[I hope y’all enjoy this chapter ^u^ Warning(s): panic attack at the beginning and maybe one more later on? Also nightmares.]
Read it on AO3
Error couldn’t breathe. He had fucked up. Majorly. On top of that, he couldn’t see, vision still clouded by glitches. And to make it even worse, he was glitching so badly that it hurt. And the voices just laughed.
*Oh man, who thought that would be a good idea?*
*HA, you almost killed your ex!*
*Honestly, pay attention for once, Error*
He tried to stifle his whimpers and just find his stupid beanbag chair so he could at least be somewhat comfortable as he waited for the glitching to stop, but groping through the emptiness while blind was difficult. Then that voice spoke up.
*This really is pathetic to watch. Pull yourself together, Error.*
He cringed at the commanding tone but attempted to calm himself down enough to make the glitching disappear faster. Once he could see again, he pulled himself onto the beanbag chair and closed his eyes, just for a second. He didn’t need the sleep, not really, but he was just so tired… A few minutes wouldn't hurt, right?
He was in the Save Screen again, but it felt different here than normal. It felt emptier, the patch of grass and small light source were gone, and instead, he saw a familiar silhouette cloaked in dark-colored fabric. He smiled to himself and ran over, tears pricking at his sockets as he called out to Reaper.
The figure turned around, but there was no happiness or warmth in his gaze. Geno paused and tried to speak, ask what was wrong, but no sound was uttered.
“It’s your fault, isn’t it.” the other stated, coldly glaring at him, “You’re the reason he’s gone. Haven’t you had enough yet?”
Geno tried to defend himself, tried to reason with Reaper, but he could not speak. The other scoffed, anger and annoyance filling the space between them.
Reaper’s form then started to waver, his blank sockets being replaced with red eyes, and a knife in his grasp.
“You haven’t learned, it seems” he spoke, his deep voice being changed to fit a more child-like form. “Maybe a few more resets will make you figure it out.”
Geno stepped back, then ran as the child that had haunted him for so long began to chase him, the knife being swung at him all the while.
‘It had stopped! He was free! Why were they back?! They shouldn’t be back!’ His panicked thoughts caused him pain, more pain than he had previously felt. ‘It just wasn’t fair!’
He turned around to fire off an attack, only for the human to jump at his back, slicing through his jacket and shirt. He screamed.
Error jolted awake, falling off of his beanbag and onto the “floor” of the Anti-void. He shakily felt at his back, where the knife had connected, only to find that there was no tear in his clothing. However, he could still feel the pain of the blow.
He glitched, a high whining noise beginning to start from his own voice. He distantly heard the voices laughing at him, with the distinct voice reprimanding him for sleeping on the job. He felt like he couldn’t breathe correctly anymore, and the voices kept getting louder, and the glitching got more intense until he couldn’t feel anything anymore.
So he crashed.
When he woke back up, he could feel something sharp poking at his leg. He jumped, and crawled away, only to find that nothing was there. Sighing in relief, he stood and brushed off imaginary dust along with the feeling of something sharp touching him. Looking around his space, he saw nothing, and yet… He didn’t want to stay here anymore.
So he opened up a portal and stepped through without looking, thinking that anywhere was better than the endless void that held only angry voices. He practically ran away from the portal he made, slowing down after a while to stop and truly looked around, relief filling his SOUL and dispelling the tension in his bones.
There was no one around, in fact, he was in a secluded cavern area of Waterfall, a bench behind him with an echo flower and a small stream running past him. He sighed in relief, no voices could reach him here and no one was around either.
He sat down on the bench, staring up at the ceiling of the cavern and looking at the false stars. It was calming, familiar, and yet he couldn’t recall why. He closed his eyes, trying to recall a memory that he didn’t think existed. Why was Waterfall important? Why was this place in particular familiar to him? After a while he gave up, sighing in annoyed defeat at his own faulty mind. This wasn't a problem earlier… right?
He didn’t realize that there was someone else at the entrance to the cave, watching him with interest and confusion.
“huh, thought no one else knew about this place.”
Error jumped up from the bench, glitching wildly as he threw out strings towards the voice. He could hear a grunt of pain, but he didn’t kill them, not yet.
“WhO ArE yOu?! W-WhY aRe YoU hErE?!”
“Easy, easy,” the other spoke, trying to placate the startled skeleton, “I’m just your friendly neighborhood skeleton who happened to find another skeleton in one of my usual napping spots.”
“i-i DoN’T TrUsT YoU.” Error could feel the other flinch in his strings, a crazed smile worked its way onto his face, “aNd YoU dIdN’t AnSwEr My QuEsTiOn.”
“h-heh, so it seems,” the other spoke, “the name’s sans, sans the skeleton.”
Error figured that would be the case, the other’s voice sounding similar to that of other skeletons he had killed, and yet this one didn't seem to care that he was around. He calmed down some, vision cleared to see the other skeleton in front of him. Ratty pink slippers, track shorts with white stripes on each side, a white t-shirt with a blue hoodie covering it, and an uneasy smile on the skull of the skeleton trapped in his strings.
Error noticed an outstretched hand from the skeleton trapped by his strings, and his free hand acted in kind. He couldn't tell when he touched the other, in fact, he felt pain almost immediately upon acting, flinching back a few feet as his magic strings tightened slightly in response. He heard a pained gasp and looked up to see a SOUL being squeezed tightly, Sans practically writhing in pain. Error, glitching wildly from the pain and the fear the other showed dropped his magic, releasing Sans.
"h-heh, th-thanks buddy. ya alright, though? you, uh, recoiled quite a bit," he spoke, rubbing a hand over his sternum as he tried to approach Error.
"D-dOn'T cOmE aNy ClOsEr!"
Sans paused his movements, placatingly holding both hands in front of him as he backed off a bit. Error had pressed himself as close to the cave wall as he could. With a sigh, Sans walked over to the bench instead, leaning backward as he looked up at the crystals that grew on the ceiling. Error’s glitches slowly began to dissipate, and when they faded he found himself staring at the other skeleton, curiosity and slight confusion in his gaze.
Picking himself up off of the ground, Error moved to the opposite end of the bench, sitting down and sneaking glances at the other skeleton every so often. He flinched when Sans started to chuckle, gaze now fully focused on the other.
“i can see ya looking at me, bud,” he spoke, turning to look Error in the eyes fully, “and you look like a person who wants to talk. what’s on your mind?”
Error’s hands were clutching at the hem of his shirt, fiddling with the thin fabric as he tried to find the words he wanted to say. He opened his mouth a few times, only to close it again. He sighed out loud in frustration, leaning back against the bench and gazing at the crystals as if they had what he wanted to say.
“WhY aRe YoU bEiNg So NiCe To Me?”
The other’s sockets widened at the question, caught off guard.
“why wouldn’t i be nice to ya?” he asked back, and the dark skeleton shrugged.
“NoT mAnY mOnStErS aRe, FiGuReD yOu’D bE tHe SaMe.”
Sans started scratching at his cheekbone, discomforted after the admission. Error watched as the other fidgeted, seemingly in his own struggle to find words.
The silence seemed to stretch on for a while, Error beginning to feel a pull at his SOUL as he sat there. He wanted to ignore it, wanted to stay here with this Sans and just feel comfortable. Of course, it was only a matter of time until the pull turned into a tug, ever-increasing the sensation until all he would feel was pain.
“I nEeD tO lEaVe,” Error spoke, standing up from the bench and turning away from the confused look on the other’s face.
“oh... will i see you again?” sans asked, but Error didn’t reply, only making a portal back to the Anti-Void and leaving.
For a while, Sans sat there, staring at where the glitchy skeleton had left. He was an outcode, Sans knew that much, but he had never heard about one like this. He had only really ever met Ink a handful of times…
Sans stood, taking a shortcut to the basement lab, digging through papers and blueprints to find the only link he had to the Universe outside of his own. With a triumphant laugh, he pulled out an old cellphone and dialed the only saved number on it.
