Laughing Jack was always so careful with Sans and Bean. Tilting his claws away to make sure he wouldn't accidentally impale them. And he did the same with the little soulling hovering next to Sans', looking at it like it was everything to him. His smile was so wide and heart-melting, the clown murmuring quiet little joyful words to the orange human soul.

"What did you name him?" Laughing Jack asked, gently hovering his hands so the two souls could return to Sans' chest.

Sans was, as expected, sick. Why wouldn't he be? He spent three days under stress, while pregnant and half-naked. So there he sat, having breakfast in bed as he shivered and coughed. His skull ached, throbbing occasionally with the headache he got. Jeff was nice enough to figure out how to make ketchup pancakes. The kid was talented, Sans would give him that. They tasted pretty damn good. And he got them all to himself because no one else would eat them.

"Cole," Jane hummed, a persistent smile on her face as she set down a cup of milk next to Sans. "Now that we know you're pregnant, we should schedule a doctor's appointment as soon as you're better."

"That's what I was thinking. We did that last time with Bean when she was conceived. I'd like to do it sooner than wait a full month like last time." Sans let a cough rattle through his body, frowning at the experience. He hadn't been sick in years, now suddenly he was getting sick every few months. Was there a new outbreak of sicknesses going on or something?

"But, before we do that, I think it's about time we talked about... the more in-depth details of what happened during your extended leave," Jane said, sitting down next to Sans and Laughing Jack. "And what to do to prevent it."

Sans felt a slight wave of relief wash over him. It would be nice to finally get everything out and settle down again. It almost felt like everyone was holding their breaths after he had returned. Not wanting to complicate the situation, but waiting. And now the waiting was over.

"Yeah, I think so too," Sans said. He set aside his fork, pancakes soon forgotten as he had something else to prioritize. "It was the Puppeteer that kidnapped me. I'll get that right out of the way. He used that rose so it'd be easier to transport me, and then he brought me to this random ass, old abandoned greenhouse to try and have me hook up with a friend of his."

"We both know about that, Toby and Clockwork filled us in on every detail they saw when we woke up early today," Jane said. "They already explained that Helen was an unwilling participant and that he was the reason you all got away without a bigger fight happening. We talked about it and decided that if the Puppeteer is found, we'll let Laughing Jack... ah, deal with him."

"Without killing him," Sans clarified, looking between the two. "Keep him alive. I don't care what ya do beyond that."

Laughing Jack whined, giving Sans a long, desperate look.

"Helen... reminds me a lot of myself. He needs his friend. Trust me, I don't like that puppet guy either. But just keep him alive. You can certainly toss him around a bit, he kidnapped me. Fuck him," Sans said, lightly coughing after he took a quick pause.

"... Fine," Laughing Jack said, narrowly glaring at the wall as if it was the reason his beloved family was kidnapped.

"So what happened over the stay?" Jane asked. "Did they treat you alright? Did they say anything weird?"

"Briefly the Puppeteer threatened me once or twice. Threatened to kill Bean and little Cole so I wouldn't run. Obviously, he put that magic restraint onto me." Sans glanced down towards the somewhat faded bruises on his wrist. "But most of the time it was just awkwardly sitting with Helen. He was just really lonely, I guess. So we just sort of... vibed?"

"That... was it?" Jane asked, an eyebrow cocking up with her confused tone.

"Yeah. The whole reason I was there was to make sure he was anti-depressed. So I just spent almost all of my time with him. I got lucky."

Sans got lucky. That was the true statement that both gave relief and terror. He got lucky this time. He was kidnapped by some guy who wanted to give his friend happiness. He didn't violate Sans or try to torture him. All threats were simple spoken words.

"We thought it was Offenderman," Jane said quietly.

"Who?" Sans asked.

Her face hardened. After some deliberation, she spoke softly. "He's a CreepyPasta rapist. He gives victims roses and takes them. Sexually, I mean. He forces himself onto them and they can't even say no. And, ah... he's Slenderman's brother. Slenderman only kept him around because of his roses. It's why everyone kept him around. Those roses were valuable."

Oh.

Sans picked at the fabric laying across his lap. That was certainly... something. Everyone must have been freaking out. If he had been kidnapped by someone like that, well, he would've suffered a lot more.

"We're all going to have to keep a low profile for a bit as well," Jane said quietly. "Laughing Jack did some - activities." She tapped her fingers against her knees. "Nothing most of us were against, but Offenderman was a rather well-known individual."

Sans glanced towards Laughing Jack. "Ya killed him, didn't you?"

A shrug. "I thought he was doing things to you."

"To be clear, literally no one wanted him alive," Jane said. "But his roses were an incredibly useful source a lot of CreepyPasta wanted. And he was well known. So there's a lot of talk now. Especially since Laughing Jack dragged his body through Slenderman's base, interrogated Slenderman, and now everyone knows about his, ah, lover."

Sans didn't find it within himself to be mad. Maybe he was already too far gone in the CreepyPasta world. Because he could only find himself looking over at Jack with a giddy smile.

"Aw, babe," Sans said.

Yeah. He was gone.

Hasn't be been for ages?

"So what's the plan to prevent little ol' me from being kidnapped again?" Sans asked. "I was thinking of figuring out a way to get magic restraints off of myself first off."

"That's what I was thinking," Jane said. "The two times you have been in serious danger were when you had those damn restraints on you. So figuring out a way for you to get out of them on your own is a must." Her eyes trailed to the bruised bones of his wrist, but she didn't acknowledge it outright. Instead, she cupped his hand gently, rubbing along it to try and soothe any ache there might be. "Training, if allowed by the Doctor, is a must. We can work on teaching you the basics of self-defense."

"Ya saw me with my magic, babe, I don't need that sort of training," Sans said.

Though it... has been a while since he had used his magic to its full extent. He had to be dull. He knew from the fight with Ally that he wasn't to his potential. But basic self-defense he knew.

"I mean physically. In case you don't have magic as a crutch. Magic restraints might be illegal but that doesn't mean there might not be people in the shadows improving them."

Sans nodded quietly at that statement. She was right. His magic might be decent but his arms were twigs. The slightest punch would probably knock him down. And he knew already his dodging skills wasn't up to par.

"I can work to train, then," Sans said. "We'll have to drive out somewhere where we can train privately. Can't exactly do it in my backyard."

Jane frowned at that statement.

"Not.. too private," Jane said. "Since you, uh... disappeared when you were alone."

"Oh."

Glancing down, Sans let himself ponder that statement. It would probably be annoying to constantly have someone breathing down his neck. But she did have a point. And she was allowed to worry. Sans was kidnapped, for heaven's sake. Right under her nose, too. She must've felt awful about that.

"I'll be fine with that, for a bit," Sans said. He gave her and Jack a long, firm look. "But don't baby me, alright guys? I love ya, so I'm okay with you guy's worrying about me and feeling protective, but dear lord don't go overboard."

"We'll try," Jane said.

The rest of the day was just simple adjustments and discussions about the previous day. Since Sans was sick, he spent most of his time being dotted on, checking his temperature, and checking updates about Bean from Zero. Apparently Zero was surprisingly good with kids after she took care of Sally while he was gone.

Sally cried a lot, too. Ended up spending most of her day in bed with him, hugging him and talking about anything they could. Eyeless Jack checked his wound and berated Jeff for overapplying medical supplies they could have saved for a real medical emergency.

"I'm glad you're back," Eyeless Jack had said quietly, putting a small glob of anti-bacterial cream onto the wound before pressing a simple bandaid against it. "It was weird without you."

It probably was. Sans was, in a way, the glue between everyone. He was the reason most of them were there. He was the only one who could go buy things normally. And to some degree, he had a relationship with everyone in that house. Every relationship was unique and different deep in its own ways, but he knew everyone.

It was nice to have people who cared. Sans liked it. Knowing that after a traumatic event, he had people to lean on. To help him up.

It was... a nice thought. That was all.

___________________

The man standing underneath the bus stop stared emptily across the road, damp with a fresh sprinkle of rain that had occurred earlier that morning. His eyes, a dull soft blue, dragged down to his hands. Held firmly two boat tickets between his pale hands, the nails of his fingers chewed off into a jagged edge.

The hooded person, with an empty and calculated stare, glanced up towards the faint glow of gold he could see from the treetops. With a slight nod, acknowledging the presence, he let himself step forward.

The Puppeteer dropped down in front of him without any sound, having spent years as a CreepyPasta. He stood, tall and obvious on the empty street next to the bus stop that had long since been abandoned. A common meeting place for CreepyPasta. There was a scratched-out name on the metal that started with K in a corner, a faith wine stain remaining on the unkept station.

"Two boat tickets," The hooded man said, outholding his hand. "I figured an island retreat would be best. It's secluded. You both don't need to murder to survive, so this is a good place to lay low. Just keep your head down and you both will be fine. Some waves and sand might do Helen some good."

"Thank you," The Puppeteer said. He accepted the tickets carefully, nodding toward the other.

"Our deal is now done," The man said. He took a step back. "I've returned the favor. I believe we are even now."

"Thanks, Hobo Heart," Puppeteer muttered silently. "And we are. The deal is done now. Good luck with whatever you need."

"You as well." He gave a quick half-bow. "I shall be on my way. Pleasure working together with you."

Hobo waited for the other to leave before he pulled out his phone. A quick dial of buttons, and soon enough, he had it pressed against his ear as he shuffled down the uneven sidewalk of the abandoned corner of the neighborhood. The stench of wet worms greeted him as he walked further, but the man didn't even flinch.

"Ben," He said when he heard the click of an accepted call. "I did meet with the Puppeteer again. I'll know where he is on Saturday. If you are still willing to do a deal like you mentioned last night, I think I'd be willing to share some information for a few hearts."