Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It’s been almost five months since the monsters of the underground came to the surface, and since their arrival monsters have been the top topic. Everyone has an opinion, but the government decided to make them a protected class and even started programs to promote monster safety. One of those programs was currently staring you in the face in the form of a blank sign-up sheet. Each empty line filled you with a small twinge of guilt. All you would have to do is take care of and train a monster while at work, so it didn’t seem to be that big of a commitment. You wrote your name on the top line.

“I’m glad to see you taking the initiative ______,” You hadn’t noticed your manager coming out of the office, “But now you are five minutes late on the timeclock.” Shit.

“I’m sorry sir. I’ll go right away and- “

“Don’t bother. You just earned a week’s vacation for signing up. I’ll give you the address and basic information of the monster you will be training, as well as his uniform. I expect you to go to his home and begin training him on proper human interaction in the workplace.” Your mouth fell open. The large man turned to retrieve some paperwork from the office, “I expect you both here on Tuesday at ten for graveyard shift.” He shoved the longest apron you’ve ever seen into your arms as well as the paperwork and waved goodbye.

You were going to miss an entire weeks’ worth of tips. This monster has literally ruined your entire week before you even met. You got into your car and pulled out the information sheet the manager had given you and scanned it for details on your new ‘friend’. If he was going to mess up your money, then he wasn’t getting any form of mercy from you. Quickly popping the address listed into your phone’s GPS, you had decided to introduce yourself. At midnight.

The skeleton monster’s home was a pretty average two story house, nothing really standing out to you as you exited your car and made your way to the front door. With the way too long apron slung over your shoulder and a deep breath, you knocked firmly on the door. As promised the one who answered was a skeleton. You had to take a moment to comprehend his appearance before peaking, “Hi, I’m _____. I’m part of the monster- “

“We don’t want any, thanks,” The hoodie clad skeleton attempted to close the door on you, but you jammed your foot into the doorway to stop it.

“Apparently you do since I was sent here. Someone in this house signed up to work at my restaurant, and it’s my job to train him,” you couldn’t keep the irritation out of your voice. You pulled the apron off your shoulder and held it up to him, “Judging by your size I’m guessing this isn’t for you?”

“Look kid, my brother signed up for the program, but it’s bed time so come back tomorrow,” you let out a hearty laugh, causing the little white dots to disappear from the monster’s eyes. “What’s the punchline kid cuz I’m really not gettin’ it.”

“Your brother signed up for work. He was never promised day work. I’ll be training with him at night since that will be both of our schedules from this point on,” a small sigh escaped your lips, “Can I come in now?” With a nod he opened the door enough for you to slip in. After a moment of surveying the house your eyes landed back on him. He stood only an inch or two taller than you and from what you could see his bones were much thicker than a human skeleton.

“See something you like?” his tone was flat.

“Well if I’m going to be seeing you regularly I would like to know your name,” a smug grin was plastered on your face.

“It’s Sans. Sans the skeleton. And I hope I don’t have to see you a skele-ton,” his expression mirrored yours.

“Oh,” you shook your head, “You seem like a real comic, Sans.”

“STOP THIS. STOP THIS AT ONCE. I WILL NOT BE SUBJECTED TO THIS NONSENSE RIGHT BEFORE I GO TO- OH HELLO NEW HUMAN,” a tall skeleton monster emerged from one of the upstairs bedrooms. He made his way down the stairs before introducing himself, “I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND IT IS VERY NICE TO MEET YOU, BUT I MUST ASK WHY YOU HAVE COME SO LATE AT NIGHT. I KNOW BEFRIENDING SOMEONE AS GREAT AS I AM CAN BE QUITE EXCITING, BUT I CAN ASSURE YOU I WILL BE JUST AS FRIENDLY IN THE MORNING.”

Your eyes were bulging in disbelief. He just keeps talking and his voice is so loud. How were you going to make him acceptable in a week? “Bro she’s here about the job. Says you gotta do night training since you’re gonna work overnight,” Sans’ expression changed. He looked almost happy now.

“OH WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY SO, HUMAN? I AM MOST EXCITED TO BEGIN OUR TRAINING TOGETHER, BUT FIRST LET ME MAKE YOU THE TRADITIONAL FRIENDSHIP DINNER. I WILL BEGIN RIGHT AWAY.” And with that he was off.

You gave Sans a questioning look, “Tradition?”

He smiled back, “It’s tradition for him.”

“What kind of dinner is this gonna be?” you were a bit worried about being thrown into some monster tradition.

“It’s just spaghetti kid,” he patted your back.

“Oh.” This was going to be exhausting.

Chapter Text

                You couldn’t figure out which of the pasta-making steps could result in the sounds coming from the kitchen. You could hear the pots clanging and Papyrus yelling what seemed to be short battle cries, “W-what exactly is this spaghetti made of?”

                “It’s normal spaghetti,” Sans was enjoying the horrified look on your face.

                “Then what is all,” your arms flailed, “THAT?” He snorted in response and waved you off before getting himself situated on the couch. The shorter skeleton flipped through channels, settling on an interview with a robot.

                “Ey paps, come here,” his head tilted back as the other grumbled from the kitchen, “Mettaton’s on T.V.~” Before you knew it the younger brother was looming over the couch, gripping the cushions in delight. A pale orange tinted his sauce covered cheekbones and for the first time since arriving you felt yourself genuinely smile. He looked like a child to you. His eyes were so focused on watching every second of the robot he could that he had forgotten about the now burning pasta. “Bro,” the older brother poked playfully at him.

                 “NOT NOW SANS CAN’T YOU SEE I’M WATCHING METTATON. WE HAVEN’T SEEN HIM SINCE WE CAME ABOVE GROUND,” His tone was quite stern.

                 “Buuuuut I think it would be a good idea to- “

                 “SANS I SAID NOT NOW!”

                 “Okay bro,” Sans closed his eye sockets and waited for the problem to fix itself.

                 You decided to chime in before it got out of hand, “Papyrus there is smoke coming from the kitchen.” He turned in horror and ran back into the other room to fix his mistake. “Is he always this eccentric?”

                 “Yeah. Paps is the coolest isn’t he?” you could feel the love he had for his brother radiating from his bones, “He’s just so passionate about everything he does and sometimes people don’t understand that.” Sans patted the couch next to him, inviting you to sit, “Look I’m not too keen on him working with humans, but he’s not taking no for an answer, so I need to ask you a favor.” You nodded.  A deep sigh resonated through his chest, “Please just look out for him. He’s everything to me.”

                 “Yeah, I understand,” you didn’t, “I know what that’s like,” you don’t, “I won’t let anything happen to him.” You meant that with all your heart. Their closeness was so endearing that it almost made you jealous.

                 “THE FRIENDSHIP DINNER IS COMPLETE NYEH HEH HEH,” all in all it didn’t really take long for him to cook it. You assumed he just boiled some pasta and heated the sauce, but what awaited you on the plate was so much more. There was chunks of unidentifiable meat, bits of some sort of leafy vegetable, and most surprising, glitter. “I THINK THIS IS MY MOST SPECTACULAR DISH YET AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM KNOWN THOUGHOUT THE UNDERGROUND AS A MASTER CHEF,” There was absolutely no way you could get out of eating this tragedy. Not with the giant skeleton looking so proud of himself and your future friendship hanging in the balance. You filled yourself with determination and took a bite. Chewing it was the worst part. It was dry and gritty thanks to the glitter, but you didn’t let your face waver, “HOW IS IT_____?”

                 “It is very,” find a good word, “friendshippy.” Nailed it. Sans smiled in approval, feeling a little more confident that you would look out for his giant little brother, and for the entire rest of the meal you decided to swallow your bites whole. It was just easier that way.

                  Once the ‘friendship dinner’ was over you helped Papyrus clean up everything, which took longer than actually eating thanks to his unique cooking techniques. It was almost three in the morning by the time the two of you actually sat down to discuss what you originally came for. “You’re gonna need a white button up shirt and black pants along with the apron I brought for you. We can get you everything you need this week, “You could see the exhaustion resonating from your new friend, “So how about we call it a night and I can come back tomorrow.”

                 “YES,” he perked up, “I THINK A GOOD NIGHT- WELL, DAY’S REST WOULD BE GOOD.” You smiled at him and nodded. “GOODNIGHT _____. I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL BE GOING TO BED NOW. MY BROTHER WILL SEE YOU OUT AFTER I AM ASLEEP SO PLEASE WAIT ON THE COUCH FOR HIM.” You wanted to protest, but it was too hard to say no to him. He pulled you into the longest being-lifted-in-the-air hug then waved goodnight.  Sans’ voice echoed through the home as he read what seemed to be a story about a fluffy bunny. You silently wondered what kind of life these two have known.

                 Once the older skeleton returned downstairs you gathered your things, “It’s kinda late. You can crash on the couch if you want.”

                “Thanks but I gotta get home,” you almost wished you had accepted the offer after seeing the way the two interacted, “Besides you just met me. I could totally be a serial killer.”

                “I think our cereal will be just fine if you stay,” he couldn’t resist.

                You rolled your eyes at the horrible joke, “I’m serious. Don’t let random humans just stay at your house, it’s dangerous. I could literally be a monster killer and you wouldn’t even know it.”

                The lights in his eye sockets vanished for a moment, sending a chill up your spine, “Trust me kiddo, if you were a killer I would know.” Unsure of how to react you froze until his eye lights returned. Feeling the tension in the air he held out his arms for a hug, “Don’t worry I’m not gonna hurt you.” After a moment of eyeing him down you accepted the gesture. He was warm. Like really, really warm. You breathed in his scent before taking a step back, “Eye guess we will see you tomorrow.” He pointed to his skull for emphasis.

                Nope that one ruined the moment, “Okay goodnight.” The words came out far choppier and awkward than you intended.

                “Awww come on. That was a good one!” the skeleton chuckled as you exited his home.

                “Goodnight Sans!” You called back fighting a smile.

                He leaned against the doorframe and watched you get into your car to make sure you were safe, “Goodnght.”

Chapter Text

A sense of dread pooled in your stomach on the drive home. It definitely was not going to be fun explaining how you lost a week at work to your boyfriend. He was ‘in between jobs’ and relied on you to make then rent for the not-so-beautiful house the two of you shared. The truth is that Michel was never going to get a job, seeing as it’s been over eight months since he even tried to put in an application, but you stayed hopeful. “Just get in the shower and get to work. If you’re quick, then maybe you won’t have to- “you knew that wasn’t going to work. He was waiting for you on the front steps, cigarette in hand, when you pulled up.

“You’re late,” judging by his tone he was already irritated, “Where have you been?” You flinched as you shut the car door.

“Some stuff happened at work and I had to go to the new guy’s house,” you tried to hold your ground.

“You were at a guy’s house? Are you fucking kidding me ______? So I’ve been here waiting for you all night and you just go fuckin’ around on me?”

“What? No! I just have to train him. It’s part of this program! I have the paperwork right here!” As much as you wanted to be where the neighbors could see you, making a scene was not really your style, so you swiftly brush by him to get inside.

“Fuck your paperwork,” Michel chased behind you, grabbing your arm a little too hard, and yanking you toward him, “You think I don’t know what happens when a girl goes to a guy’s house in the middle of the night? You think I’m stupid _____?” He was using your name as a weapon.

“Stop!” you tried to push away from him, “I don’t have time for this I gotta go to work!”

“Fuck that you’re not going anywhere!” he screamed at you, and that’s when you broke. Michel had won like he did every day. You felt your body go limp and you resigned to call out from the bakery today. Once he saw the life drain from your eyes he dropped your arm to grab a beer from the kitchen. You weren’t going to stop him. If he starts at five in the morning, then he will pass out early too. That would give you enough time to slip out.

Sure enough by eight he was out like a light. The day had been emotionally exhausting, but you built up enough courage to run away. No one could deal with this forever, not as bad as it was. With a small bag of clothes packed, you slipped out the door hoping to never see that ugly house again. A promise to a certain puppy-like skeleton determined your first destination, and you were honestly excited to go over there. The way the two brothers care for each other was refreshing, and just being there would help you relax.

You knocked once, and only once, before the tallest of skeletons swung the door open to greet you, “HELLO HUMAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM READY TO BEGIN OUT TRAINING IN RESTURANTING.” Somehow his yelling didn’t bother you as much as it did the previous night.

“Hey papyrus,” you didn’t notice how strained you voice had sounded, “I’m, uh, ready to start too I guess.” He leads you inside to the familiar couch where Sans was resting before dashing upstairs to grab ‘training supplies’, whatever that meant.

“What’s the matter kid, no fire today?” his one eye socket opened to you, “You were all heated last night,” he chuckled at his own bad joke, taking in your disheveled appearance. “Kid I gotta say, you look like shit.”

“Cool,” tired sarcasm spilled from your swollen lips, “Just what every girl likes to hear after a long day.”

He sat up and gave you a look you couldn’t quite place, “You, uh, alright there?”

“Yeah,” you kept your gaze on the stairs waiting for Papyrus to return.

“You wanna talk about it?” you wanted nothing more than to talk and cry, and have someone treat you the way Sans treated his brother, but the three of you had just met yesterday. It would be weird to just gush about how horrible the world is.

“Nah I’m cool,” Papyrus trotted down the stairs, a box of assorted items that had nothing to do with being a server in tow.

“HUMAN I HAVE GATHERED EVEYTHING WE NEED TO BEGIN OUR TRAINING. I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM ALWAYS PREPARED YOU KNOW,” after seeing his bright smile you couldn’t help but mirror it.

“Hey tonight’s not a good night Paps,” the lights in his eyes looked to you then back to his brother, “_____’s not feelin well.”

“OH GOODNESS _____ ARE YOU ALRIGHT? LET ME CHECK YOUR FEVER,” he really is the sweetest person you’ve ever met. You knew he couldn’t feel anything with his gloved hand, but he put it to your forehead anyway. “HMMMM WELL I DON’T THINK YOU ARE GOING TO DIE,” obviously, “BUT I’M GOING TO TREAT YOU ANYWAY,” before you even had a chance to respond, Papyrus gently picked you up into one of his signature hugs. After a few moments you couldn’t hold it in anymore, the tears spilled from your eyes and you shook in his grip. He held you until your sobbing stopped, “FEELING BETTER?” His normally loud voice was lowered enough for you to recognize it as his version of a whisper.

“Yeah Paps, much better.”

Chapter Text

                “You sure you don’t need anything?” Sans was worried. He was worried about the bags under your eyes, he was worried about your earlier breakdown, but most of all he was worried about you leaving. He didn’t like the way you shook your head and muttered an ‘I’m fine’ nor his brother’s expression. The skeleton gave you his number before you departed, in case something happened.

                “I’m sorry Papyrus. I promise we will go out tomorrow to get everything, okay?” That’s what you said, but you honestly were not sure how the day would play out. You had gotten a hotel room for the night. It was not the most beautiful, or clean, place you had ever seen, but it would be enough for now. Plopping on the bed, you pulled out your phone for the first time since you left the house. Missed calls and a few texts all from the same person Michel. No. No more names. You refused to ever think that name again. That name was the one you wrote on your notebooks back in high school, the one that passed ever-so-sweetly through your lips when you started dating. That name did not belong to that thing he had become.

               Mi baby 9:47 pm:

                Where are you?

              10:00 pm

              Tell me where you are

              10:30

             Baby I’m sorry. Please come home

              10:38

            Call me please

             You couldn’t look at the rest. If you did you would feel worse about not answering and go back. You couldn’t go back. Sure he wasn’t full on beating you, but still it was too much. What if it got worse? No, you were not going to let it get that way. When your phone started ringing you couldn’t help but answer. “Hello,” the plan was to keep this short and easy.

            “Hello? _____?” his voice was already cracking your resolve. “Baby where are you?”

            “I’m staying at a friend’s house for a while,” you weren’t trying to hurt him.

            “Why?” He already knew.

            “I just- I can’t deal with all of this. It’s too much,” stay strong, “You’re too much.” You let out a silent breath.

            There was a long silence before he spoke again, “Are you gonna come home?”

            “I don’t know right now okay?”

           “Can you please come home I- “

           "I gotta go,” you did not want him to finish saying that. You didn’t want to hear it so you quickly said goodbye and hung up. A distraction was just what you needed right now.

           12:02 am:

           Hey, uh, this is _____. Sorry about earlier.

           Sans 12:05 am:

           It’s cool.

           12:06 am:

           Is papyrus upset?

           Sans 12: 08 am:

           Nah he’s good. What about you?

           12:09 am:

           I’ll live

           Sans 12:16 am:

           How about I cheer you up with some noods? ; )

           Your face flushed instantly. How were you even supposed to respond to that? Before you had a chance to try a picture popped up on your screen. It was a selfie with his brother eating pasta behind him.

          12:20 am:

          OMG you’re so dumb XD

          Sans 12:23 am:

         Yeah you could say I’m a real bonehead

         12:24 am:

         STOP.

         Sans 12:26 am:

         Would you prefer numbskull?

         Sans 12:27 am:

        Am I getting under your skin?

        12:28 am:

         I can’t deal with you. XD I’m going to bed

         Sans 12:30 am:

        You did look bone tired. Goodnight hun.

         You smiled at the screen illuminating your face. He did a really good job of cheering you up, and you swore to yourself that one day you would repay him for that.

         12:32 am:

        Goodnight Sans.

Chapter Text

Tonight was the night that you would finally do what you originally meant to. After getting some decent rest and decent food you strolled into the shower of your not-so-beautiful temporary home. The hot water was doing wonders for your state of mind like a friendly pat on the back, but more hot and liquid-like. The calm you felt reminded you of the 'treatment' Papyrus gave you. He was just so sweet and you knew he would do well as a server. His smile was so pure and child-like unlike his brother's lazy grin. You washed your hair to the thought of the older skeleton and wondered what he was doing. Realizing you were letting you mind wander to places you did not want it, you quickly finished your shower and checked your phone. Several new messages.

Mi baby 5:12 pm:

Why haven’t you called yet?

5:23

Where are you?

5:40

I checked all your friend’s houses. Who are you with?

That one irritated you quite a bit. Who does that? It was really creepy. You decided to change his name in your phone.

Mike 6:03

Are you with a guy?

Sans 6:05

Hey hun are we gonna see you tonight?

The last one broke your concentration and brought you back to the world. That’s right. You were going to teach Papyrus how to carry plates tonight. A sigh followed by a smile accompanied the almost silent tapping of your phone.

6:07

Yeah I gotta pick some stuff up and then I’ll be over

Sans 6:10

Cool! I’ll let Paps know

You pulled on a casual knee length skirt with a white t-shirt that read ‘bad to the bone’ and giggled to yourself thinking of Sans’ reaction. You laced up your boots and headed out the door, but before you even made it to the stairs your phone rang. The sound made your heart drop and without thinking you answered, “Hello?”

“_____! SANS HAS INFORMED ME THAT YOU WILL BE JOINING US TONIGHT. IS THIS TRUE?” Papyrus’ voice both shocked and relaxed you, and you couldn’t help but bust out laughing.

“Yeah, I’m on my way to the store to pick up some supplies for your training then I’ll be right over, okay Pappy?” It felt so good to have someone so genuinely excited to see you.

“SANS THE HUMAN CALLED ME PAPPY!” you heard a slight sound of protest coming from the older brother, but you couldn't quite hear what he said, “OH HUMAN I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS,  AM SO GLAD WE CAN BE SO CLOSE! PLEASE HURRY WITH YOUR ERRAND,” you didn’t want to keep the tall skeleton waiting.

“Okay, see you soon!” His excitement was contagious. You hurried along to your car and made your way to the store, growing more and more impatient at every red light. Who gave those lights the right to slow down your trip anyway? You laughed at yourself as you pulled into the parking lot. It was just going to be a quick trip for some plastic plates so you could teach the skeleton without making a huge, and possibly dangerous, mess. It wasn’t terribly crowded, so the trip was quick and easy. You had settled on a few light blue shatterproof plates as well as some matching cups, and with them now in tow you were finally off to the bone brothers’ house.

6:45

Hey I’m outside

You decided to text Sans instead of knocking since it felt more personal that way and, for reasons you did not want to admit, you wanted to be as friendly as possible with him. He was a monster so there was no way. There was absolutely no point in getting your hopes up, plus he is way too sweet to be a rebound. “You gonna stand there and space out all night kid?” Sans was holding the front door open and smiling.

“I might. It is pretty fun,” you walked in and immediately went straight to the kitchen. It was time to make up for the past few nights. Papyrus promptly scooped you up into one of his bone-crushing hugs.

“I’M SO GLAD YOU DECIDED TO JOIN US TONIGHT _____! THE OTHERS WON’T BE HERE FOR A LITTLE WHILE, BUT FEAR NOT! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE PLENTY OF THINGS FOR US TO DO TOGETHER UNTIL THEY ARRIVE,” his voice was as loud as ever.

“Others? Pappy did you forget about your training?” You were starting to get a little worried that he wouldn’t be ready to integrate with his human co workers at this point, and it would be all your fault.

“DO NOT WORRY HUMAN, I WOULD NEVER FORGET SOMETHING AS IMPORTANT AS TRAINING,” your eyes narrowed at the expression he took once you were released from his grasp, “WHICH IS WHY I AM GOING TO TRAIN YOU.”

“Oooookay? What kind of training do you have in mind?” it was really hard not to giggle.

“SPAGHETTI TRAINING.”

“I know how to make pasta.”

“WE WILL DO IT ANYWAY! SANS YOU LAZYBONES GET IN HERE FOR BONDING TIME WITH THE HUMAN!” you could hear a faint ‘okay’ coming from the other room, and sure enough Sans waltzed in a moment later.

Papyrus’ idea of making pasta included smashing vegetables with your hands and nearly setting the kitchen on fire heating the noodles. The whole experience was strange, but incredibly fun and it wasn’t long before the ‘others’ he had mentioned earlier arrived and the tall skeleton excused himself to greet them.

“Thanks. Paps is havin a really good time. He hasn't made it this way since we were in the underground,” Sans’ voice was a whisper as he stared in the direction his brother had gone.

“Yeah?” you found that you enjoyed looking at his grin more when it was genuine.

“ARE WE READY FOR THE FRIENDSHIP DINNER?” Papyrus belted out walking in with the new guests. One tall muscular fish monster and a small yellow possible dragon, and from their body language it was obvious they were a couple. Seeing the two gave you a warm feeling that made you completely forget about the skeleton-induced butterflies in your stomach.

“Pappy! You haven’t forgotten about our training, have you?” you held out the plates of noodles you had prepared and gave your best imitation pout, but before he could even respond the fish woman’s uncovered eye lit up with excitement.

“Ah man! Training! I like you already punk!”

“UNDYNE WAIT,”

But it was too late. She was all over you waiting for instruction. Without missing a beat you grabbed some plastic bags to put the food in while they practiced and soon enough you were stacking plates up and down her scaly arms, “Get these to the table quick and don’t drop any!” She nodded and turned to run, instantly dropping them. “Papyrus to the rail!” you yelled picking up the plates and resituating the protected pasta on them. He jumped into training mode and received his own stack. Somehow this had turned into a game and everyone in the room was laughing. Alphys would only take two plates and slowly padded to the table, Undyne continued to try to take too much too fast and dropped everything again and again, Sans carried one plate at a leisurely pace, and Papyrus finally managed to get three plates to the table. By the time everyone was done with it the spaghetti had gone cold, so the girls opted for snack food and they put on an anime that everyone had seen. Sans took Papyrus up to bed and was reading him a story.

“So punk how do ya know the brothers? We don’t see a whole lot of friendly humans,” Undyne asks, petting her now asleep girlfriend.

“Through a program at work. I’m training Papyrus to be a server at a human resturant and these two are too friendly to stick to business,” you laughed, Undyne nodding in approval. After a moment of zoning out to the bright colors flashing around the screen you decided to speak up once more, “Hey, uh, I hope we can be friends too, if that’s cool.”

The monster eyed you down for a moment, then quirked her brow and gave you a large toothy grin, “We trained together didn’t we? That makes us friends, just don’t go hurtin anyone.” You nodded to her, completely understanding her concern.

It wasn’t too much longer before you were passed out on their couch, a certain someone throwing a blanket over you. He moved your hair out of your face, tucking it behind your ear, and earning himself a confused look from the overprotective fish monster. Before she had a chance to say anything he blinked out of the room. There was no way he was getting away from her tomorrow, she decided.