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or13m · 2 months ago

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A Reprieve (Undertale) Chapter 004

Your leg just wouldn’t stop moving!

You sat in the booth next to your sibling, your other side occupied by a snoozing Sans, and your leg was bouncing up and down a mile a minute!

“stars, kiddo,” Sans abruptly spoke, breaking you out of the staring contest you were having with the basket of biscuits sitting oh-so-innocently in the center of the table. “you’re baking me nervous. wheat's up?”

His bad puns had your mouth twisting into a smile, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. The busy atmosphere in the bar was too intense for you to stay calm and loose, especially without your protective teddy bear. Neither Ash nor Poplar felt comfortable enough to get out amongst these sorts of crowds, so they had remained home. You didn’t either, but Alice had left you no choice. S/n had been dragged along, too, mainly for your benefit, but you had no intentions of leaving them alone in a place you were unfamiliar with. This was not the same establishment that your sibling worked at with their two hotheaded bosses.

It didn’t help matters that it was a Friday night, which meant it was busier than normal.

“People,” you signed back at him, looking around at all of them. The majority were humans, but there were some monsters milling about. The building was nowhere close to full capacity, but it was crowded enough to put you on edge. Thankfully, you and s/n had snagged a corner booth near the barkeep. With the way it was made, it easily sat eight people—human or monster—with an open side that left enough space for three chairs to be pulled up to it. It made for a crowded experience, but it worked...until someone needed to get out of the booth that couldn’t just teleport away...

“Everything’s fine. We’re fine. I’m fine,” s/n spoke in a low voice, but loud enough for you and those close enough to hear. Your good eye glanced over at them to make certain that their words were true. Logically, you knew that you were both safe. If not for the fact that this was a good city with a good track record when it came to low crime rates, then the multiple monster friends surrounding the pair of you was a good start.

Emotionally, on the other hand...

Your head was a mess of horrible scenarios and worse outcomes. You were still in the process of healing and your insides were a mess of bruised bones and organs. If something happened again like the situation from a couple of months ago, then you weren’t sure if your weakened body would be capable of standing between the danger and your precious sibling...

That was not something that you were willing to let your guard down for.

“hey, sweetcheeks, we get what it’s like to be on edge all the time,” Red spoke from the opposite side of Sans as he leaned on the table, a bottle of mustard in his hands. Sans had the ketchup cradled in his arms beside you but was running the phalanges of his free hand along your thigh to calm you down. Red’s scarlet eyes didn’t miss the motion and they narrowed at the skeleton sitting next to him, but he didn’t speak on it.

“We got the drinks!” Alice announced her presence when she pranced her way back to the table with her prizes. Beside her, Edge, Nox, Paps, and Blue—the more-active of the eight skeletons here—had bottles of booze and plenty of glasses balanced in their arms. From behind the group, you could spot the bartender watching with sweat on his brow at the precarious load the guys carried. You couldn’t say that you blamed him, but it did put you at ease to see the concern on the man’s face. It probably meant that damaged property wasn’t a common occurrence in this place. That was a good sign.

Some of your nerves settled at that thought.

“I FIND IT AMUSING THAT YOU LIKE COFFEE-FLAVORED LIQUOR, PET” Nox piped up with a sharp grin on his skull when he set down a whole bottle of Kahlua’s coffee liqueur onto the table in front of you. You turned to s/n and gave them a look.

“What? He asked what you liked, and I told him. Would do you good to loosen up a bit tonight, kiddo,” they taunted with a sly grin of their own.

Your cheeks heated up at the embarrassing nickname they’d given you for your height difference despite being the eldest.

“having a small problem there, kiddo?” Sans snickered beside you, his finger bones stilling on your leg beneath the table. You tried to poke his hand off you, but it wouldn’t budge.

“well, ain’t that the pot calling the kettle black?” Stretch chastised in a good-natured way from the booth seat next to Red. His top half laid sprawled on the table, and he looked half-asleep. If it wasn’t for his white eye lights peeking through the cracks of his sockets, you’d have assumed he was.

Your hand started tugging at the bandages over your left eye. Sans’ fingers curled around your wrist much like Ash’s would, stopping your nervous habit in its tracks. You didn’t even acknowledge him when he did so, your good eye staying trained on a group of guys a couple of tables away from you and your group. They weren’t being obvious about it, but you could see the way they kept glancing over every now and then, their eyes flashing with something you knew quite well.

You could feel the danger in the air grow with every second that passed, your muscles tightening every instance you caught their gazes on your sibling, Alice, or yourself. You forced yourself to calm down, however, trying not to stare at the human males. More times than not, that would just encourage them...

“Oh! It’s karaoke night! That sounds fun, right?” Alice squealed, her delighted gaze sweeping over the table of monsters and humans. All eyes drifted to you and you had to wave off the concern, cheeks burning at the unwanted attention. You didn’t mind listening to them sing. Being unable to speak at least got you out of having to go up stage and do it yourself, so this was a perk in your books. “Oh, right...um...”

“Go. Have fun,” you signed at her, Blue and Paps translating for you when she looked confused. Her smile returned and she bounced off to the stage where the crew was setting up the equipment. She was certainly in her element. Your gaze went to the young men you were keeping a watch on, eyeing how they ogled your neighbor as she went. From the corner of your vision, you took note of Blue, Paps, and even Stretch trailing after. You let out a breath of relief, glad that the unsavory men had yet to make a move and that those three had went to accompany the girl. Though you had a feeling Stretch did so to keep close to his older brother.

“Drink and calm down,” s/n ordered from beside you, shoving a glass full of your coffee liquor into your hands. You’d been so engrossed in your survey of your surroundings that you hadn’t even noticed them pouring you a glass. Trying your best to shake off the discomfort, you started to sip at the surprisingly chilled alcohol. How it was cold was beyond you since you could have sworn that the barkeep had all the bottles of his inventory out on display behind him, but you wouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. The bite of alcohol in your mouth was evened out by the smooth coffee flavor. You were not a drinker by any means, but your sibling had a point. Taking a night to enjoy yourself was a good idea.

“you going to get up on stage, sweetness?” Rus asked s/n from their other side. They hummed a “nah”, clarifying that they were not interested in singing in public. They continued to talk about random things, Edge and the others interjecting every now and then. You were content to just sit back and savor your drink, relaxing further into the cushioned seat when it became clear that no one was going to approach your table while the guys were here.

“WE WILL SURELY WIN!” Edge announced out of the blue, startling you from your content state.

Perking up in your seat, you watched as he and Nox bickered back and forth about some competition they had abruptly decided on. Their brothers were beside them, both fidgeting in place and sweating bullets but keeping up their guard dog appearances.

“AS IF! WE WILL!” Nox snapped back, the cocky grin slipping onto his face displaying all the confidence in the world.

“What’s going on?” you asked your sibling after getting their attention.

“They’re going to have a karaoke competition, apparently,” s/n explained with an exaggerated roll of the eyes. “There’s some kind of prize with a pasta dish, but I’m not sure?”

“Oooookay...” you mouthed, not sure what was going on but more than willing to sit back and watch this show play out.

You, s/n, and Sans watched as your friends and family each had their turn at the mic. You clapped when you could, s/n cheering from their spot, while Sans waved, clapped, and cheered when his brother took the stage. The alcohol was starting to make you overheated, but Sans was right beside you to prevent you from shrugging off your pullover. He may have caught a flash of skin to realize that you didn’t have any clothing on beneath the hoodie...

“this is nudes to me,” Sans grinned, sweat pouring down his skull which you found fascinating. You weren’t drunk, but you were feeling a little lightheaded. “didn’t realize you were a tease when you drank, kiddo.” His eye lights were large and fuzzy just like this morning, but it looked like they kept shifting as if trying to form different shapes rather than the circles they were now. It reminded you of when Blue’s would slip into those pretty blue stars...

“I’m hot,” you defended, the heat in your cheeks helping clarify that fact. You could’ve sworn you heard him grunt an agreement, but his voice was so soft that you weren’t certain.

“Eep! Hey!” Alice’s voice cut through the normal bustle of the tavern, drawing your attention to where she stood on the complete opposite side of the building. Every skeleton was there with her, but no one seemed to know what was going on if the confused expressions on their skulls were anything to go by.

Sans let out a sigh, giving the hand he still had a hold of a gentle squeeze before telling you he’d be right back. He then popped out of existence, reappearing beside Red who gave a slight jump at his sudden appearance. It was hard to tell from this distance, but it looked like Alice was chewing out a table of guys sitting beside the stage. To be fair, they also looked very confused and were openly staring at the infuriated young lady. You assumed the wet spot on the front of her skirt which hadn’t been there prior must have something to do with her ire...

Almost the second Sans had left to go see what had happened with Alice and the others, the trio at the table you’d been watching hopped to their feet and started to make their way over.

You were unable to speak or even growl at the men, but you were plenty capable of glaring at them. An uncomfortable warmth sprang into your chest, sparking a raging fire just beneath your ribcage but you didn’t care. Your single working eye narrowed at the obviously drunk youths as they sauntered closer to your booth. The imminent danger presented to your younger sibling had you disregarding the nervous glances coming from the monsters in the establishment in your direction. Your soul burned all the hotter when the drunkards stopped at your table, leaning heavily onto its wooden surface. Whether it was for support or “cool” points, you didn’t know nor did you care. One of your hands had a protective grip on s/n’s wrist while the other was tearing gashes into the pleather of your seat.

“Hey, you.” As he spoke, the stink of beer washed over the two of you, making your sibling crinkle their nose in disgust while you continued to give him a murderous glare. One that he either ignored or was too drunk to even notice. “Me and my buds saw ya two babes over here and we was wonderin’ if ya wanted to join someone who could give ya a real good time.” He smirked, white teeth flashing in the low light of the bar. S/n rolled their eyes while you struggled to not rip his throat out, but it was getting harder to control your instincts, especially with how close he was to your only family. You’d have to crawl over the table to get to him while s/n was right next to the opening that he blocked.

You’ve moved quicker with greater distance than this...

Your muscles tightened further, like a spring ready to snap. Your gaze steady on him rather than his two friends who were giggling like drunk sorority sisters behind him. Your eye darkened when he leaned in closer, his blue eyes flicking between you both but not really seeing how much danger he was putting himself in by doing so.

“Not interested,” was s/n’s short but firm reply. For a moment, the guy looked shocked and confused. Probably not used to being rejected, judging by how “socially-acceptable” his looks were. Then there was a flash of something you were quick to latch onto because you noticed it was a warning sign.

Before anything terrible could happen, Sans, Red, and Rus blipped into existence between you, your sibling, and your new “friends”. Sans had a hold of you since you were suddenly out of the booth and inches away from the idiotic male when he stumbled back. Had Red and Rus not yanked the dude off when they had, he’d have an iron grip on his jugular courtesy of you and your fast reflexes. Your expression was dark and your eye wild. You’d seen that hand of his heading for your sibling’s face...

“whoops. looks like you fell flat with that one, man,” Rus jeered, his expression harder than you’d ever seen it. Red mirrored him, his golden tooth glinting in the dim fluorescents.

By this point, Nox had joined Sans in restraining you. It wasn’t obvious, but you were still quite tense and struggling to regain control of your emotions. The only thing that was stopping you from fighting off your friends and going for the guy’s throat was that he hadn’t managed to touch your younger sibling. The facts that you still had a buzz from the alcohol and was tired to boot helped.

“Y/N?” Blue finally joined the fray, his brother right behind him. While Stretch kept his glare on the three drunk humans who looked ready to throw down for being dragged through the verbal mud by Red and Rus, his older brother kept his focus on you. “Are You Okay?” he asked, his blue eye lights dropping down to your chest before glancing back to your eye. His brow bones creased in concern.

With your bone friends back beside you, you started to feel the heat in your chest ebb away. It did so slowly, but at least it did. Unfortunately, it left behind an ache that you knew wouldn’t be leaving any time soon...

“Sorry,” you sign once you get your hands back, gaze dropping to the floor once the trio of drunks were tossed out of the bar by the barkeep. Guess they were looking for an excuse to get rid of them with how quickly they’d taken care of the situation. Frankly, you were surprised by how friendly the employees and patrons were being to your little group. You’d half expected to get thrown out yourselves since you personally knew how racist some humans could be. Looks like you all managed to find a little diamond in the rough here.

“what do ya gotta apologize for, sweetcheeks?” Red asked, pulling your face up to meet his. “ya didn’t do anything. those assholes should be begging for your forgiveness.”

“i’m with him,” Rus nodded his head at Red, more relaxed now that the threat was out of the vicinity although he remained on alert. You could see both of their eyes scanning the area for any further problems.

“Never Felt An Aura Quite Like That Before,” Nox mumbled beside you, one of his gloved hands petting the top of your head like a dog. Oddly, you didn’t find yourself all that bothered by it. “Especially Coming From A Human.” His eye lights drifted to you. You just gave him a curious look, not sure of what he was going on about.

“Hey, you guys okay?” Alice came rushing over from wherever she had disappeared to. You’d lost track of her with the whole ordeal of those idiots approaching your table. “Something happen? I saw some guys being thrown out when I came out of the bathroom...”

Well, that answers the question of her whereabouts.

“yeah, doll, everything’s just peachy,” Red reassured, hooking an arm around the girl’s neck before heading towards the door. You could smell Alice’s peach schnapps from here. “we should leaf now, though. i’m board to death in this place.”

Everyone else was in silent agreement. Rus would have copied Red’s actions with s/n as his recipient if s/n hadn’t cuddled into your side and grabbed your hand like the little kid they used to be. You could feel their telltale trembles from what had nearly occurred, something that triggered your protective instincts all the more. You lead them out the door, keeping a watchful eye out alongside your skeletal comrades while trying your best to comfort your younger sibling with whatever gestures, hugs, and hand-holding that you could.

The trip home passed in silence. You, s/n, Rus, Edge, Nox, and Red all piled into Edge’s fancy, black car; while Alice, Stretch, Blue, Paps, and Sans went into Paps’ pretty, red convertible. S/n curled into you in the middle of the backseat, Red on your side while Rus was on s/n’s. Nox and Edge sat up front, one or the other glancing back every now and again to make certain the humans were still alive. None of them had seen the younger of the two look so shaken or vulnerable before; and you weren’t sure yourself about the whole ordeal. While you certainly had your demons to deal with, you were more concerned for those of s/n. Clearly, it was time to look up the therapist that they’d insisted that they didn’t need...

You were close to falling asleep by the time the car pulled into your neighbors’ driveway, your fingers pulling through your sibling’s hair in a soothing manner. Red tapped your shoulder, pulling you slightly back. When he saw how easily you followed his movements, he dragged you the rest of the way out his open side. You watched as Rus did the same with s/n who’d fallen asleep due to your ministrations. Instead of feeling that instinctual fear clawing its way out of your chest, you felt a soothing warmth settle there. You curled into Red’s arms when he picked you up in a princess carry. He hadn’t even bothered to let you try to stand and walk on your own.

“they fell asleep?” a voice you recognized but couldn’t put a name to thanks to the haze in your head asked the one who carried you.

“well, s/n did. sweetheart’s still semi-conscious.”

“They Can Stay Overnight, Can’t They?” someone who was usually-loud spoke as softly as they could. You appreciated their attempts.

“heh. yeah, sure... alice already went home, so...”

You stopped listening by this point, your mind drifting in and out of consciousness. Your limbs felt like lead and sleep dragged your thoughts down into its murky depths...

...and yet...

You awoke with a start, your breathing fast and your chest burning. Fear of something clawed at your mind, but you couldn’t remember what it was that you were running from. Your eye flashed here and there in the dark, seeing nothing but blackness pressing in on all sides. Swallowing your panic, you waited, straining your eyelids to make sure they were open. After what felt like an eternity, your vision adjusted to the dark. You could make out the familiar shapes of furniture that you’d find in a bedroom. The problem was: it wasn’t your bedroom...

“hey, kiddo,” a voice you recognized as Sans’ breathed in your ear. You felt your muscles tense before relaxing at his presence. “you can’t sleep, either? wanna join me for an interstellar time?”

You cocked your head at what you guessed was a pun, but you didn’t understand what it was supposed to mean. You just nodded, reaching up to grab his boney hand when he offered it to you. You didn’t even get the chance to ask how he knew that you’d been woken by a nightmare before the darkness of what you assumed was his bedroom fell away.

You suddenly found yourself on the roof, Sans holding your hand tightly. You still had the blanket you’d awoken in wrapped around you, but instead of a mattress, you were sitting on roof shingles. The skeleton settled down beside you as your eye drifted over to what you knew was your house. You could even see the glimmer of moonlight bouncing off the trowel you’d forgotten to put away that afternoon.

“pisces for your thoughts?” he started off with a pun, waving a hand up at the stars despite the constellation he named not being visible at this time of year.

You bit your lip, fingers twitching in his hold when your eye began to itch uncomfortably. You took a calming breath, fighting the urge to pick at your healing wounds. Slipping your hand from his warm bones, you did your best to respond. Being honest about everything would be beneficial for your sibling, if nothing else. Besides, it wasn’t like you’d done yourself any favors at the bar that night...

“Nightmare,” you made the motions with your hands, careful to not make an error.

“sounds sirius,” came Sans’ simple response, though the bone between his eyes creased and the lights in his skull tightened when they gave you their undivided attention. You waited a moment, but when he said no more, you continued.

“You know about the knife?" you signed, motioning to your dead eye. At his nod, you took a deep breath and continued. "It wasn't a kitchen A-C-C-I-D-E-N-T. S/n and I were attacked in an alley for being monster A-L-L-I-E-S. I got these," you pointed at your eye and then passed a hand down your chest, stomach, and hip to the long scar hidden beneath your clothes. "so s/n wouldn't get hurt." The story tumbled out of you. It was probably something that Sans had already guessed had happened, but he just didn't know the details.

“what about your family?” Sans asked but the frown on his face told you that he’d already guessed what your answer would be.

“D-I-S-O-W-N-E-D me,” you signed, a heavy sadness weighing on your heart. It had hit you like a ton of bricks when you’d caught on to the reason why your family and friends hadn’t bothered to visit you in the hospital. The doctors and nurses were friendly enough, but even they hadn’t been too keen on sticking around for longer than necessary to perform their duties. Only the very few monsters that had managed to garner a foothold in that closed-off community had ever shown you any sort of empathy. The officer in charge of your case had been a feline monster. She had been very kind and considerate of your situation. She’d gone so far as to get you in touch with a friend of hers on the other side of the country to help you out. She was the reason why you were even in this city in the first place.

“they cut you out...because you protected your sibling?” Disbelief was thick in his voice. You flinched at the tone but didn’t dare look up. You didn’t want to see whatever expression was on his skull.

“Yes and no.”

It wasn’t that simple. You had defended s/n, yes, but the way you protected them was what caused the fear in your family. Even you didn’t fully understand it, but it was something that wasn’t in line with humanity. That alone was enough to unsettle your rather racist family. While not violent towards the monsters, they did look down upon them. It was not a sentiment either you or your sibling shared. You had both called them out on their prejudices multiple times since the monsters had freed themselves from their underground prison. Unfortunately, it hadn’t changed their behavior and had just created further strain on your relationship.

“They hate you,” you indicated at him to try and get him to understand, unwilling to divulge information that you didn’t understand yourself. It pained you to say it. Tears were gathering in the corners of your eyes—even the dead one—at the admission that you came from such vile people. You hadn’t even realized you were crying until Sans pulled you into his arms and held you close. Your chest ached and you clung to the front of his hoodie, trying to ignore the hurt.

“they hate monsters, and you don’t,” he stated. It wasn’t a question, just a matter of fact, but you nodded against his collarbone anyway. He sighed, his breath fluttering the strands of hair covering your bad eye. “their loss. i happen to think you’re out of this world.”

You gave a silent chuckle at this, which only provoked an onslaught of astrology puns to come tumbling out of his teeth. It didn’t take long before your high-strung emotions had been laughed out and your body was sagging against him.

“stars, kitten,” Sans breathed into your hair when he was certain that you were too far gone to hear his words. “you’re making this harder than it needs to be.” He pulled back just enough to press his teeth against your forehead, nuzzling a skeleton kiss against your soft skin. He then spoke something he’d never thought he’d do again in his lifetime since escaping the Underground...

“i won’t let you get hurt again, kitten...i promise.”

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