what did the skeleton say to the other skeleton

[skelepun]

Who: Sans & YOU
When: From the 16th on.
Where: All around the ship.
What: Catch-all log for May!! Some post-void shenanigans, some general around the ship shenanigans, fun for everybody!
Warnings: Will add if any come up! Probably some talk of mass murder, though.





( All prompts below! Please either PM me or PP me on plurk (safelybeds) if you'd like to hash out a custom starter!)

OTA (MEDBAY)
Sans tries to sneak out of the medbay after Magic Overload.

OTA (CRYOBAY)
Who wants to tell bad jokes and hang out around a bunch of kinda dead people?

OTA (TRAINING ROOM)
Magic burnout sucks. Let's talk about powers and why they're the worst.

OTA (CLASSROOMS)
Who wants to learn chemistry from the world's most tired man?

Comments

[inruins]

Toriel carefully starts setting braided pieces aside on sheet of baking paper, wordlessly motioning for Sans to do the same. Clearly intending to use his alongside her own on the pie to be.

The joke and his smile softens her resolve some, leaving her answer more bland than purely defensive and prickly. "It means I'll have to do my rounds and check on them soon."

She starts to look more tired as she picks away at her thoughts. Toriel knows Sans has a point, even if she doesn't want to hear it.

[skelepun]

She's stonewalling him in her own agreeable way. Sans can't even fault her that much for that. He follows instruction, laying his own malformed braid against her many neat ones.

How was she so fast at that, especially when she was obviously so distracted? Guess that's what happens when you put effort into something.

"Heh... alright." He knows when pushing isn't going to get him much further. "I'm just saying. I worry about you."

[inruins]

Something passes across her features, something very torn and uncertain. More raw than she liked to be. "...I appreciate it. Truly."

She works on another braid more absentmindedly this time. More lost in thought than focused on her task. When she finally speaks, she's hesitant but more open. "I'm just not sure what to do with myself if I am not busy. Much less if something happens to any of the children and I couldn't do anything to help."

She had done everything she could back then for those fallen human children, but even now it didn't feel like enough.

[skelepun]

"Yeah... I know. I get it, T, I really do." He frowns, suddenly feeling extra fidgety now that there's no more dough to braid. It's an uncomfortable sensation. Normally he never feels much pull to expend any extra energy.

Now, he's practically vibrating with it.

"Well, you used to take breaks with me around. What's so different when I'm not around?" He cocks his skull to the side, drumming his fingers on the counter. It's hard not to think about his absence in the week prior to Toriel's collapse. Guilt is putting it mildly. "Did you ever used to take a break when you were living in the Ruins?"

[inruins]

Toriel pushes a apple and peeler over to him, a quiet offering to give him something to do. She can feel the energy coming off of him at this point.

"I like to be busy. Doing nothing just leaves my mind wandering on what I could be doing." She picks up her own peeler, naturally and carefully peeling the second apple she has.

"Occasionally, I used to knit quite a bit but- I don't really have my needles or yarn here. I usually just did the rounds of the Ruins and made sure everyone was alright. Even if the Froggits and Whimsims seemed uncomfortable around me."

[skelepun]

It's gratefully accepts. Sans isn't normally the guy who needs something to occupy himself -- staring into vacant space suits him just fine most days -- but the tenor of this particular conversation had him antsy. Relieved to busy himself, he gets right to work.

"Really?" He actually looks surprised at that last point, glancing briefly towards her before returning to the task at hand. "What's to be uncomfortable about? You're hilarious."

[inruins]

Toriel shrugs uncertainly in turn, not wholly certain. The fact she intimidated them with her presence never fully registered with the boss monster. "I am not sure. I did my best to make them comfortable. It tended to make it a bit worse." She laughs a little at the memories.

She continues peeling, turning the apple carefully in her palm. The motion is practiced, careful to avoid cutting her fingers. "Maybe I should take up knitting again, or archery, even if I'm terrible at the latter." It is a gentle admission, a conceit Sans has a point, even if she doesn't like it very much.

[skelepun]

"Archer, huh? I barely know 'er." He chuckles, eyes focused on the apples, but that doesn't stop him from soaking in each new kernel of information she deigns to share. Knitting, he could've guessed. Archery? Well, that's a little more surprising.

"Hobbies never killed anybody, that's all I'm saying. I mean, except for the arrow part. That sounds like it could come to a head real quick."

[inruins]

The boss monster chortles loudly at that, the sound genuine and more relaxed by far. Jokes are their shared bread and butter, a safety they both need. "You have never handled a knitting needle have you? I've hurt myself more with those than arrows. My mother would have had my head if I mishandled weaponry."

The topic shifting to something easier helps, even if her tone goes a touch nostalgic at the brief mention of her mother. "I understand though. Admitting I need a break is... strange for me."

[skelepun]

Hearing here talk like this is nice, in its own odd way. Different. Comfortable had been a key term of their friendship since the beginning, but Sans can't remember a time he saw Toriel this... loose before.

"Strange is good, right? I mean, not all the time, but some of the time." He winks, elbowing her gently before getting back to his apples. With only two thirds of the pile peeled, the finished apples have already begun to go slightly brown for how long Sans is taking with it. "I mean, look at us."

[inruins]

Toriel has finished with her apple, working on cutting it into proper sized chunks to put into the pie tin. When satisfied she moves to pick up the next. Toriel if anything is efficient.

She snorts, dark red eyes briefly stealing a glance at the skeleton. She pauses her peeling to rest a hand melodramatically against her chest where her heart should rest. Her tone is playful at that. "I will have you know, I was perfectly normal in my youth. I've just grown stranger with age. It happens when you've lived this long."

[skelepun]

"Sorry, did I wound you to your core?" Sans grins, dangling one of the leftover apple cores pointedly before tossing it back over his shoulder in the vague direction of the trash can.

"I don't think I can be friends with someone who was ever normal, sorry."

[inruins]

The pun warrants another laugh quite easily. For once she doesn't bother to cover her mouth whilst laughing. Even with the seriousness from before, she's relaxed now. Relaxed enough to forget about old habit. "So this is how it ends then? Over a pie too. Apples to Apples, dust to dust."

[skelepun]

"Pie can't believe it."

It's a noble effort, keeping a straight face, but Sans only lasts about another few seconds before losing the war against laughter. Leaning hard against the counter, he rolls the apple Toriel's way before donking his skull on the countertop.

"Man, Tori. I missed you a lot."

[inruins]

Toriel just continues giggling and chortling in equal measure. She catches the apple before it rolls too far, righting it as Sans struggles with his own laughter. His words maker her laughter taper off somewhat.

"Well, I'm not going anywhere." Her touch is gentle paw pads lightly brushing across the top of his skull. The gesture is meant as reassuring, though Toriel finds more comfort in it herself. The easiness of exchanging jokes and letting her barrier drop a little more was nice, nice enough she forgot how odd it all was. She had collapsed and lost nearly a week. Time lost due to her exhaustion, due to sudden aging.

She was going to have to deal with this, she was not Asgore, she did not run from her problems. The thought was reaffirming enough to ease her.

toriel you literally ran from your problems all the way into the ruins i can't deal with this goat

[skelepun]

"Heh... glad to hear it."

The touch is heavy and comfortable enough that Sans lets himself relax for a few seconds, sandwiched happily between the cool of the countertop and the warm press of Toriel's hand.

"It's been a month."

she is literally the worst, 4give her

[inruins]

"Hopefully the next one will be better." For us, for everyone goes unsaid, but it hangs there. She's content to let her hand linger, finding ease in the slight chill of skull against paw pad. She brushed her fingers gently across his skull in a soothing motion after a moment. She can already guess it might put him to sleep if she continues it too long.

"I should think we've earned it."

[skelepun]

"No kidding." He chuckles, continuing to lose the war against his own urge to stay in this comfortable, safe position. "I'd say we earned the next six months off, but I don't wanna tempt fate."

After diving into a vast nothingness, he's had enough of fate to last a lifetime.

Or at least a timeline.

"Anyway..." He reached over, holding up an apple and grinning at her from his awkward position between her hand and the counter. "Pie?"

[inruins]

"I would agree with you, but tempting fate seems like a poor idea." She has to laugh a little at the sandwiched skeleton. The urge to give him a quick friendly peck rises and is squashed just as quickly. Given his discomfort... she wasn't going to be as friendly on that front. Her own feelings hadn't proper resolved back to fully platonic yet, but she would deal with it.

"Pie." She pulls her hand away, "Just finish your apple and we can cook it with magic." She could do the rest around Sans, they were on the edge of being finished with the pie.

[skelepun]

"Sounds good."

Getting up, it's only a few more minutes until he's through with the small little pile of apples she put him on peeling duty for. They make an easy assembly line, passing peeled apples to Toriel for her to slice and season. Once his part of the process is done, Sans contents himself with watching her work. It's simple enough to follow, but fascinating all the same.

So that's how she cores her fruit. Huh. Something to keep in mind next time he actually feels the urge to bake something.

"I always forget how fast fire magic cooks things." Sans clicks his teeth together thoughtfully, surveying the freshly golden brown pie crust, still piping hot. The air around them is dry and overwarm from the lingering effects of her magic, but it's a nice sort of feeling. Cozy, like home. "Never was able to get the hang of it, myself."

[inruins]

Baking is easy for her, after so much time spent learning from her father- making her own mistakes and growing from there Toriel finds herself falling into auto-pilot in regards to her baking. Sans presence is a nice bonus, unexpected but nice to have whilst she works. Toriel could maybe get used to it if he ever wants to join her again.

"It takes much practice, I will admit." She answers with a smile, "Now the hard part, waiting for it to cool down." She moves over to a nearby sink to wash off her hands properly.

When she finishes drying her hands, she looks back over to the other monster, "What have you been doing recently? You were gone for awhile. You had your brother worried."

[skelepun]

"Hard? More like torture, are you kidding me?" Sans flops back against the counter, watching steam rise slowly from the crust. The entire kitchen smelled amazing. That, the lingering warmth, and his own comfortable drowsiness came together into something downright nice.

Of course, all good things must come to an end.

"Huh?" He asks, caught a little more off guard than he's used to. "Oh, uh... yeah, it's cool. I was just hanging around the portals a little. Doing some sight seeing."

[inruins]

If Sans is going to prod at her, Toriel will return the favor. Especially given her curiosity of what her friend had gotten into when he seemingly vanished. The larger monster drifts over to lean against the countertop next to Sans, eying him.

The topic at hand outweighs the nicety of small talk considerably in the boss monster's opinion. "Without telling Papyrus? He posted on the network asking for help finding you."

[skelepun]

That damn network post. Sans loves his brother, adores him, treasures him, but man the guy was network happy. Made it pretty hard to brush certain circumstances under the rug.

"Heh, well... we don't tell each other everything, y'know."

It's a true statement (uncomfortably so, in a few cases), but in this particular instance the lie was transparent. Sans might keep more than a few things from his younger brother, but general whereabouts (especially a six day span) definitely didn't apply, and Toriel would know it.

Shoot.

[inruins]

"Wow." She rests a hand on her hip giving a look that makes man and monster wilt in equal measure. If Sans expected Toriel to believe that, he was deluding himself. "That was convincing."