They left after a little bit more banter, something you were starting to get used to. At least you could tell what sort of people- er, monsters, they were. Papyrus was as naive as ever, and Sans seemed laid back. Something about him irked you nonetheless, but you pushed it away from your mind.

The puzzles, you were hoping, would be just as easy as the ones in the Ruins, and you began to realize just how much you missed Toriel. She had been so sweet, and you were certain that leaving her had broken her heart.

But you had no choice. How else would you be able to find him?

The snow was piled up all around you, though none of it seemed to fall from the sky. You had the distinct feeling that it never actually snowed there, but the snow stayed in the atmosphere anyways.

One thing you weren't counting on were all the dogs. They made you grin despite yourself, and you were more than happy to pet each and every one of them, no matter how long they wanted you to stay. Honestly, you would have taken them all home if you could.

The invisible maze was a complete mystery to you, and only when Papyrus suddenly ran into view did you actually breathe a sigh of relief. They were his puzzles, weren't they? Was he willing to help?

"I see my maze has confounded you!" the tall skeleton cried. "Worry not! I, the great Papyrus, shall assist you!"

"Wait. Aren't you supposed to be capturing me?" you questioned him.

He hesitated. "I-I mean, yes! I shall capture you! But there's no fun in doing so when you're trapped in one of my easiest puzzles..."

Easy puzzles. Right. The stupid maze was confusing. At least until Papyrus walked through it perfectly, leaving a trail of snowy footprints. "That... helps..." you muttered in disbelief.

"Of course!" He walked ahead of you through the maze and glanced over his shoulder at you. "What kind of human are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you are nearly as tall as I am! Do you drink your milk? I keep telling Sans he needs to drink his milk so he can become stronger!"

You clapped a hand over your mouth to stifle the giggles. "I'm an adult, Papyrus."

"R-Really?! Wowie!" He grinned wide, hands at the sides of his face. "I've never met an adult human before! This is so exciting!"

This time you couldn't hold back your laughter. He was so... child-like. Innocent. There was no way in hell he would be able to capture you, not at this rate.

With another "Nyeh heh heh!" the skeleton ran off again, leaving you on the other side of the maze.

Then you noticed that you probably could have gone around it. "Ah, fuck me."

☆¤☆

The next puzzle was only technically a puzzle. A single piece of paper lay on the ground, which turned out to be a crossword puzzle.

You had the distinct feeling that Sans had something to do with it. Still, you eyed the paper with curiosity, not noticing the pair of skeletons watching you, one of them with bated breath.

"Sans! What kind of puzzle is that?!" Papyrus was stomping the ground with his foot again, clearly annoyed.

"It's the crossword from yesterday's newspaper," the other replied, winking. "Trust me, there's no way they're getting past this one."

The taller skeleton fumed. "But that's too easy! You should have used Junior Jumble instead..." he mumbled.

"That's for baby bones. Too easy."

"Done," you called out. "I know all the answers but I don't have a pen."

Papyrus stared at you. "Human! Which is easier, the crossword or Junior Jumble?"

You had absolutely no idea what the latter one was, but... You shrugged. "Junior Jumble is harder, obviously."

"I knew it! Nyeh heh heh!" The taller skeleton ran off yet again, hand in the air in victory, his cape fluttering.

Sans only grinned at you. "Thanks. He seems like he's having a lotta fun." He took the crossword from you and crumpled it up. "You know you didn't actually have to solve them, though, right? You could've walked right past 'em."

You shrugged again. "Like you said, he's having fun. And it's more interesting than just passing them by."

He eyed you in silence for a little while. "He's pretty cool, isn't he? My brother. That outfit, we made it for Halloween, but now he never takes it off." Sans chuckled. "At least he washes it. And by that I mean he showers in it."

You weren't so sure about Papyrus being cool, nor could you tell if that had been a snow pun, but something told you that disagreeing with Sans would have been a poor decision.

☆¤☆

The maze had been easy in comparison to another puzzle. This one involved turning one tile to another, and you got so frustrated that you sat down, listening to your radio instead. You weren't sure how much time passed, and you wondered vaguely if perhaps you were more stupid than you thought.

No, that's not the fucking problem. It's that I'm in such a hurry that I fuck everything up.

Unsurprisingly, Papyrus approached you and bent over to get closer. "What are you listening to?" You didn't have a chance to answer as he suddenly cried out, "Oh! I love this station!"

"I guess everyone knows him."

"But of course! He's our biggest star!" The skeleton sat down beside you, listening to the radio, his head bobbing in time with the music. He seemed oblivious to the fact that you were in front of a puzzle that was frustrating you until you cleared your throat. "Yes?"

"I'm kind of really fucking stupid. This puzzle is confusing me."

Papyrus stood back up, arms crossed. "I, the great Papyrus, am a puzzle master! Of course you have been bested, but fear not, human! I shall assist you again!"

"Thanks," you muttered, realizing that he had a very, very high opinion of himself. Not that it was a bad thing, but that combined with his naive nature had made him charming, in his own way.

He walked through the tiles as if it were nothing, which was probably closer to the truth, before standing in front of you and bowing. "There you are, human! Nyeh heh heh heh heh!" The skeleton scurried off, but not before pressing the switch for you, as well.

You felt eyes on you, and had the feeling that Sans was watching.

Why does he give me such a creeping feeling?

☆¤☆

At long last your legs were beginning to hurt, so you sat down on the path again, with Greater Dog asleep in your lap. You pet it absentmindedly, ignoring the drool that dripped from it's open mouth.

What am I gonna do now? Papyrus is supposed to be capturing me, but instead I've been letting him solve most of the puzzles for me. Am I really that stupid?

No... he's having fun. Maybe he won't capture me in the end, but I don't know. I can only fucking hope.