A Chapter Left To Die

A Chapter Left to Die

♫ - What I’m currently listening to.

✔ - Vote in the poll.

Before I decide to throw in the towel with Lugubriosity, and start again with Fawn, I started this chapter; the real chapter 35. It is only the beginning of an interaction that I intended to lead into another major plot point. Because Fawn will be slightly different, I'm not against exposing the plans I had for this chapter.

Guy, Hunny's father, approached Sans under the guise of friendly bonding. Guy, unlike Sans, was aware that Papyrus raped his daughter and got off scot-free—in fact, Papyrus was now seen as a hero in the community. Guy seeks revenge, of course he does, but he obviously doesn't stand a chance against the newly promoted Captain of the Royal Guard. Now Sans, on the other hand, was a disowned recovering dust-addict. Most monsters wouldn't even spit on him if he were on fire. The end result should be obvious, right?

Only it's not, and we know it's not because the following day Sans was taken to Gaster's lab to prepare for the ritual. So what happened? Perhaps we can explore this question in Fawn.

The Dump had everything a monster could ever want. All sorts of crap fell down here from the hole in the sky to give them a sprinkle of heaven—not that the surface was all the hoot. Nothing but junk, some would say, but despite it being crap, it was crap that wasn’t the usual crabapples or nice cream sandwiches with more nice than cream. When he was younger and he managed to pull his little brother and himself out of their hellhole of a home, the Dump was their new father. It sheltered them, entertained them, fed them, and on the occasion when scarier monsters came looking to do awful things to a couple of weaklings, the Dump protected them.

The Dump was a better father.

Sans stared at a particularly cozy hole between two deflated tires. It would be perfect for hiding if he were two times smaller and three times thinner. Fat asses, such as himself, would be better fitted for a fridge. Skeletons didn’t have fat—tell that to his big bones, he thought.

He chuckled.

And his eyes spotted an old treadmill on a pile of junk. Half of him was tempted to yank it out of the trash pile and—actually he would. No one could tell him otherwise, no one was home now to object or demand he get the filthy thing out of the house. For the first time since Papyrus became a ward of the Crown, Sans lived alone. He hated it now just as he hated it then. At least back when they were kids Paps would write to him, call him, and see him as frequently as the system would allow. Half an hour ago was the last time he’s seen his brother in over two months, and it was simply a passing glance, a brief touch, before Sans did the one thing he was good at; he disappeared.

Sans clenched the handle of a rusted tricycle to pull himself over a busted refrigerator. His once clean khakis were stained in old orange juice when his knee crushed a convenience store bag. He didn’t mind it. He also missed when he was allowed to embrace his inner slob. Alphys mentioned something about cleanliness and godliness, and he never once pegged her as the Mother Mary type. Science and religion tended to clash more times than not, but it could just be a phrase she read in a manga. They were so known for spewing Bible verses right?

Sans got to the top of the trash pile quicker than he initially expected. He felt pretty victorious, like the king of a castle, and the Dump was his kingdom. An empty popcorn pile leaned against his once white socks. He picked it up and placed it on his head, and along with his roach-regal headwear, he snatched a cracked drain pipe from the pile next. From this moment forward, it shall be his staff, and he shall boss around every rat in this horde.

He smiled at himself.

Paps used to love playing pretend. His favorite game was the knight in shining armor destined to save them all from the dragon's destructive path. Everyone deserved redemption, that’s what his brother believed then. No soul left behind no matter how damaged or unwanted.

How did things get so—

“Howdy up there!”

Sans spun around so quickly that he nearly lost his footing. On the ground below was a monster shielding their eyes from the sun in order to see Sans. The Dump was brighter than most places Underground. Here, there was the rare blend of artificial and natural sunlight. “Need any help?” Sans had to squint to make out the face. He recognized it.

The bunny guy from his druggie support group.

He threw the pipe down and shook off the popcorn carton. Suddenly this whole situation felt mighty ridiculous. Why the hell would a skeleton need a treadmill?

“No, uh, I was just…” Sans started to climb down carefully to prevent any broken bones. His back was already on fire by the time he made it half way, but his back was always on fire since Grillby shoved that pole through his spine, so that was nothing new. “I’m not homeless or anything.” That was the first thing he said when made it back to solid ground.

The bunny guy—was his name Guy?—helped him up. “Hey, I’m not knocking it. I know I usually find a lot of great stuff here.”

“You’re into dumpster diving too, huh?” Sans wiped his hands on his shorts. There were black stains on his palms, and when he sniffed it he smelled oil. “I spotted a cart in that pile if you need it for your grocery shopping.”

Guy extended a handkerchief towards him. He laughed like Sans’ comment was the funniest thing in the world and not an insult. “No need. We stocked up on food yesterday. I’m working on getting all of my bunnies back, even have a social worker coming on Monday, so I’m prepared. ”

Sans rejected the handkerchief. Another asshole who lost his kids? Why wasn’t this shocking? Probably because Dans saw the state of his junkie girlfriend that morning. At least they were putting in some kind of effort.

“I really love my kits—“

“Well, sounds like your spot will be next on my list. You got any Fruit Loops or Cocoa Puffs?” Sans chuckled at his joke, a joke forced into the conversation so he could avoid hearing about the oncoming family troubles. Guy raised a brow in confusion, and Sans would’ve gone through a whole demonstration explaining what he meant, but that would ruin it. Plus, maybe it was best he didn’t realize he was joking about robbing him.

“I’ve never heard of Fruit Loops, but I have plenty of Nice Cream that I’m willing to share.” That friendly smile returned on his furry blue face like all was just so peachy in the world.

Sans scoffed. Fuck this guy…