Sans/Toriel 30 Day OTP Challenge

by Whiscash

notes: whoops, there are so many other things I could/should be writing, but if you haven't figured it out by now, I am approximately 1264% Soriel trash XD so I decided to give this 30 Day OTP Challenge a shot instead!

Original prompts can be found at .com if you're interested! More character and pairing tags will be added with updates, which I'm hoping will be every couple of days or so! Each oneshot should hopefully stand on its own (some might reference each other but only vaguely, and I thought this would be a fun way to experiment with different endings and AUs etc) so you can read these in any order c:

first up is day one: your otp's first meeting! I know this scene has probably been written a million times, but this is my take I guess ^^;; as always, if you have any thoughts/questions/concerns I would love to hear them, and thank you so much for reading! :3

Day One: Meeting

Over the years, Toriel has become quite familiar with all the little squeaks, creaks and sounds of the Ruins.

It is perhaps an inevitable consequence of living here in isolation for so long – there may have been a time when the slightest noise would have made her jump, but now she has learned to recognise the soft scrabble of a mouse skittering over a floorboard, or the rustle of the leaves scattered among the old pillars. Some days, Toriel finds herself listening eagerly for that sound, so she has an excuse to sweep the leaves back into neat little piles the following morning. Not because she expects anyone will be around to see them, but because she likes to think that, if there were, they might appreciate the sight. Besides, there is little else for her to do to pass the time.

The distinctive sounds of another person – monster or human – are something Toriel would surely recognise instantly, after many years without another soul passing through. Yet, still, she often awakes suddenly in the night, convinced she hears the footsteps of something – someone – wandering the Ruins, and sometimes even a voice, a child, crying, calling out for help...Toriel rushes from her bed, her palms already alight with magic to light the way, to guide whatever poor lost soul might be out there to safety – but every time, she finds only darkness. Toriel returns to her house as alone as she left it, wondering if she can be sure that anything she hears is real any more. Wondering if, perhaps, her old mind is slowly weathering away, just like the fallen pillars of the Ruins which once stood proud and strong, until one day there will be nothing left of either of them.

But it is not in the night when she next passes through, and Toriel is as certain as she has ever been of anything that the noise coming from behind the old forest door is very real, and unusual. Her ears prick up instantly as she creeps closer to the source; a low murmur, barely audible at first, but unmistakably the voice of someone, another person on the other side of the door. Toriel feels her heartbeat quickening just from the thought – but before she can lean in closer, press her ear to the door to decipher what, if anything, the person is saying, two loud, distinct raps on the door make her jump back.

"Knock knock," a voice says.

Before she can properly consider her response, Toriel automatically blurts out: "Who is there?"

There is a brief silence, and then: "Dishes."

"Dishes who?"

"Dishes a very bad joke."

As it hits, Toriel starts to laugh, and soon finds she cannot stop – great, braying howls of laughter that shake her whole body until she is doubled over, clutching her belly with tears running down her cheeks. It has been so long, she realises, since she really, truly laughed – since she has had anyone around to make her laugh like this. The person on the other side must think she is insane, she thinks - but it feels so good that Toriel cannot bring herself to care, and then she hears them laughing too, a softer but somehow reassuring rumble through the door.

They knock again, and again, and somehow each punchline is funnier than the last, Toriel barely managing to catch her breath in between. She shares some of her own old favourites, jokes that Asgore would visibly struggle to muster up a smile at, while Asriel would whine, "Moooom, stop, you're so embarrassing", even if he would be smiling too. Now, though, Toriel feels a peculiar sense of accomplishment when she makes him – for she recognises the voice as male, low and almost monotone, but with a genuine warmth that Toriel feels even though she cannot see him, that leaves her in no doubt that he is enjoying himself – laugh too, deep chuckles that somehow only make her laugh even more, long after the joke should have grown old. She feels positively giddy, like a girl again instead of the old woman she is, until finally they can think of no more.

"So this is new," he says, after their last peals of laughter have rang out through the empty hallway. "I don't usually get much of an audience around here."

"No, I expect not." Toriel clasps her hands together, fidgeting with her paws. "I am sorry if I startled you."

"No, don't be sorry – you're the best audience I've had since, well, pretty much ever," he says with a chuckle. "Just wasn't expecting the door to start talking back, you know? But don't get me wrong – it's great to meet someone who gets it."

Toriel isn't entirely sure what "it" is that she gets, but she smiles, her cheeks flushing unexpectedly at the compliment. "Well, I should say the same to you. I pass through here every day to check, but I have not come across anybody else in...quite some time."

"Heh – you could say there still is no 'body' here." Toriel frowns, unsure what he seems amused by this time, until he adds: "Wait, uh, scratch that one. It doesn't really work if you can't see me."

"I see – or rather, I suppose, I do not see," she answers with a giggle. "Then, if I may ask, what brings you to this place?" He must only have come by recently, for she would surely have heard him before otherwise.

"I got sent here a couple weeks ago. My post moves around, but the boss wanted me here for some reason. I'm supposed to be watching out for humans."

"For humans?" The news sends a nervous flutter through Toriel's stomach, but she is careful to keep her voice light. "My goodness. That sounds like a big responsibility, is it not?"

"Guess so." He does not sound too concerned, but he must mistake her silence for fear of some kind, because he adds: "Hey, but don't worry about it. My brother's in training for the Royal Guard and it's like, his dream to catch a human. No way one's getting past any time soon on his watch." After a moment, he continues: "Actually, he's probably wondering where I am right about now. I'm not usually the type to work late. Or at all."

Even if this is not the reassurance he imagines it to be, Toriel is touched by the gesture, that this stranger would even think about her safety, and she nods gratefully before remembering he cannot see her.

"Thank you. I am glad to hear it – ah, I hope I have not kept you too long! Please do go home to your brother, if you wish – I am sure he needs your company and comedic skills more than I do, after all."

"I'd agree with you, but he doesn't seem to find me nearly as humerus as you do." Toriel can hear the smile in his voice, though, and it warms her heart even through the twinge of something like envy. What a wonderful thing it was, to have family to come home to; someone to love and care for unconditionally, and they for you. Something one should never, ever take for granted. "But yeah, he's pretty cool. I'll tell you about him next time."

Toriel blinks. "Next time...?"

"Sure. If you want?" For the first time, she detects a note of uncertainty in his otherwise pleasantly laid-back drawl. "I'll be here tomorrow, anyway. Might even have some fresh material by then – but, hey, if you have mysterious-door-lady stuff to do, that's cool too."

Toriel grins, wide and foolish and now a little grateful that he cannot see her overeager response – it has truly been so long since she has conversed, connected with another person like this, she had hardly dared to hope they might have the opportunity to do this again. "Oh no, I should certainly find the time! I would love to hear all about your brother – in fact," she barely manages to suppress her giggles, "I would a-door it."

He laughs, a sound which is becoming one of her favourites in all the Ruins. "Good one. Lady, you're a real knockout." Toriel's glee escapes in the form of an undignified snort as she leans back against the door, hugging her knees to her chest like a child. "Oh, right, guess I should introduce myself. I'm –"

"No," Toriel interrupts hurriedly, laughter disappearing as abruptly as she can get the word out – if he tells her his name, then he will surely expect to know hers, and all that comes with it. Toriel cannot bear the weight of history and expectation, presumptions and questions that she has hidden from for so long, not yet, and especially not now, after she has glimpsed the possibility of something so wonderful, something she thought she might never have again – a friend.

There is a silence, and she clears her throat, hoping she has not startled him. "I mean, um...no names, please, for now? I just think it is a little more...exciting this way."

"Okay. Sure thing." If he thinks her request strange, she cannot tell by his voice. "No names, got it. In that case, I guess I'm...nobody."

Toriel smiles, breathing a quiet sigh of relief. Perhaps, one day, she will truly be able to express her gratitude. "A pleasure to meet you, Mr Nobody. From one nobody to another – and now, I suppose I must be on my way back to...nowhere."

"Nowhere, huh? I hear that's beautiful this time of year."

"Oh, just wonderful," Toriel agrees, playing along despite the familiar pang of loneliness at the thought of her empty house. "You must come and visit sometime."

"Love to, but I, uh...can't seem to find it on my map."

"I think you will know when you are here," she tells him with a wry smile. "Well, good night."

"See ya."

Toriel lingers at the door a little while longer, until she hears him walk away, footsteps crunching through fresh snow. She wonders idly if he is cold. Perhaps, next time, she will offer him a blanket, or even a slice of warm pie if she can slide it under the door.

The thought keeps her smiling all the way home, and as she prepares her usual snail pie for one, and even as she turns her head away from the now permanently closed door when she finally retires to bed.

That night, for the first time in a long time, Toriel sleeps soundly, undisturbed by the nightly murmurings and stirrings of the Ruins past and present.

Because, for the first time in an even longer time, she has a reason to look forward to tomorrow.