Kit - So is now a good time to mention that this is part of a series, and that the sequel - 'Snippets from the Aboveground' - will be uploaded soon? Yeah, I feel now is a good time to mention that... Anyways, enjoy your super duper fluffy end chapter!

Chapter Twenty-Five

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"Look, look! That's our neighbor. Maybe he saw Mom and Dad!"

Sans easily set Frisk down so she could run over and talk to them without running away screaming in terror. Especially since his friends were already causing a bit of a wreck with all the new things they wanted to see. Frisk ran up to him, tugging on his shirt. "Hey hey hey! Hey, Rick!"

Rick seemed rather startled at the child, eyes widening as he slightly shook. "Fr-Frisk- Oh, dear girl...you're alive." Sans, lingering a few feet away, frowned at that. Why... "Where- Where have you been?!"

"Okay, okay, so, so I climbed the mountain, then I fell in, and Mom and Dad weren't there but I made a bunch of new friends!" The girl was nearly bouncing with excitement as she glanced back to the monsters. Rick was looking confused and concerned and...sympathetic.

"Frisk...why would you think they were at the mountain?" And, he was a relatively old man, he could accept the monsters thing just fine. Wouldn't be the first strange thing in his life.

Her grin started to fall as she looked up at him. "Well, cause, everyone said they went somewhere they couldn't come back. And people always say no one comes back from the mountain, right?"

"Oh, child..." Sans was now getting very bad vibes from this conversation, the monster glancing up to Toriel to make sure it wasn't just him. Judging by her wide eyes and horrified look, it wasn't just him.

"W-Well, then where'd they go? I wanna go see 'em." Rick looked to be debating something before he carefully took the girl's hand and started leading her along.

"Come along, child...I'll take you to where you can see them."

"...Okay..." She looked back to the monsters, and waved her hand for them to follow. Once she turned back around, Toriel was looking to the rest of them and shaking her head. This...wasn't something meant for a party, or a group that large.

Sans was already following after, hands in his pockets and this wasn't going to be good... He noticed Rick glancing at him, the human finally speaking quietly. "You two care for her now?" Toriel glanced to Sans, a guarded parental look before she gave a small nod. "Good...that's good."

It was a silent journey of a walk, near ten minutes before Rick was coming to a stop in front of large, steel gates, a low stone fence wrapping around the land that was filled with tombstones. "They are in here, Frisk... Right under that tree on the hill." Frisk frowned, turning to look up at him, but Rick was already walking away, shaking his head and muttering to himself. The girl turned to the gates, pushing them open. Maybe they were behind the tree, having a picnic. Or maybe they were just on the other side of the hill and she couldn't see them.

She was off and running before Sans or Toriel could even speak up, Sans looking rather upset as he glanced up to Toriel. "Do we have to let her see this?" He knew what it was like to realize you had lost a family. Parents and a brother...he didn't want Frisk to go through that. She was hardly even a child. She was only five...

"I don't think we have a choice." Frisk was going to see it, no matter what. The girl came to a stop when she got to the top of the hill. She looked around before slowly looking down at the headstones. Two of the names, she didn't recognize. But the third one... J...o...s..h... Sans silently came up beside her, not saying a word. Frisk only stared, unable to bring herself to do anything- To say anything. This wasn't right. They- They were supposed to meet Sans and Toriel and all the other monsters. This wasn't supposed to happen.

The small child slowly sank to the ground where she stared at the three tombstones, the dirt in front of them still fresh. Sans and Toriel only sat beside her, letting her understand and cope with what was happening in her own time. There would be no guiding, pushing, or helpful hints here... Just...the truth of what had happened. Finally, after a long while of silence, there was a quiet sniffling, and Frisk wiping at her nose with her sweater before she fell against Toriel in a hug.

Toriel gently and easily wrapped an arm around her, rubbing at her back and pulling her a touch closer, pained expression on her own face. How much it hurt, she realized, to lose family that could never be seen again. The girl was sobbing, clinging tightly to Toriel as she tried to hide her face. It wasn't fair. It just... Why? What did they do wrong?

There was the quiet sound of someone scooting closer, and a gentle hand rubbing at her back, followed by a small sigh. "We're here for you, kiddo." It wouldn't be alright, not for a long time... But they would all be there for her. This little human who had changed their lives so much. Who had had her own life changed, so much.

Frisk stayed like that for a long time, until her crying started to calm down, and she was hiccuping between words. "What- What do I- do?"

"Ain't that the question of 'em all," Sans quietly muttered, smiling sadly as he tugged Frisk into his own lap, curling around her. "Frisk...what do you want to do?"

"I dunno..." She sniffled, curling up tightly, her knees hugged to her chest. Her hair was a wild, fluffed wreck, her face was a bright red, and her eyes were still puffy. It was a moment of shifting until the small girl had a familiar blue jacket wrapped around her, fluffy hood pulled over her head.

"You can take all the time you need to decide, you know. Whatever you choose...it's up to you." Living life here, or Reseting... He would have to talk to her about that, later. "But, for now, we're here to help you with whatever you need." Frisk gave a small nod, leaning against him, looking to have calmed down significantly. Now, she only remained silent, unable to tear her eyes away from the graves.

They were like that for a long time, what possibly was hours, Sans only shifting once to nudge Frisk into the jacket more and zip her up, keeping her warm as he once again tucked the hood down further. Frisk tugged on Toriel's sleeve, giving Sans a small nudge. She kept looking away from them, even as she slightly blushed. "Can... Can I stay with you?" It wasn't like she had anywhere else to go...

A quiet, fond chuckle, Toriel running a hand over the child's head. "What a strange, silly little thing you are. If you had chose that in the beginning, we could have avoided quite a few things... But I suppose this way was best for all of us." A gentle smile. "You may stay with us for as long as you wish, Frisk." She gave a small nod, glancing up to Sans.

"Ditto, kid. You're stuck with us until you want us gone, and even then we'd probably still pop up," Sans grinned widely, nuzzling against the girl. "We're attached, now."

Smiling, she snuggled down a bit further. "Kay." As if just realizing something, she looked around, glancing up at them curiously. "Where's everyone else?"

"Lurking by the gates," Sans snorted, shifting so Frisk could see over his shoulder where the others were indeed all waiting, arguing quietly, and in the case of one or two, asleep.

Frisk quietly giggled, tugging the coat further around her as she gave a small shiver. "...I can still show you where I live."

"We'd love to see it," Sans smiled, kissing her cheek and tugging the hood fully over her head. "Wanna go now, then?" Laughing, the girl gave a nod, keeping the hood over her head. "Alright. Upsa-daisy then." Scooping her up, Sans stood up and shifted her to cuddle her close. "Alright, let's go drop you on Papyrus and scare him awake." Toriel scooped Sans into her own arms, looking incredibly proud of herself as they walked back to the gates. Sans only easily settled into the hold, looking perfectly content. Being carried just meant less walking, which was always nice.

Undyne had to try to hold back a laugh, at the sight. Honestly, these three were something... "So, where to next?"

"Tiny child's house," Sans hummed, pointing Toriel to drop him and Frisk onto Papyrus, who was snoozing against the garden wall. Toriel may have tossed the two at Papyrus, causing the three of them to fall to the ground, and Papyrus to give a shout. Which woke up Alphys. "Perfect aim, Tori. Hiii, Pap~ What was that about always being on guard?" Revenge.

"Brother! You are the fiend who awakens me!" Sans only smiled proudly, looking exactly like the little shit he was.

"It was time to wake up, so we helped." Frisk was still safely held in his arms, near drowning in San's jacket. Papyrus stared for a moment, looking incredibly confused.

Undyne gave a nudge to Frisk. "Hey, kid, is it always cold like this?"

"No, but it's gonna get colder. It's almost winter. Then it'll get hot again." Papyrus was quietly staring between Sans and Frisk for a moment, finally tugging on the jacket Frisk was wearing and narrowing his eyes. Sans only gave a wider grin.

"I've accepted the doomedness."

"Ah! Right! You being doomed reminds me! You'll never guess who called me, the other day!" There was suddenly a sour look on Sans' face.

"Gee, Pap...let me try and guess. Was it the robot you're absolutely obsessed with?"

"YES!"

Sans' only response was a sigh, and, really...this was going to be a long life. Well...hopefully long. "Alright, should probably get going, before it gets night." He, of course, then made absolutely no move to get up. Frisk nudged at him, also unwilling to move, but instead wanting him to carry her. Sans only settled down more and curled around her, and, not moving also sounded nice. It had been a long few days, after all. Toriel sighed, picking the two of them up.

"Alright, little one. Where are we going?" Frisk frowned, looking to be considering of the question before she was pointing in a direction towards the town. It was a few moments of cajoling and nudging along before the group got started on their way, Sans already half-asleep as he curled around Frisk. Alphys only tsked, shaking her head.

"Honestly, Sans, you can fall asleep anywhere." And there had been some pretty interesting places, over the years. Including that one time on top of Grillby's when he was completely naked. Even Frisk was giving a small yawn, settling down on top of him as she guided them through the streets. Josh always taught her what street they were on, in case she got lost.

Eventually they were coming to a stop in front of a moderate sized house that looked something similar to what Sans and Papyrus lived in. Sans was squirming out of Toriel's grip and easily landing, walking up to the door while shifting Frisk to be tucked under his chin. "So is the door locked and if so do you know where the key is?" Frisk looked up at him, blinking for a moment before she shrugged.

"I dunno." Undyne pushed Asgore and Alphys aside, both giving startled yelps as she beamed.

"Don't worry, nerds, I got this." Before anyone could say anything else the door was easily kicked down. Off it's hinges.

Frisk paused, slipping out of Sans' hold, his jacket still around her. She bent down to the door knob, turning it. "It was unlocked."

"...Oh."

"Found the key," Sans called, pointing to where the doormat was pulled up. "Bit too late now." Undyne only smiled. "Alright, come on." After everyone was ushered inside, Sans was giving a flick of magic and putting the door back on it's hinges, nodding as the lock clicked shut. Perfect. Frisk hopped over to the light switch, flicking the lights on, and giving a nod. Everything was...exactly as it was when she left. The television was still on her channel of cartoons, and her coloring books were still stacked in front of it, with the crayons lying next to them.

The house looked as it did any other day, the setting sun casting warm glows around the house and lighting up walls and furniture. The only, very strange, difference was the fact monsters were now wandering around, Papyrus and Alphys already settled on the couch watching cartoons, Asgore tsking at the wilting flowers and finding water for them, and Toriel heading to the kitchen to make something to eat for everyone. Sans only stayed by her, giving her a small nudge. "You okay?" Frisk looked up at him with a smile, and gave a nod.

"Come on. My room's upstairs." She tugged on his hand, pulling him up the stairs. Sans easily went along, waving off Papyrus' look and giving a thumbs up before they vanished up the stairs. The room he was shown was indeed something suited for Frisk, covered in clothes, toys, and with a messy bed. Giving a smile, he glanced to the child, giving a small sigh.

"Kid...Frisk... There's something I never told you about Saves and Loads... Something that you should know about..."

The girl looked up at him, tilting her head. "Like what?" As she listened, she put some of the toys away in her toy box, trying to clean up her room for the guests.

Sans only scratched at his cheek, trying to think best how to explain. "You know about Save and Load, but there's also something called...a Reset." Frisk nodded along, sometimes glancing at him. "It's...kinda like it sounds. Humans who fall into the Underground...get certain abilities. Probably all the magic in the air. But the Reset...it's a literal reset. If you use it...everything goes back to the way it was when you arrived there. It can be years later, but if you use it, you wake up in that field, and all of us are sent back as well, to that time...with no memory of anything that happened." A pause. "Well, they don't have a memory of it, at least."

The girl nodded, looking as though he was crazy as she looked up at him. "Why would I want to do that?"

"Heh, you'd be surprised with the reasons people come up with," Sans smiled, looking at the floor as he scratched at his cheek. "I just wanted to let you know what it was, since you can do it." How many people wished they could go back in time, after all? Frisk could relive that adventure of her childhood over and over, and...they would go along with it with no clue as to what the end would be.

"...But then, you wouldn't be there. And Pap and Undyne- Why would I want to do that?" Even with her family... She was happy. She had friends, and maybe even a new family. Why would she ever want to Reset to before that?

"People come up with pretty good reasons, kid. Messing up and trying to Reset and try again to fix it." Sans shrugged, aiming for a smile. "Whatever you choose, though, it is your choice." After all...she had wanted to Save Asriel, maybe if she thought she Reset she'd find a way... "I just wanted to let ya know."

"...But you wouldn't be happy." Sans paused at that, blinking up at her before giving a small smile.

"Probably not... Now, come here. Emotional talks need hugs to properly end them." Frisk leapt at him, grinning widely with her arms still caught in his jacket. The sleeves were just the tiniest bit too long on her. Little tiny bit. Sans only laughed and hugged her back, amused at how the jacket was far too large on her before scooping her up and heading for the stairs. "Come on, kiddo, I think Tori is probably cooking us something to eat."

And, yes...the future they all could have, it filled him with...

Well, he knew what it was.

Kit - Oh, dear. Did I say super duper fluffy? I mean horrendously heartbreaking. My mistake.