Sans, Flowey and Fuku reached the edge of Snowdin far later than Sans would've liked. Still, he couldn't be mad at Fuku; of course she was going to have issues with Waterfall. Still, they finally exited the water-filled caverns. The sight of snow would have been calming to Sans; as it was, his tension remained right up to the moment they were in his secret lab and the door was both locked and blocked with several metal crates.
"Is that really necessary?" Flowey asked as Fuku and Sans sank to the ground with their backs against the cool metal of the storage crates.
"You do realize that your Sans probably knows about this room too, right?" Sans said, sternum and ribs heaving. "He's the one who built it here, after all."
"But if he knows you know ..."
"He doesn't know about the crystal shard." Sans said. "Mind you, if he finds out we're missing, he'll probably look here first. I would if I was looking for me."
"You look for yourself often?" Fuku asked, a playful grin on her flickering face.
"Yeah, but I never really find myself. I'm a good hider, psychologically speaking."
"Ugh." Flowey shook his head and said, "I'm gonna keep watch outside. Let me know when you've found the kid, okay?"
Flowey dove into a crack in the tiles and somehow managed to squeeze his way through.
"Well," Sans said as he rose to his feet and helped Fuku to hers. "Welcome to my secret lab. Give me a sec, and I'll get the camera feeds up."
He walked to the counter and moved aside a dusty blueprint to reveal a blue square button. Moments after he pushed it down, a blue glowing screen with a question and a prompt.
Chuckling, he said, "Hey, Fuku, why did the skeleton not go to the dance?"
"Um, I dunno." She said, approaching to no doubt get a look at the screen that currently displayed Sans's inquiry.
Already typing, Sans said, "Because he had no BODY to go with."
Fuku giggled but quickly stopped after Sans finished entering the password. Panels slid open on every wall of the room, each revealing a salvaged television or computer monitor.
"Oh, wow!" Fuku said, her eyes wide. "Sans? When did you put all this here?"
"Eh, a monitor here and television there." Sans said, "I've got a few friends among the Junkyard scavvers. Looks like your Sans does too. It's not quite the same as it is back home, but I think I know enough to get this online."
Fuku was silent as Sans brought up camera feeds on the monitors, displaying locations across the Underground including just outside the ruins, deep within Castle Dreemurr, and even one inside Grillby's.
"He's watching dad?" Fuku asked.
"Alphys is watching your father." Sans corrected. "I'm guessing your Sans didn't tell Alphys he hacked into her surveillance systems. I certainly didn't."
The feeds shifted across the screens. Sans and Fuku kept an eye on as many as they could, looking for some sign of Frisk. They did see other people though, including several migosps attacking a whimsum with a bent wing.
"Just when I thought this place couldn't seem worse." Sans muttered. "Who attacks a whimsum, honestly?"
Fuku rubbed her arm. "It ... it wasn't always like this, you know. I mean things weren't always great, but things used to be decent. King Asgore was fair ... strict, but fair, Undyne kept us safe, and our Sans and Papyrus were almost like local celebrities. We were surviving, even happy at times."
"So what happened?" Sans asked, turning away from the console to look her in the eyes. "What changed that made this place such a living hell?"
"The King lost his children." She said, a sad look on her face. "I was just a little flame when it happened."
"It's okay." Sans said. "Just tell me what you know."
"Dad knows more than I do, but he's probably busy with-" Fuku blushed and put a hand to her mouth.
Sans raised an eyeridge at her. "Busy with ...?"
"I shouldn't say." Fuku said. "I'm sorry; I trust you, but if Dad finds out I told you, he'll get mad."
"At you?" Sans blew a raspberry, an amazing feat seeing as he didn't have a tongue ... at least not a physical one anyway. "Grillby adores ..."
He stopped, seeing the look on her face. Sighing, he said, "I'm sorry. Everyone here's so different but you're almost a perfect match for my Fuku."
"Oh!" She said, blushing even brighter.
Sans realized the implication a moment later and quickly said, "Er, not like that."
"Oh ... I understand."
She moved to turn away, her head bowed. Sans's hand and arm moved of their own accord, touching her cheek; as a skeleton, he wasn't bothered by the heat.
"Hey, now." He said, gently making her look at him. "I ain't meanin' to sound cold. It just never came up. Besides, Grillby'd roast me if I even looked at you funny."
"Dad doesn't care much what I do." She said.
"Phhb. Grillby adores you, Fuku. Things may be different here, but I was there when he tried to save you and nearly caught it from Papyrus."
A slow smile spread across his face. "I-I guess you're right. I just wish we could talk like we did when Mom was still around."
"Missus Grillby?" Sans said, intruiged. "I never got to meet her in my world. What was she like?"
Fuku's smile spread across her face. "She was wonderful. She'd sing and dance at the bar every night. Even Dad would just stand and stare; she was so beautiful. She used these metals in her dance that let her change into all sorts of colors. People would throw more money at her than they'd spend with my father." She laughed and added, "She used to tease him about it sometimes."
Her smile faded. "She was killed by Papyrus. Suspicion of conspiracy; everyone knew it wasn't true, but Papyrus is so strong."
"Didn't anyone stop her? Didn't Grillby?" Sans asked, horrified.
Fuku shook her head. "There wasn't time. He grabbed her and threw her into the water before anyone could react. She was the first to die; at first, we thought it was just a horrible mistake, but the next day someone else was killed ... then another the next day." She closed her eyes and shook her head.
Feeling the need to lighten the mood, Sans said, "Papyrus ... my Papyrus would never hurt a fly, except maybe by accident. He spends most of his days making up puzzles."
"Puzzles?" Fuku asked, the hints of a smile on her face. "You mean traps?"
"No, I mean puzzles. Guy's nuts over them. About the only thing he likes more than puzzles is making spaghetti." Sans winked at her. "Sometimes it was even edible."
Fuku giggled. Sans laughed too; after all the darkness of that universe and the death of his own, thinking back to happier times was a welcome respite.
"Your world must be nice." She said, rubbing her neck. "I can't wait to see it."
Sans felt the balloon of happiness in his chest deflate. It must've shown on his skull, for Fuku's smile faded as well.
"My world ... is pretty much gone." Sans said. "Everyone was killed. I was nearly killed."
"What happened?"
He shook his head. "Let's just say the human child who came to my world was ... well, not like yours. She cut a path from Snowdin to New Home and left nothing but ash."
"And Papyrus?"
Sans was silent for a moment. Slowly, he reached into his coat and pulled out Papyrus's scarf.
Fuku held the tips of her hands to her mouth. "You ... you had to watch your brother die?"
Sans shook his head. "No ... but I saw the dust. That's what it took to finally take things seriously; most of Snowdin and Waterfall was already gone, but I got word to Hotland and New Home in time for some people to go into hiding. It ... didn't work out."
Shaking his head, Sans said, "Fortunately, we're not going there. There are plenty of other realities out there, and I'm sure we can find-"
He stopped as Fuku put her arms around him. He was struck speechless for a few moments before he finally letting out a sigh and put his arms around her. "Thanks, Fuku."
Sans was still struggling between thinking up an excuse to break away and simply enjoying Fuku's comforting warmth when he spotted Frisk.
"There!" He said, pointing at the monitor behind Fuku. "There she is!"
Fuku turned in time to get a good look at Frisk running through an alley in New Home. She hid behind a large trashcan, and not a moment too soon; the tall figure of Papyrus soon appeared at the far end of the alley, his eyes scanning every nook and cranny.
By some miracle, he didn't spot her. Letting out a snort loud enough for the security camera to catch, he stalked away from the alley leaving the now-trembling Frisk alone.
"Oh, the poor thing!" Fuku said, her eyes on the terrified child. "Can we talk to her?"
"Nah, the cameras don't have audio output." Sans checked the glowing console for the location and nodded. "But I think I know where she is."
"But we'll never get there in time1" Fuku said.
Sans took her hand and smiled at her. "Trust me?"
She nodded, though there was definite uncertainty in her eyes.
"Good enough." Sans said, pulling them both into the shortcut.
He heard Fuku gasp as they slipped through the shortcut like drops of rain flying through a monsoon. Sans watched again for signs of his mysterious attacker, but they passed through the shortcut without incident.
Fuku staggered forward a few steps as they hit the cobbles, Sans's grip helping her stay on her feet.
"Oh, wow." She said. "What was that?"
"That was a shortcut." He told her, looking around in an attempt to match his location to a camera feed. Quickly getting his bearings, he pointed to a nearby street and said, "That way."
"Wait!" Fuku said, catching his hand. "Flowey! We left him in Snowdin!"
"Damn." Sans said. While he had doubts about the talking flower's trustworthiness, he hadn't intended to leave him behind.
"All right." Sans said, "I'll shortcut back and-"
Strong furry arms caught his and forced them behind his back while also shoving him against the nearest stone wall. Sans winced at the impact and glanced back to see a massive wolf-person in denim pants behind him.
"Hey!" He said, "What's the big idea!"
A burst of flame flared in a dark corner of the alley as Grillby stood and approached. He still wore his bar clothes, but his expression was even more stolid than usual.
"Hey, Grillby!" Sans said. "Glad you stopped by. You didn't bring any ketchup, did you?"
Grillby stared at him for a long moment, his gaze inscrutable ... and yet Sans got the distinct impression that he was searching Sans's skull for something. If they'd wanted him dead, one good hit would've sufficed; this was clearly something else, and given the state of the Underground in that universe, that perked Sans's curiosity.
"Bring him." Grillby said, speaking at last.
"Hey, guys." Sans said, "Take it easy. I ain't lookin' for a fight."
"Glad to hear it." The wolf-man rumbled. "Cuz if I see one bone, I might accidentally snap something. Now are you gonna walk, or do I hafta carry you?"
"As tempting as it is to take a nap, I think I'll walk it." Sans said. "I gotta work off that mustard anyway."
The denim-loving wolf-man cautiously set Sans on the ground.
"Dad, stop!" Fuku said, grabbing her father's arm.
"Go home, Fuku!" Grillby said, his tone more stern that Sans had ever heard it.
"He's not the same Sans!"
"I said go home!"
The two flame people stared each other down, their flames growing in response to their anger. For a moment, Sans was afraid there might be a fight; it would be unthinkable in his universe, but given the friction between Fuku and Grillby already in that universe, Sans wasn't going to discount anything.
"All right!" Sans said, "Take it easy, both of you; I'll come peacefully."
"Then I'm coming too." Fuku said, crossing her arms stubbornly.
"No." Grillby said. "I don't want you involved in this."
'But Dad-"
"He's right, Fuku." Sans said, drawing a surprised look from the young flame woman. "I'm sure if you look around here you can find another friend."
Her eyes widened. He gave her the barest of nods to let her know she caught his meaning correctly.
"I don't want you wandering around here, Fuku. Fuku!" Grillby said as his daughter turned away and stomped down the street. Sighing, he shook his head and said, "All right, Sans; start walking."
The wolf man shoved Sans toward a different street. Sans glared at him. "Hey now, no need to push. I get the pace of it."
ns 15.158.61.16da2
