Chapter Text
He held the familiar blue jacket in his hands, body trembling. Pale dust coated the entire inner lining, spread along the edges, digging into the rips the knife had caused. He gripped the article tightly, hugging it to his chest like his life depended on it. His eyes stared ahead at nothing but the white snow, far too scared to look anywhere else. If he dared to look at the grey pile in front of him, he might genuinely lose it.
Though, he certainly feels he will, regardless
Papyrus pulled his brother's jacket impossibly closer to himself, screwing his eyes shut. He didn't want it to be true. It couldn't be true. By King Asgore himself, don't let it be true! Dont let his brother, the only family he's ever had, be gone! Don't let him be nothing more but a pile of dust in the snow, disappearing as the wind swept him away! Don't let him disappear!
But it was so.
Sans was gone, stripped away from him by the very thing he'd tried to prove had at least some good in them. The human. The human had to have done this, they were the only one fighting monsters. They were the only one who was possibly willing to land a blow to someone as laid-back as Sans. The only one who had made Papyrus have a sinking feeling in his nonexsistent gut.
Sans had been right about the human. They had been too dangerous, and certainly wouldn't listen to reason. Papyrus had been foolish to believe he could talk a killer down. And he'd paid the price for it. Sans was gone, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. What is brother had planned to do wasn't lost on Papyrus. While Sans never had much HP, be was still one of the strongest monster's in the underground. And yet, even he couldn't defeat the human.
The next monster to face would be Undyne.
She stood a good chance against the human, but Papyrus had his doubts. If someone like Sans could be taken down so easily, who was to say his best friend wouldn't suffer the same fate? He hoped, with everything he had, that she would be successful. The idea of losing her too made his tears flow harder, his soul twisting in pain. As much as he hated those thoughts, Papyrus knew there was a good chance he would lose everyone he loved.
That wasn't fair.
Fair? Since when had his life ever been "fair"? His brother had been losing hope for so long, he'd almost forgotten what Sans had been like before. He'd trained so long and hard for a place in the royal guard, just for it to get brushed off. He made intricate and difficult puzzles, just for others to blow through them with ease. He practiced his cooking nearly every day, making tons of spagetti, and yet it always fell flat. He tried making friends, and all he got were strange looks. Life had never been fair.
But it wasn't just him, was it? Other mosters had suffered too, had scars to prove it. Monsters like Undyne and members of the guard. And monsters who were old enough to rembember life before the Underground, living each day in fear that they may never see life above it again. Monsters who did everything in their power to get everyone to the surface, even when it cost them everything. Monsters like Asgore. Monsters that were being taken away, stripped of their lives.
All because one human wanted to do the wrong thing.
Papyrus opened his eyes, blinking at the blurry snow. Right, he was crying. Had been for a while now. The wind had swept away his brother's dust, leaving Sans's jacket to be all that remained of the skeleton. Papyrus pulled it away from his chest for a moment, running his thumbs along the stitching. Everything about this jacket was Sans. He'd had it for years at this point, only taking it off when he slept. It had a surprising lack of stains, but still smelled oddly like ketchup. It was a part of his brother in every way, the only piece he had left.
He wanted to stay there in the snow forever, hope that the wind would sweep him away too. He wanted to curl up with Sans's jacket and dream of being with him again. He wanted all of this to go away, to just be a sick nightmare. He wanted to wake up in his racecar bed and prepare for the day. He wanted to go back to how things used to be. But, with what the human had done, there was no doing that.
Not ever.
His phone buzzing snapped Papyrus out of his hopeless spiral. What could possibly be happening, that he got a notification? Everything was a horrible mess, monsters were dying! Who was sending friend requests at a time like this? With a choked sigh, the skeleton pulled out his phone, opening the notification. His eyes widened in horror, grief falling over him like a heavy blanket.
"All remaining mosters, get to the Hotland's lab!!! Undyne has fallen!!! Seek shelter closer to the border!!!"
Papyrus couldn't quite pin who might have sent it, but it was likely the royal scientist, since they were reccomending the lab. But it wasn't the dire tone of the message that got him. It was the wprds he had hoped he'd never see or hear. And yet, there they were, plain as day. "Undyne has fallen"... The human had made his fear come true. They had managed to kill the head of the royal guard, his best friend. He'd been sitting in the snow a lot longer than he'd thought. Though, he supposed he wouldn't have been much help. The last thing he wanted was for Undyne to watch him die.
At least the other monsters could stand a chance. As long as they stayed out of the human's way, they would be safe. And if Asgore brought them down, then everyone would be safe. Papyrus and many others wpuld be without family and friends, but at least they would be safe...
What was the point then?
What was he living for, if he had no one to be there for? No kne else in the Underground needed him, and even less really knew him. What was the point of him seeking safety, when the human was still coming for their king, and still very much a threat? It wasn't fair that others had to suffer, when something could still be done about them! Someone had to try and stop them before they got to Asgore! If nothing else, but to give him time to prepare.
And Papyrus was tired of standing on the sidelines.
Slowly, he started to stand, horribly unsteady from how long he'd been down. He looekd down at the jacket still in his grasp, holding it to hia chest for a moment. Yeah, he was going to die, there was no doubt in his mind. If Sans and Undyne could be taken down with such little effort from that human, what chance did Papyrus have? At the very least he could stall, even if he died in the end. He started forward, making long, determined steps. He pulled on Sans's jacket, wincing as dust flew off of it. He supposed it didn't mattter, his own would coat it soon enough.
After all, they were both in for a bad time.
•
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The judgement hall was surprisingly warm, in spite of how isolated it felt. Light streamed in through the windown, glinting off the golden floors. It was almsot mocking in a way, how beautiful it made everything look. Nothing about today was beautiful. And nothing about this place felt nice. It felt like a looming presence was approching, intent on tarnishing everything it touched. This place would be tarnished. Soon, it would be covered in dust. And the human would walk away like it was nothing.
Normally, Papyrus would try to look on the bright side of things. He would try to think of the possibly good outcomes, doing his best to make them so. He always tried to see the good in people, no matter how small. He always wanted to encourage others to do their best, while doing the same. Papyrus had always been the optimist, the go-getter. The Mr. Brightside.
But not today. Not this time.
He couldn't afford to be the optimist this time. Couldn't afford to have faith in anyone. Especially not the human. He couldn't ecourage them to do better, to be better. He couldn't tell them how he believed in them. How he believed they could be better. How he knew they could be better. This time, Papyrus would have to put his forgiving nature aside. This time, he had to judge the human, just as they were.
A monster.
Almost as though he'd summoned them, the human walked into the hall. They paused just a few steps from the skeleton, somehow seeming unsurprised. As if they expected it. Though, their behaviour always made it seem like they'd done things before. Done this before. And maybe they had, who was to say? The thought sickened Papyrus as he started to speak, a part of him knowing he was right.
He hesitated for a moment, reaching deep to find the right words. Even if the human had left him with nothing, they still deserved his honesty.
"I DON'T UNDERSTAND. WHAT'S SO GOOD ABOUT KILLING PEOPLE?"
The human merely stared, clearly having no interest in answering his question. He turned away from then, unsure. Papyrus squinted his eyes, wracking his brain for a possible answer. Was there some sort of joke he was missing? No, that couldn't be it. He looked back at the human, hesitating once more. He hated asking for Sans's last words, but he wanted to know. His brother had always told him it would be a pun. And maybe it had been. And yet, the human refused to answer a single question he asked. Almost as if they genuinely couldn't care less.
He closed his eyes once more, taking a deep breath. He knew that engaging in a battle with the human was basically a death sentence, but it was necessary. If anything, it would give the king more time to prepare. And if he somehow beat the human? Papyrus didn't want to think about that.
"I AM SO SORRY."
In spite of all the bad things the human had donw, no matter how hard he tried, Papyrus couldn't bring himself to hate them. He really, really wanted to. After all, they'd killed dozens of innocent monsters, including his brother and best friend. He had every right to hate them.
"EVERYONE DESERVES A SECOND CHANCE... THAT INCLUDED SANS..."
Papyrus no longer believes in you.
He let his hopes fall away, pushed them down, down, past his feet. He trampled them, holding his bone in a firm grasp. He couldn't risk letting his good shine through. He had to let forgiveness go, and strike where it hurt most. Make them pay for what they had done.
The human was resilient for sure, easily dodging a fair amount of his attacks. But most hit. And Papyrus couldn't help but take some form of joy in that. Not, not joy.... Reassurance. He felt a sense of calm in knowing he could strike the human, do them damage. Maybe it would never reach where it mattered, but that was fine. Any damage was good damage to a monster.
And yet...
The stupidest part of him didnt want to hurt the human. A small voice in the back of his skull, telling him this was wrong. And as that voice grew louder, his attacks became more hesitant, more restrained. He even threw his worst attack in there for funsies. Still, he hesitated. The human was trapped, their HP down to 1. All he had to do was deliver the finishing blow-
"NOOO!!!"
His hands shook as he held the attack away. What was wrong with him? He couldn't do this... No one deserved to just be killed, no matter how many horrible things they did. And Papyrus certainly wasn't a killer. He felt guilty for ever wanting to kill the human. For thinking that was the answer.
"I'M SO SORRY. I SHOULDN'T HAVE STOPPED BELIEVING IN YOU..."
Claiming he ever did wemt against everything Papyrus stood for. He had always believed in forgiveness. That if anyone had good in them, they would listen to reason. That there was good in everyone, even if it didn't seem like it. There had to be good in the human.
There had to be.
"I BET YOU REGRET EVERYTHING YOU DID."
His tone was almost pleading, body shaking in some form of fear. There had to be some form of regret! Surely someone couldn't kill that many monsters and not regret it! Not even Undyne was that heartless! Surely....
And yet, as the human stared at him, Papyrus started to have trouble believing in that. Believing that the human wouldn't try to hurt him. His heart ached, not just for himself, but for the people he lost. For Sans and Undyne, who fought for what they cared about. And, surprisingly, for the human. His heart ached for the human, how they must feel. What they nust be going through. Depite everything, Papyrus still belived there was an ounce of good in the human.
He just had to prove it.