flowers in vases occasionally on tables, soft glowing magical flames on candles that kept the halls lit where the sunlight from the windows wouldn’t reach, rich curtains held in place with delicate looking ropes. It was elegant, beautiful but with enough warmth to make it inviting instead of cold and aloof.
Finally, she reached the back door and made her way outside into the sunshine. Asriel was running around with Frisk and another child, who looked almost ghost like in comparison to Frisk, her cheeks rosy and hair pin straight. She wore a dress and boots, but Rosi could see pants underneath, just a little shorter than the hem of the dress when it flared up with her running. Sans was basking in the sunlight, looking almost like a lazy cat as he leaned back on a blanket, arms holding up his weight. He sat up straight when he heard the door open and shut and gave Rosi a smile.
“Hey there sleeping beauty.”
“Oh ha ha ha.” She sat next to him and sighed, leaning against his shoulder. “You’re a real ass.”
“What’d I do to deserve it?” he asked, giving her a wry grin.
“Your mother scares the shit out of me by making me think that she drugged me, that you two drugged me while my leg was healing. You also told her where I was, which I don’t really appreciate. I’m already stressed enough, I don’t want more to do with your parents.”
Sans let out a long sigh, the sound whistling through his nasal cavity. “My parents are… interesting. To say the least. You’ve seen how dramatic my father can be, my mother is a little more relaxed, but they’re both manipulative.”
“How so?” Rosi asked, curiosity piqued. Instead of answering, Sans sat up and called to the playing children,
“Frisk! Asriel! Chara! Come here for a moment!” The trio stopped and ran over to him, Asriel stopping a little bit away while Frisk and Chara tackled Sans to the ground with happy giggles.
“Ouuff!” Sans huffed, falling backward. “Well, that was least a gravitying hug.” Frisk giggled hoarsely at the joke while the other child rolled her eyes, which were almost blood red, but smiled faintly. “Chara, you haven’t met Papyrus’ fiancee, but this is Rosi. Rosi, this is Frisk’s twin sister, Chara. Be knife kiddo.” Sans said with a wink and Chara huffed and gave Rosi a sweet smile though her eyes were glinting with mischief.
“Hello there, Miss Rosi!”
“Just Rosi is fine, dear.” She said with a smile of her own. “I’m not quite a Miss.”
“Can we call you Auntie Rosi?” Chara asked, cheeks dimpling slightly. Sans looked down at her in mild shock. Chara was known for her mischief and creative, though usually harmless, jokes and pranks, which is part of the reason they got along so well. But she was notorious for being cagey and shy around new people, no matter who they were. Maybe it was because Rosi was a selkie and her magic gave off a different sense than Monsters or Humans.
She went pink, cheeks flushing as she gaped like a fish, a strangled noise coming from her throat before she gave a silent nod.
“You don’t have to if you don’t want-” Chara began before Rosi moved, fast as a snake, and wrapped her and Frisk into her arms, hugging them both tight and showering their faces with kisses.
“Of course I’ll be your Auntie! Oh, you absolute sweethearts!!” Chara wriggled a bit before settling in for the shower of kisses as Frisk giggled and squirmed a bit but didn’t try to escape. Rosi suddenly let the twins go and stood, brushing off her pants and giving Asriel a smile. The teen’s eyes widened and he raised his hands, backing away slowly as he shook his head.
“No no no no, I’m good.” She took one step closer and he bolted.
“Frisk, Chara, will you do your Auntie a favor and go chase your brother?” Chara and Frisk nodded, sharing devilish grins and sprinting after their older brother. Rosi laughed and sat back down, settling next to Sans once more and then giving him a long look.
“Talk. Now.”
“There’s no escaping you, is there?” Sans sighed heavily, shoulders rising and falling before he began, “There is a lot my parents control. They’re in the court, and I mean in the actual court and in the justice system court. They have informants everywhere, they’re at the tops of their fields. Mother is a medical doctor, she works mostly with the body and Soul of her patients and she is constantly researching things that fascinate her. She’s been to Africa, the America’s, all over Europe, China, India, the islands. You name it, she’s been there. She looks and studies with the healers of the land she’s in, makes notes and applies the practices to her own learned processes. Father is a doctor of many things; biology, physics, astronomy, and Magic. He has numerous labs that he runs, papers and books that he publishes occasionally on various topics. They seem cordial, comforting, easy to like. And they are.”
“And how is that manipulative?” Rosi asked, head tilting slightly.
“Because you never know when they’re manipulating you, and you never know their true motives, but everything they do is for family. They treat every person that lives here, every person in their direct influence, as a branch of family, a kind of protection that’s needed when the people who they circle can turn like sharks. But, as they’ve learned, it is unwise to fight an immovable object, or an unstoppable force. They rarely need to dirty their hands, simply tugging strings and they get what they want.”
“...So your parent’s are probably, at some point, going to have me killed if I make them angry?”
“Not so much that as use you as a test subject, or dissect you and your magic,” Sans said darkly, eyelight flashing in mild anger.
“Though,” he added mildly, much calmer, “they most likely won’t do that to you. You seem to have passed their interrogations.”
“Do I want to know what would have happened if I didn’t?”
“How strong is your stomach?” Sans asked with a yawn and a head shake.
“...What would happen.” It wasn’t a question.
“At best, they’d have taken your pelt and kept you as a test subject. They don’t like what threatens us.”
“And at worst?”
“I don’t have an imagination dark enough, Rosi.” Sans said simply.
“Well, that’s disturbing.” She shuddered and Sans gave a mirthless chuckle.
“Oh, that’s the least of it.” He looked at the perfect circles in his hands where his bones were healed over, fused. “I didn’t get these through any natural means. They’re reminders of what happens when you trust the wrong person.”
“What happened?” Rosi asked softly, wanting to touch the holes but restraining herself.
“Bad things.” Sans said with a yawn. “There is a reason my parents are protective, our horrible control over magic aside. We’re broken things, Rosi. But, we’re still their sons. It’s a little comforting to have the dark on your side when you live in it.”
Before Rosi could ask him what that was supposed to mean, Chara and Frisk came back, Frisk running along with Asriel, who was carrying Chara in his arms, her arms wrapped around herself.
“Auntie Rosi! Uncle Sans! I think Chara’s sick again!” He called, sliding to a stop in front of them and kneeling so Chara could lay down on the blanket. She opened an eye and winked, then wrapped her arms around Asriel’s neck and pulled him into a hug.
“Kisses attack him, Auntie Rosi!” She cheered and Rosi chuckled, wrapping them both into her arms and showering both with kisses. Asriel squirmed and tried to get free but it was essentially useless. Rosi was much stronger and avoided his budding horns with ease.
“Chara!” he cried when Rosi let him go and he smoothed out his fur. “I thought you were seriously ill again! That wasn’t funny!”
“I’m sorry Azzy. But you wouldn’t stop running, so I just used a cramp to my benefit.” she hugged him though and nuzzled his fur.
“It’s alright, Chara.” He sighed, and hugged her back, then pulled Frisk into the hug as well. “You too, Frisk. Though you both scared me half out of my mind.”
Sorry, Asriel. Frisk signed, frowning slightly.
“Alright, go off and play you three. Don’t go inside though, it’s nice out today.” They nodded and ran off, laughter and yells quickly filling the air. Rosi relaxed only marginally and sighed heavily. She was worried about Papyrus, but there was nothing she could do but worry it seemed. She wasn’t a healer, and if she was around him she may end up draining more of his magic, even if she didn’t want to. Sans stood at one point and grabbed lunch for them, sandwiches and tea, an impromptu picnic that had her smiling as he told jokes to the kids and got them to laugh. He stood at one point and chased Asriel around, Frisk perched on his shoulders while Rosi lounged with Chara on the blanket.
“You’re worried about Uncle Papy, aren’t you?” She asked suddenly, startling Rosi from her thoughts but she sighed and gave a rueful smile.
“Is it that obvious?”
“You’re tense, and you don’t look very happy, though you’re smiling.” Chara stated blandly, red eyes glinting. She gave a small smile and leaned back on her hands, watching Frisk, Asriel and Sans play.
“They make me worry, even more so cause I’m the older twin by ten minutes. Azzy is sixteen, but he acts like he’s seven sometimes. Child curiosity I guess.” She sighed and gave Rosi a slight glare at her confused expression.
“What? Don’t think Frisk and I are twins? We are, just becauseour skin in different. Our mother came from the Netherlands, our father from the islands in the Southern Asian seas.”
“No no! I believe you’re twins! I’ve seen stranger in the ocean. I just… I don’t understand land dwellers very well, I suppose.” she admitted. “You all try to hurt the other, with cutting words or through wars, or through needless strife.”
"We… We get a lot of stares.” Chara said after a minute, nodding. “If not because we don’t look like twins but because Frisk doesn’t always feel like a girl. We’re lucky, Monsters are pure intent and Mom and Dad are very understanding. Humans… Not so much.”
“Did you think I would judge you?” She asked, a little offended and Chara shrugged.
“I guess. Just cause you’re different from the rest of us doesn’t mean your thoughts are.”
That made Rosi pause for a moment before she hummed.
“There is something to say to pragmatic children.”
“Be quiet and sit down?” Chara laughed humorlessly but she was surprised when Rosi smiled and shook her head.
“No. You look at them and learn from them. And say thank you.” She gave Chara a light squeeze and hummed, standing and offering her hand to the child. “Shall we go and play with your brothers and Sans?” She was worried out of her mind about Papyrus, but she would only get in Toriel’s way at this point, and having stayed awake for three days, almost in a row, had certainly taken it’s toll on her body. Sunlight and fresh air would help, at least a little bit. Chara gave her a tentative smile and took her hand in her own, pale against light grey and wove their fingers together as Rosi pulled her to her feet.
“Yeah, I would like to.” She tugged Rosi along with her and laughed, smiling for the moment. Rosi felt herself giggling and enjoyed the rest of her day outside, playing a few running games with the children and laughing at Sans’ jokes, groaning once or twice when a particularly awful one came up. Asriel, Chara and Frisk, however, could see the worry they had for Papyrus and did their best to keep the pair distracted from their thoughts. By the time night fell, Rosi and Sans were thoroughly exhausted while Frisk, Chara and Asriel only appeared a bit winded as they dashed back to the house. Sans snorted and shook his head.
“They’re good kids.” Rosi said suddenly as they walked back, a little slower than the children.
“Yeah. We try.” Sans said with a soft snort. “Good souls need to be kept safe, and children, all too often, aren’t kept as safe as they should be.” There was a dark note in his voice that Rosi wasn’t sure if she wanted to know why it was there.
“Auntie Rosi! Uncle Sans! Come on! You’re so slow!” Chara yelled, waving in the weak light of the setting sun.
“Looks like we’re being summoned,” Sans said with an easy smile, his usual smirk back in place with a startling ease. It unnerved her how quickly he fell into that role, and it made her wonder what Sans was talking about, and how fast he would put his mask back into place if she tried to ask.
“Looks like,” she mumbled absently. Sans gave her a look and a small, genuine smile.
“I know you’re worried, but you shouldn’t. It’ll be okay.” And with that, he walked off, towards the large manor. Rosi stopped and watched him go for a minute before she let out a long sigh and shivered at the lack of heat, feeling something yawn in her stomach, threatening to swallow her whole. She wrapped her scarf a little tighter around herself and sped up to keep up with Sans.
Dinner was a quiet affair, but Rosi barely remembered what she ate, other than that it was good and settled in her stomach like a boulder. She retired early, excusing herself from the table before dinner was even halfway through and received a few sympathetic yet knowing looks and a soft pat on the hand from Toriel before she left the room. She walked to their room slowly, footsteps not quite dragging but still filled with lead in worry. Papyrus had been sleeping for nearly a week at this point, it was nerve wracking. Even if he’d had bouts of sickness before, it didn’t help ease her nerves. He looked so much more like a corpse, lying on their bed with little more than a faint rise and fall of his chest and occasional murmur to relieve those fears.
“Papy, get better…” she whispered, pressing her head to the door to their room like it would press the wish and make him better instantly. But then, Toriel had already worked all the magic she could on him, and Rosi didn’t want to see what a magical overload would do to a Monster like Papyrus, if for Sans it made him so unstable his inability to sleep was directly linked to it. She bit her lip and went inside, almost hoping for a change, for anything. But there was barely a change in his position at the sound of the door opening and closing, or of her changing for bed and curling up near but not quite touching him, making sure her magic was tightly sealed away so not to steal his excess magic.
_-_-_-_
The next two days, Rosi spent next to Papyrus, reading Sherlock Holmes to him softly in an attempt to fill the empty silence. Toriel and Helvetica stopped by periodically, and Sans was almost a constant fixture when he wasn’t being pulled away to play or to talk with Undyne and Alphys. She could feel her worry gnaw away at her nerves, like a dog on a bone. By the seventh day, the third day she’d been reading to Papyrus, she was alone with him. The room, which at first had felt comforting and homey because it had all the touches of Papyrus in it, it had felt like home because it was him, now felt cold and almost oppressive as the empty silence her words filled. Her hands shook slightly as she tried to turn the pages, and she tripped over the next few words.
“Elementary, my Dear Watson-” she paused, blinking when the words began to blur and run together, the bitter reminder of the sea hitting her tongue. She raised a hand and touched her cheeks, feeling the tears start to fall harder and faster as her chest started to rise and fall sharply, soft sobs escaping. She looked down at Papyrus’ sleeping form, the electric tang of magic heavy in the air, almost choking her as it teased her senses. It had been a week. Longer than Alphys had anticipated, longer than Rosi expected. Sans had told her yesterday that it wasn’t uncommon for Papyrus to fall into such a state, sleeping for long periods of time to regain and restabilize his magic but she could see his worry, sense his fear. It did little to comfort her.
'What if he doesn’t wake up?’ the traitorous voice whispered. 'What will you do then? You gave up life at sea, you will be dead meat, quite literally. There isn’t much for you here, Sans may be able to help but you will be a burden. Papyrus has yet to wake. He may not. His magic isn’t enough to sustain him.’
Rosi bit her lip hard enough to feel a sharp sting and slice of flesh, tang of blood flooding her mouth. She grabbed her handkerchief and pressed it to her lips, stemming the flow as tears kept streaming down her face. She couldn’t stop them from falling, though her lip slowly stopped bleeding.
“Please, Papy… Please wake up. P-Please… I-I can’t lose you…” she hiccupped, shaking badly as she stretched from the chair to the bed, putting her torso on the bed and grabbing his hand, squeezing his bones so tight she could hear them creak. She cried, mumbling pleas for him to wake up, to do anything but sleep. She cried until her tears ran red tracks down her cheeks and she was exhausted, close to falling asleep. Very faintly, she heard a weak chuckle and then,
“...Silly selkie… I’m going...to be… just fine.” He opened his eyes slowly and gave her a soft smile, running a hand through her hair. “Don’t… cry over me… dear.”
Rosi’s head shot up, tangling his fingers in her hair but she didn’t care. She felt relief and ire rise as he chuckled at what was probably a comical scene, his arm outstretched, hand caught in her hair and her voice cracking and hoarse as she snapped, “Shut up! You were asleep for a fucking week!”
“Oh, only a week this time? A record then,” he stopped when he saw how upset Rosi was and tugged her a little. “Come… here. You won’t get sick.” She crawls into bed and settles beside him, sniffling and feeling a little hurt and scared as Papyrus nuzzled her head, slowly detangling his hand from her hair and then slowly running his hand through her hair and then down her back.
“You were asleep for a week, Papyrus. I-I didn’t know what to think, or what to do, or if you were going to wake up-”
“Shhh, I’m going to be okay, Rosi. Don’t cry over me, my dear. I’m going to be just fine. I promise.” He murmured, pulling her closer. “Get some rest, I’ll be okay.” Rosi sniffed and nodded, cuddling against his side and falling asleep almost instantly. Papyrus sat up a little bit, and wrapped an arm around Rosi’s back, keeping her close as he settled against the pillows and headboard. He felt the pillow’s tugging themselves up and the book Rosi had been reading floated in front of his face.
“Sans, really?” He asked the room softly and his brother shook the curtains faintly.
“Nooo, I’m a ghost, not Sans~” His voice echoed around the room and Papyrus snorted softly.
“Stop playing, brother. We aren’t children any longer.” But he was smiling a little bit despite himself and watched Sans come from behind the curtains as if he’d walked through a wall.
“Aww, you’re smiling Paps.” He said with a tired smile, slumping in Rosi’s chair, eyelight dim from an obvious lack of sleep.
“Yes, but then you’re also sleep deprived, so you may be seeing things.” Papyrus pointed out and Sans shrugged.
“Worse things to hallucinate than seeing your big brother happy.”
Papyrus didn’t have a retort for that and simply nodded, sighing. “Come to bed, Sans.”
“Nah, I’m okay. Someone’s gotta stay awake to make sure you’re not a complete numbskull.”
“I told Undyne she could debate that point with you later, not you with me. You’re very quick to remind me of such things.”
“Someone has to, Paps.” Sans said with a sharp grin. “Now, get some sleep. I know you’re still tired, sleeping for a week or not.”
“Hmpnh.” Papyrus looked almost petulant, despite the obvious exhaustion being awake had driven him to.
“Aww, now who’s being a baby bones? Do I have to get Mother so she can drug you to sleep?” Papyrus went ashen and shook his head quickly and Sans chuckled darkly, the sound reverberating in his chest hollowly.
“Thought not. Now sleep brother.” Papyrus flipped his middle and index finger at Sans, who laughed softly, covering his mouth so not to wake Rosi. But, Papyrus did settle down to sleep and Sans leaned back in the chair, tugging his jacket a little closer to himself.
“Heh, happy birthday, Paps. Glad you’re awake this time.” He yawned and settled himself for a long vigil. He would have to tell their parents Papyrus was feeling better, but that the ball they had planned would have to be postponed. Then again, they may have already thought of that and would… invite them back for another stay. It would likely be a large affair, once again, and this time with the addition of announcing Papyrus and Rosi’s engagement.
Which left him as the most eligible bachelor in the family and prime estate to have every eligible, marrying age Monster and Human thrown at him. He winced at the thought and shook his head. They would hopefully avoid such things until later. He pushed those thoughts far from his mind and picked up the Sherlock Holmes novel. Penny novel or not, Doyle had a way with words. He flipped back to the beginning and crossed his legs, content. Papyrus and Rosi’s soft snoring filled the room, making it feel more and more like the cottage they called home. He smiled to himself and turned the page.
Chapter 3: Stressed Selkies, Stressed Skeletons and Sex (or Lack Thereof)
Summary:
Plans, trying to ignore your nature, dancing, slightly disturbing in-laws, and questionable moral compasses. Who doesn't love a good wedding?
Notes:
*pops up like a daisy from snow* I LIVE!!! Holy FUCK that was a long hiatus. I am so so so very sorry to everyone who's been waiting for this chapter and for me to FINALLY update. Life, university and just... my head being dumb have gotten in the way, that and the chapter was fighting me the whole way. I've rewritten several parts just so it flowed better, and I hope it worked. As always, I'm my own beta so if you see any glaring grammar, spelling, plot or formatting mistakes, let me know and I'll fix them soon as I'm able! To everyone who has been waiting, I'm so sorry for the wait and I hope this chapter makes up for my long long hiatus! This chapter is the longest I've ever written for this fic, and just saying this now, there's a lot of time skips. Alright, enough from me, on with the story!
No wait, I lied.
DISCLAIMER!! I OWN NOTHING! UNDERTALE BELONGS TO TOBY FOX, I OWN NOTHING, aside from the oc's and the plot to this story, I OWN NOTHING!!
Okay, now on with the story.
I hope you enjoy and that all is well!-RR
Chapter Text
“Alright, we’ll have the small wedding in the chapel and then the reception will be shortly after, out in the gardens at your parents, I already talked to them about it. Your father seemed particularly receptive to it.” Toriel said as she made a few notes in a journal. The table she, Rosi, Papyrus and Sans were sitting at was covered in semi-organized, mostly chaotic piles of paper, which Toriel had set and organized according to some system of another. Neither brother or Rosi could understand it, but refrained from messing with it or else risk the woman’s ire.
“Well, they are his pride and joy, more so than us we used to joke. Father always took pride in his ability to garden and make them more...robust than others.” Papyrus said with a small smile. Sans cackled, throwing his head back and wrapping his hands around his middle before he doubled over, wheezing,
“D-Do you r-remeber w-what he did to Lady Abbon’s gardens w-when it w-was t-time for the yearly competition?” he gasped and Papyrus began to chuckle, nodding.
“Clearly. He roped us into it as well.”
“What happened?” Rosi asked, staring at the pair like they’d gone mad, which she was a little worried that they had, at least from the way Sans was laughing almost hysterically and Papyrus’ eyelights had an almost evil gleam.
“There’s a woman, known as Lady Janice Abbon, who has a fantastic garden and our father always had an interest in it, and as our mother is prone to travelling, she brings back interesting and exotic plants for him to grow and he’s able to do so with just a touch of magic to the soil. But that aside, he never really meant for the garden to grow to the size it is now, but one evening Lady Abbon remarked how small his garden was, and how mother was always so busy, so he must have taken over for her, and said, I can see why you tend to your garden and your children, if your wife is neglectful to the garden I dread to think about your children. It’s no wonder your eldest has joined the Guard and your youngest left to join the abbey. ” he pitched his voice higher, almost nasal, making Rosi snicker at his impersonation, and if Sans’ laughter was anything to go by, it was a close match to the woman’s voice.
“Father didn’t take too kindly to that, as you may expect.” Papyrus said with a dark chuckle. Rosi paled slightly at the sound; even though the dark look in his eyes wasn’t directed at her, but at a memory, and the resonating laugh wasn’t for her, she felt fear shiver up her spine. She was also curious about Sans’ apparent past stint with an abbey but that would be a story for later.
“So, he immediately turns to her and asks her, ‘I’m sorry, what were you saying? I couldn’t hear you over the sound of your own ignorance. My wife has just returned from a long journey to Australia and spent three months there working with the local doctors and practitioners of magic in order to help find a cure for Karmic Retaliation. This gala is in honor of her success in several scientific breakthroughs. The only reason she is not attending as the guest of honor at this very moment is because she is tending to Sans’ recent illness and is close to healing him. As for my garden, it is lacking nothing. I have taken away most of the flower beds and hedges in order to make room for a new section, which will be going into place in a week, just in time for the yearly garden competitions, which I have won three years in succession, despite, as you said, my gardens small size . Now, before you accuse the poor judges of favoritism, mayhap you should look at your own gardens. It’s a pity, I was going to offer you some advice in how to make them at least presentable, but now you have dashed the thought from my mind. Ah, and there’s my son, Papyrus. Please excuse me,’ and he walked off.”
“You heard all of that?” Rosi asked skeptically and Papyrus snorted, shaking his head.
“Oh, no. Frisk did, and then told me what happened afterwards. He is quite the useful little informant, seeing as most think that children are meant to be seen instead of heard, and given his age at the time, it makes sense that most would underestimate his and Chara’s intelligence.” Papyrus said with a softer snicker.
“But, what happened to Lady Abbon’s garden was a masterpiece. Mother found out what father had done and decided to smooth things over. She gave Father a lecture in preserving contacts and ensuring people’s loyalty, though she was flattered with him defending her character, though it was ultimately unnecessary. She gave him a potted plant and he, Sans and myself went to visit Lady Abbon and her garden.” At this point, Sans, who had managed to calm down at least a little bit, started to laugh even harder, a loud ‘Mwehehehehehe!’ that had Toriel and Rosi laughing along with him.
“Father had a rare plant with him and gave it to Lady Abbon’s as an apology and to show there was no ill will, Sans and I, having gone with him, gave her some of our own scientific abilities, which helped grow her garden. It grew, and grew, in the span of only a few weeks, becoming as beautiful as father’s even. But, we warned her against using too much, and against using Sans’ growth hormone for plants near our father’s gift. The silly sheep didn’t listen,” Papyrus spread his hands in an innocent gesture but there was a darkly pleased smile on his face. “She used them anyways and the flower didn’t grow. But everything else did. In the span of two weeks, just as the competition was coming around, her garden was full and beautiful, but it just kept growing and she had to come to us in order to have her garden fixed. Indeed, it was overgrown so far that it was creating an obstruction near the front door and all through the gardens.”
Rosi paled, her laughter becoming faintly nervous as she saw the darker side of Papyrus. It was an odd sight; she’d rarely seen it as he was so kind and giving on a usual circumstance. Then she thought back to every time that someone had given her a look, a leer or obviously sized her over and before she could so much as blink, Papyrus had them moving rather quickly in the opposite direction with a dark look dubbed by Sans as his Evil Eye. She’d only seen the actual expression once and was immediately glad for the fact that she wasn’t on Papyrus’ bad side.
He entire face changed, usually warm emerald green eyelights growing darker as his surprisingly expressive face crinkled at the corners of wide smile, shaper than a new razor’s edge. The bone around his sockets seemed to crinkle a little as his brow line furrowed in distaste, as something deeply disturbing seemed to flash in his eyes. It made her more animalistic side rise up, a faint flash of her teeth visible before he turned back to her and they continued on their walk. The dark look had been there for all of fifteen seconds but it was enough.
Sans took a few calming breaths, picking himself back off the ground and settling back into his chair, before he propped his head up on his palm and gave Rosi a look as he said,
“Don’t worry, Rosi, we’re not likely to do somethin’ like that to anyone who-” he cut himself off mid sentence, head sliding off his palm and head almost colliding with the table had Toriel not caught it, pulling her shawl off her shoulders and folding it with one hand neatly and easily before putting it under Sans’ head and letting him down gently on the soft cashmere. She gave his skull a few pats and then turned back to her writing.
“What Sans was about to say, I assume, was that we aren’t likely to do that kind of trick to anyone who doesn’t deeply deserve such a treatment.” he reached out and laid his hand, palm up, for her to take, a soft smile on his face, dark green eye lights glowing softly as before. She sighed and let her hand rest in his, dark brown eye’s watching his, but he only smiled and lifted it, running his boney thumb over her calloused and scarred knuckles. They sat side by side, but the contact was nice.
“You two are so adorable, I hope you know that.” Toriel said idly, watching them with mild amusement before sorting through more of her papers and making more notes.
“...I have to ask, Tori, but what exactly are you doing?” Papyrus asked after several minutes of watching the other, Rosi nodding.
“None of us know what half of this even means…” Rosi added, flipping carefully through the closest pile.
“Why, it’s everything I’ve accumulated for your wedding of course!” she said with a wide smile. “Now, Rosi, you’ll need a Maid of Honor, as well as bridesmaids, Chara and Frisk have already claimed being the flower children and Azzy said he would be your ring bearer, Papyrus. You’ll need a best man, or men, as well. I assume that’s Sans, Grillby, and Blooky?” Papyrus nodded, sighing, and Rosi looked confused.
“What’re bridesmaids? Or a Maid of Honor? Or best men?” Once Toriel and Muffet had taken over the wedding planning, she’d happily left it to the other women, having no way of making heads or tails of the seemingly insane amount of ceremony.
“Well, bridesmaids were traditionally used to help keep the bride safe from a previous suitor who may have been jealous, thus why your dress will be similar to the ones your bridesmaids wear. They are also there to help keep you calm and make sure that your hair, makeup and outfit are all done to perfection. You remember Undyne, Alphys and Muffet, yes? You told me two weeks ago that you would leave who your bridesmaids were up to me, so I picked the only three women I knew were your friends. Were you thinking of anyone else?”
“Alphys almost fainted when she found out I was a selkie and muttered about magical readings, Undyne is… Undyne and Muffet won’t let me leave her shop half the time, and the other half I’m almost worried she’s going to eat me. And no, they fit fine.” she was smiling as she thought of the other three women.
They were good friends, and they were kind, in their own ways. She’d also met Grillby a few months back, shortly after they returned from the estate. He was quiet at first but a few jokes and talking, he loosened up and talked to her. He was interesting and fun to talk to, and very kind, though he was slightly wary around humans. When she asked why, he merely crackled, “Bad experiences.. I try not to let them color what I see in every human, however.” Sans, who had been sitting next to her, rubbed his scars and the holes in his hands, wincing like they were fresh jolts of pain. She changed the subject quickly after that.
“Hmn,” Toriel nodded. “Well, unless you want to go out and find some more people, I would stick with who you know now.” Rosi shook her head quickly.
“No no, I’m fine with them. I don’t mind meeting new people, mind you, it’s just… too many of them.” she said, ashy skin paling a bit at the thought of dealing with the press of bodies, a living, roaring wave that could break a neck if she weren’t careful.
“Of course, dear. I know you’re not one for crowds, which is why this is going to be a private ceremony. Those invited will come to the chapel near the estate, and then the reception afterwards. Now, the issues left to resolve are finding the priest, flowers, dresses, suits, makeup, food and cake.” she shifted a few piles around. “Oh, and the invitations, which then leaves seating arrangements as well.”
“No, there’s also the engagement ball Mother and Father are holding.” Sans mumbled, apparently not as asleep as they’d thought. He picked his head up, resting his head on his chin once more, free hand drumming on the table top. Papyrus nodded.
“I was sick and then we skipped the Christmas one due to Sans’ own health and Rosi was too cold to leave the house for very long.” Papyrus said with a long sigh. “Father’s letter said it would be in a week and a half, I just got the letter yesterday. Do you think you’re up for the trip, Sans? You weren’t doing so well a few weeks ago, and I worry it’s not over just yet.”
Sans shrugged and yawned, blinking slowly. His bones shuddered every now and then as faint golden magic sparked off his fingers but he didn’t look any worse for wear, which was quite the feat given how his magic had been so unwieldy he had begged Rosi to drain some of it off of him. At first, she had refused until Sans was practically sobbing, the magical congestion in his system making his bones creak and he struggled to contain it within his own boney structure. He had refused to allow Papyrus anywhere near him, as the first crack he had on his right socket had been from Sans’ magic lashing out when the magic first began to build up and react. Rosi, under the careful eyes of Alphys and Toriel, managed to drain most of the excess magic out of him though she felt ill afterwards as the magic fought against her own.
“That’s not an answer, brother.” Papyrus said softly, reaching out a hand to touch one of Sans’ but when he flinched Papyrus stopped and waited. A moment later and Sans reached over and laid his head down on his arm, free hand that Papyrus had been trying to grab tentatively touching his before he curled his fingers with Papyrus’ longer, thicker, rough hewn bones and clutched tight, two of his fingers curling through the hole in his hand. Papyrus’ thumb ran over his knuckles until Sans finally said,
“Worst comes to worse, Father or Mother could come and get us, I don’t doubt they’d be able to.” He yawned and curled his fingers just a little tighter and then fell asleep once more, a little more relaxed now that he felt grounded and his magic wasn’t acting up.
“How would they do that?” Rosi asked, leaning against Papyrus’ shoulder easily, fiddling with her shawl; it was a lovely dusky blue-black with small silver beads that looked like the night sky. Papyrus had made it for her for Christmas. She noted with pride, and some embarrassment, as he crossed his legs, one leg resting on his knee, that he was wearing her attempts at socks, which were a little too large even for his feet, but far thicker than socks probably should be and acted more like slippers. They pooled at his ankles and he constantly had to pull them up, as he had no flesh. He wore them all the time around the house and refused to take them off all winter, claiming that the cold made his bones shake, even when Sans pointed out that the cold went right through them usually. She appreciated it nonetheless.
“Where do you think we get our abilities from, my dear?” Papyrus asked with a faint smile and Rosi huffed, rolling her eyes, pulling her hand from his and crossing her arms.
“I figured that much out, you ass. But you said that Monster’s develop their own brand of magic, even skeleton’s.”
“That’s very true, but Sans and I also have Boss Monster’s for parents, which are just very powerful, very magically talented Monsters. Both of our parents can do Void magic, which are such things like teleportation, shortcuts and side stepping calculations. That,” he continued at Rosi’s blank look, “is when we’re in a Battle or a Fight and for a few seconds, we can peer, in a sense, into an opponent's attack and just seconds before they move, we can move out of the way. However, it’s incredibly taxing and may not be right. You also have to focus completely on it, and it only works with one opponent at a time.” he squeezed Sans’ fingers and wrapped an arm around Rosi’s middle, drawing her closer as he pulled the leg of her chair, the sound making a faint crennkk scrpppe as her weight shifted and their chairs clanked together before he continued,
“If more than one human is fighting us, we can only concentrate on that attack and we’ll be left open to any other attacks. Some, like my brother, can actually run the calculation and move from place to place without too much strain but used repeatedly, over the course of a fight, against someone with high LV or even high HP can be taxing.”
It seemed there was something darker there but Rosi knew better than to try and pry at Papyrus’ darker memories. He would mentally stop processing for a few minutes and when he came back, it was more absent and darker than she’d seen him. Sans would just change the subject with terrible jokes that were far darker than she’d heard from the skeleton and after one or two, she took the hint and let the whole thing drop. It should unsettle her that she knew so little about either of their pasts, really only a bare minimum, but then she hadn’t told them about her own darker moments either.
“What else can they do? The same thing as you two?” She asked instead, feeling his grip tighten for just a moment, letting her arms rest over top his. Papyrus hummed and rested his head on hers, cheek pressed into her hair for just a moment before he shifted and lifted his head.
“My mother has a skill with emotional magics, and magic that affects the mental and emotional states of whomever she chooses, which can leave you feeling… Odd. You’ll know if she uses it on you, you’ll feel more relaxed than normal. And you may not remember what you were talking about if she uses it for a lengthy period of time. My father has a gift with Souls, beyond the gravitational control Sans and I have. He can, I suppose, manipulate them, outside of a battle. He and my mother can also conjure multiple hands to help them with work and open up portals to the Void, blanketing their magic over top the other and creating a very potent entrapment. That aside, Father and Mother have their own bullet patterns and attacks that aren’t brought out very often, due to various reasons.”
Comfortable silence fell between the pair after that, half cuddling each other as Toriel kept writing and making notes of things, muttering to herself every now and then, before she made a happy noise and said,
“Oh, Papyrus dear, Muffet said she’d do the cake and Grillby said he would help provide the drinks, you simply had to tell him what you wanted. So, that means you will have to go to see Muffet before too long and talk to her about what kind of cake you want to have. She may have samples for you to try. If you agree, that will solve the cake and the catering issues neatly.” she shifted a few things around once more.
“...Well, that will be an experience…” Papyrus muttered and Rosi raised her eyebrows. She’d met Muffet outside of her bakery, and spent time with her, being her beta tester for various treats while she and Sans baked and cooked. She had run off a sugar high for almost two days afterwards and refused anything remotely sweet for two weeks.
“Muffet said she’d give you a discount, seeing as she and Rosi get along so well, and because I told her she was one of Rosi’s bridesmaids. That still leaves a Maid of Honor… Maybe we could have two bridesmaids instead of three? Though that would put the best men and bridesmaids at odds in terms of numbers and we can’t very well tell the best men that there can only be two of them,”
Rosi interrupted her. “Tori, I was wondering actually, would you like to be my maid of honor? I don’t understand half of what needs to be done and you can coordinate far more than I can when it comes to people and monsters.”
Even with longer exposure to crowds and little contact with anyone she knew, she still got overwhelmed and had panic attacks when the crowd became too intense and she could no longer tell who was what or where. Having Papyrus or Sans there was very helpful and gave her something to focus on, but it was still overwhelming and she would have to find a quieter space to be. Luckily, the brothers were very good at figuring out when she was reaching her limits and managed to get out of the conversation and directing her to the quieter parts of an area; a balcony, a garden, a study or a quiet shop.
It made her feel so useless and pathetic, so very small and weak but neither brother would let her feel that way for very long. Sans would distract her with easy conversation about different baking attempts he wanted to try or, more often, terrible puns, and Papyrus would start chattering about everything and anything that came to mind, drawing her into conversation and keeping her distracted that way. Both of them kept constant contact with her while she tried to regain her composure as well, just casual things.
Holding hands, a hand on the small of her back, an arm around her waist, linking their arms together. It helped to ground her faster and they understood it better than she did herself. They never treated her like she was made of glass, before or after it happened, just found a way to make her feel better and bring her out of her panic. Toriel was looking at her in dead silence, eyes wide and her mouth hanging open just a little bit and Rosi began to worry that she’d made a social faux pas. Landwalkers had so many rules and terms of engagement, especially amoung friends and she could only hope that she hadn’t made a blunder.
“Tori?” she asked carefully, watching the other woman with a bit of fear in her eyes.
Toriel stood slowly and walked around the other side of the table to Rosi and Papyrus. Rosi felt like her heart was going to leap out of her chest when she was pulled up out of Papyrus’ arms and into a warm, if slightly smothering, hug by the goat woman.
“Oh, my dear, of course I will be!” Toriel exclaimed, though the volume was slightly muffled by the fact that Rosi was slowly being smothered by Toriel’s breast as the other taller woman picked her up off the ground and crushed her to her body.
“Tori, you may want to let her breathe,” Papyrus said, grinning a bit. Toriel looked like she could cry she was so excited at the prospect. She nodded and Rosi took a breath, coughing faintly as she was able to breathe properly again, feet firmly back on the ground.
“Oh, my dear, I will make this wedding the best you will ever have!” Toriel exclaimed, beaming as she dabbed tears away with a light pink handkerchief, a wide smile on her muzzle.
“People have more than one wedding?” Rosi asked, head tilting to the side a bi as she calmed. She was under the impression that most who married stayed married to their partner unless something tragic happened, but that Monster’s stayed unmarried usually if they lost their mate if they even survived.
“Well, various reasons can lead to more than one wedding. I’ve already explained to you that Monsters usually don’t remarry if they seperate, as if they are mated with a bond, they will not be able to add to a new bond, which can be unfair to the Monster they may be courting them. Or, Monsters may marry humans, or a human may marry multiple partners, though secretly. Many humans frown upon that way of living, others are indifferent and think like Monsters in that love is simply love and deserves to be shared among those who wish it. Humans who lose their partner may remarry or they may stay widowed, it depends on them. There are also divorces, but again it depends on the couple.” Toriel explained as Rosi settled back in her seat, Papyrus wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close.
“How do you bond?” she asked and Toriel blinked a bit before a blush rose to her cheeks.
“Well, I believe that is a conversation for you and Papyrus, Rosi.” she pulled out her pocket watch and started to pick up her papers and books, somehow starting to tame the chaos. “Well, it’s time for me to go I think. Frisk and Chara will be waiting for me to return and I’m sure Azzy is quite done with his siblings shenanigans if Asgore hasn’t already gotten home. Why don’t you two take a walk and… discuss things. I will make sure Sans gets to a bed.” her brisk tone left no room for arguing so the pair nodded and stood. Papyrus was looking everywhere but Rosi, a dark green blush on his cheeks as he looped his arm with hers, heading out the kitchen door, barely remembering to grab their coats before they were outside.
Wordless, he handed her her jacket and pulled on his own. When she had her own situated just how she liked over her shawl, he gently wound their fingers together and walked side by side with her, quiet. Rosi knew that pushing Papyrus was useless, he would talk when he wanted to talk so she just hummed a few silly songs she’d heard at Grillby’s as they walked along, enjoying the scenery.
It was a beautiful early spring day, the air a little heavy with impending rain, but the smell of wet dirt, grass and early blooming flowers mixed with the faint smell of salt from the sea made her feel giddy. Their muffled footsteps and the dull thd of Papyrus’ cane on the dirt path filled the easy silence. She leaned against him, and heard more than felt his bones relax and tense as he walked. It was soothing, familiar.
“You bond by pressing your Soul’s together.” Papyrus said finally. “It is a very intimate experience, you see every moment of the other’s life, or I suppose… The defining moments of their life. What made them who they were, important pieces to them, lasting memories, bad and good, and things that make no sense. You have no control over it or how much is shown, or what your partner will feel in return. Sometimes it’s too fast to follow, but other it’s said that it’s impossible not to see everything, and sometimes you feel the other. But every mated, bonded pair will tell you that they know when the other is in danger, when something has happened because it is indescribably painful, like your very being is being ripped in two. And that is what a Soul is. It is the culmination of your very being, everything that makes you who you are. It can become scarred and heal, and the color reflects your base personality. It can change from a child to an adult, as children aren’t very stable when they’re young and their magic will be in a state of flux.”
Rosi nodded and hummed softly. She loved listening to him, his voice was soothing and when he was interested in topics, his voice would become more animated, his hands soon joining. Even when they were holding hands. He refused to let go, and would instead gesture, one hand free and the other clasped tight with her own. She smiled as he started to do it.
“I’m not sure how it is for selkie’s, but magic tends to settle down around five or six at the oldest. Some monsters take longer to settle their magic, and others magic becomes incredibly unstable, difficult to live with to say the least.” he paused and Rosi rubbed his knuckles with her thumb, making a soft trill in the back of her throat. Slowly, he relaxed and sighed. “But you already know all about that kind of magic, don’t you dear?”
“Mnh. I wouldn’t say it’s a problem, though. You and Sans are both unique in your own ways. Your magic is unstable, not defective and from the sound of it, weaker beings would have died from the complications it causes. That just proves you’re stronger, now doesn’t it?” she said with a warm smile, nuzzling against his shoulder.
“You say that now,” Papyrus muttered.
“Paps, I’ve lived with you for almost seven months. I can honestly say that your magic isn’t a problem, it’s beautiful in it’s own way, as is Sans’. I don’t know what happened that made your magic unstable and I won’t ask you unless you want to talk about it in detail. There’s more to that story, but until you’re ready to tell me, I won’t pry.” she said bluntly.
He’d explained to her once, yes. But he never told her how he or Sans got those circular marks in their palms, or how he got the thicker scars along his ribs and pelvis, or how Sans lost his left eyelight, how he received his own scars. She knew he woke up from nightmares, had anxiety just as she did but over different things. But, he still wouldn’t tell her. She knew he trusted her, just as she trusted him. But somethings were too painful to think about, let alone tell someone else about.
He gave her a smile and nuzzled against her head, sighing happily as he tightened his hold on her hand and mumbled,
“Thank you, my silly selkie,”
“No problem, you silly skeleton.” she smiled, dark brown, near black eyes soft as she leaned against him, corners of her eyes crinkling with newly forming laugh lines, her smile sharp yet sweet. They stayed like that for a while, just breathing in the fresh air and enjoying the stillness of the path. There was the distant call of people, the sound of horses and mules pulling carts in the small town, the sway of the tree’s creaking as the fresh bark and new leaves swayed with the wind.
“Well, do you want to go to town or head back to the cottage?” Papyrus asked after a while, not pulling away.
“I think we should head into town. I need to pick up some stationary and actually write out the invitations and you can do the seating arrangements. We’re going to your parents in what, a week?”
“Week and four days, yes,” Papyrus sighed. “Mother is excited, no doubt, and Father is probably giddy.”
Helvetica and Gaster had calmed down substantially since she’d last seen them, almost four months ago, sending weekly letters, though they didn’t come out for Christmas due to Sans being sick and they themselves having different parties to attend, though they sent letters and even pictures of eligible Monsters and Humans for Sans to look over. They were all promptly burned. Rosi had ripped a few up herself for him when he’d fallen asleep and threw them into the fire with the rest while Papyrus stoked it higher.
“Lovely,” she sighed. “Your parents make me want to run for the hills half the time, Paps.”
“Try living with them,” he snorted. “There’s always more behind what they do than anyone thinks, and the phrase curiosity killed the cat but satisfaction brought it back was less of a phrase and more a mindset as we were growing up. Some days I wonder where their morals lie, if they have any to begin with.”
Rosi went quiet and simply nodded. She knew how intense the pair could be, and she’d seen the softer side, however brief. There was something to be said about the way Hel and Gaster seemed to change, constantly shifting, pulling and rolling, like the sea itself. It was an insane notion to attempt to understand it, to try and break open the secrets that laid at its depths. Only the foolish and the insane attempted. They never returned. She got the feeling that trying to uncover Gaster and Helvetica’s secrets would lead one down a very dark and deadly path, and one that they wouldn’t return from. Though, now she understood just a little bit more what Sans had said all those months ago, after she’d seen Gaster’s darker, albeit protective, nature.
It’s a little comforting to have the dark on your side when you live in it. You know what’s there.
“Rosi?” Papyrus asked, jolting her from her thoughts and she shook her head.
“Sorry, love. I was just thinking.”
“Penny for your thoughts?”
“My thoughts are worth more than a penny,” she countered, teasing.
“They are,” he said with a bright grin, “But I only have a penny. Could I interest you in a tab?”
“Are you going to pay it?”
“Unlike my brother, I do not hold out on such things,” Papyrus said with a huff and an eyeroll, though the mirth that made his emerald green eyelights just a little brighter and the slight upturn of his cheekbones as he fought down a smile gave him away.
She kept a serious look on her face before she started to giggle, then laugh, her barking laughter ringing between them as he began to chuckle his,
“Nyhehehehehe,” which only made her laugh harder, his laughter infectious.
When they managed to calm down to giggles and soft chuckling, Rosi took a breath and shook her head.
“I was just thinking about the invitations, who we were going to invite. We have our own friends to include, as well as the political people that will inevitably be there.” she tightened her grip on his hand then sighed. “I really just wanted something quiet, nothing extravagant or loud. Family and friends, maybe, and some good food and a nice dress.”
Papyrus rubbed his thumb over her calloused knuckles and nuzzled against her temple. “The wedding in a whole month out, dear. We’ll be at the manor in a week and a half, give or take a day or two, and then we’ll be able to plan. Toriel will be by again tomorrow to go over more plans, and we can go visit Muffet ourselves. Mother and Father will have the food for the reception planned out, Grillby will provide excellent alcohol and everything will be fine.”
“We’re keeping Sans away from the alcohol, yes?”
“A drunk Sans is a punny Sans,” Papyrus said with a faint grimace.
“And a punny Sans never shuts up,” Rosi finished with a wide grin.
He chuckled, the sound lighter and less forced. His bones creaked a little as he actually relaxed and she tugged his hand a bit and they continued to walk along towards the town, talk shifting towards the different things they would need to get done before the start of the wedding. And even when they got to the manor, there would be no shortage of things to get done.
The trip to town went by quicker than either wanted, familiar faces calling rushed greetings before they were back off, setting up for the rest of Spring. Storms would start blowing in from the coast soon enough, so anyone with half a mind was rushing to get supplies in case of floodings or emergency repairs, or food shortages. The baker’s, Terri and Bonnie, were selling loaves at a half price, two loaves for four pennies, four loaves for six, and tucking in extra smaller loaves here and there where they could. Gerson’s shop, which sold various goods, more or less a general store of the small town, was just as busy. There was a sense of urgency but no one seemed panicked. The air itself was charged, waiting, but the townsfolk had weathered storm after storm. It would be just as every other storm season, in like a lion, out like a lamb.
They bought what they needed but due to how busy his store was, Gerson didn’t have much time for chatter other than,
“Ay, you two will be a good pair that’ll be certain.” his rough voice broke off with a cough and he waved off the worry before Papyrus or Rosi could do more than open their mouths. “Achck, don’t worry about me. I’ve kicked this sickness to the curb more than once. Just an old unwanted visitor at this point,” he coughed and cleared his throat. “Now, off with ya. You got a weddin to finish planning,” and with a wink, he pushed their items, a stationary kit and a simple pen, as well as a small notebook, towards them.
“Thank you Gerson, and if you need anything, please don’t hesitate,” Papyrus said as Rosi gathered their things, nodding herself.
“This town wouldn’t be nearly as lively without you in it,” she said, half teasing.
Gerson just laughed, though a faint blush was visible on the tortoise's cheeks. “Alright, off with you! I have more customers!”
Papyrus nodded and sighed and Rosi gave him a slightly sharp smile before they left, making their way back up to the cottage.
By the time they got back, Toriel had long been gone, and when Papyrus went to check on him, Sans was still dead asleep, curled up around his pillow as his leg half hung off the bed and the sheets were tangled around his middle like some kind of strange wrapping. Quietly, he made his way around the stacks of books, surprisingly small mounds of clothes and picked up the thick comforter that had been tossed off his younger brother’s bed. He folded it and laid it at the foot, then gently rearranged Sans so he would be more comfortable and his bones wouldn’t lock up in an award position. He still snored, even as Papyrus repositioned his head and tucked him in loosely to bed, smiling at him. Gently, carefully, he ran his fingers over the scars that ran over Sans’ eye sockets and felt that old rage stir, restless, deep within his Soul.
‘ I’m so sorry brother… I failed you so many times. ’
“Paps?” Rosi’s soft voice brought him out of his thoughts before he could really bury himself in guilt and pain. He looked a little over his shoulder and there she was, the package still pressed against her chest and worry in her eyes, a frown pulling at the corners of her lips. He gave her a smile that was strained at the corners and the frown turned into pursed lips and understanding dawning a moment later. She moved carefully through Sans’ room and lightly touched his shoulder and he gave a soft sigh but followed her back out, closing the door most of the way behind himself. She led him to the living room, where she set the stationary kit and then looked at him until he sat down. She cuddled up next to him, his arms wrapping around her and pulling her closer as she rested her head against his chest, his head on her’s.
Thmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpn rang in her ear, the steady beat of his Soul. The very essence that he needed to stay together. Everything that made him up, everything that made him who he was and it was inches from her ear. The part of her that she held down so very tightly bucked and squirmed to get its fangs into that juicy Soul. Pierce it, drain it, drink it. Suck the marrow from his bones, lick up the dust and ashes-
“Rosi? Are you alright?”
She took a shuddering breath and gave him a faintly blank look before she said,
“Yeah, I’m-I’m good.”
“You’re thinking about it again, aren’t you?” he asked, but there wasn’t any judgment or fear in his voice, just simple fact. She was thinking about his magic, about everything that held him together. “Do you want to talk about it?” he asked, voice warm and unwavering.
“I swear I won’t drain you, I wouldn’t even think about it. You know you’re not food to me, neither is Sans or any of our friends. I-I...” she trailed off.
“Rosi, breathe,” he reminded her gently, rubbing at her sides slowly before she started to take deeper breaths and relaxed incrementally. “It’s a part of you but it is not you . You are not going to hurt me, or Sans or any of our friends because you care too much about us. You are a wonderful woman and you are stronger than your nature.”
“What if I’m not , Papyrus?” her voice cracked with emotion and he gave her a sad smile, kissing her forehead.
“You are,” he said simply. “You are because you are fighting it. And I will hold you forever, unafraid of you, your nature and your magic. You’re my best friend, Rosi. I will not let you down, or let you go so easily.”
Her finger clutched to his shirt and once more she laid her head against his chest, breathing deeply with him. It was calming and that steady thmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpn became less of the instinctual need to eat and helped to calm her down.
“That’s the sixth time in four months that your instincts have risen up like that,” Papyrus said softly, nuzzling her temple once more. “And yet, you haven’t listen to it once.”
“I know,” she mumbled before pulling away a little and gave him a long look. “What was bothering you, with Sans? You looked upset and angry. Like you could strangle someone.”
Papyrus was silent for several long minutes, just tracing his fingers over her ribs and following invisible patterns along her dress. It was soothing, repetitive, calming and helped to organize his thoughts piece by piece.
“It… It has to do with his scars. I’m supposed to be his older brother, and yet I failed to protect him. I couldn’t even protect myself.”
Rosi shifted, but didn’t make a sound as she waited for him to continue on with his story, or if he even would. Thmpnthmpnthmpnthmpnthmpn beat underneath her fingers.
“I told you how my erratic magic became erratic in the first place, the slice to my cervical vertebrae. And, earlier, we told you that Sans had been heading to the abbey to become a priest. He wanted to do it, surprisingly with no influence from our parents. He found the whole idea relaxing and I think he found it a way to help others when he couldn’t use science or magic. Well, he… he didn’t go into the abbey, obviously. He never became a priest, he never did anything with that dream because he was almost killed and I was too weak to stop it.”
“Papyrus, stop.” Rosi said, voice firm but her eyes were softer. She didn’t miss the way his voice was choking or the way his grip on her ribs had become almost painful. His teeth were grinding faintly, a habit he detested and only came out when he was well and truly stressed and if he kept talking, she knew the tears in his voice would start to pour out of his sockets. When he looked at her, she said, “Stop pushing yourself to talk about it when you’re not ready to. I don’t care if I never know how you two got those scars. What I care about is knowing that I can help you remember that I will always be here for you, and that whoever did this will have to get past me if they even want to catch a glimpse of you. You’re my home, Papyrus. I love you. I don’t need to know the story if you’re not ready to tell it.”
“How did I get so lucky?” Papyrus mumbled, pulling her close and Rosi’s lips quirked into a smile-smirk, eyes still burning with passion and a quieter understanding.
“Thank boulders and broken bones, I assume,” she said dryly and he chuckled.
“Yes, I suppose I should.” he yawned and shook his head. “I think I’m going to take a nap,” he mumbled.
“Alright. I’m going to try to write out some of the invitations. Do you want to move upstairs or stay here?”
“Here is fine. You’re here,” his voice trailed off as he started to fall asleep and Rosi kissed his chin, smiling sadly. Her skeleton pushed himself far too much. She shifted a little and pulled the stationary into her lap and grabbed a book to write on. It would be a template invitation, one that she would copy when she was sitting at a proper desk and after she took a well-deserved nap with her fiance. Writing the template invitation didn’t take much time at all and when she was done, she capped the bronze nibbed pen then curled up in Papyrus’ strong arms and burrowed against his chest, almost purring from the warmth.
_-_-_-
The next week and a half was a blur of meeting with Toriel to go over the last of the details, finishing invitations and then sending them off in express mail, going to the city to meet Muffet and go over cake flavors. Toriel whisked Rosi away to meet up with her bridesmaids at a wedding boutique where they would pick out the bridesmaids dresses while Sans dragged Papyrus out for a suit fitting. When Rosi asked about her own wedding dress, Toriel told her not to worry and directed her attention towards more dresses. In between all of this, they were packing for a months stay at the manor house. By the end of it all, Papyrus and Rosi were exhausted.
“Rise and shine love birds!” Sans called as he opened the door to their room.
“Brother?” Papyrus asked, blinking slowly at the other as Rosi whined and tugged a pillow over her head. “What the fuck are you doing? Don’t you know what time it is?”
“Yeah, it’s noon. Mother and Father expected us at nine this morning,” Sans teased, chuckling at Papyrus’ slowly dawning horror. “If I’m honest, I’m surprised you two haven’t slept longer what with everything you’ve been doing. Now come on. I’ve already taken the trunks back home, and now I’m just here to collect you two.” his grin was wry, amused but worry sparked in his golden eye light.
Rosi sighed and sat up, hair mussed and sticking up in most every direction, slight bags under her eyes.
“Do I have to dance tonight?” she yawned.
“No, the ball is tomorrow night but they wanted to see us before things really picked up. So, I suggest you get dressed before Mother and Father decided to come and get us themselves. You know how they get,”
Papyrus sighed and nodded, rolling his neck to crack it. “Very well. We’ll be dressed in five minutes or so, brother.”
Sans rolled his eye but left, saying, “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before, Paps, and Rosi traipses around naked.” but he did leave and shut the door firmly behind himself.
Rosi grumbled but crawled out of bed and went to the closet, pulling out a rich green dress, stockings and boots, peeling her nightgown off of herself before folding it up and tossing it towards the bed. It landed in a disorganized heap at the foot of the bed, but the intent was there as she pulled on her dress and smoothed out the skirts. It wasn’t a thick skirt and it was easy to move around in, but there was a bit of weight to it. Papyrus moved behind her automatically and slowly tightened the ribbons until they were at Rosi’s preferred tightness. As she turned around and wrapped her arms around him in a warm, happy hug, she could see he was dressed in his favorite charcoal suit with a light green tie.
“You two done?” Sans called out and Papyrus chuckled.
“Yes, brother, you can come in,” he said, voice a little louder.
There was a soft sound of creaking boards before the other skeleton was walking through the door. He looked at Rosi then Papyrus and reached out for their hands.
“You got everything?” he asked.
The pair paused and thought for a moment. Everything they’d needed for the month should, realistically, be in the trunks and Toriel would be at the manner tomorrow for the engagement party. Rosi nodded and Sand chuckled.
“A’ight,” before he took their hands tightly in his own and took a single step backwards, pulling them with him through the endless emptynothingvoidohGOd before they were standing in the middle of Papyrus’ room at the manner, their trunk sitting at the foot of their bed and the room itself immaculate, though the slightly off feeling that a too clean, unlived in room made Rosi feel out of sorts for a moment. “Heh. Well,” Sans yawned. “I’m gonna go crash. Mother and Father are expecting you two. I fended them off long as I could, but you’re still expected to make an appearance.”
The sleepy couple sighed but straightened as Sans let go of their hands and Rosi rolled her neck, popping the joints as she prepared herself mentally for tea with the older couple. Sans headed out the door and down the hall, leaving the door just slightly ajar.
“Shall we?” Papyrus asked Rosi, holding out his arm for her to take and Rosi nodded, looping her arm with his.
“We shall.”
And with that, the couple left the room and went down several halls, past the paintings and tapestries, the large sunny windows that had been thrown open every now and then to clear out the house of the lingering winter haze. Papyrus stopped a servant and asked them where Helvetica and Gaster could be found, the young man blinking at him in mild confusion, having not expected to see him so soon but told him,
“In the sunroom, Mr. Papyrus,”
“Thank you, Henry, isn’t it?”
The young man nodded, looking shocked as Papyrus gave him a thankful smile and nod as Rosi smiled and gave a small wave, too tired to properly speak.
“Well, have a good rest of your day, Henry.” and they left the young man standing there for a moment before he went on his way, a smile pulling at his lips.
Down a flight of stair and down a few more halls, two lefts and a right, they finally reached the sunroom, where Gaster and Helvetica were, of all things, dancing. Their movements were smooth, relaxed, as they stepped around the room. Both of the skeletons were smiling, their expressions softer than Rosi had ever seen and she wasn’t even sure that they knew she and Papyrus were standing there. It felt almost intrusive, like they were walking in on the pair during an intimate moment.
Gaster had his arm wrapped a little lower around Hel’s back than most would, his hand splayed at her hip and holding her close, their other hands joined and lower in the air than would be normal for a dancing couple. Hel was grinning, her own body pressed almost too close to Gaster’s. Her arm was draped over his shoulder, fingers laying on his shoulder and rubbing teasingly at his covered spine. She stopped when she noticed Papyrus and Rosi, her eyelights brightening.
“My love, it seems we have company,” she moved impossibly closer to him on the next step, almost like he would fall over, pressing a barely there kiss to his teeth before stepping away, chuckling as he frowned and then his own eyelight brightened in recognition as to just who had interrupted them.
“Papyrus, Rosi! There you two are. We were starting to worry that you two were buried under a pile of Toriel’s wedding plans.” Gaster said with a chuckle, sitting down on a couch and pouring some tea. Rosi watched the tea like a hawk as Papyrus shook his head and said, amused,
“No, Father, though I believe it was a very near thing. How have you and Mother been?”
“Well,” Hel said, taking her cup of tea with a grateful nod as Papyrus and Rosi sat on the other couch. “We’ve been waiting for this day for quite a while and I couldn’t be more proud of who you’re marrying and that you’re marrying for love. You two will make a lovely couple.”
Papyrus looked at Rosi, taking her free hand and rubbing his thumb over her knuckles, his expression near smitten. He didn’t even try to control it. He didn’t care.
“I truly don’t understand how I deserve her,” he said quietly and Rosi blushed a dark grey, her ashen skin flushing but she was smiling as well, leaning against him and chuckling,
“I don’t understand how I deserve you either.”
Hel and Gaster watched this with near identical expressions of amusement and love for their son and soon to be daughter in law. They were precious, a kind of sweet love that wasn’t often seen. Hel took a careful sip of her tea to keep from making a sound as Gaster took a bite of a biscuit. He always had a rather insatiable sweet tooth.
“Tell us of your planning, even though Toriel has summarily taken it over,” Gaster said smoothly, cutting into the couple’s small bubble before they could become too lost.
That made the pair groan softly and Hel laughed, the sound musical and sweet, with the faintest roll of something husky underneath.
“Has she been that bad?”
“Well, yes and no,” Rosi sighed. “I knew it would take a great deal of work to get the wedding together and off without a hitch, but I honestly don’t want to write another letter for at least a month, maybe two or three. I think my fingers will fall off if I have to hold a pen again.”
“How many invitations did you write?” Hel asked in amused disbelief.
“I think roughly fifty?” Papyrus said and Rosi nodded.
“From the list you two sent of political friends that would have to attend in order to keep up appearances, and then our own friends combined between Sans, Papyrus and myself, there were fifty Monsters and Humans that received letters. Since I sent them, they’re sending their RSVP’s here, seeing as we’ll be here for the next month and I thought it would be easier to keep track of everything that way.”
“A very smart idea, Rosi,” Hel said with a sweet smile, genuine. “Now, what about your other plans? Have you picked out your wedding dress?”
“Toriel and Muffet seem to think I won’t catch on, but I know they’ve been working on something since December. With Toriel’s secrecy about dresses and how Muffet took me dress shopping and asked me to pick out the different styles I felt more comfortable in, and took notes when she thought I wasn’t looking. I think they’re making my dress, though I’ve yet to see it. Beyond that, it’s been a mess of what drinks to serve, what food would be most enjoyed by everyone, what kind of cake Muffet is making us,” Rosi sighed heavily. “It’s a lot, if I’m honest.”
“Weddings usually are.” Gaster said with a nod. “I remember my wedding to Hel, whom I’d never actually met but had just sent letters to almost weekly. For reference, Papyrus, the sick knots you’re likely feeling twist up your non-existent internal organs is fairly normal. It will probably get worse the closer you get to the wedding, but just remember that it will pass quickly enough.”
Papyrus chuckled and nodded a little, though if he were honest with himself, privately, he was more than a bit surprised at how his parents were acting. He expected them to be less well, normal about the whole business. He knew his parents manipulated their lives minimally, far less than they were lead to believe, and he knew how fiercely they would protect him and Sans. Now that he thought about it, they could have done more than just show him and Sans the various eligible Monsters and Humans to marry, even had them both squared away neatly in an arranged marriage before either could blink if they actually wanted. And yet, they didn’t. They gave them their space when they requested it, they kept the more thirsty and annoying or flighty “potential partners” away from them and none of their “choices” seemed particularly serious.
He gave his mother a look, realization dawning. They’d been nudging him here and there to find his own bride, someone he would want to be with. And yet, he had a feeling that if he had said anything, they would have backed off and allowed him to lead his quiet bachelor life, though now that he had Rosi he wasn’t sure if he could do that. Helvetica merely gave him a serene smile, but her eyes were sharp with amusement and understanding as she nodded, as if agreeing with whatever Rosi and Gaster were talking about. Her amusement didn’t die away, and there was pride growing in her gaze as well.
“I can show you the gardens the day after tomorrow if you’d like, Rosi,” Gaster was saying as he tuned back into the conversation.
Rosi blinked in surprise then nodded slowly. “Uhm, alright then. I wouldn’t mind a tour and it’d be nice to pick out the flowers to use at the wedding.”
Gaster nodded and hummed softly, taking a drink of his tea. “Yes, it most certainly will. That and well, you and I haven’t had a chance to properly talk and I would love to get to know you a little more.”
Rosi was careful not to look him directly in the eyes as she said, “I would like to get to know you as well, Gaster. We didn’t really have a conversation last time we spoke.”
“Excellent,” he clapped his hands once, the ckntk of bone familiar. “I look forward to it.”
From there, the conversation steered towards what the pair wanted to dance to at their wedding reception and what they wanted to do for a honeymoon, to what Rosi had read and comparing books and titles with Hel and Gaster as Papyrus watched, a little baffled, at how easily the conversation was flowing. It was until late in the afternoon that Hel stood and brushed out her skirts with a regretful sigh.
“I shall see you all at dinner tonight, I have some things to take care of. My dear, do you plan on joining me?”
Gaster drank the last of his tea and nodded, standing. “Yes, I believe I will. I did say I would help. Why don’t you two go and relax before supper?” he offered warmly. “You look quite tired from all our talking, I know it can be exhausting.”
Rosi and Papyrus stood and gave them a grateful smile and nod, Rosi yawning hugely.
“Thank you, Hel, Gaster, for the tea. I hope your experiments go well.”
“They should, if I can get the chemicals balanced. I’ll have to tell you about it over supper,” Hel said, and with that, she and Gaster left.
Papyrus wound his arm with Rosi’s and she leaned heavily against him. Quietly, they made their way back up to their room and stripped off the more restricting outfits for looser fitting ones and then laid in bed, cuddling and enjoying the quiet. When supper came, they got up, dressed once more and made their way downstairs to the smaller dining area.
Sans was already there, looking half awake as Hel carefully ran her hands over his face and neck, usually soft green eyes intense. Gaster was sitting, chin propped up on his hand as he watched her work, worry obvious in his purple eyelights and the frown that tugged at his mouth.
“Mother, I’m fine,” Sans tried to stress, but Helvetica wasn’t hearing it.
“Fine? Sans, you very nearly collapsed the second you walked in here! That is not fine by any standards, especially not yours! After dinner I expect you to come with me so I can properly see what’s happened.”
He just shrugged and sighed. “A’right,” he mumbled. He reached up and squeezed one of her hands, giving her a more genuine smile. “I promise, I’m fine Mom but I’ll let you work on me if it’ll keep you from dragging me to the lab at some ungodly hour.”
She sighed and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I worry over you, Sans Fontaine. Just as I worry over you, Papyrus and Rosi.” she said, pulling away and looking at them. “Now, come and sit. Dinner will be served soon.” her light tone was a little more forced and she seemed just a little tired but it wasn’t worrying. Rosi took her seat after Papyrus pulled out her chair for her and looked at Hel in concern. The older woman had slight magical half moons under her sockets, much like Sans when he didn’t sleep well and was exhausted.
“Hel, are you sure you’re alright?” she asked.
“Of course my dear,” she waved away the concern. “Just a little tired but I will take care of Sans and then go to bed early tonight.”
Rosi nodded, not entirely satisfied but she’d have to take it. Dinner progressed from there, it was a lovely lamb dish with fresh greens and a orange and lemon drizzle for dessert. Conversation flowed easily around the table, ranging from a variety of topics, though the topic of the wedding was carefully avoided, much to Papyrus and Rosi’s relief. When the food was finished and the plates cleared away, Hel stood and gave Sans a pointed look. He sighed and pushed away from the table before following her, wordless. Gaster watched them go and shook his head, taking a drink of his wine.
“That man worries me far too much some days, I swear. I’m going to get wrinkles.”
“Father, you’re made of bone. We can’t get wrinkles,”
Gaster chuckled. “Then I suppose that makes it all the more worrying.” He finished off his wine and stood. “Well, I believe I shall go for a walk before bed. Sleep well you two, and I’ll see you in the morning.” and with that, it was just Papyrus and Rosi left.
They stood and Rosi took Papyrus’ hand, rubbing over his knuckles in a soothing gesture. Quietly, they made their way back up to their room, both lost in their own thoughts. When the door was shut behind them and they had prepared for bed, Rosi checking her pelt and adding a bit more water to the basin before climbing into bed with Papyrus.
“Your parents seem to be oddly toned down since the last time I saw them,” she said, cuddling against his side, his long arms wrapped around her.
“Yes, they are very much toned down, as you put it. I think they’re just plotting away the next two decades of our lives though.” Papyrus muttered, holding her closer. He refused to let her go.
“Hmn,” she nuzzled against his neck and yawned. “Let’s just get some sleep. Tomorrow is the engagement ball or whatever it’s called,”
“This will certainly be interesting.” Papyrus yawned before he curled up with her and they both fell into a peaceful, near dreamless sleep.
_-_-_-_
The next day passed by far too quickly for either Rosi or Papyrus to fully comprehend, leaving both wondering where the time had gone. Though, Rosi had spent most of the day with Toriel. She, Asgore, Asriel, Chara and Frisk arrived that afternoon and Toriel had whisked Rosi away before she even knew what was happening. The other woman practically pulled her along, a wide grin almost splitting her muzzle and pulled her into her room.
“Tori, what the fuck-” Rosi started but cut herself off when she saw what had gotten Torel so excited. There, laid out on the bed, was a beautiful wedding dress. It was cream with very faint green accents here and there. The bodice was a corset, and the top part and sleeves were a delicate lace. The skirts went down to the floor and there was very little train, and the skirts themselves had a slight ruffle to them and lace trailed over top the skirts, delicate and intricate patterns here and there.
“Tori, it’s… I… Oh my god,” Rosi breathed, her eyes going wide as Toriel beamed with pride.
“Muffet and I have been working on this for months. We wanted to be sure it was perfect, though we couldn’t have you try it on prematurely since we wanted to surprise you with it and so we based it off of your current dresses. It should fit like a glove. Would you like to try it on? I can make alterations today and when Muffet comes in a few days she can finalize them.”
Rosi nodded, her jaw almost dropped to the floor. She loved fashion, it wasn’t something she was ashamed of. She loved the beautiful dresses and the loose relaxing clothes, the soft fabrics and delicate lace, the soft touch of silk and the warmth of wool. It was all so beautiful to her, and the wedding dress itself was gorgeous. She hastily stripped and Toriel giggled, shaking her head in amusement before helping Rosi pull on the dress and lacing up the back. The lace was soft and light, it felt like it was barely there at all. The skirts were a little heavy from the layers and the corset made sure her back was completely straight but it was overall a very comfortable dress. The skirts pooled a little too much and so Toriel set to work, pinning and pulling, hemming pieces here and there, and turning the excess fabric into a kind of train so not to waste the fabric and it wasn’t until several hours, multiple laps around the room to get used to how the dress moved and being stuck with a few pins here and there later that Toriel finally let Rosi take the dress off.
“I’m sorry that took so long, my dear. But I wanted to be absolutely sure and it was one of the dangers of not having you model for us so that we could avoid this. But, the good news is that it shouldn’t take too much to complete and will be ready in plenty of time for your wedding. Now, go and get ready for the dance.” Toriel said after Rosi dressed once more and pulled her into a hug. “And remember, no telling Papyrus about your wedding dress.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t.” Rosi said with a slightly exasperated sigh before she left to go get ready for the dance. A bath helped her slightly sore body relax, and she could see Papyrus had already taken one himself, two of the towels were gone and the soap he used to wash his bones was sitting on the edge of the tub. She soaked, enjoying the water and when it got too cold, she drained the tub and got out, drying herself off quickly before she went to get dressed. She chose her favorite emerald green dress, the first one that Toriel had made for her. The laces in the back were irritating and she was considering just going to Sans’ room and asking him to help when the door opened and Papyrus walked in.
He wore his guard uniform, leaning a little more on his case than usual but he brightened when he saw her.
“You look beautiful,” he said, coming over to her as she turned so he could do up the back of her dress and tied it in a lovely bow when he was done. “There we go.”
“Are you okay?” she asked, looking at him in worry and Papyrus shrugged.
“Just tired, if I’m honest. Father kept me out with him since lunch and we got absorbed in a conversation about flora and well, you know how I can get.”
“Stood in one place too long?” she guessed and he nodded.
“Yes, and it’s made my bones a little stiff. The bath I took earlier helped though, and it seems you enjoyed one of your own as well.” he gently ran a hand through her slightly damp hair, making her lean a little more into it as he scratched her scalp a bit. “What did you do? You and Toriel disappeared after lunch.”
“Oh, she whisked me off to go and talk about wedding plans and things to do with my bridesmaids.” she shrugged. “It was fun but time consuming.”
“Ah. Well, now that I have you, shall we head down to the party? People are already arriving and I doubt we can escape this time,”
“We’re the guests of honor,” Rosi pointed out with a sigh but she smirked a little. “Maybe we can get out of it once everyone starts getting drunk and forgets who looks like who,”
“We’d have to get the strong wine out of the cellar,” he said, but he sounded at least interested in the idea.
“Can we?”
“Well, we could but we don’t have nearly enough wine to satiate the palettes of everyone here, even if it is an impressive collection. We’d have to turn to whiskey and maybe some gin in the punch.”
“I don’t think your parents would appreciate that very much,” Rosi laughed.
“On the contrary, I think they’d be highly amused if they didn’t join in.” Papyrus said blandly. Down the hall, the grandfather clock chimed and Papyrus sighed, offering Rosi his arm.
“We’re expected. It’s six o’clock.”
She took his head and leaned her head against his shoulder as they walked out down the halls, down the stairs and through a few more halls before they reached the ballroom and Rosi was immediately hit with the sheer noise. It was a much smaller crowd than the last dance she’d been too, but there were still far too many people. Papyrus noticed her stiffen and tightened his own hold, leaning down to murmur,
“I won’t leave your side.”
She took a breath and nodded, relaxing slightly. He led her into the throng of people and it seemed the night had truly started.
The night progressed, and people ebbed and flowed around them, occasionally groups occasionally pulling them into conversation, other times it was just one or two people. Rosi preferred to stick to the sides where she knew what was around her and that she had an out, but the current of people drew them deeper into the crowd. Music filled the room, making the conversation rise and fall in tempo it seemed and servants went around with drinks and small bites of food. At one point, Papyrus was drawn into a dance with another noblewoman, a human but Rosi wasn’t paying much attention seeing as she was now left to fend for herself in a crowd of unfamiliar faces.
She made quiet excuses, offering soft, close lipped smiles that were a little tight at the corners, trying to keep herself from screaming. She’d seen Sans and Toriel talking quietly at the wall and she was attempting to make her way over to them but it seemed the crowd was determined to keep her near the center no matter how much she tried. A sudden hand on her shoulder nearly made her yelp but she bit down on her cheek and looked up. It was Gaster. He took one look at her and looped their arms together and practically glided with her beside him out of the crowd, out of the room even, and out to the fresh, warm spring night air. He rested a hand on her back as she took several shuddering breaths, trying to calm down.
“The stars are beautiful tonight, and I’m almost surprised that we don’t have more clouds covering them with the weather the past few days,” his voice was cutting through the haze that started to settle over her mind and gave her something to latch onto and ground with. “It seems Leo, Aquarius and Capricorn are out tonight, along with Orion’s belt and Ursa’s major and minor.” his hand rubbed slow, soothing circles in between her shoulder blades, keeping her focused. He looked down at her and said, “Breathe, Rosi. It’s alright now.”
It took her a few minutes but she did manage to calm down, thankful that the panicked pressure that had begun to build in her chest hadn’t choked her words in her throat. She still shivered a little every now and then, but it wasn’t too noticeable, or so she thought. Without a word, Gaster took off his tail coat and wrapped it around her shoulders, settling it there and after a moment, Rosi pulled it on properly, feeling a little silly as the sleeves draped over her hands. Gaster chuckled, and gently took her hand, rolling the sleeves up so her fingers were free and repeating it with the other hand.
“There we go,” he said with a warm smile. “Now you won’t have to worry about your hands being trapped.”
Rosi was thrown for a bit of a loop. Gaster wasn’t being… odd like she expected. Yes, he was odd as fuck, but this felt almost fatherly, comforting. He wasn’t trying to scare her, or make her feel worse, he was just… helping her.
“Thank you,” she mumbled, not sure what else to say.
“You’re welcome my dear.” he put his hand on her shoulder, just resting there, no weight behind it, not doing anything. Just resting.
“So umh… Why did you help me?” she asked, confused.
“What do you mean? Would you rather I have left you to suffer in the middle of the crowd?” he asked.
“No!” she said quickly. “I just… I wasn’t expecting it is all. You don’t really strike me as the kind of man who would do something like that simply because he had to.”
Gaster looked at her and tapped a finger against his chin, thoughtful.
“Are you expecting me to try and gain something?” he asked, not offended, just curious. “Or that I will repeat our last encounter when my son was sick? I can tell you fight your nature everyday, and even now, you fight against it. You can practically taste the magic that comes off of me, can’t you?”
Rosi hated that he was right. She couldn’t taste the magic that came just from Gaster, but from every body in that room, the smell of human sweat filling her nose along side it. A quiet part of her knew that her panic of being left in a large crowd wasn’t just the press of bodies and the weight of everything, but that she knew there was a pressure in the back of her mind from her Selkie side, salivating for a taste. The blood, the magic… It was a heady cocktail and it made her feel sick to her stomach with how badly it made her want to bite and tear into Souls and drain magic. She didn’t need it to live, she didn’t need it to do anything. It was just her instincts crying out for food that she no longer would eat.
“Well now, I have to wonder why you fight against it so much,” Gaster said, voice low and just a little dangerous. “I know you’re at odds with it, or else you wouldn’t look like you’re tearing your cheek to shreds. But,” his hand moved to her back and started rubbing soothing circles once more and the dangerous note disappeared, replaced with that warm and soothing voice. “That’s neither here nor there. You are indeed a strong woman, Rosi. Should you ever wish for help to control that urge, please don’t hesitate to ask, alright? You’re family now and I would hate for my daughter-in-law to feel like she’s uncontrollable.”
She just nodded. There wasn’t a threat in his voice, but it felt off. She almost wished he would go back to being dark and disturbing, at least she knew how to deal with that. She wasn’t sure which side was real anymore with him and it was more than a little confusing.
“....Do I scare you?” she asked finally.
“Should you?” he rebutted.
“You’ve pointed out several times that I’m likely to literally eat you, so one would think you are. Least, with the way you’ve been switching how you talk and giving me a bigger headache than I need.” Rosi said bluntly, tired and a little annoyed at his moods now.
Gaster’s hand paused and then he chuckled, then laughed, shaking his head.
“Forgive me, my dear, I’m not laughing at you. It’s just that you’re the first person in a very long time to be that straightforward with me and isn’t my wife. But then, you’ve faced worse than sharks before and I can’t be that scary.” he chuckled a little more. “I have to admit, I’m most intrigued by your reactions to everything, and how you’re able to pick up on so much that others fail to.”
“Call it good instinct,” she retorted. That just made him smile wide and laugh once more.
“Yes, I believe it would be,” he said as he sobered, looking at the full moon. The music from inside swelled into a dance number once more and he looked at her. “Would you like to dance?”
She blinked, thrown once again.
‘ What the fuck is with him? ’ she thought to herself but she gave a slow nod and then a startled yelp as he pulled her around into an easy dancing position.
“Excellent,” he said, taller frame feeling like it would dwarf hers. “You can tell quite a bit about someone by how they dance.”
“And if they can’t?” Rosi quipped, feeling oddly relaxed.
“Well, just means I’ll have to teach you. I taught my sons how to dance, it isn’t nearly as hard as some make it out to be. If you’d like, you can stand on my feet, it will at least save you from stepping on them.” he teased and she huffed.
“Fuck you,” slipped out before she could stop it and Gaster laughed, genuine and amused.
“I like that fire you have in your Soul, Rosi. Keep it.” he said, before pulling her into a better position, his arm around her waist, her own resting on his chest and their hands clasped together. After a moment, she kicked off her flats and stepped onto his feet. He waited a beat and started to smoothly move them through a simple waltz. Rosi, despite herself, felt herself relaxing as he danced and Gaster kept up a steady stream of talk about the different steps and types of dance before shifting over to flowers.
“I think for your bouquet would be lovely filled with daffodils, chrysanthemum, jonquil and white and red roses will do well, maybe some forget-me-nots if I can find enough.” he was saying as she leaned closer against him, feeling exhausted. Gaster paused and looked at her, smiling and chuckling to himself.
Others would have been scared witless to try and fall asleep around him and he hadn’t really been moving in a dance but in a soothing pattern that had calmed his sons when they were scared or anxious when they were younger. He stopped moving and lifted her into his arms like she weighed nothing, then carried her off to her room. She was almost asleep in his arms by the time he got there and after a moment’s thought, he decided to help her get dressed for bed. He knew that dress would damage her internal organs if she wore it overnight. Disembodied hands undid the tie and pulled the dress off of her while he went to the closet and pulled out a loose nightgown and hummed softly as he helped her dress. Rosi was barely awake, her eyes half lidded and bleary.
He gently pet back some of her hair and pressed a kiss to her forehead, like a father would a child, before he tucked her into bed. She gave a soft mumbled and turned to her side, cuddling Papyrus’ pillow like a child. He couldn’t help the smile on his face. He stood there for a moment, his tail coat draped over his arm and then after a moment’s thought, crouched down and pulled out the basin he knew held her pelt. He had no interest in taking it, but he was insatiably curious and sometimes it just wouldn’t stop until it had been satisfied.
It looked like a seal pelt, dark brown, almost black in color, wet to the touch and a little rubbery as well. It was folded in half so that it would fit in the basin, towels lining the sides to keep it damp. The whole basin smelled of sea water, the tang of salt sharp on his palette. With a soft hum, he gently put it back where it had been under her bed and pulled back on his tailcoat, making his way back to the party. He found Papyrus, his son almost frantic, in the halls.
“If you’re looking for Rosi, I took her to your room. She was exhausted. Really Papyrus, you shouldn’t be able to lose your fiance so easily,” he chastised as Papyrus relaxed only marginally.
“Thank you, Father. I should go and check on her,”
“I would. Her anxiety is little better than last time,” and with that, his eldest sprinted for his room. Gaster smiled faintly and shook his head. Ah, young love. He made it back to the party and found Helvetica waiting for him, curiosity in her green eye lights.
“Where did you wander off to?” she asked and Gaster smiled.
“Our daughter in law was having issues with the crowd, so I helped her calm down then helped her to bed. Honestly, if she weren’t already so attached to Papyrus, I may be tempted to steal her away myself.”
“Oh?” Helvetica said and Gaster wrapped an arm around her waist.
“You had that same look in your eyes when you first met her, my love, you can’t say you weren’t curious. And besides, more people means more fun,” he chuckled and Helvetica grinned.
“That is very true. Though I do wish they would have a wedding night, I want grandbabies to spoil. But, it is pointless to push them when they don’t feel the urge of sex like you or I.” she leaned into his hold. “I wonder if there’s a way to get them to adopt a child.”
“Quite possibly there is. And don’t forget, Sans is still very interested in sex, and while it will take an anvil being dropped on his skull for him to get a clue, I’m sure he will find someone.”
“I do hope so. I enjoy playing the little game but I wish they’d figure it out for themselves without our intervening but well…”
“That was last time, my darling. They are a little wiser now, or so we can hope. Now, come. I believe we have a dance waiting.” Gaster said, pulling Helvetica into his arms and making her laugh.
_-_-_-_
The next month passed in a blur. Time slipped by shockingly quickly, and there was so much to be done. From rehearsal's to the working out the menu and the venue of where the reception would be held. There was a small chapel not far from the manor that they would go to and then there would be an open-air reception in the gardens back at the manor if the weather held and if it didn’t it would be held inside. There was music to go over and dances to practice and lines to recite. There was quite a bit of pomp and circumstance around the whole thing and Rosi was half terrified of it all. Papyrus did his best to help her keep calm but he himself was worn a little thin at the edges.
Gaster, Hel, Toriel and Muffet seemed to take over a majority of things when it came to planning, which was a relief, but it didn’t help that they were both overwhelmed with the sheer amount of just things that had to be done. On top of that, Rosi wasn’t sure if Papyrus and her would even be able to form a proper soul bond and after a rather long conversation that last for more than two days, and more than a few dodged questions, they decided that they would. Both of them wanted to be with the other, and they found that the love they held for the other ran deeper than a simple definition. It still didn’t mean that Rosi wasn’t scared witless and Papyrus seemed little better off.
“Rosi? Rosi, are you with us?” Muffet’s voice brought her out of her thoughts and she blinked, looking at the spider woman in the mirror as she messed with her hair. She was slowly but surely taming the long curly mane, which usually brushed back her shoulders, into a pair of beautifully wrapped braids that went around the back of her head, her veil tucked in the creases where the braids started at her crown. Forget-me-nots were tucked here and there, standing out against her russet-brown and black hair. She wore little makeup, aside from a light pink lip paint, and something that went around her eyes that made her eyelids shimmer.
“Yes… I’m just thinking,” her voice wavered faintly and she tried not to let it show but that failed spectacularly.
“About what, darling?” Muffet asked as Toriel’s voice drifted through the door, talking to Chara and Frisk about getting ready.
“I just… I’m scared, Muffet. I know Papyrus, hell, I fucking love the man! So why do I feel like I’m going to be sick and like I want to run away?” she mumbled, looking down at her hands which held her bouquet. She could feel a pair of Muffet’s hand rub her shoulders and squeezed tightly, making her yelp.
“The fuck was that for?!” she demanded, rubbing the sore spots. Muffet was strong as Undyne, despite her much thinner appearance.
“To wake you up, darling. I could bite you, if you’d like,” Muffet offered, grinning at her in the mirror, small fangs flashing dangerously. “But maybe not today, mnh?”
“Muffet, stop scarin the punk! That’s my job.” Undyne said, coming in. She wore her guard uniform, unlike Muffet and Alphys who wore the more traditional bridesmaid gowns. “Listen to me, Rosi,” Undyne said seriously, her piercing acid yellow eye staring Rosi down in the mirror. “That numbskull is just as nervous as you, and I love the guy, but you got nothing to worry about. Now, stop worrying and Muffet, stop fussing with her hair, we got a wedding to put on!” she crowed.
“Undyne, Sans is waiting for you!” Toriel called and Undyne gave Rosi a softer smile, her sharp fangs less dangerous looking for the moment.
“You got this, punk. Now let’s go.” and with that, she left.
Muffet giggled, a soft “Fhufhufhufhufhufhufhu,” and pressed a kiss to Rosi’s crown. “Grillby is probably waiting for me as well. Now, come on dearie.” she grabbed her own smaller bouquet and walked out of the room. Rosi took a few deep breaths and closed her eyes, concentrating. It was going to be okay. She’d practiced this several times, she knew the lines. She knew what to do.
Undyne and Sans would walk down the aisle, then Alphys and Blooky, then Muffet and Grillby, and Toriel and Asgore would bring up the rear. Asriel would walk down the aisle with the rings on the pillow, Chara and Frisk would throw petals everywhere and she and-
“Are you alright, dear?” Gaster’s smooth voice made her jump almost out of her seat.
“Ow, fuck!” she hissed, having slammed her knee into the side of the desk. The room wasn’t very large, it was the vicar's office that had been cleared away to make a comfortable space for Rosi and her bridesmaids to get ready and where she’d been waiting for almost an hour. She could hear the organ starting to play a tune, which would rise to the wedding march and she gulped.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” she managed, voice still shaky and Gaster raised a brow bone.
“Breathe, Rosi.” he said firmly. “You will be fine .”
She just nodded and took a few breaths, trying to hide how each inhale shook.
“Rosi.” Gaster said sternly and suddenly he was right in front of her, kneeling so he was at her height, his shockingly warm hands cupping her face and making her look him in the eyes. “Stop thinking. You are marrying my son, who cares for you very much, just as you care for him. There is no reason to let your nerves win. You have faced worse than this, haven’t you?” she gave a slow nod and he smiled. “Good girl. Now,” he stood and pulled her to her feet easily and offered her his arm. “I believe we have a wedding to put on.”
She snorted and gave him a faint glare but looped her arm with his and walked with him out of the room towards the entry way and the doors that lead to the rest of the church. Toriel and Asgore were heading down the aisle and Asriel followed as they reached the altar and split off to their appropriate sides. Chara and Frisk gave her a smile and a thumbs up before they started down the aisle as the wedding march played. The pews creaked as everyone turned around, all fifty faces staring at Rosi and Gaster as they walked down the aisle. Her heart was pounding, blood rushing in her ears but she kept her steps measured, her veil obscuring her vision just enough that she couldn’t make out Papyrus. Gaster squeezed her arm and let her go as they reached the altar and then hot boney hands took hers and she took a breath she didn’t realize she’d needed. She relaxed instantly, smiling and blinking away tears as Papyrus lifted her veil.
He was smiling just as wide as she was, faint green tears at the corners of his sockets as he blinked them away, laughing softly as the priest began his spiel.
“Hi,” she mumbled, grinning and laughing wetly as tears choked her. She was happy.
“Hello,” he whispered back, grinning and holding back his laughter.
“And now the vows,” The priest said, looking at them with a smile in his eyes.
They took a deep breath and Papyrus nodded.
Rosi started,
“ You cannot possess me for I belong to myself but while we both wish it, I give you that which is mine to give. You cannot command me, for I am a free person but I shall serve you in those ways you require and the honeycomb will taste sweeter coming from my hand. I pledge to you that yours will be the name I cry aloud in the night and the eyes into which I smile in the morning.”
There was a soft tug at both of their chests and their Souls were floating in front of them. His was a dark orange of Bravery, like a sunset, with dappled green of Kindness and veins of Patient blue running through it with a dark half-healed scar nearly splitting it, but colors of her own Soul were stitching it shut, a dark blue of Integrity, warm dappled golden yellow of Justice and bright green Kindness running through it made her Soul look like shifting water.
“I pledge to you the first bite of my meat and the first drink from my cup pledge to you my living and my dying, each equally in your careI shall be a shield for your back and you for mineI shall not slander you, nor you me. I shall honor you above all others, and when we quarrel we shall do so in private and tell no strangers our grievances. This is my wedding vow to you. This is the marriage of equals.” Papyrus finished the vow as the priest brought their Souls together and they gasped.
Flashes of memories, too fast to comprehend and jumbled emotions rushed through them both. Pain, loss, love, so much love, fear, and curiosity. The sound of screams, the sound of laughter, the flash of a blade, choking pleas, growling, and thrashing, splashing water, bright sparks of love, acceptance, understanding.
Tears were running down both of their faces as their Souls separated and went back to their chests and the priest said,
“Do you, Rosi, take Papyrus Fontaine to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
“I-I do,” she managed, choking on unnamed emotions.
“And do you, Papyrus Fontaine, take Rosi to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do,” he said, grinning so wide Rosi was a little worried his jaw would drop off.
“Then I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride,”
Papyrus leaned down and barely pressed a kiss to her lips and she hugged him tight when he pulled away, feeling weak and yet like she could run for days. The cheers and happy calling of their family and friends, and the various invited nobles, were like distant waves crashing. She gave him a smile and laughed wetly as she said,
“I’m home,”
“Yes,” he mumbled, nuzzling her cheek. “We’re both home,”
They walked down the aisle, arm in arm, barely separable and the crowd followed them to the carriage. Rosi paused and grinned, looking at her bouquet and then tossed it behind her. The bright pink, white, red and yellow flowers tumbled through the air and there was a loud exclamation as someone caught it, but Rosi didn’t care to see who. Papyrus helped her into the carriage and they were off to the reception.
People followed quickly, and in no time, they were back at the manor, heading towards the gardens, Rosi carrying her dress skirts in one hand and laughing breathlessly as Papyrus suddenly picked her up and spun her around.
“We did it,” he said, laughing breathlessly. “We did it, Rosi,”
“I know Paps,” she couldn’t stop smiling and the warmth in her chest, from her Soul, made her want to cry all over again. They made their way over the the table that was set up for the wedding party and sat as they rest of the party followed and the small band started to play. Laughter, teasing, congratulations rang out as the smaller more concentrated reception party became clear. Only thirty or so people, most of them close friends of Gaster and Helvetica, or Papyrus and Sans but it was a manageable crowd.
Food was brought out, along with wine, water, ale and champagne and Muffet’s beautiful four tier wedding cake was the centerpiece. It was sheer white with green and blue accents. There were roses with soft blue at the tips of the petals, their leaves a light emerald green at the very tips. Each tier was magnificent, detailed flowers in a white cream along the top tier near the figurines, which were identical to Rosi and Papyrus. The third and second tier had a kind of quilted look with more flowers along the bases and the very bottom layer was decorated with beautiful swirls and more roses at the base.
Rosi clapped and laughed with the livelier music as the night progressed and the party became progressively more and more drunk. Undyne and Alphys were dancing in the crowd, as were Muffet and Grillby, the pair looking smitten as she was sure she and Papyrus were. Sans was dancing with Frisk on his feet while Asriel and Chara danced with Toriel and Asgore, respectively. Gaster and Helvetica had even gotten into the dance, though they were much more intimate and slow than the faster pace of the music.
The cake was cut and speeches that Rosi couldn’t remember were made but she was just happy and full of good food and cake to care. As the stars began to peek out, she yawned and a few of the guests gave them meaningful looks and sly smiles. Faintly, she could hear them talking about how Papyrus would tire her out even more and had to hide a snort. Papyrus didn’t even seem to hear, talking with Sans about something or other.
Finally, he stood and picked her up, nuzzled her cheek once more. Over the music, there were a few calls she couldn’t quite make out, too tired to care but there was a lot of clapping. She just hung onto Papyrus and sighed, content.
“Thank you all for coming, but I believe my wife is exhausted, so we’ll be retiring for the night,” that brought laughs and a few whistles and more clapping but Papyrus merely chuckled and headed back to the manor. He carried her all the way back upstairs and pushed open the door with his hip, then set her down.
“How about we get you out of this?” He murmured.
“Please, Paps,” Rosi groaned, letting her head hang a little as he slowly tugged the laces free of the corset, loosening the tight piece until Rosi practically groaned. He slowly slid the dress off of her and then hung it up on a hanger and stuck it in the closet as she pulled off her underthings and stretched, cracking her shoulders and hissing. He smiled and grabbed one of his night shirt and a pair of his night pants, tossing them towards her. She caught them with a slight yelp and pulled them on as he stripped out of his own uniform, muttering curses about buttons and ties, before it was folded up neatly and he was dress in loose, comfortable night clothes as well.
“Mmhnnm,” Rosi moaned, burrowing into the bed and Papyrus chuckled.
“Would you like me to crack your back?”
“Oh god, would you please?”
“Roll over onto your stomach, silly selkie,” he said as he walked back over to the bed, limping slightly as his cane was resting at the table outside still. He hoped Sans would bring it in for him. He watched as Rosi did as he directed and stretched much like a lazy cat. He settled on the bed, straddling her hips before he pressed down and slowly pushed upwards and listened to her spine pop. He moved down, grunting a bit before he got her entire spine to pop properly and she sighed as he slowly worked the tense muscles in her back till she was limp.
“Oh gods, Paps… Your hands are magic,” she mumbled, eyes half lidded.
“Nhyhehehe, well I would hope so. I am magic myself,” he quipped and Rosi gave a barking laugh, the adorable bell and bark laugh making him smile.
“Come here?” she asked and he flopped to the other side of the bed, moving his legs so they weren’t slung over her hips before worming his way under the blankets with her. She kissed his chin and he gently undid her braids, pulling the forget-me-nots out and reaching to set them over at the bedside table. She sat up a little and took one of his hands, slowly working at the bones and mana lines till the tense bone relaxed, and repeated it with his other hand.
"Who caught the bouquet?" she asked as she worked on his left hand, Papyrus rolling his now relaxed right.
"Sans, actually. Mother and Father looked like they were going to burst from sheer happiness." Papyrus chuckled. "I pity my brother, now that we're married, he'll be the matchmaker target. Though they may be wondering if we're going to have children at some point or another," he sighed.
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there, Paps," Rosi said tiredly.
“Shall I read some Sherlock Holmes?” he asked and she nodded.
“Please,” she yawned, shaking her head a few times.
He chuckled and reached under her pillow to pull the book out and after a moment of arranging themselves so they were pressed so close an inch of space didn’t exist between them, he began to read.
“I scarcely could believe my eyes when my friend, Sherlock Holmes, walked in with a bloody harpoon,”
lacewing on Chapter 1 Mon 03 Jul 2017 08:33AM UTC
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lacewing on Chapter 1 Mon 03 Jul 2017 08:38AM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 1 Mon 03 Jul 2017 12:46PM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 1 Tue 04 Jul 2017 05:56PM UTC
Last Edited Tue 04 Jul 2017 05:57PM UTC
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Emotionally_Stable_Lemonbar on Chapter 1 Wed 05 Jul 2017 12:08AM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 1 Wed 05 Jul 2017 05:36AM UTC
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ambergerthehamberger (Guest) on Chapter 1 Wed 05 Jul 2017 12:54PM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 1 Fri 07 Jul 2017 03:33AM UTC
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saturnwonder on Chapter 2 Tue 11 Jul 2017 08:28PM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 2 Thu 13 Jul 2017 01:07AM UTC
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lacewing on Chapter 2 Tue 11 Jul 2017 09:45PM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 2 Thu 13 Jul 2017 01:02AM UTC
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lacewing on Chapter 2 Thu 13 Jul 2017 03:20AM UTC
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lacewing on Chapter 2 Tue 11 Jul 2017 09:46PM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 2 Thu 13 Jul 2017 01:03AM UTC
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Daku_Komiker_the_Skeleton95 on Chapter 2 Wed 30 Aug 2017 04:19PM UTC
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lacewing on Chapter 3 Tue 06 Mar 2018 05:04AM UTC
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rebel_raven on Chapter 3 Tue 06 Mar 2018 07:18AM UTC
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lacewing on Chapter 3 Wed 07 Mar 2018 01:33AM UTC
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Zarina_Dragonfire on Chapter 3 Tue 06 Mar 2018 07:55PM UTC
Last Edited Tue 06 Mar 2018 07:55PM UTC
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saturnwonder on Chapter 3 Thu 08 Mar 2018 06:27AM UTC
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coreplant on Chapter 3 Sat 07 Apr 2018 07:34AM UTC
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