On the brink of a sunset did Sans arrive home, carrying his new sidekick around. Hopefully they could hear him, as Sans had spent the full day just talking away at the box. Mainly about stuff Underground as he drove around the neighborhood. His childhood, his bro, what he and his friends did, stuff like that. It was a nice distraction from what was going on, and a reminder that his friends and him would get over it. After all, they were friends! They got through everything together. This would be no different. He just wished Papyrus wouldn't defend Undyne and try to blame Sally.

And, as he expected, everyone freaked out when he came back holding the box. Frankly, he was freaking out a little bit too. Because that sort of responsibility was one he probably shouldn't have.

None of them could object, though. Sans was the best bet for keeping this box now that Jason dipped. What else would they do?

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Smile Dog asked one day.

"As long as I don't let him out -"

Smile Dog shook his head. "As concerning as it is that you carry him around, I'm worried about this. You already are housing so many of us. If you keep up this trend, you're going to have to move. We're starting to meet the limit."

He was right. They were starting to run out of room in general now. If he took in anyone else, he should probably start looking at new housing options.

How did his life even turn to this? It all started with adopting Smile Dog. That was it. Then he let Jeff stay there, just for a few days. Then Sally came. And now Ben.

A few weeks had passed since Sans had gotten that box. He talked to it often. It helped him with sleeping, so Smile Dog didn't have to trudge over between Sans and Jeff in the middle of the night to ensure the both of them slept well. Jeff slept on the couch, and Ben slept in the T.V.

It was fun with them. They helped keep Sans busy. And it was nice to take care of people, Sans always felt like he was worth a damn when he was helping care for something. Jeff wasn't into cooking with fire, at all (it was easy to figure out why, his skin was entirely burnt to a pasty white, poor kid clearly had trauma) but Jeff adored baking. He was really starting to pick up with that, too.

Ben, on the other hand, started playing games with Sans. Minecraft on his xbox became a casual thing, creating a world for them to play. The cool thing about it, too, was that Ben could go into the game himself and play. It was fun to watch. Interesting, too. Though he kept stealing Sans' clothes, even after Sans ordered a few outfits for him.

Sally kept playing with Sans. He often found her trailing behind him within the house, always holding Charlie close to her chest. Sometimes they played dress up, other times they played house, and a few times they played video games. Sally was still getting used to technology in general. She used to talk to Ben through a phone one of her victims dropped.

Smile Dog was the same as ever. Just living his life, helping take care of the other CreepyPasta and giving Sans advice. Sans liked being with Smile Dog, he was the only other clear headed person within the house.

Finally did the time come again to hang out with his friends. Sans wasn't sure if he was looking forward to it or not. He loved his bro, cared about his friends, but the whole Charlie incident created a divide between them. His friends weren't backing down about blaming Sally, and Sans wasn't buying their excuses.

They were at a standstill, it seemed. Neither backed down. So they seemed to come up with the unspoken agreement of just ignoring what happened. Neither Sans or Papyrus acknowledged it when they texted again, a few weeks later.

The yearly summer send off event was in town, so they all decided to go to that together. It was something monsters were eager to join when they reached the surface.

Every year, on the last week of summer, there was a festival held. To create a few last memories before school started up. It had parades, booths, games, concerts for kids, the whole collection of fun stuff. Sans was excited to see it. Since monsters have been on the surface for almost two years now, this was the second time they could experience it. The first time he didn't go, because he promised Paps he'd go pick up his car from the shop instead.

They had such a blast last year, posting it all over social media, so Sans was kinda looking forward to going this year. And, due to his little collection of killers, he could go without any risk of letting his soul become paranoid again.

There was just one itsy, bitsy problem with this event. Was that everyone in his house wanted to go. Now, Sans could bring Sally and Smile Dog. But the other two? That might be a little more difficult to explain. Especially since Undyne has seen and captured Jeff before.

But he couldn't just leave the teenager alone. What if that one woman came back? Or what if someone saw him roaming about and called the Police?

"Are you good with makeup, kid?" Sans asked Ben.

"Absolutely not," Ben said, pulling out some blush and other makeup stuff. Sans had no idea what any of it did. "But we're going to make you beautiful, Jeff."

Jeff slowly scrunched down in his seat to avoid the brush in Ben's hand. "I'm beautiful enough, please don't make me wear that."

"I don't think it's a good idea, either," Sans said, "I dunno if Jeff's skin can even wear makeup, I don't wanna make an infection or anything." He pulled the brush from out of Ben's hand.

What else could they do, though? The kid stood out like a sore thumb that was wearing obnoxious boots and doing the hula. Everyone would recognize him from the news. Jeff was - in simple terms - fucked.

"Here, let me..."

Sans grabbed his usual blue hoodie, holding it up to Jeff. No. Too small for him. Sans was short, so his size was smaller. It'd fit Ben or Sally, not Jeff.

"Have any bigger hoodies?" Jeff asked.

"I uh, do have one..." Sans scratched the side of his face.

~~~~~~

Jeff looked like an overgrown child wearing that. The only other hoodie Sans had was one he ordered in a small, but somehow got mixed up and delivered as an extra large. The good thing about that was it covered all of Jeff's face and hands. The downside was that it bagged and made him look funny. Didn't help that he was also wearing sunglasses.

"Why do you even have this?" Jeff muttered, pulling at the fabric and the face mask around his mouth. "I look like an edgy teenager."

"And you aren't one?" Ben asked, sticking out his tongue at him.

Jeff flipped him off.

"I mean, at least it's getting put to use, there was a no refund policy and I can't wear it. It's go down to my ankles." Sans turned towards a parking spot on the grassy field, facing towards the forest. Not a lot of parking options anymore, since he was on the late side.

"Isn't your brother, like, super duper tall?" To further his point, Ben raised a hand in the air. "And you're super short. Is it just weird genetics or...?"

Sans paused.

Now that he thought about it, he did look different. Sure, they were skeletons, but that was the only trait they shared. Papyrus had a high pitched voice, his was lower. Papyrus was freakishly tall, Sans was short. Sans had a round skull, Papyrus' was thinner. They both had opposite personalities, too. But there was a good reason as to why Sans was a measly four foot instead of being taller.

"Let's not talk about this," He muttered.

Sans turned to take one final look at them, but had to hold in a snort. It was summertime, but the two of them looked about ready for winter. Ben, to cover his eyes and pointy ears, was forced to wear a thick pair of sunglasses and one of those ushanka hats with the ear flaps. Jeff, poor Jeff, had to wear long jeans, thick tennis shoes, gloves, a face mask, and sunglasses.

Good thing this festival went into the night, when it'd be cooler. The poor boys were going to boil alive. Much less Smile Dog, who couldn't remove his thick coat of hair.

Sally and Sans, though? They'd be fine.

It was admittedly beautiful, though. Lights sparkled as children laughed and screamed, fireflies lingering about ready to share their glow. The smell of corndogs and cotton candy drifted about as the group walked out of Sans' car. 

"Alright, um..." Sans tapped his chin. Preferably, he would like to keep Jeff and Ben with him at all times to make sure they didn't get caught, but that would be a little bit hard to manage. "Jeff, Ben, you guys stick together please. Just... don't do anything stupid. It's crowded so you guys should blend in."

"YES!" Ben quickly linked an arm around Jeff's. "I rock at festival games, get ready to carry a lot of shit, stabby boy!"

Welp, they were gonna get caught. Now Sans was a little worried.

"Good luck guys," He said, waving them off as Ben dragged Jeff towards the long line of vendor games for them to play.

The moment they left, Sally clasped onto his arm and grinned up at him. Sans chuckled, rubbing her head. He'd have to remember to change the bandage later. "Ready to go kiddo?"

"Yup!" She grinned, rocking back onto her heels. "I wanna get cotton candy!"

Sans, Sally, and Smile Dog made their way forward into the festival. Looks like it was a popular thing. The grassy field was crowded with hordes of people, forcing Sans to hold tightly onto Smile Dog's leash and Sally's hand as he led them twisting and weaving through that crowd. Keeping his head up, he managed to find his way to the Ferris wheel where he and his friends agreed to meet up.

Huh. He swore they...

Oh, there they were! At a nearby booth, backs turned as they all ordered some sort of drink. Everyone was there. Frisk, Toriel, Undyne, Alphys, and good ol' Papyrus. Eagerly, Sans walked up to them, grinning once they turned around.

"Heya guys, what's up? Sorry for being late," Sans said, offering a short wave.

"Sans, you sillybones, you shouldn't keep us waiting!" Papyrus said, crossing his arms. He paused once he noticed Sally next to him.

"Great, he brought the girl and... that dog..." Undyne rubbed at the bridge of her nose. "Just... great."

Smile Dog offered a low growl. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"No, bad Smile Dog!" Sans said, pulling on his leash. Smile Dog glared at him for treating him as yet another dog. Sans tried to keep his grin down after teasing him.

"How have you been, Sans?" Toriel asked.

"Great, actually. I actually picked up babysitting before I go back to getting a hardcore job again. So I dropped 'em off here before I came over. They're funny kids," Sans said, "How about you guys? We haven't talked in forever, it's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you again too, brother!" Papyrus said, clapping his hands together.

"What do ya guys wanna do?" Sans asked, before pointing towards the Ferris wheel. "Wanna hop onto that?"

"Ah, dear me, we got a bit excited and came in earlier, so we've already done most of the group rides," Toriel explained, "Why don't you go onto it while we get food? You can join us once your done!"

Oh. This was kinda Sans' fault for being late. But how late was he for them to somehow get onto all of the rides? They must've just gotten lucky and arrived before it became crowded.

"Right, then, I'll take Sally onto the Ferris wheel then," Sans said, "Uh, can... one of you watch Smile Dog then? He won't run, he's trained. Just keep him by the table."

"Can I hold him?" Frisk asked.

"Sure, kiddo," Sans said, handing off the leash.