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It's a great idea, isn't it?? [It is a safer topic, one Papyrus jumps on with enthusiasm, even desperation. He hasn't yet consciously flagged that Sans hasn't continued eating anything, but the disappointed dread has started building. All he's caught is that, so far, his goal to reassure with his presence - prior to them trying to talk about anything for real - has not made any progress, and he doesn't know why.] I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner. Is the shower even big enough for your wings?

[Sans stretches out a wing when Papyrus brings them up--one of his main wings, the ones with the widest wingspan. He does his best to ignore the patches that have thinner feather covering now.] As long as I don't stretch 'em out it's fine. Learned that back in the hotel. [When they tended to move without his say-so and he tore the shower curtain off or knocked the various soap and shampoo bottles down or, once, pulled a whole stack of towels into the shower with him.] It's not a big deal.

[Papyrus shouldn't go out of his way to put in a huge bath for Sans's sake, is what he means but doesn't want to say in case he's jumping to conclusions about what Papyrus meant by saying that.]

Hmm. [Papyrus recognizes what Sans means, but his jaw sets with stubborn denial. That's an unspoken message he is deliberately and actively redirecting to the trash bin, where he figures it belongs.]

Well, maybe it isn't. But that's no excuse for me not to. Why go neglecting the little deals?

[Why go losing the kingdom for want of a nail, and all. Little deals like cleaning socks, eating healthy meals, eating meals at all... These are the things that make bad times worse, if neglected. He takes another bite of his pasta, despite the lack of enthusiasm for it, as proof.]

Yeah, that's not really your style, huh? [More Sans's, especially about these sorts of things. Better if Papyrus is being Papyrus about it. At least half of why Sans feels so awful today is because of the possibility that he might have made Papyrus less Papyrus.] Sure, go for it, you put in a big tub and I'll flap around in it like it's a bird bath.

[He's joking, or trying to; it has yet to occur to him that Papyrus might actually be thinking about bird baths when it comes to his tub choices.]

[Papyrus makes an agreeing, thoughtful noise. No, neglect of all those details isn't his style, so it's reassuring to find himself still taking initiative with things like that.]

I could get one of those... [He pulls up a clip of birds in a bird bath, fluttering around and making a mess of things. If there's any chance Sans will react to a larger body of water like that - had he, back when Papyrus was cleaning up the beach? - then bathroom planning really needs to accommodate it. Outwardly, he doesn't pause while that search goes on.] A nice water feature, to fill out the yard. But they probably don't come large enough for that. [For you, he manages to not outright say. As odd as it is to think of Sans being the one who's too big for something.]

Humans've got those ponds, haven't they? Y'know, the ones they dig in the yard and put fish in. [But if they did have a koi pond it probably wouldn't be good for the fish if Sans flapped around in it.

As far as other signs of Sans flapping around in water that Papyrus may have picked up on, while Sans hasn't really been in the lake, he does flap them to get them dry. And he may have been caught stretching out his wings in the rain once or twice. Maybe a few more times than that.]

[Right. No wood, and making sure the tiles and grout are suitable for a room that'll get flooded with sprinkled water everywhere regularly. He's got this planning well in hand.]

A whole pond?? [This, finally, startles an incredulous but genuine laugh from him. It's not so loud or full of shaking that he drops the food, as some automated process he activated without much thought is keeping it balanced enough not to spill, but he laughs.] That is smaller than a river... I'll put it on the ideas list!

[It's a relief to hear Papyrus laugh; something in Sans's soul unclenches.] Something to ponder, right? Bet it'd really make a splash.

[Fun fact about Papyrus's body: while his cooling fans are among its louder components, prone to increasing in volume when he pushes himself too hard... Pretty much all of his body makes various quiet mechanical noises, thanks significantly to the various motors and pistons and other parts allowing him a full range of motion.

Including things like his eyes, which are normally next to silent in comparison with the rest of him. Most of the time. Right now, they're downright audible, thanks to Papyrus deliberately broadcasting the sound of the eyeroll with his voicebox to emphasize it.]

Thanks, Sans. [It's a relief to hear his brother making shitty off the cuff puns, choosing to rile him rather than timidly tolerate his presence.]

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