Threadbare: An Errorberry Fanfic

*Anti-void, Aprx Day 151

"O-Our stars always shone so brightly... We used to visit the caves and lie underneath the makeshift sky, tell stories, listen to the rippling of the water..."

A soft voice, tiny and subdued was the only light which had been lit within the encompassing darkness. There was a pause before it continued, trembling and meek.

"... We had a telescope, and one of our shared hobbies was to look through the thick lenses to to see the stones that are embedded high above in the roof of the cavern."

Sans opened his eyes to the same veil of black and closed them again, focusing on strengthening his voice. "The echo flowers' light always bathed those caves in a bluish glow, and that sometimes made it difficult to tell where the river ended and where it began." The small skeleton clenched and unclenched his hands, curling his phalanges until they dug into his palms before retracting them time and time again.

"When we were younger, Papyrus and I had such fun while running all about Snowdin and Waterfall to try and discover where all of the water came from. It wasn't uncommon for us to fall headlong into the river from the wharf or to tumble down a hill of snow in the forest."

A pained smile graced his countenance and Sans kept his eyes adamantly shut as he allowed the audible flame to overtake the crushing pressure of the void before him. "Yet no matter what misadventures we had between ourselves or throughout the day, we always found ourselves back in Waterfall, quietly watching those shimmering stars..."

At once, the flame was extinguished as muffled footsteps sounded alongside the small skeleton, immediately causing him to fall back into tepid silence. The footsteps paused and Sans did his utmost best to tuck what he could of himself into his bandanna as the owner of those footsteps knelt down beside him. "I never took you as the type to be a storyteller." Error's voice was gentle, surprisingly so as he simply watched the unmoving figure. Sans debated heavily between remaining silent or answering the other, and gave into the latter once the darkened skeleton shuffled a bit, an indication that he might soon be intending to leave once again if there was nothing more to be said.

"... I'm not. My brother is, though." Sans sighed softly, unclenching his hands which he hadn't realized were both still squeezed tight. Error nodded despite it having gone unseen and contemplated the others position for a bit, allowing the uneasy quiet to lapse on before speaking again. "Did you enjoy your nap?" There was silence again as the small skeleton chose his words carefully, divulging upon each one before leveling out a response. "... As much as I could while being unable to move." He gave a weak chuckle, praying incessantly that he had given an honest yet satisfactory answer.

Error considered him again, studying his smaller alternate as if hoping to extracting the minutest detail from the other. Sans slowly curled his phalanges inwards, scratching lightly against his palms with a forced gentleness as he awaited his captor's judgement, scarcely able to breathe. "M-Maybe it would have been better without the strings...?" The low growl which ensued soon after this soft utterance served as a warning that his comment may have jeopardized his plight and Sans paled considerably, choking out another in the hopes that it was still salvageable. "I-I mean, it was deserved back then! B-But, it would be nice to rest for a bit without being tied up some other time, you know?"

The darkened skeleton's gaze softened a bit despite the admission being forced, not having noticed. "It could." He dallied there a while longer before reaching over and undid the scarf, pulling it free from the other and unveiling his vision to the blinding alacrity of whiteness. Sans blinked, meeting the pair of multicolored eyes for the briefest moment as his hands were unbound soon after. At once, he wasted no time in attempting to push his hands against the floor to pull himself upright, letting out a cry as his shaking limbs slipped out from underneath him and sent him falling back down. Error said very little as he peeled off the blanket before untying the strings that were tightly wound around the other's ankles, with a single request for the small skeleton to remain still. Sans did so without argument and sat upright once he was freed, mumbling a soft thanks as he kept his gaze averted from the other.

The darkened skeleton's only response was a simple nod, his gaze fixated upon his smaller alternate who chanced a glance in his direction before looking away again. "... How many days has it been?" Sans inquired of the other after some time, keeping his voice to that of a low whisper.  There was a pause before his captor wordlessly held out a hand in the others direction, all the while watching the small skeleton. The gesture had not gone unnoticed once he turned back and Sans fumbled with his bandanna for a moment, loosening and tying the ends together again before undoing it from the start. Error narrowed his eyes yet withdrew, albeit with reluctant heart. "Too many to count. I don't know, haven't been keeping track." He watched the other closely, as if in wait for further questioning now that his answer surely prompted one. To his dismay however, Sans only nodded slowly and turned away from him again.

To say that it was simple for the smaller alternate to desist from conversing with his captor is most certainly an understatement, for he so terribly longed for companionship and idle discourse. The severe lack of color and texture amidst the solid whiteness was maddening enough without some form of camaraderie to abet in bolstering one's spirit. It was only righteous fury which prevented Sans from giving into his own whims, kept him adamantly silent now that it was clear that there was no longer any need for him to speak.

As a prisoner to his own desire and that of this static world of which he now inhabits, the small skeleton allowed his anger to grow, nurturing it with each injustice that was dealt him until its cold blaze swept over his soul, leaving him frigid and barren as the white void itself. This had gone for the most part undetected by his captor who scarcely heeded  him nor gave much thought to his well being aside from plying his smaller alternate with what he believed are material necessities, and it was only now that he began to question the others indifferent address, to begin to understand that some change had evidently occurred since last they've met.

And this change was most certainly far from welcome in his eyes. Error gave the other another minute more before he stood, a brief wave of his hand splitting apart the whiteness into blank slated pixels. There was the slightest movement from the small skeleton, a nearly undetectable flinch which had been brought about by the crackle of static as his darkened counterpart at once strode away, muffled footsteps growing ever softer as the distance between the two grew. The other turned back momentarily, casting a glance over his shoulder at the small figure which remained huddled in place and hadn't bothered to acknowledge his departure.

"I won't be returning." Error broke the silence at last, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. No response was given, and the darkened skeleton waited for a minute to pass before adding onto his statement. "... Not for now, at least." The strings overhead were still, its captive souls moreso in the deafening quiet which fell upon the desolate landscape. It was maddening, this silence- especially now that its once frequent inhabitant had long since adjusted to the smallest of sounds which penetrated the white void and had nestled within a part of his core which was entirely unsuccessful in fending it off, try though it might. Nevertheless, he refused to allow any of this to appear evident and the darkened skeleton dared not speak again lest there be any slippage and simply stole away into the foreign night, taking his leave of the white void and his yet silent captive.