Chapter Text
I woke up in a standing position, which was uncomfortable. I wasn't at home in my own bed, clearly.
I was in some sort of clear tube, and dressed in what seemed to be a hospital gown. My tube was somewhere in the middle of a long row of tubes. Each tube held a human woman. They were all crying and screaming and yelling to be released, which was an assault on my poor ears. I had no idea where I was, so I wasn't going to waste energy doing something that pointless, especially since no one was here to release us.
Well, it seemed someone did come into the room, after a few minutes.
It was hard to tell the being's appearance while they were at the far end of the room, inspecting each tube occupant. The women yelled and cried and banged on the glass even louder, demanding again to be set free with renewed vigor.
I stood quietly and waited for the being to get closer so I could get a good look at it.
Huh. A skeleton monster. And not a very terrifying looking one, either. I'd seen way more terrifying things.
He had a double-striped scar across one eye, like he'd been in some sort of fight.
He was dressed in official looking clothing, however.
He stopped in front of my tube, seeming interested in the fact that I wasn't terrified like the others.
“I have a question.”
“SPEAK.”
“Where am I?”
“THE UNDERGROUND'S NEW BREEDING FACILITY. YOU ARE A CAPTURED FEMALE WHO WILL BE ASSIGNED AT RANDOM TO A MONSTER TO BE THEIR MATE.”
“Oh. That's... unfortunate.”
“YOU AREN'T REACTING LIKE THE OTHERS.”
“Nothing surprises me anymore. It's kinda weird I'm here because I never leave my house and can't have gotten mixed up in this, but eh.”
“YOU DON'T KNOW HOW YOU GOT HERE? WE FOUND YOU UNCONSCIOUS AT THE FOOT OF A STEEP DROP, IN A BED OF YELLOW FLOWERS.”
“Oh. Yeah, I don't go gallavanting off into weird places either. There's no way I would've fallen down a hole.”
“REGARDLESS, HUMAN, YOU WILL BE ASSIGNED.”
“Yay,” I said sarcastically. “Yeah, turn the traumatized greyace into a breeder, that'll work out great.”
The skeleton gave me a withering look and pasted a sheet of paper to my tube.
He went on to the other tubes, and I quickly got bored.
It was some minutes later when another monster came through, marking the sheets of paper on each tube with some writing.
When the monster got to my sheet of paper, they looked surprised and maybe a little amused.
“Ah, so he's already claimed this one. We'll send it off to his residence immediately.”
“Not an it. And I thought this was random.”
The monster looked surprised that I even dared to speak. “We do not refuse a direct order from a superior.”
“Wow, ominous.”
I was soon shipped out, my tube covered so I couldn't see anything. It was really fucking freezing, wherever I was being taken.
The covering was taken off the tube when I'd supposedly arrived, and I was in a disturbingly tidy bedroom.
I waited to see if the tube would open, but it didn't. I guess that was a safety precaution against anyone who tried to make a run for it.
Several minutes later, someone very familiar opened the door, walked in, and shut it, sighing in exhaustion and leaning their back against the door when it shut.
The skeleton monster from the inspection.
“Oh, it's you again.”
He looked up sharply.
“Same day delivery, express shipping,” I quipped, doing finger guns at him.
He walked over to the tube and put in some kind of code to unlock it, and the front slid open like a door. He wordlessly handed me a change of clothing and pointed out the adjacent bathroom.
I went and got changed into the clothes he'd handed to me, and was appreciative when they were comfortable and not form-fitting.
I walked back out and was greeted with a tray of food.
“That's for me?”
“Yes. Unless You'd Rather Starve.”
He'd lowered his voice?
“No, I wasn't complaining. I'm still trying to adjust to however the hell I'm supposed to act in this role.”
He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. I took the tray and found a seat, then chowed down on the food.
As I was nearing the end of my food, he spoke up again.
“I'M NOT GOING TO MAKE YOU DO ANYTHING TODAY.”
“That's nice of you.”
“NOT NICE. JUST TOO TIRED.”
The one bed in the room was clearly ours. He made me lay down on it to show me it wouldn't bite, or something.
He laid beside me, making me take on the role of big spoon while he fell asleep.
There started to become a theme of him being ‘too tired’ several nights in a row.
***
“What's your name, by the way?” I asked him one night after he'd returned from work.
“...SANS.”
“Like the font?”
“EXACTLY LIKE THE FONT, YES.”
“Neat. My name's Amanda.”
“WHY DO YOU WANT ME TO KNOW YOUR NAME?”
“I dunno, I just thought that... it's weird that if we're gonna live together for a long time, we still didn't know each other's names.”
“A ‘LONG TIME’?”
“Yeah?”
“...You Never Planned On Making A Run For It, Did You?”
“What use would that be? It'd only be trouble for you and I wouldn't know where to go anyway.”
“YOU'RE A STRANGE ONE. I'VE ALREADY HAD TO HELP MONSTERS RETRIEVE THEIR RUNAWAY HUMANS.”
“Yeah, well, nobody really wants to be in sexual slavery, dude. I'm still curious why you haven't made me do anything yet.”
“WHAT IF I SAID I WANTED TO BREED YOU RIGHT NOW?”
***
She tried to play it off, but her laugh was nervous. Her expression glazed over, and she looked... afraid. She'd clammed up completely. In a numb, dead-sounding voice, she replied, “Then let's get it over with.”
She wouldn't try to run? She had just... accepted defeat? Accepted it with barely any protest? Just... lying down and taking it?
Sans didn't like how afraid she sounded. It sounded... wrong.
Especially after she'd been so keen on having positive interactions with him. How chill she'd been about this whole arrangement up until now.
Her heart was beating increasingly faster, as if trying to force her into fight or flight, and her SOUL was screaming and crying out for her, despite her refusal to cry herself.
***
“I'M NOT GOING TO ASSAULT YOU,” Sans's voice cut through my oncoming panic attack. “PLEASE, CALM DOWN. AMANDA.”
I snapped out of whatever spiral my mind had been going down and suddenly needed air.
I started breathing harder, trying not to break down into tears. Sans's claw-like hands hovered over me awkwardly, not sure how I'd react to touch after... what just happened.
He settled with... petting my hair. It was a ghost of a touch at first, as if he was afraid touch would send me into a panic again.
“I'm sorry, I don't know what just happened.”
“WHAT HAPPENED WAS MY INABILITY TO REALIZE HOW BADLY YOUR TRAUMA HAS DAMAGED YOUR PSYCHE. WHOEVER ABUSED YOU IN THE PAST WILL NEVER HURT YOU AGAIN. I SWEAR IT.”
He'd sat beside me on the bed at some point. He sighed.
“DO YOU KNOW HOW TO PULL OUT YOUR SOUL?”
As an example, he made some kind of pulling motion at his chest and a glowing, upside-down cartoon-like heart came forth, hovering just above his palm.
“N-no, I don't,” I tried to keep my voice from trembling, still coming down from the panic attack.
“WELL, I CAN'T DO IT FOR YOU, SO YOU'LL HAVE TO LEARN.”
I tried to do the same motion he did, but in front of my own chest, and I could see a glow through my chest, but it wouldn't come out.
“It's not m—it's not moving.”
“Hey, Breathe. Relax. It's Okay. You're Safe.”
Even with his soothing words, my SOUL would only get as far as my skin before retreating back inside my chest.
“Why can't you do it?”
“BECAUSE THAT STARTS AN ENCOUNTER, AND I HAVEN'T EXPLAINED THOSE YET.”
“Do it. You can explain as you go.”
Sans sighed. And made the yanking motion in front of my own chest.
My SOUL came out easily, but the room darkened around us, and large orange-outlined buttons with orange text appeared in front of me.
FIGHT hovered ominously on the left, but he was trying to help me do something that wasn't forced sex, so I ignored it entirely.
There was also ACT, ITEM, and MERCY.
I didn't have any items on me, so I ignored that button as well.
Curious, I touched ACT, and more options came up.
* Check
* Question
* Joke
* Flirt
Flirt? What was this, a dating sim?
I backtracked out and pressed MERCY to see what was under it.
* Spare
* Flee
What, I had the option to run? Why did everyone and everything imply I should run? This place had issues. Y'know, besides the whole coerced breeding thing.
Sans had been strangely silent through this whole experience.
I pressed * Spare, since it seemed the most straightforward and least harmful of the options.
Sans looked... surprised, almost, at what I had chosen. And maybe even a little pleased?
“I'M GOING TO SPARE YOU NOW. TRY TO KEEP YOUR SOUL FROM GOING BACK IN.”
I cupped my hands behind my SOUL as the room's colors returned to normal. It tried to recede into my chest, but stopped at my hands and then stopped trying to go back in entirely, floating there at rest.
I held it more normally like he'd been doing with his, watching it hover above my palm.
“IT SEEMS YOU FIGURED OUT HOW ENCOUNTERS WORK WITHOUT MY HELP. YOU DID WELL.”
We both stared at my SOUL. I didn't know what SOULs were supposed to look like, but mine looked like it wasn't doing too well.
It was half green, half purple, and long cracks spiderwebbed from the damaged center, along with some nasty looking discoloration.
“I don't know what SOULs are supposed to look like, but mine doesn't look healthy.”
“THAT'S NOT GOOD. HERE.”
A green the same color as half of my SOUL came from his hand and gently settled against the cracks. The cracks didn't disappear, but they looked thinner, and possibly shorter, even on the purple side.
“HEALING MAGIC DOESN'T USUALLY WORK ON SOULS DIRECTLY, BUT SINCE IT IS THE SAME TYPE OF MAGIC AS THE KINDNESS HALF OF YOUR SOUL, I FIGURED IT WOULD BE WORTH A TRY.”
“Wait, magic? And what do you mean by kindness half? Colors have traits?”
“YES.”
“What's purple mean?”
“PERSEVERANCE.”
“Ouch. Makes sense. Yours is white, what does white mean?”
“MAGIC, HOPE, COMPASSION, AND LOVE.”
“You get four traits? That's not fair,” I grinned.
He gave me a small smile. “NOW, I'D LIKE TO HOLD YOUR SOUL, IF YOU DON'T MIND.”
I held it out to him, despite the slight resistance it gave to being a bit further from my body, and he took it gently in his hand.
I could suddenly feel everything so much more intensely.
My SOUL was enveloped in the green magic directly coming from the palm it was resting in, and the feeling of comfort and safety surrounding my entire being was so powerful I whimpered.
“NOW, TAKE MY SOUL INTO YOUR HANDS.”
I gently received his SOUL into my palms, cupping it and cradling it to make it feel as loved and safe as I did in that moment.
A purple blush broke out across Sans's cheekbones, which he tried to will away with a glare. It was kind of cute.
“ALRIGHT, NOW, LET'S HAVE OUR SOULS BACK,” he said hastily, placing my SOUL in my own hands again and snatching his back into his own hands.
“That was... wow.”
“IF YOU THOUGHT THAT WAS INTENSE,” he smirked, “YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO HANDLE TOUCHING YOUR SOUL TO MINE.”
“That definitely sounds like it'll be more intense, yeah.”
“IT'S THE ALTERNATIVE TO PHYSICAL SEX.”
“Oh,” I blushed. “Well, I'd rather that than... y'know.”
“I FIGURED YOU WOULD FIND THAT MORE AGREEABLE, SO I'M TRYING THAT INSTEAD, DESPITE HOW VULNERABLE IT MAKES MY SOUL.”
“I,” I tried not to get choked up, but my throat closed up. I had to wait several seconds before I was able to speak again. My voice was small even when I was finally able to. “I appreciate that. Thank you.”
Sans leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead. “DO YOU WANT TO WAIT, OR WOULD YOU RATHER TRY NOW?”
“We could... try now?” I suggested, stamping down the spike of fear that threatened to ruin my only way not to have to face the terror physical intimacy brought me.
“Are You Sure?” his voice was soft and gentle; he'd sensed the spike of fear. My SOUL was so close to him, after all.
“It's better than the other way,” I said simply. “And I wanna try it.”
“OKAY.”
He brought his SOUL close to mine, and gently, tentatively, touched it to mine.
My mind went white as a feeling so intense I couldn't even think lit all my senses on fire at once.
No, not fire. Mint? Something also smelled really good, like coffee at the perfect temperature. I felt his... desire? wash over me so intensely that I got lost in chasing the feeling of pleasure it gave me. It was like my SOUL was an erogenous zone, and whatever this experience was, was turning me on.
***
His mind went white as he was plunged into that feeling so intense it overwhelmed all of his senses.
Her love, her desire for emotional intimacy, was intense and wanting and begging him to reciprocate. He was only too glad to. Her scent was the embodiment of comfort, all his favorite smells radiating around him at once. She was drawing out his desire without even knowing it, her SOUL couldn't lie and tell him she wanted nothing to do with him. He felt loved when with her like this. He wasn't just aroused by her, he felt safe, adored, wanted.
Her SOUL posed a proposition: I'm okay with this, I think? If you want me to have your kid, this is the way.
At that, he pressed his SOUL into hers further.
***
Just when I was feeling like maybe having a kid with him wouldn't be so bad, his SOUL pressed into mine and its magic eagerly buzzed against my already aroused erogenous zone.
I pressed my hand to my mouth in order to keep from making noise.
Sans himself wasn't doing much better with the intense stimulation the contact created; his eyes were shut tight, his face flushed purple.
I could feel the buzz of his magic inside my physical body, and started to wonder just how exactly babies came to be for monsters who did this SOUL thing instead.
The buzz of magic increased the stimulation suddenly, and I vaguely remember some sort of sinful noise escaping me as my mind went blank from the orgasm.
He cried out as well, and the buzz of magic stopped only to have left something inside my body. Inside my womb. Did he like, indirectly cum inside me or something? That thought sounded weird as fuck, but accurate to how I physically felt.
Our SOULs retracted back inside us, and I felt the lack of intimacy starkly against that experience.
“Holy shit... that—that just happened...”
Sans embraced me and nuzzled against me. “YOU GORGEOUS, BEAUTIFUL BEING. YOU JUST LET ME EXPERIENCE...”
“That was a million times better than physical sex. It was...”
“HEAVEN.”
“Euphoric. Oh, that too.”
I kissed his temple.
He gently coaxed me into laying down on my back, my head elevated by the pillow, and placed a hand on my abdomen.
“NO ONE WILL EVER HURT YOU AGAIN. I PROMISE.”
He leaned down and kissed me on the lips, then laid beside me and snuggled into me.
Over the next few days, Sans made me stay in bed, taking hours off work to wait on my every need.
One of those days, he brought someone with him. A doctor?
“So you actually finally got laid, huh?” the fish monster laughed, seeming to enjoy embarrassing him.
“JUST... DO THE CHECKUP, PLEASE, UNDYNE.”
“Alright alright, punk, don't get your panties in a twist.”
“Sup,” I greeted the fish lady. She grinned, her sharp teeth glinting.
“So, you're his mate, huh?” she said conversationally while hooking up something to me. “Captain Sans Serif won't shut up about you at work. It'd be insufferable if it wasn't so damn squishy and cute.”
“Him? Cute? Never,” I grinned, showing I was joking.
“He was right about you being chill. I wish MY mate was chill. Why ARE you so damn chill, anyway?”
“Nothing really suprises me anymore?”
“Wow, what've you SEEN? I know people who would run screaming at the first sight of a monster, let alone be intimate with one.”
“A lot?” I shrugged. “I dunno. You guys look a little weird to me, but I don't find you grotesque? Not like the orcs or goblins in Lord of the Rings, anyway. Besides, you're not evil.”
“Been called evil to my face before. And you're just like, I'm ‘not evil’? With THAT much conviction?”
“Yeah? Maybe morally skewed, but not evil. Evil is a term for like, child rapists and genociders.”
“Well, that's refreshing to hear, especially from a human. There's a little SOUL growing in you, by the way. You're pregnant. Congrats!”
Sans sighed in relief beside us.
“Oh, neat, so I can get up now? As long as I don't put too much strain on my body?”
“Yep! And tell the Captain off if he starts being a worrywart, yeah?”
“Sure?”
“Great!”
Undyne unhooked the equipment from me and left, after making more harmless verbal jabs in his general direction, including a not at all subtle, “Dude, you SCORED.”
As soon as she was gone, Sans exhaled and pinched the bridge of his nonexistent nose.
“The Royal Scientist. An Absolute Madwoman. Insufferable.”
“She seemed pretty cool to me...” I grinned mischievously and tacked on “Captain.”
“OH MY GOD. NOT YOU TOO.” Sans rubbed a hand over his face.
I snickered.
“So, I can actually get up now, right?”
“OF COURSE. JUST... PLEASE STAY INSIDE THE HOUSE. I'LL TELL MY BROTHER TO LEAVE YOU ALONE.”
“Ooh, I get to see the rest of the house?”
“YES. MOSTLY SO YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THE KITCHEN, IN CASE YOU GET CRAVINGS RANDOMLY.”
“Neat!”
He took me on a mini tour and showed me the living room and kitchen, in which another skeleton was standing.
“hey bro, what would you say if i said my human escaped again...?”
“IT'S BECAUSE YOU LIVE LIKE A SLOB, PAPYRUS.”
“Oh, so you're both named after fonts?”
“this your mate?”
“YES,” he answered both of us, then focused on Papyrus. “BE CIVIL, PLEASE. WHILE I RETRIEVE YOURS.”
Sans sighed in exasperation and left out the front door.
“name's rus. nice to meetcha, little lady. so undyne was by a bit ago?”
“Yeah, she was checking if I was pregnant.”
“and are you?”
“Mhm! I dunno how long monster pregnancies last, though. For humans it's nine months.”
“ya seem pretty chill about this whole thing. aren'tcha mad you're kinda bein' forced into this?”
“Eh, it could be worse. Way worse. Gotta take what little mercies I can get. Besides, your brother's actually really sweet?”
“man, i wish you'd've been mine instead. i wouldn't hafta deal with a runaway all th' time.”
“Why does she run away?”
“hates the idea of the whole thing. says it's morally wrong, 'n shit. tries t' fight back when i try t' calm her down. calls me a monster, whatever humans mean when they say that.”
“Ouch. So she's a morality snob and possible racist? You really got unlucky, dude.”
“yeah. like i said, wish i coulda gotten someone like you instead.”
His eyelight flashed purple for a second.
“kindness. knew it. perseverance too. makes sense.”
“What's up with the whole colors having traits thing, anyway?”
“personality and magic receptivity.”
“Huh. So that means...”
“you're really compatible with my bro. i dunno if you know this, but he's got more th'n just purple.”
“Yeah, he tried to heal the cracks in my SOUL before. He's got green too.”
“he likes t' keep that under wraps, though. thinks bein' able to heal'll make him look less tough.”
“That's... kinda cute.”
“anyway. i'll look out for you too. gotta protect the babybones 'n all. and you make my bro happy, so.”
“Thanks, Rus. That's really sweet of you.”
Papyrus gave me a lazy grin and walked over to the front door and opened it, looking out. I shivered from the cold air coming in.
Sans was approaching the door, holding a limp human woman in a princess carry.
“SHE DIDN'T GET FAR. HAD TO SEDATE HER BECAUSE SHE REFUSED TO CALM DOWN. PLEASE TRY TO KEEP HER ESCAPADES TO A MINIMUM.”
“yeah yeah,” Papyrus picked her out of his brother's arms and carried her back to his room, shutting the door behind him.
Sans shut the front door and looked at me.
“WHAT DID HE SAY TO YOU?” he asked with narrowed eyesockets.
“Asked about Undyne's visit, talked about my compatibility with you, and complained about his human?”
“JUST THAT? GOOD.”
“What were you afraid he was gonna say?” I laughed.
“INNUENDOS. OR OUTRIGHT ASKING YOU ABOUT OUR SEXUAL ENCOUNTER.”
“So he's dirty minded?”
“EXTREMELY.”
“Haha, mood.”
“WHAT THE FUCK.”
“Dude. Being greyace doesn't mean I'm innocent-minded. I've been alive for 28 years, I think I've seen quite a bit of sus stuff.”
“...YOU'RE OLDER THAN ME.”
“Wait, what the fuck? No, you're joking.”
“I'M TWENTY-FOUR.”
“That's weird. Ugh, I feel old now.”
“I DON'T SEE WHAT THE BIG DEAL IS. IT'S A FOUR YEAR DIFFERENCE.”
“The problem is that I really wish I had more time to grow up. I was in college while I was still trying to enjoy kid things, like tv shows and video games. Graduated with two whole degrees and didn't wanna do anything except go back to being a kid.”
“RUS HAS NO MOTIVATION TO DO ANYTHING WITH HIS LIFE EITHER. YOU'RE LIKE HIM.”
“Ouch.”
“NO, I... I THINK WE ALL HAD TO GROW UP TOO QUICKLY. I UNDERSTAND. I KNOW YOU PROBABLY DIDN'T WANT TO BE A MOTHER. I'M SORRY IT HAPPENED THIS WAY.”
“What happened to you?”
“Someone Had To Protect Papyrus And Raise Him, And No One Else Was Going To.”
“...Oh. I'm sorry.”
“IT'S FINE. I'VE ALWAYS BEEN BETTER ABLE TO HANDLE ADULTHOOD THAN HIM.”
“Hmm.” I walked over to where Sans was standing in the kitchen entryway and kissed his forehead.
His cheekbones flamed purple. “WHAT WAS THAT FOR.”
“Can't I kiss my cute bonefriend whenever I want?”
“OH MY GOD, I LOVE YOU.”
He pulled me into a kiss.
***
Some days later, I was mindlessly watching something on the tv when Rus's door slammed open and the human woman I'd seen get brought back inside that one time tore down the stairs screaming.
She grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me to my feet, loudly whispering, “You've gotta help me, please. You have to help me get out of here. I can't take it.”
“Calm down, breathe, and tell me what's wrong, okay?”
I saw Rus standing in the doorway, looking tired and worried.
“I don't want that thing anywhere near me! I don't want it inside me!”
“What's your name?”
“Lay—Layla.”
“Have you tried discussing your fears with him so you two can work around them?”
“Him- noooo, you think these things have consciences? They're trying to breed us like animals!”
“Pretty sure sentient beings have consciences, yeah. Maybe a fucked up conscience? But it's there, I can assure you.”
“Y-you're defending these things?”
“Defending? No, just answering your question.”
“layla, please. come back to bed. i'll sleep on the floor if it'll make you more comfortable.”
“Of course you want me back in that filthy room, where you could easily rape me as soon as I let my guard down!”
“Clean your room, Rus. It's clearly a turn off. Also, Layla: mine didn't rape me. And I'm sure his brother is no different. So chill out a bit? You sound like you could use the sleep.”
“You're not going to help me?!” she wailed.
“I'm gonna play devil's advocate here and say no.”
She wailed some more and stormed up back into Rus's room in a huff, crying about the cruel unfairness of the world.
Rus mouthed a “thanks” and went back into his room, shutting the door.
I went back to watching tv.
***
On a day when Sans was off work and we were watching tv together, a random thought popped into my head that I had to voice.
“Is drinking coffee bad for baby development?”
“I... DON'T KNOW.”
“Cuz caffeine is like, a drug, right? But a legal one. So maybe it's not that bad? But still. If I don't know I don't wanna risk it, despite how much I love coffee.”
“I'LL ASK UNDYNE.”
“Really? Thanks!”
Sans held up a phone and dialed a number, and held it to his ear. “UNDYNE. YES, IT'S ABOUT THE BABY. NO, I'M NOT BEING A WORRYWART. AMANDA WANTS TO KNOW IF COFFEE IS BAD FOR DEVELOPMENT. YES, SHE ACTUALLY ASKED THAT. HOW DARE YOU. ONE? OKAY. THANKS. GOODBYE.”
He hung up, looking slightly irked. Undyne must really know where to poke to get on his nerves.
I snickered. “So? What'd she say?”
“ONE CUP A DAY IS FINE.”
“Oh thank god. I thought I'd have to go without coffee for nine whole months.”
“...NINE...MONTHS? THAT'S HOW LONG—”
“Humans gestate, yeah.”
“OKAY. I'LL ADD PATERNAL LEAVE TO MY CALENDAR AND BLOCK OFF THE TIME AROUND THE DUE DATE AS ‘DO NOT DISTURB’.”
“You plan that far in advance? It's only been like, a few weeks, tops. My concept of time is garbage but y'know what I mean.”
“YES, MY SCHEDULE IS VERY, VERY BOOKED, AS CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD. SO I NEED THINGS PLANNED WELL IN ADVANCE TO HAVE ANY FREE TIME AT ALL.”
“Oof.”
“QUEEN TORIEL DOESN'T TOLERATE SLACKING, BUT UNDERSTANDS THE CONCEPT AND IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY VERY WELL. SO SHE'S BEEN ALLOWING ME MORE TIME OFF TO LOOK AFTER YOU.”
“She sounds like a scary boss. Wait, she knows about me? The Queen Of All Monsters knows I exist?”
“YES. SHE'S QUITE FOND OF HEARING ABOUT YOU, TOO. DON'T TELL HER I TOLD YOU THIS, BUT SHE MISSES HER EX, ASGORE, SOMETIMES. GETS SENTIMENTAL. SHE LIKES TO HEAR ABOUT FAMILIES AND RELATIONSHIPS THRIVING.”
“Scandalous.”
“EXACTLY.”
***
A few weeks later, I was standing in front of the fridge, holding the door open and trying to decide what I wanted to eat.
Everything in the fridge looked unappetizing.
“Uuuugh,” I half groaned, half growled, slamming the fridge door with a little more force than really necessary.
I went to the living room and sank into a sitting position on the couch, staring at the blank screen of the tv.
Rus poked his head out of his room. “you doin' okay there?”
“I can't tell if I'm hungry, or bored, or both.”
“a little stir-crazy?”
“Yes, exactly. I gotta move around or I'm gonna slowly go insane.”
“next time my bro's off work for a whole day i'll convince him to take you to grillby's and undyne's.”
“Oh my god thank you. Wait, who's Grillby?”
“eccentric café owner. i love his sweets.”
“Alright, cool.”
***
True to his word, the next time Sans had most of a day off, he brought it up.
“amanda's goin' a little stir-crazy. i was wonderin' if you could take her to visit some people so she can get out of the house a bit. take her to grillby's for food and undyne's for an early checkup.”
“You Didn't Tell Me You Were Feeling Cooped Up,” he said softly to me.
“Well, I actually wasn't until really recently, and you were busy, so.”
“We Could Go To Grillby's Right Now If You Want? A Fair Warning Though, That Man Is A Little...”
“intense.”
“NEITHER DOES HE UNDERSTAND PERSONAL SPACE.”
“Eh, pretty sure I can handle it.”
“IF YOU'RE SURE.”
“Beats going stir-crazy.”
“ALL RIGHT.”
I got dressed more warmly and Sans took my hand. We walked together through the snow until we came to a rather quaint-looking café with a huge storefront.
“PREPARE YOURSELF.”
I didn't know what he meant me to prepare for, so I just mentally steeled myself as we walked in.
“Sans! My favorite customer!” said a flamboyant, slightly manic voice.
A purple fire elemental was behind the counter. He wore... were those swirly glasses? Huh, whimsical.
“THE USUAL, PLEASE.”
“Coming right up! Thank you for your continued patronage. Anything for the lady?”
We'd reached the counter and the fire elemental, who I assumed was Grillby, leaned his entire upper body over the counter to get a closer look at me.
“You must be Sans's little human! My, aren't you just adorable! I could eat you up!”
“Dessert without dinner first? Scandalous,” I put my hand on my hip, a huge grin on my face.
“Cutie, you're a full course meal,” Grillby waggled his eyebrows? at me.
Sans sighed beside us. “GRILLBY.”
Grillby's attention was drawn back to Sans for a few seconds. “I like her. She matches my energy.”
And then back to me.
“What's your favorite drink?”
“Mocha?”
“Naughty naughty. Coffee is bad for growth. Second favorite?”
“Hot chocolate?”
“Good choice,” he grinned. “How would you like it prepared?”
“With cinnamon, marshmallows, and a candy cane?” I said, eyeing the many different types of candy in the display case.
“A sweet tooth. I approve. One cinnamint hot chocolate, coming up!”
“I thought I made up the word cinnamint, mister.”
Grillby chuckled. “Great minds think alike, you know!”
“I read somewhere that all the best people are a little crazy,” I told Grillby as he made our drinks.
His manic grin returned at that.
Sans got his coffee and I got my special hot chocolate.
“Do come again, and please bring her next time,” Grillby said to Sans.
Sans gave him a nod and we left to see Undyne.
“That was a bit of a whirlwind,” I commented.
“HE'S LIKE THAT ALL THE TIME,” Sans sighed.
Undyne picked us up in some sort of truck and drove us to the lab. She talked excitedly the whole way.
When we got there, she whisked me into a very hospital-esque room and laid me back on a cot, hooking up equipment to me again.
“The little baby's SOUL is bigger, bones have started to form around it, and you have a bit of a baby bump. Not really noticeable with looser clothes though. The bubble of magic surrounding the baby is serving as the amniotic sac.”
“Oh, cool.”
While she was explaining how far along I was, I heard Sans's phone ding with a notification.
“I'M BEING CALLED IN.”
“On your day off?” Undyne asked with a frown. “I hope it's nothing too serious. Do you need to go to the capital?”
“...I THINK SO.”
“I'll look after her. Go.”
Undyne started to unhook the equipment from me as Sans left.
“Now, punk, what am I supposed to do with you?” she looked me over. “Hey, pull out your SOUL for a sec? I wanna see it.”
I made the drawing out motion in front of my chest, and my SOUL actually responded that time. It hovered serenely above my palm, in front of my chest.
Before I knew what was happening, she'd pulled out her own SOUL and touched it to mine before I could protest.
My mind went white as magic hummed gently against my SOUL.
I was enveloped by the feeling of being on a beach, a gentle breeze caressing my hair, as I was cuddled up next to someone making teasing yet loving remarks, whispering sweet nothings, and delivering expert touches that turned me on.
***
Undyne wanted to feel the words, “you're not evil.” She knew Sans might kill her for this if he ever found out she'd touched SOULs with his mate, without permission no less.
It wasn't like she was trying to get her pregnant or anything, she just wanted to feel loved. The human assigned to Undyne sucked, and she was jealous of what Sans had.
Undyne was surrounded by the feeling of safety and love that she already knew Amanda was capable of producing, gentle whispers of eternal kindness washing over her in waves, not rejecting her for so suddenly forcing herself on her.
The way their SOULs were touching was causing Amanda to make little noises of pleasure, which gratified Undyne greatly.
Now that she thought about it, she actually did kind of want to put a baby in Sans's mate. Breeding with Alphys wasn't enough. She wanted to get drunk on the thrill of putting a baby in another monster's woman.
Which meant she should probably stop now before she signed her death warrant if Sans got wind of this.
She retracted her SOUL back inside her chest, still turned on and feeling aroused even as the sudden lack of contact caused a tiny whimper to escape Amanda's mouth.
***
“Sorry, punk. Shoulda asked first,” I heard Undyne say as I slowly came down from the high of her magic.
“It's—it's okay,” I gasped out.
“But like, hot DAMN. No wonder Sans is smitten with you. Y'know, if he allows me to borrow you after you bear him a boss monster baby you're welcome to come fuck me. I kinda wanna put a baby in you. Is that TMI? That's probably TMI.”
“Cute mermaid babies,” I whispered in a scandalous tone.
“Yeah EXACTLY. Holy shit. You DO catch my drift.”
“By the way, did I ever tell you that you look like an anime character?”
“Oh my GOD. Which one?”
“Hange Zoe, from Attack on Titan.”
“I have no idea who that is.”
“If we ever get to the surface, I'll show that anime to you.”
“Are you polyamorous? PLEASE tell me you're polyamorous.”
“I... sure? I guess?”
“GREAT. I'll ask Alphys and Sans for permission to breed you myself after you give birth.”
“You're... really excited about this.”
“Well DUH. Comparing me to an anime character is a proposal in my book. You probably didn't know that but now you do.”
She pulled out her phone and texted Alphys and Sans.
“I've got my wife's permission!” she announced with a grin when her phone dinged with a reply text after a moment.
Her phone dinged again.
“Ah, and there's Sans's protective ass telling me off. Here, lemme take a selfie with you so he knows you're chill with it.”
She threw an arm over my shoulder and snapped a close up pic of our faces.
She sent off the photo, and seconds later her phone dinged again.
“Oh, he wants to hear it from you. He's gonna call.”
Her phone rang, and she answered and put it on speaker.
“Hi Sans!” I greeted.
“AMANDA, ARE YOU SURE YOU WANT TO TRY FOR A CHILD WITH UNDYNE AFTER YOU GIVE BIRTH?”
“Yeah. I like Undyne a lot. And her human isn't really working out, so.”
“UNDYNE, I DON'T LIKE YOU STEALING MY WIFE. YOU'RE ON THIN ICE, WOMAN, YOU HEAR ME?”
“Loud and clear, Captain!” she said with mirth.
“She's not stealing me!” I laughed. “I'm still yours, and that doesn't change no matter who I have a kid with. And be nice to her, I like her, she's cool.”
An audible sigh from Sans's end.
“FINE. I WILL LET HER LIVE.”
Undyne did a fistpump, a huge grin on her face.
“BUT ONLY BECAUSE THE QUEEN WOULD NOTICE IF SHE WAS MISSING.”
“Saaans, that's mean,” I said in a whiny voice, though I had a huge grin on my face.
“...AND BECAUSE YOU LIKE HER.”
“Yay!”
“NO FUNNY BUSINESS IN THE MEANTIME, UNDYNE.”
“Sir yes sir!” she grinned. “Wait, so that means I can't tease cute noises out of her while you're busy?”
“I'M NOT GOING TO ANSWER THAT. GOODBYE.”
He hung up.
Undyne and I snickered.
“Well, Captain's orders, no more fooling around,” Undyne grinned. “Here, come with me.”
I followed Undyne out of the room and down the hallway, to a piano at the end of the hall.
“Ooh, you play piano?” I asked excitedly.
“I haven't gotten to play for anyone in a while. Figured you'd appreciate it, you seem like the type.”
She sat on the piano bench, lifted the cover, and positioned her hands. I watched her take a deep breath in, and then, she played.
Her playing was beautiful, elegant, and smooth. It was a pretty tune I didn't recognize.
It went on for a while, but when she was done, I said, “That was really pretty. Do you know any more songs?”
“Yeah, a few.”
“Cool!”
She started playing another song. I swayed to the music, imagining for a few precious minutes that I was somewhere different, somewhere I longed to be.
I was sad when the song ended.
“I know a song,” I offered.
“You can play TOO? Why didn't you tell me?!”
“I didn't wanna interrupt your beautiful playing. I'm not nearly as good at piano as you.”
“Well, have at it!”
She got up and watched expectantly as I sat on the piano bench. I took a breath, positioned my hands over the keys, and started playing the one song I was good at.
It wasn't a very long song. I ended it and turned to look at her only to find Sans also standing there in awe.
“Oh, hey, you're back,” I greeted with a cute smile.
“You Can Play Piano?” he asked in a soft, enamored voice.
“That's the only song I know really well.”
“JUST WHEN I THINK I CAN'T FALL ANY FURTHER IN LOVE WITH YOU.”
I blushed.
And decided to add, “I can sing, too.”
“I wasn't kidding when I said you scored,” Undyne said to him.
Sans crossed the remaining distance to me and kissed me.
“Do You Want To Go Home Now?”
“Mhm!”
“ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU FOR LOOKING AFTER HER WHILE I WAS OCCUPIED, UNDYNE.”
“Anytime at all, Captain!”
Undyne drove us back to the house in her truck, and when we finally walked into Sans's room, he was all over me.
“YOU LET HER TOUCH YOUR SOUL, DIDN'T YOU.”
I, distracted by the fact that he was kissing my jaw, neck, and shoulder, replied something very intelligent, like, “Maaaybe.”
“AND YOU REALLY DO LIKE HER?”
“Mhm!”
“GUESS I'LL JUST HAVE TO MAKE YOU FORGET ABOUT HER COMPLETELY TONIGHT.”
I squeaked in surprise when he pulled out his SOUL and smirked.
“You jealous?” I asked daringly as I pulled out my own SOUL.
“Very,” he whispered huskily in my ear before pressing his SOUL into mine.
I bit back a scream of pleasure at the sudden intense stimulation.
“YOU'RE MINE.”
He kissed me, bit me, pressed into me, all while sending my body into throes of ecstasy. I couldn't think. I could only feel him.
My mind went blank as I orgasmed, not once, not twice, I couldn't count how many times.
I felt his magic inside me, buzzing with intense desire.
I was his.
There was a reprieve in which his SOUL wasn't pressing into mine as hard, so I used it to kiss him and distract him from overstimulating me.
He broke from the kiss after a bit with a smirk. “I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO DO.”
“Is it working?” I laughed, though a bit out of breath.
“DON'T FLIPPANTLY EXPOSE YOUR SOUL TO OTHERS.”
“Mhm! I know that now.”
“Have I Tired You Out?” he said with sudden gentleness.
“Mhm,” I nuzzled into him. Then sluggishly murmured, “Y' c'n finish punishing me later...”
“Whose Mate Are You?”
“Yours,” I grinned sleepily.
“Whose Child Is Growing Inside You?”
“Yours~”
Sans seemed satisfied. “No More Punishment, Then. Go To Sleep.”
I snickered and let my tired eyelids finally close.
***
Days bled together, and became weeks. Weeks became months. Before long, my baby bump had grown bigger, and Sans poking my chest one day made me realize it had as well, probably in preparation for feeding the baby.
Haha, calcium.
Layla had chilled out, for the most part. She still refused to be intimate with Papyrus, but at least she didn't run anymore. I'd overheard stories of some of the captured women removing themselves from life entirely just to avoid their fate, even though Sans had tried to keep me from hearing the worst cases.
Apparently, I was a special case, as I had never tried to run and had been complicit, what they had been going for originally in their project. I'd heard from Undyne that they'd been in the Underground so long that monsterkind had started dying out and they were also looking for a red Determination SOUL to finish a set of all SOUL types that would make the queen powerful enough to shatter the Barrier, so someone would take a human SOUL from the few they had that persisted and steal women from the Surface and bring them down there, making it seem like an accident.
So I'd probably been kidnapped, then.
Well, I couldn't do anything about it now. I didn't know why I was so apathetic to the idea of me being stolen and used. Perhaps because even in my life on the Surface, I had been treated like my only worth was my usefulness to others.
And Sans was far kinder a captor to me than hypothetical human captors would be.
The fact that it was my choice who to have kids with after him? It gave me a sense of control and safety, no matter how small.
And I felt safe with Undyne, despite her ‘mad scientist’ vibe.
Even down here, where the rules were different, harsher, and gave me fewer rights...
I somehow felt... happier. Like I was given just the right amount of control and the rest I didn't have to ever worry about again.
This wasn't to say I wasn't anxious about motherhood. No sir, I was not ready to raise a child. But I'd deal with that when I got to it. No need to stress about it twice over.
And apparently the Queen herself saw me as valuable enough that she let her own Captain of the Royal Guard off work just to be with me.
I felt like I could face the future. It would be okay, as long as I had Sans.
***
It got ever closer to the due date, and Sans's scheduled time off was becoming more frequent to keep up with my needs.
He'd helped me cut my hair to a length I liked, just above shoulder length and parted to the side, and was now washing it gently, having me lean my head back over the tub.
“It's been a while since someone else has washed my hair,” I smiled. “Feels nice.”
“It's The Least I Can Do,” he said softly.
“You've done a hell of a lot more than the least you can do, Sans,” I said with a soft smile.
“You Deserved A Better Future Than To Be Stuck Underground With A Bunch Of Monsters And Forced To Bear One A Child.”
“Like I was gonna do anything with my future anyway?”
“At Least You Would Have Had A Choice What To Do With It.”
“At least give yourself some credit for caring and having a conscience, Sans. You're the first person I've met who actually cares about how I feel. Everyone else is only focused on themselves. Even on... especially on the Surface, actually.”
“You Deserve—”
“Don't you dare say better.”
“...Everything I Have To Give. You Deserve More Than I Can Provide. You Deserve Freedom. A Life On The Surface.”
“Funny, I was gonna say the same thing about you.”
“BELOVED, I—”
I grinned up at him. “Freedom sounds pretty boring and lonely to me, especially if you're not in it.”
“I LOVE YOU.”
“I know you do. I love you too.”
***
We had moved me into the hospital part of Undyne's lab when the due date finally arrived.
I had started feeling sluggish and weird, plus my body beginning to have minor contractions.
Sans stayed by my side, fretting and worrying over me as Undyne made sure I was positioned correctly.
I don't remember when the real contractions started. I think I must have hyperventilated and passed out from the rapidly intensifying pain and the shock from the stress my body was under.
***
I woke up, presumably several hours later.
“Ugh, I feel awful...”
I almost shot up in bed as I suddenly remembered I'd been birthing a kid, but Sans gently made me lay down.
“YOU NEED TO REST.”
“Where's the baby?”
Sans indicated a small skeleton in a crib beside my bed. The poor thing looked so tiny, so thin, so fragile...
I exhaled in soft wonder as I reached over to gently stroke the top of the sleeping child's head.
“HIS FONT IS TIMES NEW ROMAN. I HAD PAPYRUS CHECK.”
“Papyrus was here?”
“HE WOULD HAVE STAYED TO GREET YOU WHEN YOU WOKE UP BUT I THINK YOU BEING UNCONSCIOUS STRESSED HIM OUT.”
“Oof. You better text him that I'm okay. Anyway, so the kid's whole name will be Times New Roman?”
“YES, IF YOU DON'T HAVE ANY OBJECTIONS?”
“That's literally my favorite font, why would I object?” I laughed. “I'll call him Roman for short, just like you're called Sans instead of—”
“COMIC SANS SERIF?”
“Yeah, exactly.”
“ARE YOU... OKAY?”
“I'm in a lot of pain right now if that's what you're asking,” I huffed a strained laugh and laid flat on the hospital bed.
“YOUR SOUL WAS... WEAKER. THE COLOR WAS FADED AND THE CRACKS WERE MORE PRONOUNCED THE ENTIRE TIME, LIKE YOU WERE USING YOUR LIFE FORCE TO MAKE SURE THE CHILD WOULD BE OKAY.”
“Sounds like something I would do, honestly. But I don't remember, so.”
“IT TERRIFIED ME. I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO LOSE YOU.”
“C'mere for a second.”
Sans, confused, got closer than he already had been. I took his hand and placed it over my heart.
“My heart is beating. I'm alive; I'm breathing. I'm okay now. Roman is alive and healthy. I think we're gonna be okay.”
Sans leaned in and softly kissed me.
***
It was a few days before Sans even let me move from the bed, since I was still recovering.
I nursed Roman from both sides whenever he started to fuss or cry. One of the things I hadn't known but was extremely convenient was the fact that my milk was processed by Roman's body in a way that there was nothing left to expel regardless of whether it was monster in origin or not, so despite the fact that I'd thought I'd have to change diapers from my own experience watching and helping my mother raise my youngest siblings, that particular aspect of motherhood was not required of me so far. I wondered what would happen if I fed him any other human food besides my own milk. I guessed I wouldn't have to find out until we got to the Surface.
I asked Sans what would happen if a monster tried to eat human food, being concerned that Roman might not be getting proper nutrition from me, and he assured me that since the kid had come from my own body, that he was, in fact, being properly fed, and that I had nothing to worry about.
We didn't really have any examples of what to feed a skeleton monster baby, though, except my knowledge that milk was good for bones. At least Roman seemed to be growing healthier and stronger by the day. That was a comfort when walking into the unknown.
Whenever I held Roman, supporting the back of his head, as one does, I'd notice Sans's smile turn wistful. It almost seemed like he had never been handled with that much love and care, as a baby. And that made me sad.
I resolved to shower him in love and affection and gentle touches whenever Roman was asleep.
***
The day finally came when I was released from the hospital, having recovered enough to walk around with barely any pain. Sans seemed excited and also apprehensive about the future.
We were driven home in Undyne's truck, and when I walked in the door, Roman in my arms, Papyrus practically dashed down the stairs to greet me.
“you're okay,” he said, repeating to himself that I was alive and well.
He loosely hugged me, careful not to disturb the sleeping babybones in my arms.
“Did Sans not text you I was fine?”
“well, yeah, but—”
“I TOLD YOU SHE WAS FINE.”
Rus rolled his eyes at Sans. “yeah, you say things are fine all the time when we both know they're not.”
He turned to me.
“i'm glad you're okay. how's the babybones?”
“Roman? I just fed him. He's sleeping.”
Rus backed out of the hug to see Roman better.
“betcha he's gonna have dual base magic, since sans's base is purple and yours is green.”
“Base magic?”
“yeah, whichever magic you have of two that's stronger. you both have both colors, but your green is way stronger than your purple. you probably had it longer?”
“That actually checks out. If I'd known how to see my SOUL way back when, I'd probably have found that the purple only showed up like ten years ago, while I've had green since I was born.”
“SO YOU WERE ESSENTIALLY USING HEALING MAGIC ON ROMAN EVEN AS YOU WERE IN PAIN TO MAKE SURE HE MADE IT OUT HEALTHY?”
“Maybe? Like I said, I don't really remember.”
“you poured your life force into the kid?! you could've gotten seriously hurt!”
“I know.”
“don't do that again, please.”
Rus hugged me again, pulling Sans into the hug as well, so we were enveloped in a feeling of love and safety, Roman in the center.
“I can't promise I won't instinctively try to protect the kid, but I'll try not to die next time, deal?”
“alright.”
“DEAL.”
***
That night, after I'd fed Roman again and laid him down in his crib, I was lying in bed beside Sans and staring at the ceiling.
“WHAT ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT, BELOVED?”
“D'you think we should invest in a piano for our house when we get to the Surface?”
“WHAT KIND OF QUESTION IS TH— BELOVED, DON'T YOU KNOW WE WON'T BE ABLE TO GO TO THE SURFACE FOR A LONG TIME?”
“According to Undyne, all the Queen's missing is a red SOUL, right? To shatter the Barrier with?”
Sans sighed. “I GUESS IT'S OKAY FOR YOU TO KNOW, BUT YOU MUSTN'T TELL ANYONE ELSE WHAT YOU'VE HEARD.”
“Undyne's not gonna get in trouble, is she?”
“I DON'T THINK SO. UNDYNE IS THE ROYAL SCIENTIST AND TOO IMPORTANT TO SILENCE. BUT, TO BE SAFE, WE SHOULD MEET WITH THE QUEEN AND TELL HER WHAT YOU'RE NOW AWARE OF. SHE'S ALSO BEEN WANTING TO MEET YOU, SO WE COULD TAKE CARE OF BOTH THINGS WITH ONE TRIP TO THE CAPITAL.”