Chapter Text
Ahh... What a pleasant morning in Snowdin. The artificial lights are glowing... The snow has settled down... And the neighbourhood is calm and peaceful.
Now, where was the coolest skeleton in said neighbourhood?
Ah, there he was. Sat upright in his neatly unmade bed, his legs under the covers. He held a book of various puzzles in his left hand, as he used his right hand to write everything out in his usual cool dude fashion.
It was just as he completed another sudoku puzzle when the light made its way through his window. It crept along the flame-decorated carpet, and illuminated the room around him.
He smiled once he saw the light.
"AHH, MORNING ALREADY?" Papyrus beamed as he gently placed the puzzle book on the table, right next to one of his newest Mettaton action figures. Next, he sprung out of bed, only to do some of his regular stretches in the middle of his rug. He finished by cracking and popping each and every one of his bones, including his skull.
"WELL, THEN!! IT'S TIME TO START ANOTHER GLORIOUS DAY!!!"
And thus, The Great Papyrus' morning routine has begun! First was the shower, courtesy of the Schroedinger's bathroom the brothers seem to both own and not own... Wait, that's just what Schroedinger's means, right? Talk about redundancy!
Of course, the shower was merely an excuse to give Papyrus a seamless transition to the outfit he picked out for today - a pink, sparkly cropped vest top with an MTT logo on the left of his chest, and thin, silky purple leggings that stopped just above his ankles. And of course, his outfit wasn't complete without his scarf and gloves!
Next, of course, was enacting his brilliant skincare routine - complete with MTT products and mayonnaise! Excellent!
He admired himself in the mirror. "ABSOLUTE PERFECTION AS ALWAYS, PAPYRUS!"
"WHY, THANK YOU, PAPYRUS!!!" His reflection 'talked back'. "AND MUST I SAY, YOU LOOK INCREDIBLY HANDSOME AS WELL!!!"
The 'real' Papyrus blushed and giggled. "OH, YOU!!"
He turned to the sink for one last objective.
"OKAY, SMILE..." He whipped out his red toothbrush like a warrior about to leap into battle. "PREPARE TO BE BRUSHED!!!"
Just a squirt of toothpaste and it's time to start brushi-
"PFTPFTPFT!" What? What is this?! "THIS ISN'T TOOTHPASTE!!! THIS IS WHIPPED CREAM!!!"
A bone-chilling laugh echoed through the hall, prompting Papyrus to turn slowly towards it. It sounded so... familiar. But so off... It was subtle, deep... but also booming. It bounced off the walls of the bathroom, making the poor guy's velvet stand on end, like goosebumps but for skeletons.
No. That sound... It can't be!
He had to go check. To the calendar, quick! In his room!
No. No, it can't be true! It just can't!
But it is. It so is. Oh, woe! Oh, woe almighty, it has to be!
"APRIL FIRST..." Papyrus muttered out, like saying the words would curse the entire neighbourhood. But it was too late. The neighbourhood was already cursed just for this day's existence.
"THAT MEANS..."
Creeeeaaaaaaak.
Papyrus turned to his bedroom door, ready to face his worst nightmare. The nightmare in turn stared back at him. His crazed, cruel eye sockets, the same ones that would make him look cute on any other day of the year, only served as a reminder that he had been possessed by the spirit of the holiday. The most terrifying day of the year.
"heyyyyy, papyyyruuus~" The terror let out a crazed laugh, before immediately going into a coughing fit. Well, that took away some of the tension.
Come to think of it, his eye sockets were accentuated with deep, dark eye bags. What was up with that?
Still, even these little details didn't deter Papyrus' fear from keeping its grip on his soul. He even backed into the wall, terrified.
"SANS, WHY DO YOU HAVE TO DO THIS?"
Sans let out one last cough before responding. "cuz it's my favorite day of the year, bro. besides gyftmas and your birthday."
"OUR BIRTHDAY."
"yeah, that's what i said."
"NO... NO YOU DIDN'T." Papyrus found the strength in himself to let go of the wall. "DID YOU GET ANY SLEEP LAST NIGHT? YOU LOOK EXHAUSTED."
Papyrus wasn't wrong. Sans was struggling to stand, so much so that he had his own grip on the wall. But instead of being terrified, he looked like he was about to collapse at any moment. He didn't even make eye contact with Papyrus. His eyelights faded in and out like a flickering lightbulb.
Still, he said in a dazed voice, "yea-huh."
"ARE YOU LYING TO ME?"
"yea-huh."
"I FIGURED. W-WELL, UM... IF YOU'RE TOO TIRED, THEN YOU CAN SKIP THIS APRIL FOOL'S DAY AND GO BACK TO BED!! I-I WON'T BERATE YOU IF YOU WANTED TO DO THAT, I SWEAR!!!"
Because Sans sleeping all day sounded much better than whatever this April Fool's had in store. However, unfortunately, Sans was stubborn and tried to push himself up regardless. That darned Asterisk family trait.
"nooo way, papyrus. i ain't missin' out on one of my favorite holidays. you must be outta your skull if you think that's gonna happen. ehehe..."
Flop! The floor looked comfortable to Sans. Papyrus felt the opposite.
"W-WELL... THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO ARE DYING TO BE... TO B-BE PRANKED!!! GO PRANK THEM INSTEAD!!!"
"wow, papyrus..." Sans absentmindedly grabbed the carpet and dug his tiny phalanges into it, making sure to get every ounce of sensation possible. "throwing others under the bus just to save your own skin? shame on you."
Papyrus blushed. Crap, Sans had a point.
"F-FINE!!!" He accentuated with a stomp. "THEN... HOW ABOUT I JOIN YOU?? Y-YEAH!! WHY PRANK ME WHEN YOU CAN WORK WITH ME INSTEAD? YOU KNOW I AM THE PERFECT COMPANION WHEN IT COMES TO JAPERS AND CAPERS!! TAKE ME WITH YOU!! I SWEAR, I'LL MAKE IT WORTH YOUR WHILE!!"
Sans nuzzled his face into the carpet, humming thoughtfully. Sweat beaded on Papyrus' chattering skull, as he grinded his teeth, hoping Sans would accept his offer. It was his only way out, his only hope of making it through the day unscathed. Well, mostly unscathed. He still had to brush his teeth.
Finally, Sans giggled and spoke up. "sure, why not? i could use a com-prank-ion."
The relief that flooded Papyrus in that instant... was quickly quelled by that stupid, stupid pun.
"THAT WAS A STRETCH."
"i dunno, i thought it was uhhhhhh..." Was he shutting down? Oh! Maybe if he fell asleep, Papyrus could- Nope, Sans got up, never mind.
"c'mon, bro." Alright, seemed like his mind just reset itself. The silly, sleepy prankster put his hands up into semi-fists and slid them to Papyrus' right, signing 'follow' before he walked out the room...
Thud.
What just happened?
Papyrus left his room to investigate. Turned out, Sans was so tired he didn't register where the stairs were. He just... walked off the ledge and fell flat on his face.
For a moment, the taller brother considered checking on him. But a muffled giggle from Sans indicated that everything was okay. Thank goodness.
--------
Montage montage montage prank time montage montage montage Undyne montage montage yessss fill her house with soap she's totally not going to chase them out with a spear montage montage CRAP SHE'S CHASING THEM WITH A SPEAR RUN RUN SANS GET UP-
Montage montage montage montage montage montage montage Mettaton montage montage montage why is he dressed as a cucumber on live TV Sans you are not a cat why did you leap the first time you saw him montage montage montage oh god Papyrus changed Mettaton's voice settings to cucumber wait what does a cucumber sound like?
Montage montage Alphys montage montage montage prank time yessss new Mew Mew Kissy Cutie manga montage montage wait that's just the cover again montage montage and again montage montage it's just the same page over and over again montage montage montage skeletons in the vents skeletons in the vents they're in the walls AAAAAAAA-
Montage montage montage Snowdin montage montage montage montage replacing all the burgers with candy is fun montage montage montage hey they actually like it gummy burgers yay montage montage montage montage good luck dealing with future cavities though.
Montage montage okay that's enough, the brothers went to the library.
Sorry. Librarby.
Sans tried in vain to keep Papyrus from snickering loudly as he slid bags of cheese between the books, all the while he was fighting to stay awake. He wasn't lying when he said April Fool's was one of his favourite holidays, after all. And pranking people with his brother wasn't something he had the opportunity to do too often. Not unless Doggo was involved anyway. That bell is just too tempting some days.
"ssh..." The sleepy scoundrel once again brushed Papyrus' teeth with his hand as the latter snickered.
"S-SORRY..." Papyrus whispered. Yes, he can whisper. Just poorly. "I THINK ALL OF THESE JAPES HAS GOT ME IN A SILLY SKELETON MOOD."
"hey, now you know how i feel when i..." He trailed off with a yawn.
"SANS, BE QUIET! THIS IS A LIBRARY!" The hypocrite huffed, crossing his arms like a pouty toddler.
Sans caught onto the hypocrisy and grinned smugly. "don'tcha mean librarby?"
"UGH, I TOLD YOU TO STOP REMINDING ME OF THAT!!! I DIDN'T MEAN TO WRITE-"
Whoops, loud volume! Sans shushed Papyrus quickly.
"c'mon, bro. if we're gonna be kicked out again, i at least want us to get kicked out from the cheese."
"FINE." Papyrus rolled his eye sockets... somehow... when the door to the library opened. Three college-age newcomers walked in, all with a distinct flair that instantly gripped the less discreet japer's attention.
The first was an adorable, wide-eyed, brown barn owl monster who stood about three inches taller than Sans. Her eyes were a glittery, icy blue, her beak a dark chocolate brown, and a t-shirt and black skirt that screamed pop culture. Papyrus didn't recognise the cartoon on the t-shirt, but it looked awfully similar to the childish cartoons Dr Alphys liked to watch. A blue backpack was slung over her shoulder, decorated lovingly with various buttons and keychains from all sorts of media, except, notably, for Mettaton-themed merch. How strange.
The second was a teal and white jay... woodpecker... bird??? Who wore large, round glasses and a calm, confident demeanour that almost reminded Papyrus of Sans in a way. The teal and white created unique patterns around his entire body. While he foregoes wearing clothes, the science and magic books he kept tucked away under his arm and the black laptop bag he kept securely strapped to his back accessorised him enough so that no one noticed. Not that people would care much, anyway. A lot of monsters don't wear clothes. He was also the shortest of the bunch, about Sans' height.
The third and tallest monster was a frog. A muted green frog with brown spots. And hair covering their eyes. How a frog managed to grow hair was a mystery. Perhaps they're a hybrid. In addition to being tall (though not as tall as Papyrus), they had an understandably lanky body, with their large webbed hands and feet sticking out like tree branches. They wore a cropped, long-sleeved t-shirt and grey shorts. Their only possession? A small laptop, tucked loosely under their arm.
Papyrus found himself wondering why he was so transfixed on this trio, and why were they so...
Cool?
It felt just like one of those scenes from those high school teen drama movies. The scene where the popular kids sashay through the halls and everyone stops and stares, slack-jawed, eyes bulging out of their skull... Kind of like the facial expression Papyrus was making! Except he was the only one doing it. Go figure.
"Thanks for suggesting this place to me, Seedlin!" The peppy owl chirped as she took her seat at the table. "This place looks really cosy. Nothing like the libraries up in New Home."
Ah, so that's why she had such a distinct accent. So clear, so articulated. Just like how all the monsters in New Home sound like. Papyrus should know, he...
Never mind.
"Ah, come on, Jovie! You'd say that about any library!" That was the bird. He sounded so young, like he hadn't even hit puberty yet, though at the same time, there were a lot of adults with high-pitched voices, Papyrus included. Perhaps that was something they could bond over.
The frog signed something so fast even Papyrus' super brain couldn't keep up. The two birdlike monsters laughed in response.
"That was a good one, Lynn!"
Papyrus felt something lean against his arm.
"hey, bro. whatcha starin' at?"
"UM..." How could he explain this? "I THINK I JUST FOUND THE COOLEST PEOPLE I'VE EVER SEEN."
Sans tried to focus his bleary eyes on the trio. "those three? what about the royal guard?"
"WELL, THE ROYAL GUARD ARE STILL OBJECTIVELY THE COOLEST, BUT THESE THREE ARE JUST SO... UNAPOLOGETIC IN THEMSELVES!!! I HAVE TO BEFRIEND THEM!! I JUST HAVE TO!!"
"well, what's stoppin' ya? go up and say hi."
Sans was right. Papyrus wasn't going to befriend anyone by just staring at them. Subtly (he knocked down a stack of books) he sneaked towards the table (his loud footsteps gave him away, the trio spotted him before he even sat down), then once he arrived, he smiled calmly and politely (he looked like he just ate 30 bags of sugar in one sitting).
All eyes are on him! Excellent! They must like him already! They're not finding him weird at all!
With a deep breath, Papyrus reached out his right hand and spoke, loudly and proudly.
"HELLO!!! I AM THE GREAT PAP-"
"Ssh!" Brarb. Of course. It's a library.
Papyrus tried again, quieter this time.
"HELLO! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! WELCOME TO SNOWDIN TOWN!"
The owl blinked before she gave him a big smile, and returned his handshake. "Ha. Jovie."
The bird gave him a half-lidded grin before he whipped out his wing and also returned Papyrus' handshake. "Talk about a warm welcome. I'm Seedlin."
The frog did not return Papyrus' handshake, but they signed their name anyway. Lynn.
Papyrus felt like he was about to cry. They shook his hand! This is amazing!
"Ssh!"
Whoops, did he say that out loud?
"Nah, you totally didn't." Seedlin chuckled to himself, leaning on his hand with a smug grin that reminded Papyrus of someone close to him.
Wait, he said that out loud too?!
"Hey, it's okay!" Jovie put her feathered hands up reassuringly. "I get it if you're nervous. I used to get nervous about meeting other people before I met Seedlin."
"That's an understatement." Seedlin teased with a light punch. Jovie giggled.
Papyrus was flabbergasted. "WHAT? HOW??? SOMEONE LIKE YOU? YOU MUST'VE BEEN SUPER POPULAR WHERE YOU'RE FROM!!!"
Jovie giggled again, a little more awkwardly this time. Maybe she was nervous about having a conversation with The Great Papyrus? It's understandable!
"Not really..."
Lynn gently placed their hand on Jovie's shoulder. Her smile perked up at the action.
Papyrus fell silent for a second, observing the gentle interaction, how the trio looked at each other and smiled, hoping, dreaming of someone who he could have that kind of connection with besides- Sans just headbutted his shoulder. Great.
"SANS!!!" Papyrus screamed on a reflex, before a loud "SSH" reminded him that he was in a library.
He heard the little titters of an owl as he struggled to push his brother off, who only seemed to be getting clinger by the second.
"SANS, I AM TALKING TO- GET OFF!"
"aww..." Sans yawned as he finally let go. As Papyrus glared at the sleepy skeleton, he noticed the trio - or rather, Jovie and Seedlin - snickering quietly out of the corner of his eye socket. And now his face is heating up. Great.
"Hoo was that?" Jovie smiled.
Papyrus wanted to die. "MY BROTHER. HE'S REALLY WEIRD."
"Weird? Huh. He does seem like a funny one, doesn't he?" Seedlin smirked nonchalantly as he watched Sans, who kept petting the poor, confused librarian's head. What is life?
Papyrus groaned internally. Way to ruin a first introduction, Sans! At least nothing else can ruin this interaction for him!
At least, that's what he thought until he heard Jovie laugh quietly under her wing. "He's adorable. Is he always like that?"
Papyrus took a moment to check on Sans' sleepy self once more. That poor librarian was being smothered with Sans' love right now. One of the small prankster's arms were wrapped around the librarian and the other was busy patting their head, almost like a parent comforting their child. It would be a sweet sight if it wasn't so EMBARRASSING AND WEIRD!!!
All the wannabe popular dude could do was sigh and bang his head on the table.
--------
"THEY ARE REALLY COOL, SANS!!!" Papyrus, now free from the shackles of the public library, used his freedom to squawk and yammer on endlessly in front of Sans' sentry station, pacing back and forth while his own brother was on the verge of going into another three-day coma.
"WHICH THREE MONSTERS THAT AREN'T ROYAL GUARDS COULD JUST WALK IN LIKE THEY OWN THE PLACE AND GET AWAY WITH IT??? CAN YOU THINK OF SOMEONE ELSE LIKE THAT, BECAUSE I CAN'T!!!"
Sans' head lulled a little. Papyrus continued pacing.
"NOW I'VE BEEN DOING SOME PROFILING AND THIS IS WHAT I KNOW! JOVIE... YOU KNOW THE OWL, RIGHT? THE OWL. SHE'S A HUGE BOOKWORM, I MEAN, I BET SHE'S AN EVEN BIGGER BOOKWORM THAN YOU, SANS!!!" He whipped around to gesture at Sans with a dramatic flair before he continued his relentless pacing. "AND SHE'S A HUGE GEEK FOR MONSTER POP CULTURE! IT'S IMPRESSIVE HOW MUCH SHE KNOWS! SHE'S LIKE AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OBSCURE POP CULTURE REFERENCES AND OUTDATED MEMES!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT?!?!"
Papyrus waited about 0.5 seconds for a response, then continued. His tracks were getting slipperier with every step, but he kept himself steady.
"AND SEEDLIN??? IS THAT HIS NAME? I SAW HIM CARRYING AROUND SOME SCIENCE AND MAGIC BOOKS, SO I ASSUME HE'S A GIANT MAGICAL SCIENCE NERD OR SOMETHING. HEY, KIND OF LIKE YOU!!! ONLY LESS... UM..."
Sans looked about ready to pass out.
"...NEVER MIND. AND THEN THERE'S LYNN!!! I MUST ADMIT, I DO NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT THEM, SINCE THEY WERE ON THEIR LAPTOP THE WHOLE TIME, BUT I'M WILLING TO BET THAT THEY'RE JUST AS COOL AS THE OTHERS!!! OH, SANS, I MUST BEFRIEND THEM- NYAH!!!"
And there went his balance. Oof, right on his spine! That's gonna ache for a while. It probably wasn't the best idea to pace around in non-snow boots in snow, come to think of it. On the bright side, the resounding crash was enough to jolt Sans awake!
"huh? oh, ice to see you're gettin' acquainted with the floor."
"SANS!!!" It was all he could say to stop himself from smiling at the pun. The Great Papyrus huffed as he dusted himself off, somehow ignoring the sudden pain in his back. "WERE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?"
"sure i was, bro." Sans yawned. "they sound cool. you wanna be friends with 'em badly, huh?"
"YES, WELL I..." A pause. "MUST DO..."
Papyrus didn't get it. Why did he hesitate? He just met three really cool people, so surely he must befriend them, right? He had to admit it to himself: back at the library, he didn't really feel the spark that came with friendship. Not like how he felt with Undyne anyway, during their first sparring session... Maybe these sparks need a bit of time? Yeah, surely that's the case!
Hopeful, the future Royal Guard puffed out his chest and threw one end of his scarf over his shoulder, assuming a dashing, debonair pose.
"YEAH!!! OF COURSE I DO!! YOU'RE RIGHT, THEY ARE COOL PEOPLE!!! AND THE GREAT PAPYRUS ONLY HANGS OUT WITH COOL PEOPLE!!!"
"with exception." Sans mumbled to himself, prompting yet another glare from his brother. As a response, the sleepyhead threw his hands up defensively. "i'm just sayin'."
Papyrus shook his head. He had to focus! "HMPH! LET IT BE KNOWN HENCEFORTH, BROTHER!!! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL BEFRIEND THESE COOL NERDY PEOPLE AND WRAP MYSELF IN THE COMFORTER OF THEIR FRIENDSHIP!!!"
A quiet snore was the only response. Did... Did Sans just fall asleep during his dramatic speech?! How rude!
"SANS!!! HUFF!!!" Yup. He said "huff" out loud. "WOULD IT KILL YOU TO AT LEAST SHOW ME SOME KIND OF- WHOA!!!"
Welp, he faceplanted in the snow. He should probably get off the ice he created with all of his pacing. But not before letting out a low groan first.
"SIGH..."
Or a sigh. Either one works.
--------
The next time he met up with Jovie, it was on the outskirts of Snowdin Town, right near the sign. She was leaning against a tree, reading a comic Papyrus didn't recognise. Something about fantasy goblins? Whatever it was, it seemed a bit too childish for his tastes. But this was still one of the cool ones, so maybe...
Wait, no! Papyrus isn't the uncool one! What was he thinking! He just had to go talk to her and prove it! So, leaving no room for hesitation, he gathered his resolve and marched straight towards her.
Jovie was so engrossed in her comic and salty chisps that she didn't notice Papyrus walking up to her until he was right in front of her. Wow! She was so cool she resisted the power of his awesome aura!! He had to talk to her now!!
Come on, Papyrus! No backing down!
"HELLO THERE, JOVIE!!! I SEE YOU ARE READING A COMIC!!!"
The wide-eyed owl blinked, her large pupils darting towards her comic and back, before she gave him a small smile. "Um, yeah... Knights of Gobbletower High... It's its forty year anniversary this year."
"NYEH HEH HEH, WOW!!! HOW TIME FLIES, HUH? I REMEMBER READING THAT WHEN I WAS... EIGHT!"
Wut.
"YES!!! I KNOW THE INS AND OUTS OF THAT COMIC!!!"
What was he talking about?
"IT'S ONE OF MY TOP, UHH... TWENTY... FIVE COMICS OF ALL TIME!!!"
...
"AND BY THAT I MEAN THAT PARTICULAR ISSUE!!!"
You have issues.
Jovie's face scrunched up. Does that mean she believes him?
"Um... You do, huh?"
"YES!!!" Papyrus posed. "I KNOW ALL KINDS OF COMICS! I... I READ A LOT OF THEM WHEN I WAS BUT A SMALL BOY."
That was true! At least he's on the right track. Before Jovie could protest, Papyrus awkwardly sat next to her. Yeah. This is peak friendship right here.
"SO, WHAT'S THAT?" Nice one.
"Err..."
"I'M ONLY JOKING!! OF COURSE I KNOW WHAT IT IS!!! THAT'S THE ISSUE WITH THE, UM..." Dang it, he couldn't see the pages properly! "OH!! THE SEXY ROBOTS!!! YES!! WHO- WHO DOESN'T LOVE SEXY ROBOTS?"
Jovie glanced at Papyrus' sparkly MTT brand shirt and smiled, before she gave out a soft sigh.
"This isn't the one with the sexy robots. Although something tells me you're a fan of that."
"YES!!!" Papyrus beamed brightly.
"Good for you!" Jovie giggled. "Personally, I'm not a fan of Mettaton," Papyrus got shot in the heart, "but I'm glad you li-"
He waved his hands frantically, cutting Jovie off. "NO!!! I MEAN NO, I DON'T!!!!! I DON'T LIKE METTATON!! I JUST... I'M WEARING THIS... IRONICALLY!!! YES, IRONICALLY!!! I DON'T LIKE METTATON EITHER! I'M JUST WEARING THIS IRONICALLY... A-AND THE SEXY ROBOT THING WAS SARCASM!!!"
The owl squinted in confusion as she watched the weird skeleton fidget uncomfortably, trying to avoid eye contact. She fidgeted with the corners of the pages before she tried again with a sweet, simple reassurance.
"Hey, it's okay to-"
"YEEP!!!"
Aw, nice work, Papyrus! You're so good at socialising! No wonder why you have so many friends! You should be a guest star on Mettaton's talk show and impress everyone with how cool you are! Not that Jovie would watch that episode anyway because she doesn't like Mettaton and if she doesn't like Mettaton then she won't like Papyrus because Papyrus likes Mettaton that's why she didn't have any Mettaton stuff on her backpack it's because she's too cool to fall into mainstream media like Mettaton she only likes the niche stuff that hardly anyone cares about because that's just how cool people like stuff and if he wants to be cool like them of course he's the coolest but only the coolest people can relate to other cool people it's the same thing with Undyne so he can do the same for these guys too, QUICK MAKE A POP CULTURE REFERENCE!!! THINK OF A POP CULTURE THING LIKE COMEDIANS! COMEDIANS! QUOTE A COMEDIAN SHE'LL LOVE THAT AND WANT TO BE YOUR FRIEND-
"YOUR MOTHER GAVE BIRTH TO AN EGG!!"
...
He could've picked a different quote. Did he really just say that to an owl? It didn't help that Papyrus pointed at Jovie like some sort of lunatic.
The silence was thick, and the tension was deafening.
...
Wait-
"GOODBYE!!!"
Yeah, that was the right time to use the Flee option. Jovie could barely reach out to the poor skeleton before he ducked into a thorny bush. She cringed as she heard him wince in pain.
Well. That interaction could have gone better.
Oh wait, no. He's coming back. This time with thorns all over his body and a smile plastered on his face.
"DO YOU KNOW ABOUT DR. PHIL?"
--------
It has been a day since Papyrus met the three nerdy strangers, and it turned out, the trio were staying in Snowdin until Friday, which meant he had a little just over 24 hours to befriend them and have another group to lean on besides Sans and the Royal Guard!
Speaking of Sans, Papyrus had to go see him! He knew he saw Seedlin read those sciencey magicy books, so if he knew more about that kind of stuff, then he could quite possibly befriend them all through Seedlin! He didn't know why he didn't go for him first, since he reminded him of his brother so much. How could The Great Papyrus have been so blind?
He quickly found Sans at the kitchen counter, checking over some kind of blue paper sheet thing. His eyelights looked brighter and more focused than usual. Suppose that 15 hour nap did do him some good after all.
"HEY, SANS!" Papyrus waved at his brother, who immediately and discreetly hid the blue paper in the cutlery drawers and held it shut. "DO YOU HAVE A MINUTE?"
Sans turned and leaned against the kitchen counter (his arms were positioned so awkwardly, he's so short) all nonchalantly. "sure, what's up?"
"SO REMEMBER THOSE THREE NERDS I WAS TALKING ABOUT YESTERDAY?" Sans nodded. "WELL, THAT'S PERFECT!!! IF YOU REMEMBER MY BRILLIANT SPEECH, YOU ALREADY KNOW THAT SEEDLIN LIKES MAGIC AND SCIENCE. AND YOU KNOW ABOUT BOTH THOSE THINGS!!!"
"uh, yeah. i know a lot about quantum physics..."
"EXACTLY!!! YOU'RE A HUGE NERD TOO!!!" The excitable dork bounced up and down slightly and placed his hands gently on Sans' shoulders, squatting to his level. "IF YOU TEACH ME ABOUT QUANTUM PHYSICS, THEN I CAN IMPRESS SEEDLIN AND WE CAN BE FRIENDS! NOT THAT I'M NOT ALREADY SUPER SMART AND INTELLIGENT, MIND YOU, BUT I NEED TO CONVINCE HIM THAT I'M JUST AS MUCH OF A SCIENCE LOVER AS HE IS!!!"
Sans' eye sockets squinted ever so slightly, taking in this information. "uh, sure, i could put somethin' together for you. but you've never really been into this stuff before. do you really wanna give them a false impression of you?"
A shadow cast itself over Papyrus' face. " Y E S . "
Sans would've leaned back in surprise if he could. But alas, Papyrus kept him pinned against the kitchen counter he decided to lean against. His arms were getting tired. At least the physical contact from his brother was nice. In a way.
Eventually, the short little buttcracker sighed in defeat. "ok, i'll help. but-"
An excited squeal cut him off, followed by a big squeeze. "THANK YOU SO MUCH, BROTHER, YOU'RE THE BEST!! WELL, SECOND BEST AFTER ME, OBVIOUSLY!! YOU KNOW!!!"
Oh, finally, an excuse to take his arms off the counter! Embracing his golden-hearted brother is a lot more comfortable than awkwardly faking a relaxed pose on the countertops. "heh, alright. alright..."
Sans had a bad feeling about this.
--------
Tracking Seedlin's distinct bird footprints made Papyrus think about the time he played detective to solve a case. Man, if only that cat had left obvious tracks in the snow... in Hotland... Where water evaporates if you don't drink it in 0.2 seconds...
Okay, now he was mad. Don't think about that.
Stepping over a bush with his beautifully long, lanky legs (and subsequently tripping over the bush because his legs weren't as long as he thought... but they were lanky and beautiful!), Papyrus caught the strange but cool fusion bird monster practicing his bullet patterns and...
Wait. Practicing his bullet patterns?!?! That's what Papyrus does all the time!!! Oh, this is great!!! He immediately ran up to Seedlin from the side, not even stopping to glance at his feather bullets.
"HOLY SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS, SEEDLIN, YOU'RE PRACTICING MAGIC?!?!"
The sudden skeleton jumpscare startled the poor bird enough to launch his feathers directly in Papyrus' face.
- 4 HP.
Papyrus practically howled once in anguish as he held his face in sheer agony... Before snapping out of it with a huge grin.
"HELLO!! SORRY, DID I STARTLE YOU?"
Seedlin let himself breathe. "Yeah, but don't worry about it. Sorry I hit you, my bullets are a little flighty."
Oh, and he's got puns too! This is great!
"NO NO, IT'S QUITE ALRIGHT!! I WAS THE ONE WHO RATTLED YOU, I DON'T BLAME YOU AT ALL!"
"Hahahaha! Nice one." Seedlin adjusted his glasses. Little did he know that a small, quiet figure was rustling around in the shadows, taking his position behind a bush directly where Papyrus could see.
Papyrus fidgeted with his scarf a little. "SO, WHAT BULLET PATTERNS HAVE YOU CREATED?"
"Oh, I'm not trying to make any particular bullet patterns. I'm actually studying bullet pattern behavior, as part of my study."
"OH! SO..." Papyrus tapped his chin in thought. "FAEOLOGY?"
Seedlin lit up. "Exactly that!"
The skeletal googly eyes made an appearance. How could Papyrus have missed that? Oh, well! Maybe he could impress him anyway? He had to get that spark of friendship somehow, right?
"WELL, SEEDLIN, TODAY IS YOUR LUCKY DAY! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM A SNOWDIN RENOWNED LOCAL SCIENTIST-MINDED GUY!!!"
Seedlin cocked an eyebrow, keeping that smirk on his face. "Oh, is that so? Well, then, why don't you join me? I'd love to have an assistant."
Papyrus fought back the urge to squeal. Yes! Friendships were finally forming, he thought! "WHY, OF COURSE!!! IN THE MEANTIME, WHY DON'T I SHARE WITH YOU MY OWN BRILLIANT KNOWLEDGE OF MY OWN SCIENTIFIC INTERESTS?"
"Sure, why not?" Seedlin's usual smirk morphed into a genuine smile as he adjusted his glasses again.
As he did, Papyrus took the opportunity to pat his sternum twice, sending a spark of energy from his soul to Sans' as a signal. One spark of orange coincided with Sans' yellow, and another of blue straight to cyan. It was received as a small shock, painless but energising. As Seedlin's back was turned, a large cue card peeked up over the bushes, with words sprawled out in Sans' lowercase Comic Sans handwriting. The letters were large and bold, perfect for Papyrus to read without any of his usual difficulty.
Papyrus' voice came out as confident and clear as it always is. "HAVE YOU HEARD OF THE PRINCIPLE OF SUPERPOSITION?"
Seedlin summoned a couple of feathers to study closely. "No."
"WELL, IT'S REALLY QUITE FASCINATING!!!" As he summoned a couple of bones to imitate the bird, Papyrus took another glance at the very obvious cue card that the bird with thick glasses was still somehow unable to see. And it was for the better. "YOU KNOW HOW PEOPLE SAY TWO THINGS CAN'T OCCUPY ONE PLACE AT THE SAME TIME?"
"I mean, I wouldn't put it like that, but yeah."
"WELL, THE SAME THING DOESN'T APPLY TO WAVES!!!" A quick pause, a switch of the cards. "TWO WAVES CAN ACTUALLY BE IN THE SAME PLACE AT THE SAME TIME, WITHOUT EVEN AFFECTING EACH OTHER, IN FACT!! ISN'T THAT AMAZING?"
"Oh, really?" Seedlin smiled. He seemed genuinely interested. "How does that work?"
"UHH..." He waited for Sans to pull another card out. He eventually did. "I DON'T REALLY KNOW, BUT IT'S STILL COOL, RIGHT?! AND IT HELPS US UNDERSTAND OTHER CONCEPTS, LIKE INTERFERENCE!!!"
He waited for another card. It's taking longer and longer, but a card eventually rose. "DIFFRACTION IS..." Wrong card. "WAIT- I MEAN..." The card was snatched into the eternal abyss. "OKAY."
Oh dear, Seedlin was confused. This is not a good sign. "Uh, okay? How about I explain some magic to you?"
Papyrus didn't have lungs, but he released a breath anyway. "OF COURSE!"
Meanwhile, Sans was engaging in a tug of war against a familiar dog. The dog had tried to steal the next cue card!
"c'mon..." Sans mumbled. "i know you wanna play, pupper, but i can't, hngh, do it..."
RIIIIIIIIIP.
Sans' eyes widened as he looked over the card. Somehow, it was ripped clean in half. Oh, well. He can work with this. The dog dropped the other half and stuck its tongue out at him. Aw, man. That dog always had a way of making Sans melt.
He didn't even realise his hand was petting the dog until he suddenly remembered. Remember what? OH DARN THE SIGN!
Grabbing the two pieces of the sign, Sans frantically held them up without thinking. First, they were the wrong way around, and second, one of the halves were upside down. Somehow, Papyrus failed to pick up on this, and he tried reading the sign word for word anyway.
"AHFJOGGJEOSPOOP."
The feather bullets stilled. Seedlin stared. Crap.
"UM, I MEAN..." Sweat trickled down Papyrus' forehead as the rustling got louder and louder. The noise was so noticeable that Seedlin almost turned around. But luckily, The Great Papyrus had a perfect distraction to keep Seedlin from discovering his deception!
"BLUE MAGIC!!!" Ding! Seedlin's soul turned blue and he sank into the snow. Wow! He did not know the snow went that deep! How were they even standing?
Instead of being mad, the peppy bird laughed. "Gravity magic! Of course you have gravity magic, that's amazing! Hahaha!"
Papyrus sighed. Thank goodness. At least there's something he can talk about without needing cue cards.
"OF COURSE IT'S AMAZING! IT'S MY MAGIC, WHY WOULDN'T IT BE? WELL, ACTUALLY, IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY. BUT STILL!!!"
Seedlin smirked. "You know, Papyrus, you're a funny one. The way you tried to talk about that wave stuff reminded me of when I tried to talk about topics I didn't even know about when I was younger, hehe!"
And there came the flush of the cheeks. "NYEH HEH..." He peeked over the bushes, only to see Sans wrestling with the dog again over cue cards. That darn dog!!!
"That is, until I learned that you don't need to know everything to impress people. Living your life like that will definitely put a weight on you."
Seedlin laughed. Papyrus fake-laughed. Very obviously.
Silence.
--------
Life is a mess. A massive, beautiful, stressful mess. That's what Papyrus was thinking when he stomped in the library, his boots covered in snow, and his head full of woes. It always seemed like every attempt to befriend these people fell flat. What's wrong? Was it him? It couldn't be him, right? Maybe he just needed a little guidance. Off to get the friendship manual!
He practically darted towards the friendship manual's usual shelf, which was just behind the table. He didn't even notice the frog monster behind him until he had already grabbed the book. And as soon as he saw them, he dropped the book. Right on his toe. It's a good thing he was wearing thick boots, that could have hurt.
"OH, HI, LYNN!!!"
"Shh!"
"HI, LYNN."
The frog didn't look up, didn't smile, nod, wave, or spoke. They just pat the seat next to them. That was the invitation Papyrus needed. He didn't mind them not speaking; they were probably really focused on their computer. A computer full of strange code and commands.
"SO, WHAT'S THAT?" Papyrus whispered loudly. Look, he's incapable of being quiet, that's been established.
Lynn pulled their hands away from the keyboard to sign. "I'm coding a game. Personal project."
"A GAME? WOWIE!" Papyrus' eyes sparkled for a split second before-
"Ssh!"
Ah, yes. Library. Hey, wait! If Papyrus can understand sign and his voice was too loud, why not sign also? Surely that would earn him some friendship points with Lynn. It's a win-win! A win-Lynn! To win Lynn over!
Therefore, Papyrus switched to signing. "MAY I TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE DONE SO FAR? PRETTY PLEASE? PRETTY PAPYRUS PLEASE?"
Lynn nodded almost immediately. Great! Papyrus didn't have to pull out the sad puppy eyes! An old trick he picked up from his brother. They're super effective!
The cool coder nudged their laptop towards Papyrus. The screen didn't display the code like before, but instead three warrior characters walking around a strange, dark area. A human, a monster and... some sort of cloaked figure. Honestly, it's hard to tell what the third creature is supposed to be. Another monster, perhaps? Looks like it.
"This sort of thing was inspired by a dog I saw in a dream. It's only a demo, but seems like the dog REALLY wants this thing to be made."
"A DOG?"
Lynn shrugged. That was weird. Why would a dog want a game to be made? Oh, Papyrus, you silly goose. Don't you know dogs can have hobbies too?
EXCUSE ME. I AM NOT A GOOSE. I AM A SKELETON WITH GOOSE-LIKE TENDENCIES! I THINK.
|:/
WHAT?
Anyway...
"WHAT'S THE GAME ABOUT, ANYWAY? WHAT STORY WILL UNFOLD?"
The frog's shoulders relaxed. "It's about three heroes who are prophesied to bring balance to the world and save it from destruction."
"OOH, NOVEL-LY!!!"
Lynn's shoulders bounced with laughter, while their facial expression remained the same. It was enough to make Papyrus' eye sockets light up once more.
This is perfect! Lynn is impressed! Perhaps Papyrus had a chance after all! Ooh, what if he was just himself and was open about his interests and didn't pretend to be interested in Lynn's activities like he tried with Jovie and Seedlin? That would surely-
"HEY, I CAN CODE TOO! I LOVE CODING!"
Never mind.
Lynn looked up at Papyrus skeptically, but was not surprised. What, did Jovie and Seedlin already tell them that he was prone to this? Were they warned? No, surely not! There's no way they could've seen past Papyrus' decep- attempts to relate to them! That's crazy talk! No way was that happening.
But if it wasn't happening, and Papyrus was convinced it wasn't happening, then why was he sweating like a polar bear in Hotland? How can skeletons even sweat anyway? Said everyone who wasn't a skeleton ever.
Papyrus remembered he had a sense of taste. Thanks, bitter taste in his mouth! Not really sure how that happened, but if skeletons could sweat, throw up and exist, suppose they could taste too!
Anyway, this description's gone on long enough. Papyrus, say something!
"YEAH, I CAN CODE! I LOVE MAKING VIDEO GAMES!" Or rather, love making puzzles within video games. "MAY I TRY?"
If Papyrus could see Lynn's eyes, he would have noticed them squint. Instead, Lynn promptly saved their program and slowly slided the laptop over to Papyrus, a brand new program set up.
That was understandable.
"ALRIGHT!" Papyrus said out loud, slowly forgetting his inside voice whilst cracking his knuckles and wiggling his fingers like some hacker from those spy movies. "LET'S MAKE SOME MAGIC!!"
The Great Hacker Papyrus raised his hands... and summoned a bone attack that promptly landed on his head and then the laptop.
Cue nervous 'nyeh heh heh's. "I DIDN'T MEAN IT LIKE THAT."
Brushing off his latest fluke, the soon-to-be-prodigy coder tap tap tapped away at the keyboard whilst making sure NOT to use the mousepad thingy that laptops have once! After all, all hackers did in those movies was dance their fingers all over the keyboard while letters and numbers and symbols and whatnot phased on and offscreen with lots of different camera panels indicating the hacker's focus, and drive, and determination, and...!
This... wasn't a movie. But at least Papyrus made SOMETHING. He didn't know how he managed to make something without the mouse, but it was something. He had absolutely no idea what it was, and he was pretty sure Lynn was rolling their brain around as he typed. Just another reason why they saved their project and gave Papyrus a new one before he tried. Smart frog.
Still, Papyrus couldn't let the cool college kid see his doubts! He had to sell this thing!
"AHA!!! DONE!!!" Lynn gave him a look. "YOU SEE, LYNN, THIS IS A REALLY OLD SKELETAL TECHNIQUE CALLED, UHH..."
Sell it.
"FONT... TUBULAR! IT'S HOW WE COME UP WITH GAMES LIKE..." His eye sockets darted back and forth between Lynn and the screen, Lynn and the screen, Lynn and the screen. "THIS!"
Finally, he used the mouse! If only to run the program.
And somehow it ran.
It's a mystery as to what's running, though. Seems like all Papyrus made was a mess of colours and pixels, dancing around the screen.
And a dog. Wait, what? How did that pesky mutt get in there?!?! Oh, doggannit, that stupid song was playing again!
The dog absorbed the code.
It flew off the screen.
Lynn gave the dog a wave whilst Papyrus' eyes bulged and his jaw dropped in anguish. He wanted to cry. His hacker work that barely worked!
The frog noticed Papyrus' frozen state and just... slowly pulled the laptop over to themselves. It was for the best.
They gave Papyrus a pat on the head too. There, there. It's okay.
Finally, the googly-eyed monster's googly eyes displayed the dreaded Blue Screen of Death, and his entire body came crashing down on the table with a responding THUD.
"Ssh!"
Oh, shut up.
Lynn rebooted their program before they gently shook Papyrus back to reality. The skeleton gasped like he just came out from the deepest depths of the ocean, flailing his arms before noticing his surroundings.
"NYEH?"
"Hey, I know you're not actually one for coding, but I can tell you want to try. How about some tips?"
Papyrus lit up. That was much better! "OF COURSE!! I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO MAKE YOUR APPRENTICE, YOU AMAZING AMPHIBIAN, YOU!! HEY, PERHAPS WITH MY HELP, I CAN MAKE A GAME JUST LIKE YOURS!! YOU'LL SURELY BE IMPRESSED! NYEH HEH HEH!!!"
Lynn cringed. Papyrus didn't notice.
--------
Another day had passed, and the trio of nerds had met at the library once again. All studying, all exhausted, all confused.
"Hey, uh, did anyone come across that weird skeleton yesterday?" Seedlin asked.
Jovie sighed. Seedlin was always the one who started the conversations. "Yeah, actually. Papyrus, I think. He seemed... nice."
Lynn made a so-so gesture.
"Hey, he IS nice!" Jovie raised her arms defensively. "He's just... just..."
"A numbskull when it comes to social skills?"
Jovie giggled. Seedlin's quips never failed to amuse her. "I was going to say he tries a bit too hard, but yes."
"Yeah, seemed like he was desperate to fit in with us for some reason. I'm not sure how comfortable I am with that."
"Are you ever comfortable with that, Lynn?" Seedlin leaned on his elbows. Lynn shook their head. "I thought so. You gotta be more straightforward with your feelings, dude. It's okay to be uncomfortable."
"I know. I just don't want to hurt that skeleton's feelings."
"Me neither." Jovie sighed.
"Hey." The small fusion of a bird spoke up, gently placing one wing on each of his friend's arms. Calming, comforting. "Look, we only have one more day before we get back to New Home, so we can't put this off. We gotta tell Papyrus the truth that we just don't click with him."
"I guess..." Jovie sighed as she slumped on the table. Lynn only stroked the feathers of Seedlin's wing. They didn't know why, but his feathery plumes were always a nice comfort for them.
Seedlin sighed. As usual, whenever his friends were feeling down, he had to pull them back up again. A wide smile graced his face, though it didn't reach his eyes.
"Come on, guys. Remember when that guy hit on Jovie and we told him to back off with a song and a dance?"
"Haha, yeah." Jovie smiled. "That was brutal."
"Aw, c'mon, I thought it was epic! Maybe we can do something similar for Papyrus! I mean, it's not the exact same. Papyrus isn't a creep or anything. But I think we can pull it off."
"Pull what off? His arm? He is a skeleton." Lynn signed smugly.
Seedlin squawked.
"Ssh!"
Jeez, the librarian was fierce. Better keep their voices down.
"Good one." Seedlin whispered.
It was by that point where Jovie decided to check out mentally. She knew her friends mean well and were just trying to make light of the situation, but a song and dance telling Papyrus to back off? Was that really a good idea? She didn't think so.
Sure, she didn't know Papyrus very well. And from what she read, skeletons use music all the time. But the poor guy seemed so desperate and lonely. If there was a heart inside his ribcage, she didn't want to break it. There had to be another way, surely. Perhaps a clue?
And that's when she spotted him. Another skeleton she recognised from that first day. The cuddly one. He was nearby, scouring books in the science section. He already carried a few. She wasn't entirely sure what books he was holding, but that wasn't the point. He's Papyrus' brother, if she remembered correctly. He could help.
"Hey!" Jovie called to him as quietly as possible. What luck that Sans had good hearing.
"hm?" He turned to the trio with a quizzical expression. Oh, it's the group Papyrus was trying to get into. Wonder why the owl was waving him over? Oh, well. The books can wait for a few minutes.
"hey, what's up?"
"You're Papyrus' brother, right?" Jovie tapped the table, almost hesitant.
The mention of Papyrus made Sans light up. "sure am. lucky me, huh? he's the coolest guy you could ever meet. just yesterday he..."
Hold on just a second. Those facial expressions. The uncomfortable looks. The awkward shifting in their seats. Did something bad happen with Papyrus? Do they not like him? No. Impossible. Who could dislike Papyrus? The very thought of someone disliking Papyrus was so foreign to Sans, otherworldly. But he knew this wasn't about him, so he set those thoughts aside and started investigating.
"hey, what's the matter? something ruffled your feathers? frog in your throat?" Nailed it.
The trio exchanged looks. Thanks to Sans' incredible perception, it was almost like watching a conversation in real time. He could almost hear the words, "Jovie, you called him over, so you tell him!" coming from Seedlin's pointy beak. Jovie even looked like she was stuttering in her own head. And Lynn... Well, they're Lynn.
Welp. Looks like this skeleton has to step in. "hey, sorry my brother's made everything weird for ya. he just thought you were really cool, that's all."
"We know..." Jovie stifled a nervous giggle.
"And he's right." Seedlin joked.
"That's a first." Lynn signed, stoic as ever.
Swallowing pride...
"guys, i know it's hard to reject someone when all they wanna do is be friends with ya. but you really need to talk to papyrus about this. seriously, he's been trying to convince himself he wants to befriend you so bad. maybe if you guys talked it out, it'll get the weight off all your chests."
Seedlin blinked, confused. "And you... You're not going to-"
"not gonna what?" Sans tilted his head in confusion.
"Nothing, I just thought since you're his brother and everything, you'd try and convince us to befriend him."
"heh, nah. i know you can't force a friendship on someone if they really don't want it. all i'm asking is some honesty from the four of you. trust me. i know my brother. he's the kindest, most understanding monster i know. he'll get it. just... please? talk it out?"
Jovie nodded. "We'll try. Thanks."
"nice." Sans gave the trio a thumbs up just before he got back to whatever he was doing. Now, where were those books?
"Uh, thank you, sir!" Jovie waved.
Sans gave a wink to Jovie as his eyelights darted all over the bookshelf. As soon as they caught sight of a particular book, they widened. The trio of nerds watched as the equally nerdy skeleton picked up a book with some sort of strange font consisting of symbols on the cover, and walked off to check his selection of books out.
Lynn was the first one to 'speak out'. "So, who wants to call Papyrus here?"
Seedlin grinned. "I'll do it."
--------
Papyrus wanted to explode from joy. And he practically did, as he danced towards the library, screeching to himself.
"THEY WANT TO SEE ME!!! THEY WANT TO SEE ME!!! THEY! WANT! TO! SEE! ME!!!"
The goofy goober spent a couple of minutes dancing outside of the library, screaming that same phrase over and over again. What? Might as well get it out of his system before the librarby forces him to be quiet. Papyrus knew he had trouble holding his boundless energy in, particularly when he's excited. So after a few minutes of bouncing and prancing and dancing and bounding, he finally managed to compose himself and march inside, completely unaware of the heartbreak that was about to ensue.
Of course, the trio were the first three monsters his eye sockets fixated on.
"HELLO, GUYS!" Papyrus whispered loudly. Yes, he managed to be somewhat quiet this time! Progress! He bounced over to them and sat down right next to Seedlin. "I HEARD YOU THREE WANTED TO SEE THE GREAT PAPYRUS IN ALL OF HIS GLORY?"
"Uh, sure!" Jovie chirped, a little nervous. God, he was so excited. How to spin this without breaking his... heart? Does he have a heart? Obviously not, but a metaphorical, perhaps? Was she using this train of thought as a means to distract herself from this difficult conversation? Probably.
It worked, at least! Jovie was so distracted thinking about the anatomy of skeleton monsters that Lynn had to step in.
"Papyrus, we need to talk about... all this."
Papyrus cocked a bone brow. "UM... OKAY! WHAT IS IT?"
He may not understand every social cue on the planet, but if there was one thing the skeletal dork understood, it's tones. And from the way Lynn signed, it felt like the inevitability of rejection had just begun to crawl up Papyrus' spine.
On one hand, he wanted to shake it off. On the other, he was so used to it that it felt almost comforting. Why did it feel comforting?
"You seem pretty cool and all, but I don't think we know you." Lynn let their hands fall onto the table after that sentence.
Papyrus perked up. "SORRY?"
"They mean, we know you've been trying to befriend us, but we don't think it's working because you're trying too hard to emulate us." Seedlin added. Jovie nodded timidly to confirm.
"WAIT, REALLY? IS THAT IT?"
"Kind of. I won't lie, you kinda made our trip to Snowdin a little weird." Seedlin chuckled. "But I think we know why. You have a hard time making friends, right?"
Papyrus' soul turned to solid ice. He wanted to protest, but... What could he say?
Jovie flapped her wings to placate him. "Hey, it's okay! We get it. I mean... I had trouble making friends before I met Seedlin and Lynn."
"Y... YOU DID?"
"Yeah!" Jovie smiled, her eyes transfixed on the table. "Before them, all I had were my comics. And maybe a couple of acquaintances here and there who... didn't really get me. Heck, I didn't even have the courage to speak to Seedlin when we first met. He sort of just... took me in. And he, Lynn and I... We've been friends ever since. Sometimes the right people just come to you, you know?"
Papyrus leaned forward, hanging onto Jovie's every word. Was he doing this all wrong? Was he too much for them? Should he just... wait for friends to come to him like Jovie did? He didn't... He didn't...
"SORRY, I DON'T QUITE UNDERSTAND. I... I HAVE LOTS OF FRIENDS! PLENTY OF FRIENDS!"
"If you have plenty of friends, then why are you so keen on befriending us?"
"I..." For the first time in a while, Papyrus shrank. He didn't think about that. He didn't think Lynn would even... even what? Figure out the truth? It was the truth, but... he didn't want it to be the truth.
Seedlin stepped in. "Papyrus, listen. We don't hate you. You seem like a nice guy. But your attempts were making us a little uneasy. Isn't that right, guys?"
Jovie and Lynn murmured agreements. Gosh, Papyrus messed up bad.
But just then, Seedlin lifted the lonely skeleton's chin up. For the first time since he met them, they were eye to eye.
"But I think it's mostly because you were trying too hard to relate to us by pretending to like our interests, instead of showing off yours."
Papyrus almost giggled when Seedlin brushed his feathered fingers off his chin.
"So, come on. What sort of things do you like?"
And just like that, the chill of rejection was replaced with the warmth of acceptance. The group, or rather, Papyrus and the trio, talked for ages about themselves. The things they liked, their lives, showcasing their personalities. It was nice. For a moment, Papyrus almost felt like he actually had a friendship group that didn't consist of coworkers.
But there was one thing missing.
That spark.
No matter how hard Papyrus tried - and truly, he DID try - to feel something more for these three... All this discussion really did was make him realise that these three were just regular people. They were still cool, of course! Just not as cool as he hoped.
Wait, no, why did he think that? Bad thought. How could The Great Papyrus have such a negative opinion? The nerds were just as cool as he hoped, but...
Still...
Jovie didn't like Mettaton, but Mettaton was all Papyrus knew of pop culture. And it seemed like every time he had an outburst of emotion, she flinched. She's bubbly and sweet, but Papyrus felt that Jovie wasn't exactly an extrovert. Not like he is, anyway.
Seedlin reminds Papyrus so much of Sans. Maybe a little too much of Sans. It got to the point where it almost felt... uncanny. He knew deep down, the two were separate people. But honestly, it threw him off every time Seedlin did or said something un-Sans-like. He didn't know why. They were separate people, gosh darn it! Stop comparing him to Sans!
And then there's Lynn. Lynn... Okay, Lynn was awesome. But they were similar to Jovie in that they got uncomfortable every time Papyrus got overly excited about something, which happens a lot more than he thought. Who knew a quiet frog could make someone as great as Papyrus so self-conscious?
But despite all that... Papyrus decided to stay. Maybe, just maybe, if he held out long enough, that spark of friendship would come. They could be friends at last.
But it never happened.
And that realisation was the thing that finally silenced him.
"Hey, Papyrus?" The feathered wing of an owl entered Papyrus' vision. Jovie had reached across the table to place it there. A comfort. "Is everything alright? You look down."
Papyrus looked up. The worried and yet disconnected gazes of the three focused on him.
"UM... OF COURSE! IT'S JUST..." Might as well tell the truth. "I... I DON'T KNOW. I THOUGHT I WANTED TO BE FRIENDS WITH YOU, BUT..." Wait, that was mean! "D-DON'T GET ME WRONG!!! YOU'RE ALL VERY NICE!!! IT'S JUST THAT... B-BUT..."
"It's okay." Jovie chirped, her wings up in a calming position again. "It's okay. I feel the same way."
"Yeah, same." Seedlin smirked and shrugged. "So we don't click. So what? I don't see anything wrong with that."
"Me neither. Sorry we can't be your friends, Papyrus, but it just wasn't meant to be."
Papyrus sighed. He didn't know whether to be sad from the rejection or relieved that he didn't have to pretend anymore.
"YEAH, I SUPPOSE YOU'RE RIGHT. WE GET ALONG BETTER AS ACQUAINTANCES ANYWAY, I THINK. EITHER WAY, I'M GLAD I MET YOU!"
"I'm glad we met too, Papyrus." Jovie giggled.
"Yeah. At least we got to talk to some of the locals before we have to head back to New Home." Lynn smiled. They actually smiled. Wow.
"Speaking of which, we should get going!" Seedlin, the brilliant leader he is, sprung up and slammed the table, prompting the other two to follow. But before the trio walked out the door of the library, and subsequently Papyrus' life, the very attentive skeleton heard a murmur from the teal bird as feathered hands patted his shoulder.
"Bone voyage, Papyrus."
And just like that, they were gone. Papyrus smiled at the door before the realisation sunk in.
...
"ARGH!!!"
Papyrus clutched his chest with the most offended expression ever known to man. What a drama queen.
--------
It was a relatively quiet evening at the twins' place. Of course with Papyrus, 'quiet' actually meant 'slightly above average'. This time, it was his voice that filled the living room, rambling on and on as he sat next to Sans on the sofa. Sans himself was reading through the books he got at the library.
"SO, AS IT TURNS OUT, WE DIDN'T CLICK. BUT THAT'S OKAY! AT LEAST THERE I LEARNED AN IMPORTANT LESSON FROM IT, BROTHER!!!"
Sans momentarily looked up from his engineering manual to give Papyrus a nod of acknowledgement, smiling at all of his dramatic gestures despite the theatrical bonehead supposedly sitting still.
"I LEARNED THAT NO MATTER HOW COOL AND NICE AND CLEVER AND GREAT EVERYONE INVOLVED IS, YOU CANNOT FORCE A FRIENDSHIP. YOU DON'T NEED A REASON TO NOT BE FRIENDS WITH SOMEONE! YOU CAN BE NOT FRIENDS WITH SOMEONE WITHOUT THEM BEING A BAD PERSON!"
"mhm." Sans nodded, making sure Papyrus knows he's proud of him.
"IN FACT, THIS LESSON IS SO IM-POR-TANT-AY..."
Oop, where was Papyrus up to, Sans thought. The stairs? Okay.
Papyrus posed dramatically on the stairs. "I AM GOING TO WRITE A LONG POST DEDICATED TO IT!!!"
"cool."
"DO NOT TRY TO STOP ME, BROTHER! THE WORLD NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT THIS!"
"ok."
"AND I SHALL BE THE MOUTHPIECE TEACHING EVERYONE THIS LESSON!!!"
"proud of you."
Papyrus beamed before he headed upstairs. Meanwhile, Sans listened out for the subtle click of the bedroom door closing.
Click. There it was. Finally, Sans was alone.
After a few seconds of making sure Papyrus wasn't coming out of his room, Sans closed the engineering book and sorted through the pile he got from the library.
Within the pile were the blueprints. The thing he has been working on since they moved. The thing he had put off for months.
Slowly unfolding it, Sans found a key within the folds. He wasn't surprised; he placed the key there for safeKEYping. Man, if only he could tell that joke to someone. Alas, it had to stay in his head.
Feeling it through his fingers, the sneaky little scientist examined the key, as if he didn't already know where it led. The key was old, slightly rusted, with trickles of dust and long lost memories.
Sans let out a heavy sigh. It was time.
"alright. time to check on that machine."