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Well, I've got more negative emotions than you. Or, I did when we were both just one guy each, I guess. Dunno how it works now that we're both formed.

[But with more negative emotions to start with, it follows there would be faster formation. Not a definite explanation, but a possible one, in Sans's opinion.]

You... [Disagreement shows in voice and face, though Papyrus again makes himself stop and think about what he's saying. Fear of saying the wrong thing and upsetting them into an argument sure is one of the things he's feeling. Yippee.]

...I don't think. That's, exactly the case.

[It's a good thing confusion is a neutral emotion, because it's the one Sans needs access to right now. He's not even upset by the response, just--well, confused.]

Really?

Yes, really? I said that for... for reasons. [He shifts, rests his hand on his hip, and tries not to avoid eye contact. Changing the eyes he's meeting won't read as avoiding eye contact, will it?] I don't think that's why.

[He doesn't think it's true at all, but explaining his reasoning... Ugh, does he have to? Does he want to? Other than out of impulses like the want to throw his unhappiness in Sans's face, even though that'll just make them both unhappy?]

[Sans could ask for elaboration; it still doesn't really make sense. That's probably a bad idea, though, even if it's harder for him to keep his mouth metaphorically shut now that he's been split in half.]

Well, I guess it doesn't matter. Yeah, I could be wrong, I'm wrong all the time.

You wallow in negativity all the time.

[It comes out before he stops himself, the notion having been against he back of his teeth from when Sans first voiced the theory. He stiffens, tries to talk it back.] Or... sometimes... spend more time, being unhappy. And expressing it. In ways.

Shit. [The last is to himself, a frustrated and regretful noise. It's not like he thought calm would be easy. But trying to balance with literally only a half of himself - or 55.55%,, or something - is a real struggle!]

Edited (half half) 2022-05-28 18:19 (UTC)

Not on purpose. [Sans says that without thinking, but after he does he's really not sure what the point of saying it was. It's not like Papyrus is wrong.] Okay, so maybe I formed faster 'cause I express unhappiness more. Whatever.

It doesn't really matter anyway. [It's a peace offering, of the classic change the subject, to a degree variety. A traditional skeleton household exchange.] Forming at all isn't because of, of anything we feel, or express, or whatever. It's just because something weird's going on, again! No point feeling responsible for that. Might as well blame ourselves for rain!!

[It's not the calmest way of reminding himself about distorted thinking, his voice raising through it, but it's earnest.]

Yeah, sure. I'm overthinking it. [He doesn't really know why he keeps trying to solve anything; he doesn't have a good track record. Maybe it's just habit.] You wanna text the other guys, or just wait until they get back?

[Trading a discomfort for a discomfort is some kind of fairness, though one he's sure he wouldn't like even if he was feeling liking. It's effective as a distraction, anyway. Thinking again about facing this mythical other him - happy and kind, not a trace of annoyance or disgust at the sight of him, when he so very much won't return it...]

...Are they supposed to be out long? [Why are they walking around wasting energy when it's cloudy?]

[Sans shrugs.] Sans--the other one--was gonna check out something he heard from the guys at the ruins. The other Papyrus pointed out he had to be outside for his solar chargers to work at all anyway and I can't exactly keep him locked up in the house.

[Well. Probably. That would be pretty rude, if nothing else.]

What if-- [Calm. Measured. He's a skeleton with excellent self-control, or whatever, and this is difficult but that's no excuse not to make the effort.] Do we know. If them... getting hurt... Hurts us, too. Would we...

[He trails off, unsure how to finish the sentence and struggling to decide. Would they know, feeling it across some ineffable connection? Would they be injured the same way? Would there be no sign at all, like with all the other disappearances, like any number of monsters who dropped to dust after an accident out of sight? He's full enough of thoughts he scarcely notices if Sans starts to answer, busy muttering to himself.] ...I should contact him.

Uh. [They have different bodies, so what hurts one of them shouldn't hurt the other, right? But they're supposed to just have one body, and their soul is definitely split between the two of them. But not everything causes soul damage. And anyway, lots of things don't work like they do at home here.]

Yeah, maybe we should check on 'em.

Y-Yeah. [It's not as though his finger is visibly hovering in the air over a button, given his phone is still tucked away, all but officially a part of his torso these days. To send a text through his phone is a matter of thought and decision, as much as summoning a bone. But Sans can probably pick up that Papyrus isn't dividing his attention between this and another ongoing conversation, just between this and the flurry of feelings and thoughts he's stuck in. (Dropped into, but stuck? That's not a Papyrus sentiment).

...Some of those feelings get recursive, feeling down on himself for feeling down on himself, when he remembers successfully pushing through the difficulty of it so many times, why should it be different now?]

...Did... You... You talked. To him. Both of them. Did they... What am I asking, they weren't upset about you, right? [Only because they couldn't be, he suspects.]

Nah, so I don't think they can be. [Since a Sans that's all negative isn't really much good for anything, except maybe keeping an eye on charge levels.] When I appeared, the other Sans was asleep, so I met the other you first, and he was okay even when we thought it was just some emotion problem and all my positive emotions were just gone, so.

[Sans's positive emotions being somewhere has to be better than them being nowhere, but positive Papyrus was just encouraging. Too bad all that encouragement got wasted on him.

Sans pulls out his phone again to shoot out a quick "you aren't dead right?" message to both their positive counterparts. The other Sans replies with "not dead, stop worrying", which probably means he needs to keep worrying to make up for the lack of it.]

He didn't think it was a little weird you'd be having emotion problems too...? This guy. 'Fine with everything'. [It's an outright audio clip of Sans's voice from earlier, though Papyrus's face goes embarrassed almost as soon as the sound plays. So he's been recording this conversation with a little more detail than usual, even though that maybe messes with his emotions even more. What of it. This is important.

He's distracted from making any defensive comments about it by feeling his phone light up with a text message - the same one Sans has just sent to the other Papyrus, cloned to his by virtue of having the same number.]

That's what you're...? [He cuts himself off again, as unrewarding as this exercise is still feeling, and corrects to:] ...Thanks for not giving me away.

[Meanwhile, to Sans's phone - and Sans's phone only - a reply comes back:
NOT DEAD, BUT THE PROUD OWNER OF A CAN OF POWDERED MILK!
WE CAN SEE HOW IT TASTES SOON, I'M AROUND THE CORNER.
THOUGHT YOU MIGHT BE WORRYING ALREADY...
SO I'LL COME BE IN THE LAWN UNTIL YOU FEEL A LITTLE LESS BAD.
(I KNOW BETTER WILL TAKE A WHILE.)]

No problem. You can tell 'em whenever you want, as long as it's not never. [Sans doesn't feel better about hearing from the other Sans and Papyrus. The worry about what they're doing slides down the priority list, but there are plenty of other things to take its place. Like the message he got from the other Papyrus, for example. Still trying to be encouraging. He knows Sans literally can't be encouraged, right?]

Why does he keep trying? [Sans can't decide if he feels more guilty or frustrated by it.]

[He nods slowly, not realizing how soon it's likely to be. Drafts fragments of possible messages, shooting them to future deletion as some part or another causes a too-strong negative reaction. Too apologetic, too aggressive, too robotic...]

...Trying?

[Even if feelings of concern aren't quite happening, more a fragmented mix of curiosity and worry, at the very least asking after Sans's problems lets him dither on sending his message. (That's not how it works, he can multitask to do them both easily. But it's an excuse.)]

He--the other Papyrus--said he'd stand on the lawn until I felt less bad. So I guess he'll be there forever, but at least I'll know where he is. [That's not fair; Papyrus is just being nice to him. He doesn't know why Papyrus is so nice to him. Well, probably because he can't not be. He's stuck that way. This Papyrus is the one who doesn't have to be.]

He's heading back here. I'm guessing you didn't see the message. [Otherwise he wouldn't have had to ask what Sans was talking about.]

[Every anecdote of what the other Papyrus said or did just baffles and annoys Papyrus further. Why stand in the lawn, specifically - is he pretending to be a flower? If he's coming to keep Sans company, wouldn't the porch be a better option?] Why...?

[But he could follow that with where, and when, because those thoughts are fleeting or shunted to a smaller partition - the bigger and more alarming thought is that the countdown's already on. And, going by his internal model of his old usual behavior? It's probably less than ten minutes, if he's texting about it without specifying a time. Papyrus mumbles a couple more swears, then focuses. Not texting and having an angry confrontation about existing seems awful compared to giving a heads up and meeting each other outside. In the lawn, to be flowers or whatever, if they must. He sends a message off, and doesn't share it with Sans.

Sans, though, gets another text from Papyrus's number.
I JUST GOT A WEIRD TEXT,
THERE'S ANOTHER ME?]

Probably so he can get as much charge from the sun as he can right now. [Under the porch might be acceptable if it was sunny out, but with all the clouds, Sans can't say Papyrus getting maximum sunlight exposure is bad.]

You text him? He's asking me about you.

[There's a pause as Sans considers the appropriate response, and finally he just sends back "yeah".]

... Yeah. [His face is tense with a poorly concealed grimace, but he turns away to open the bedroom door.] He's almost here, after all!! No point putting it off!!!

[Another text comes back after a few seconds, a stream of thought response.

OH, THAT'S EXCITING!
I THINK.

HOPE YOU'LL BE OKAY WITH DOUBLE THE PAPYRUS COMPANY!

If the budding conversation between the Papyruses is giving him the impression sticking around wouldn't be welcome, he's not mentioning it.]

[Sans sends back "two of you is better than two of me", which is true even if one of the Papyruses is full of negative emotions.]

Guess I'll meet you guys outside, then. [And Sans vanishes, teleporting to the front yard.]

[The Papyrus inside the house freezes up in the doorway, relieved and alarmed by the moment of privacy before an unprepared confrontation. What if he just hid back in the closet, now that no one's around to notice, could he - no, no, Sans would just find him again, and even if he didn't this nicer Papyrus would surely come for clothes eventually. No sense leaving the opening for terrible skeleton in the closet jokes - his train of thought derails and he makes a strangled noise at realizing, no wonder that's where he woke up, full of the kinds of awful feelings he tries to shove away, he's already a joke...

Outside, Sans quickly receives the reply, "I WON'T ARGUE THAT!! SEE YOU SOON."

It's belated, because that Papyrus is already in sight - several houses down the street, and he waves enthusiastically the moment he sees Sans appear in the yard.]

Hey!! You beat me to the yard, I wasn't expecting that. Congrats!!

[Sans keeps a few eye sockets on the front door, waiting on Papyrus, but he can do that and turn toward the other Papyrus--first Papyrus?--at the same time. He shrugs.]

I've always got a shortcut handy. [The shortcuts thing is a dumb joke, usually one he tells mostly to himself in front of people who don't know about his teleportation, but also one that sees a lot of use in the "make Papyrus roll his eyes" department. Always a busy department. Sans doesn't feel anything about making it this time. Not a surprise; he's just trying to act the part.

The second Papyrus better get out here soon. It can't take that long to walk from Papyrus's bedroom to the front door.]

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i have to drag it out just long enough to appreciate the 2 simultaneous threads here

multi-thread drifting

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we've hit danger zone: conversing with each other directly, rather than at someone else in tandem

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