Undershifter Chapter 8 - Medic's Visit

Over the weeks Sans did his best to interact with the two shifters. Comrade was harmless and did what he could to make life for the two monsters better. Maybe he felt bad about leaving the two alone at the house when he'd leave every day. He often returned to the house with toys and games for the two to play with. Papyrus loved the puzzles he'd bring. Jason was also very accommodating. While he was often locked away in his room, whenever he was on the first floor, he'd talk to the two skeletons, no matter what he was doing. He'd also give them sweet treats behind his brothers back. Comrade had a strange fascination with healthy foods, but Jason continued to supply fast food and treats.

But even though he had been nothing but kind, Sans couldn't shake off this bad feeling. Maybe it was how he'd constantly have a weapon on his person. Maybe it was how his eyes would constantly change colours. Either way, whenever the two were alone, he'd be constantly on guard. He did his best not to show it, though, to appease his brother's wish.

One strange thing he'd noticed was their night schedules. It seemed as if neither shifter slept. It wasn't that they had problems sleeping, but that they physically didn't need to. They'd constantly be moving, working, or finding something to occupy their spare time. Comrade would often leave the house and spend a night somewhere else. His brother, though supporting how he'd socialize with others, seemed pained whenever he did this.

And that was another big difference between the brothers. Comrade would always return with a lot of energy, often gaming through the whole night. Jason would disappear for a large amount of time, and when he returned, he'd collapse on the couch, too exhausted to even bother going to his own room to rest. It made Sans wonder what he did outside of the house. But even then, he'd only ever be down for an hour or two, quickly getting back up and working again.

In order to get his mind off of these thoughts, Sans watched as Papyrus was trying to solve an abandoned puzzle game on the computer. Comrade hadn't shut it off before going to his room. The mouse was hard to manoeuvre at times, but he enjoyed the challenge anyway.

The door opened and Jason walked in. He'd been gone for a solid eight hours, and it had since gotten dark. Papyrus smiled at him, abandoning the game to greet him. Sans grinned at the shifter.

They both froze when they took in his demeanour. He had shut the door, leaning against it for support. His breathing was erratic, and he was wiping sweat from his brow.

'SANS, IS HE OKAY?' Papyrus signed, face twisted with worry. Sans shrugged. He didn't know what to make of the display.

Comrade had bounded down the stairs when he heard the door close. He opened his mouth to scold his brother, as he always did when he returned from being out for so long. But he stopped when he took in Jason's strangely pale face.

'Bro, what happened?' He asked. Jason laughed quietly.

'Don't worry, buddy, I was jus-' He had gone to take a step forward, but the leg buckled and he collapsed. He reached out and gripped the side of the couch to catch himself. He took a couple of shuddering breaths, waving Comrade's concern aside.

'Don't worry, my leg just fell asleep… Just need to walk it o-' He gasped as he took a step forward, plopping himself onto the couch, 'Nope. I'm gonna sit down. I think I heard the other one yawn.'

'Jay, please! Something's wrong! You need to tell me what happened!' Comrade cried, looking his brother over as he dragged the cloak from his shoulders.

Sans shivered. The front of his shirt had specks of red scattered across the fabric. The fabric was torn in many places, and much of one sleeve had been ripped away. He was missing a couple of knives, and on his exposed arm was what looked like a blistering patch of flesh.

'Jason… what is that?' Jason's brow furrowed as he looked at the patch. He grabbed his torn sleeve and yanked it up, unfocused eyes struggling to make it out. It was almost in the shape of a hand print.

'Huh. So he did get me,' He muttered, words slurred slightly, 'I was wondering why I was getting so dizzy after only a cup.' Comrade frowned.

'Have you been drinking?!' He demanded. Sans stared between the two, shocked. Was alcohol able to do this to shifters? Surely not. Something else must have happened!

'Jus' one, man. I… I…' Jason fell limp on the couch.

'FUCK!'

In all their time with those brothers, never had Sans heard Comrade swear.

Comrade began to shake Jason, yelling at him to stay awake. When he didn't respond, Comrade began pressing at something in his ear.

'Please, I need a medic over at house twelve! Jason just got home and collapsed on the couch!' He yelled at nothing, again glancing at the blistered patch, 'I think he got hit by a Trapist! He's out and- Oh God! It's bubbling!' Sure enough, the flesh was quivering, tiny dark bubbles appearing. The flesh around it had gone pale and the wound itself had become inflamed. Sans gasped in shock. The wound was acidic, and was now slowly eating away at his flesh.

After a few more seconds of panic, the door was slammed open and a figure rushed to Jason's side. It was a girl, barely older that sixteen. Blonde hair was tied up in a messy bun, and she was draped with a too large jacket over shorts and a baggy shirt. It looked as if she had sprung out of bed and grabbed the first thing she could before rushing over. Comrade quickly moved out of her way, leaning against the table and keeping wide, concerned eyes on his brother.

She put down a small bundle and flicked it to the side, opening up a kit of vials and bandages. She quickly examined the wound, never saying a word, before grabbing a couple of vials and mixing them together. She dumped the strange goo onto a small pad and placed it over the wound. Jason flinched, tensing up, then calmed and slumped against the couch again. She sighed, shaking her head.

'He really needs to come in for check-ups after he's finished an assignment.' She ground out, voice chipped but light with compassion. She removed the pad, looking at the now less inflamed area with disdain before grabbing a bandage to secure it.

'What happened, Joanna? Is he alright?' Comrade asked. She smiled at him.

'Don't worry, he's okay now. It was just a small paralysis concoction that would slowly eat away at him. Simply remedy. You're lucky you noticed this when you did, though. It could have done a lot of damage to his nervous system... maybe even killed him, if left unchecked for too long.' Comrade cringed, but smiled in relief.

'So, he'll be fine?'

'He'll need to stay indoors and rest for the next few days. Give him these before every meal,' She instructed, plucking out some herbs and handing them to him, 'If he can avoid any stress, he should be completely fine by the end of the week.'

Comrade looked at the herbs and cringed at the sharp smell.

'Ya know he won't be happy 'bout that.' He said. She just snickered.

'People can say that my medicine is disgusting all they want, but they cannot deny that it works,' She said as she collected her bundle, 'I suggest you leave him where he is for now. He'll be fine there for the night.'She turned to go to the door, but paused.

'Hey, how has your arm been?' Comrade smiled, a hand hovering close to his shoulder.

'It's better,' He informed, smiling slightly, 'You can almost not see the scar now. Your work is very good.' She smiled, nodding a silent thanks, then left.

Comrade took a deep breath, leaning against the table. He ran his hand over his face, looking back at Jason. It was almost as if the scare had never happened. Then Sans heard him quietly sob.

'Jay, why won't you ever tell me what's wrong?' He breathed, arms wrapped tightly around himself.

Sans and Papyrus looked at each other, stricken by what they heard. Papyrus rushed to Comrade, pushing against his side to get his attention. This made Comrade smile, but tears were still threatening to fall.

'Thanks buddy.' He murmured, hugging him carefully with a hand.

'Come on,' He said, carefully scooping up the two skeletons, 'We'd better let him rest.' He placed the two on the ground, and quickly set out to cover Jason. The skeleton brothers watched for a moment, before returning to their small bundle of soft fabric in the corner that acted as their bed.

'SANS, I HOPE HE'LL BE OKAY.' Papyrus signed, sighing quietly.

'me too, bro.'