Sans x Reader: Paper Moon

(Warning: This insert contains Pacifist Route spoilers...kinda. You have been warned.)

You blinked slowly as you exited the mountain. God, you thought you’d never the sun again. It was setting, making look like the sky was on fire. Never in your life had the sun looked so beautiful to you. The birds were chirping, the crickets were singing...and the cicadas cried. You couldn’t believe that you would even miss the annoying shrieks of cicadas, either. But you did. You glanced over your shoulder, smiling smally as you watched the ones you have made your friends…you would even call them your best friends, step above ground, and for most of them, for the first time. You smile became wider as you looked at their faces filled with wonder. Your gaze returned to the sunset, sorrow starting to wash over you, drowning out your friends as you got lost into your thoughts.

You remembered when you were falling down into the shadows of Mount Ebott, holding onto your breath, waiting for you to crash down below.  How…how many times did you had to go through that? You couldn’t remember. You had repeated the fall so many times…they all blurred together. You forgotten what the world above looked like. You forgotten what it was like to breathe in the open air of the surface, not the musty air of the caves. You forgotten the faces of your siblings, your parents…your family. You couldn’t even recall their names anymore. No, all you could remember was your time in the Underground, the home of monsters. You could remember meeting Toriel for the first time, how scared you were when she saved you from the flower Flowey, how much fear there was within you, within your soul. You could remember the sadness that plagued your heart when you left the ruins for the first time, wondering how it could snow underground. How you met all your friends, you remembered freshly. Every step you took, every monster you came across, you could remember the wonder…the fear.

But with each reset, with every final blow, you wound back to falling down the dark caverns of Mount Ebott. Sometimes, you would just give up, you could barely take it anymore at some points. “What is the point of going if it will repeat all over again?” you would ask yourself sometimes. You could even remember that you left the ruins, you would sometimes leave the path and go into the woods. You would find a good hiding spot and lay down, waiting for the deadly bitter and cold nights to take you. To lead you into the death, hoping that would break the cycle you were caught in. You were always scared that you would never be able to escape, that you will never be able to go home. It was always so scary to you, even if you knew that everything will be the same with each repeat. But there was always one person...one certain skeleton that helped you with each reset.

“(Name)?” His voice brought you out of your of your thoughts. He was looking at with a worried expression. You noticed that it was just now the two of you. “You alright? You look like...well, rattled. To the bone.”

Sans.

It was always good to see him every reset. He was the only one that kept you going through the resets, even when you were close to your breaking points. He seemed to always show up when you were about to give up, when you just want to go into Snowdin’s woodlands and lay down awaiting for the nights to take you. And the thing was, when you did go to the woodlands, when you would hide and wait to die, he always found you. You could never figure out how he could find you. But you soon figured out that he was like you. He could remember each reset, just like you could. The two of you fought through it together, he helped you cope with the resets. He would start meeting you at the ruins doors once you would convince Toriel to let you go out into the world of monsters when everything would reset. You couldn’t imagine what would it be like without him. You...loved him, no matter how outrageous it sounded. A human falling in love with a skeleton? But you did...and he loved you, too.

You sighed and sat down on the mountain’s edge, looking down at the forest below. You didn’t look over when you heard Sans plop down beside you. He may have always been with you, but you couldn’t get yourself to look at him. It hurt you too much, knowing how this would end soon. You flinched a little when you felt his skeletal hand fall lightly on your shoulder, squeezing it lightly. “Something’s clearly eating you up,” he said in a gentle voice. That just made your heart drop even lower, hearing him speak so softly to you. You clutched your pants into your fists and squeezed your eyes shut, trying to hold the tears back. He seemed to notice this. His grip on your shoulder became tighter and you felt his other hand taking your chin and turning your head to look at him. “What’s wrong? You know you can tell me.” His hand moved to your cheek, cupping it, and his thumb stroked your skin.

You chuckled a little and wiped your eyes with your sleeve, making a small sniffle. “I-I know, Sans...I…” you took his hand away from your face, holding it in your own lightly. “I just can’t...I just can’t think of how to put it into words.”

“Well, usually you just open your mouth and form a string of words until you get a complete sentence,” he joked, chuckling at his own joke. You didn’t laugh. He cleared his throat at that before putting his serious expression back on. “C’mon, (Name). We won. It’s done...we...made it.”

You shook your head slowly at that.

“What do you mean ‘no’?” Sans asked. “What else is there? The barrier’s broken...monsters are returning to the surface...I mean, you’re even our ambassador now! What else is there to worry about--?”

“I am slipping away, Sans.”

You felt Sans hand on your shoulder lose its grip, his face shadowed his inner shock and terror. It took him awhile to say something, “Wh...what do mean ‘you’re slipping away’? What...what does that even mean?” You couldn’t answer, a lump formed in your throat that prevented you to speak. “(N-Name)? C’mon, s-say something. You’re...you’re scaring me, here. What do you mean by that?”

You sighed heavily, not wanting to explain what you meant. You bit your bottom lip, shaking your head hard at yourself. You could feel Sans’ stare burn through you, trying to find what was wrong, why you wouldn’t answer. Tired of hiding it from him, you spoke in a low, quiet voice, “I did what I was meant to do…I…I get it now, my destiny…why I’m here, the timeline…and…my soul…it’ll—it’ll fade away soon. I can feel it fading now. With each breath, my existence slips farther and farther away until I…” you didn’t want to finish your sentence. Tears escaped once more and your voice cracked, “If I don’t reset…if I don’t continue the loop…I’ll…disappear. Forever.”

“…Disappear…?” Sans repeated. You could barely hear him, his voice barely a whisper. His eyes drifted down to the ground, confusion clouding them. He slowly started to shake his head. “No…” His free hand clutched tightly into a fist before he slammed it into the ground, his head shaking hard. “No, no, no, no!” His eyes fixated on you. “No, you—you can’t! There has to be a way…there’s always a way to get around things.” He took both your hands into his, squeezing them tightly. “You can’t give into this, (Name). The fear…you need to get past it. I can see it in your eyes…I’m scared too…but you have to fight it—“

You pushed his hands away, shooting up to your feet. “Don’t make this harder than it is, Sans…” Tears stained your cheeks and your shoulders shook at your stifled sobs. “I can’t…I can’t stay. I want to…I want to stay so bad. I wish I can stay…but I can’t.” You wiped your eyes again, taking in a deep breath before looking back down at Sans, who stayed in a shocked stake. “…I guess…I will see you in your dreams soon?” You then mumbled, “Maybe your nightmares too…if I can, that is…”

Sans got up, approaching you slowly. “Please don’t say that, (Name)—“

“I’ll find you there,” you assured him.

“No, I would rather have you instead. Not dreams. Or…nightmares,” Sans stated. He sighed, scratching the back of skull before he said, “You know…the reason why I kept going, kept holding onto hope, even though I knew everything would reset? You were…you still are, that reason. You do know that you mean everything to me, right? (Name), to keep ya safe, I’d even crush stars for you.” You chuckled a little at that, making Sans make a small smile. “Heh. That one was a little cheesy…but really though, you mean the world to me. Please, (Name)…”

You held your hand up, having Sans stopping only inches away from you. It hurt to look into his eyes, they were pleading, begging you to stay. You looked back at the ground, scuffing it with your foot lightly, before saying, “Do you really put that much fate in me? Truly?” Sans nodded. You smiled softly, trying to hide the sadness that it masked. “Remember this…Sans…when your lost…just remember I’ll be with you forever…forever in your heart…and with your soul.”

Sans eyes went over to your hand, watching you reach behind your back. “Wait—what are you—?”

“And I’ll be waiting above you patiently…” You grabbed a small item in your back pocket and hid it in the palm of your hand as you brought it back into view. Tears welled into your eyes as you slowly, and quietly said, “Like a paper moon…”

“Wait…wait, (Name)…”

“I love you, Sans,” you cried.

Sans left eye suddenly turned to a fairy blue, glowing intensely. He lunged for you. “(NAME) NO—!”