#pretender!sans

[teddy-the-queer-wizard]

nah i really really like this idea. like the twist is so obvious but it also doesnt have to be done at all. it could be played striaght or left ambiguous.

just a normal variation of Sans waking up in a pile of dust and being horrified.

vauge memory/ feeling he's been in a fight. he feels like hes out of energy or maybe hes too upset to think straight and he runs to check on his brother - only to be intercepted by the bad sanses.

not sure which ones or how many to start. maybe he runs into idk killer and he tries to fight him - but between the check and the fact Sans feels like hes barely keeping up and that killer is playing with him and maybe the rest start showing up and killer and everyone else think he's part of their group and this guy they call dust

and he doesn't know for sure that theyve killed his brother. maybe someone was dragging along a terrified bunny monster and let her go because their work here is done - eveyone here is traumatized and there's plenty of negative energy for nightmare to feed on...

that even though he cant talk his way into "staying behind" he starts playing along

so sans pretends to be dust. learns theres not just multiple timelines that were making him depressed but learns about the multiverse.

and its gotta be scary and fucked up and moments where he really thinks hes going to be discovered that hes *not* this dust sans. and hes gotta be terrified and *angry* that ***this*** is what these other sanses have become. very much in a judgemental way.

and then the more he learns about why they became the way they did he's trying to hold onto you know the feeling *he'd* have made better choices

but then maybe he gets put into a situation where hes yanno gotta do dust's job and kill people and like. he wants to get back to his brother its what hes holding on for and maybe the person the first time is a bad person so its not... really murder is it - hes just doing his job as a judge.

and like it just eats away at your morales.

also i want him to go from "oh fuck they're gonna find out" to a period where he thinks hes in the clear because its been long enough and they havent noticed - to like this scene where he has to do horrible thing and does it and while he's freaking out about that he realizes or believes *nightmares known all along*

because nightmare feeds off negitive energy right? so like thats horrible and terrifying and even if nightmare never lets on to the others that Sans isnt dust because Sans is miserable and nightmare is getting off on that - hes going to keep putting sans into horrible situations and test him and push him to make things *worse* and then the others will figure it out.

and theyll be pretty direct in getting rid of him.

so it hyped back up the oh no killer and Horror are making comments about how "Dust" is acting different or whatever.

maybe he doubles down on playing his role idk. its for his brother right? he just has to figure out how to get back to his brother - even though he now believes nightmare is *never* going to take him back to his timeline unless it will make Sans *more* upset

and then theres the stress dreams.

hes gotta sleep - gotta sleep extra to get his HP above one right? holding onto that singular hope, the only fuck hes been able to give for so long is for his brother - but it feels restless. they could sneak up on him in his sleep.

these people are not sane or safe to be around. and even if they were he's witnessed and ends up participating in their horrors

and at some point he sympathizes with them. because given what theyve been through how could they be anyone else - and now he's not even sure he can hold onto himself in this situation.

hes also becoming a monster

its no wonder he dreams of dust!sans

and its no wonder its as if he *is* dust in his dreams. maybe he didn't start out that way, but hes turning into him right?

and the like. idk. big reveal moment. not sure how thatd go down

maybe if he *isnt* actually dust, dust shows up. maybe they fight and Sans kills him. and maybe the bad sanses are horribly awfully chill with it because highlander style there can only be one in the group after all

or maybe when dust shows back up they figure out whats been going on after an almost comedic - no *hes* the imposter - moment and then idk they keep this Imposter Sans or something. which could lead to a handful of different possibilities.

or if he * is* dust he starts seeing his dead brother encouraging him to do the awful things he doesn't want to but *has* to to get back to him, because he loves papyrus right? maybe first in dreams and then occasionally in high stress situations. comments of hes acting more like himself maybe lead to him trying to say he *isnt* Dust only for them to not take him seriously and prove that he *is* or maybe that sometimes this shit happens. maybe when faced with the truth he breaks down as he remembers everything properly. idk

and weirdly enough i do want this to be shippy in a way im not sure i can pull off. like. regardless what path i chose at this point.

because before the beginning of this story - dust *wasnt* in a relationship with the rest of the bad sanses. but then this pretend or amnesia dust starts learning more about them and connecting with them despite everything or acts differently enough to keep them fucking with him

and the fun thing is that leads to essentially two more possibilities for me to explore as i could play it straight and leave out the shippy stuff or i could get into the shippy stuff at this point.

and the problem i have with any of this is that. i dont know enough about the bad sanses, cross (which i think is from epic tale maybe???), or dream/nightmare, or the star sanses to pull it off.

like to make this have emotional impact im gonna need to get a grasp of their personalities - or at least how i want to portray their personalities.

really excited about this idea as you can no doubt tell from the rambling though

[oodlesndoodles]

@spotaus …

Massive come back for oodles.. decided to draw Pretender for my return

[spotaus]

Pretender!Sans finally finished!!!!

Pretender is a monster who can shift shape doppelganger style. He normally has his face shadowed by his hood, but when he shows it, it's a Sans!

Pretender's home universe is falling apart, because Monsters used to rely on humans as their prey (the Monsters were all shape-shifters, and could look like other Monsters but looked uncanny as humans) but when they were driven to the Underground, they were unable to sustain themselves the way they used to. They swapped to "monster candy" and "spider donuts" but eating other Monsters only does so much.

Pretender wanders the multiverse, mostly to get away from his home, but also to learn to mimic others. Whether that be more successful meals cooked by a stranger, or practicing how to look more human by watching other universe's humans. When he's spotted, it's usually pretty uncanny. (He's trying, but he's Lazy too. Doesn't bother to try hard to disguise while observing.)

I've had his concept for years, and I'm glad I finally got to draw him out! There will be more in the near future! (Probably-)

[teddy-the-queer-wizard]

SO. some thoughts on my bad sanses fic

sans wakes up in a pile of dust his timeline is under attack by a bunch of the bad sanses

hes mistaken for dust and despite trying to fake it and slip away, they end up taking him with them

he has no idea how to get back to his universe

the longer hes with them the better he gets at mimicing dust

he still feels superior, like he would never do somethig like what these sanses did. theyre the *bad* sanses. the exceptions. hes got a strong moral code hed never compromise... even if he does let things slide and not get invovled until he has to.

then the dreams begin

hes terribly afraid he IS dust, who is *knowm* to be crazy

despite denile he ends up learning more about killer, horror and dust

he starts getting the feeling that theres actually no such thing as a "good" sans or a "bad" sans if theyre all just regualr sanses pushed to the extream. how could they have become anything else?

how is he any different at this point, having had to make horrible choices.and choosing himself and his brother every time? Epic's Odysseus style

because hes definatly been forced to kill people to keep his identity hidden by this point

He thinks nightmare knows but likes jerking his chain by putting him up against more and more horrible things

killer and horror dont know but the choiced he keepd having to make are very much ones where if he *didnt* hed be seen as the imposter he is

and finally the real dust shows back up.

now theres two dusts which would be less concerning for killer and horror - infinte multiverse means its possible - if the new dust didnt say that he was *their* dust and thanks for noticing assholes

too vague of notions of how that plays out, if Pretender Sans bolts or not or if they keep him under wraps for a while for reasons, or if Nightmare offers Pretender Sans a deal but

at some point Pretender Sans is in a random timeline and has cleaned up and sees the star sanses and

well hes already done this once, maybe he can just slip in and pretend to be one of them until he can either figure out if theyll help him/ take it personally he was helping the bad sanses/ he figures out how the hell these people were traveling between *different* universes instead of just folding space within the current one.

idk who he plays as but he pulls it off long enough to get to another place.

i think they do eventually notice/ he tells them - possibly dream clocks it because Pretender Sans is straight up not having a good time and can only fake that he is so well.

i think ink knows what line hes from and kinda lets slip that Pretender Sans' timeline id better off without him. Like the story is progressing now instead of looping because theres no Sans - when he left and the timeline reset it was like he never existed gaster style.

like yes there was another genocide route but no cool final boss so they just restarted and made a true pacifist timeline and the story is *contiuing happily* without ***him***

like he was the problem

papyrus is safe and happy - the timeline is one nightmare cant touch rn because its too poisitve to corrupt for now.

of sans goes back, he will fuck that up. worse he knows and has done things that even resetting the timeline wont wipe away. hes gotta live with himself knowing that in the end when youre pushed to the extreams you will do *anything* to get out of that situation. to make things better.

even if you have to redifine wjat better looks like.

i think the star sanses kinda let him have his miserable self reflection of he can never go home because it will put his brother in danger.

and then they start trying to recruit him to the cause. hell hes even got a useful talent for mimicrasy so its not even jusy a pity invite

but hes thoroughly disillutioned. they think like he used to. that being good or bad was black or white. that it came down to choices and everyone could make a better choice if they were just willing to try.

he wasnt his brother. he didnt believe that and... never had.

hes kinda disgusted with the star sanses too upon reflection because theyre the "good" guys and yet theyre a little fucked up. deciding who gets to be saved. whos worth something. prioitizing happy lines over a happy individual.

i dont know how it goes about but i think he figures out the universe travel thing, or maybe hes taught, or maybe even dream opens a portal to nightmare's castle idk.

but Pretender Sans goes back to the castle, miserable and *yet*.

nightmares waiting for him.

and im sure theres something really fucked up about knowing hes been recruiting you this whole time - hell he was just upset with the star sanses for the same thing - but hes wanted here. he has a place here. he belongs with these fucked up sanses.

also somewhere in all of this theres a twisted sort of poly ship romance thing going on. not sure where that bleeds into everything but it does.

killer and horror happen along the way as pretender sans learns more about them and while they dont get "Dusts" slight change of personality they actually prefer him this way.

and nightmares route starts immediately upon return i think

which leaves dust as the final one. the one he knows both best and not at all and who kinda resents pretender sans for being better than him i think? something.

also error should at least make an appearance in the fic for fairness sake as ink is definitely getting his moment.

[teddy-the-queer-wizard]

hey someone who knows things

why do the bad sanses technically have a leader, two members, and error (cant think how to classify)

and the star sanses have a leader, one member, and ink (would be classified the same as error)

rambling:

is this why that cross guy ended up trading sides? so itd be more balanced?

i dont know anything about cross (aside from that a while back everyone said he was trans - good for him <3 - and that he might have started on the bad sans team and then idk double crossed them for the star sanses *maybe*? also i think his creator said he wouldnt be part of the bad sanses so maybe thats why people had him make the switch?)

i was planning on leaving him out of my fic because i kinda get the rest of these guys through tumblr absorption but uh cross is apparently from a VERY lore heavy story which means playing around him would take a bit more time and research.

which sucks because the star sanses werent going to feature very heavily in the fic but they do show up in a manner that is more than "oh look the girls are fighting in the background while plot happens in the foreground" so i WILL have to get a feel for him

but thats.... the only way to balance the team I guess? it does throw a wrench into my plot to have a guy who 'canonically' betrayed the bad sanses exist but i can work it in it just feels... unnecessary :/

that fan song about the star sanses mentioned frisk so i could do that instead pretty easily but if i have Cross floating around and dont use him but use frisk - something ive never seen in fan art or in fic - then id probably get crap for it.

i will ponder.

oh wait if im adding a guy to the bad sanses I suppose ill *have* to have *both* wont i... that might work but it all depends on what i turn up on cross

sucks that's gonna add another layer of barrier to my end game plans but its not insurmountable just a pain

[spotaus]

A few references! (A wip because I got distracted lmao--)

I snatched a few of these from a magma with @oodlesndoodles (I took out Kale if only because I *was* planning on rendering before my distraction) but this doodle features Pretender!Sans, Paps, Gaster, Alphys, and Grillby in their monster forms!

(More rambles under the cut)

Design Choices!:

Sans: He's been underground for a long time but used to live on the surface. I imagine he *does* have the iconic Sans outfit somewhere, but right now he wears robes like the King and Queen used to. (He recieved them when he was appointed Judge by Asgore, but no one really knows their significance because only the Guard and Asgore know of his work.)

Paps: Chose his outfit mostly to match Pretender amd the Guard. His shoulder-pads are like old crystal ball props, and his cape had the same sparke affect as Pretender's hood/robes. Around his waist he wears one of the old lab coats Sans leaves around the house. (<- It belonged to one of Sans' favorite people, the one Paps tries to mimic, so he wears it now instead.) Paps has the markings on his face same as Gaster because Sans has a lot of photos from over the years hung on the walls in his room, and Paps used to see them a lot.

Gaster: He's deceased, so the current plot doesn't see him (he can't interact with K, unfortunately. I think they would've been friends if they'd met in Gaster's prime) but I still wanted to doodle him. This was how he looked towards the end of his life, when most of the lab team had passed and he was starting to fall down. He wore cardigans and sweaters, focusing mostly on comfort rather than safety (he was always cold, but especially so towards the end).

Alphys: Went a bit crazy after Gaster passed. She hadn't been eating for a long time, and she couldn't bring herself to leave the lab, even after Sans retired his studies and moved to Snowdin. She still wears her old lab coat, stained and ripped, and she's worse-off for it. Most who see her think she's a rabid animal that has taken a spot in the labs, cameras abandoned and traps scattered in the lab waiting for prey to fall into them. It's an unsafe zone. Any humans who manage to pass Undyne *always* fall to Alphys.

Grillby: Back to fun times!!! He's a short king (at least coming in at around 5'6" which is small compared to other boss monsters, but big compared to merchants) and still runs his restaurant in Snowdin. Though, it's usually empty these days since he doesn't exactly have much food to serve. And water? He doesn't touch the stuff. Sans goes there often just to keep Grillby company. Most monsters, even if they do see a human enter, won't bother attacking because they know Grillby gets first dibs. Grillby would rather not get blood on his nice counters, though. He wears a vest and button-up with symbols like Pretender's, but otherwise is fairly unchanged from canon.

Extra Notes:

-Alphys and Sans aren't on speaking terms any longer. After Sans gave up the project, Alphys became manic and fell into despair, deciding that she'd do everything herself. Sans tried to see her a few times after that before be realized she'd gone off the deep-end and he only dared to be nearby when Asgore needed him.

-I now believe that MTT would be a positive force for humans. A ghost-monster who wanted to look human, to see if they could pass the barrier. Alphys was in charge of the project before Gaster passed, and constructed a surprisingly sturdy human-like body. It was never tested against the barrier. Now MTT tries to stay by Alphys, even in her madness. He tries to help people by reminding them how humans look, act, and talk, with his show. He helps people who get caught by Alphys' traps. (Gotta talk to Ood, but I'm thinking that Pretender wasn't fast enough to help K on her first time through the lab. It was actually MTT who moved her out of immediate danger before stalling Alphys? Unsure.)

-Grillby likes the taste of human, but there are certain unspoken rules he works by, like other shopkeeps. For him, as long as you pay your bill and follow his one rule (no water (tears do not count as water)) then you're free from his harvest. If a human came in looking for shelter, he'd leave them be.

-Gaster was a brilliant mind, and Pretender took a lot of influences from him over the years. Despite his death, his image and memory lives on in the mannerisms and knowledge of those who knew him. In the grief left in his shadow. In the young skeleton who imitates him partially every day because he made his brother happy a long time ago.

[spotaus]

My newest and oldest Sans in the same image??? Woag...

Anywho, Pretender is my newest guy, and Ichor is my oldest! Just thought it'd be fun! Plus, I wanna doodle Ichor more again. I always think he'll be harder to draw than he is lmao-

[teddy-the-queer-wizard]

you know youre fucked when you find the fucking opening credits song for your fanfic