.:Author's Note: This might be a tiny bit of a spoiler, but I'd like to give a small warning ahead of this chapter. This chapter contains a birth scene that some may consider explicit. If you get squeamish at such things, you may wish to skip this chapter. You shouldn't miss too much actual plot besides the baby being born.:.

"man, this sucks…" Sans grumbled under his breath, resting his chin on the back of the couch as he stared out the window. The world outside was nothing but a flurry of white, the snow starting to pile up so high that the diminutive skeleton would likely have just disappeared down into the fluffy substance if he'd attempted to step outside. Of course, he wasn't the only one sitting there, staring out the window, lamenting what horrible luck they seemed to have.

"Ngaaah! Dammit, I told ya we shoulda taken Papyrus to the hospital days ago! How are we gonna get him through this blizzard if something happens?!" Undyne growled out, slamming her fist against the back of the couch so hard that Sans was surprised she didn't crack the damn thing in half. He let out a sigh, shaking his head.

"and i told you that it wouldn't have done any good. they'd just send him right back home if he's not in pain or in labor. besides, it's not like you knew the blizzard was coming either. this freakin' underground weather is so unpredictable… i'd hate ta be the weather guy right now. prolly everyone in snowdin wants ta murder 'im right now for not calling this one."

"Yeah, an' I'm right at the top of the list!" the sea sprite shouted, shaking her fist angrily at nothing in particular. "Not only am I stuck here with you losers for God knows how long, but I'm stuck here with a pregnant skeleton that's set to pop any day now!"

"hey, you ain't got no one but yourself to blame for that last bit. you're the one that wanted to sleep over just in case papy went into labor."

It was true, and not even Undyne could deny it. She'd been sleeping on the couch for the past several days now, intent on being there to bring Papyrus to the hospital in the Capital when it came time for him to have the baby. Unfortunately, fate seemed to conspire against them all, making the sea sprite's stay a little more long-term than she'd originally planned on. Sans would be laughing at her predicament if Papyrus's baby wasn't due to be born any minute. He just hoped his brother could hold out long enough for the weather to clear up a bit, just enough that they could get him safely up to the Riverperson if they needed to.

"S-SO, HAS IT CLEARED UP AT ALL YET?"

Both Undyne and Sans whirled around when the voice addressed them from behind, both practically glaring at the very pregnant skeleton standing there. Papyrus flinched slightly, shrinking back a little as though afraid he'd done something wrong.

"Hey! What're you doin' down here on your own?! We told you not to come down the stairs without anyone helpin' ya!" Undyne scolded in her usual brash manner, to which Papyrus could only hold his hands up meekly in surrender.

"I-I WAS CAREFUL! I MADE IT DOWN JUST FINE, DIDN'T I?"

"yeah, well, are you okay otherwise? how are you feeling?" Sans asked, nervously eyeing the hand Papyrus had resting against the underside of his swollen abdomen.

"TIRED AND ACHEY, BUT I'M FINE. I'M ALSO TIRED OF JUST SITTING UP IN MY ROOM ALL DAY! I'M GETTING SO ANTSY THAT I CAN HARDLY SIT STILL! CAN'T I STAY DOWN HERE WITH YOU TWO FOR A LITTLE BIT?"

Undyne opened her mouth, likely to tell him to waddle his boney ass back up to his room, but Sans slapped a hand over her mouth before she had the chance.

"yeah, no problem, bro. just take it easy, will ya?" Sans replied with a small smile, seeming to put little effort into restraining the sea sprite's brazen tongue even as she clawed at his hand to remove it from her face. Papyrus gave a relieved smile in return before turning to head towards the kitchen. Only when the taller skeleton disappeared across the threshold did Sans release Undyne.

"Hey! What's the deal, shrimp?!" she growled, immediately wrapping a strong hand around the diminutive skeleton's neck. Sans pried her fingers from around his vertebrae with a small grunt.

"hey, chill out. jeez…" he grumbled out, rubbing against a fresh sore spot at his throat. "forcing him out of his mind with boredom ain't gonna help the situation any. this might be better, anyway. as soon as he gets back in here, we'll just sit him on the couch and let him watch tv while we wait for the storm to clear. besides, we'll be able to keep a closer eye on him down here."

Undyne narrowed her eye down at him, folding her arms across her chest as though preparing to assert her authority over the situation. After a moment, however, she let out a sigh and flopped down on the couch.

"Alright, fine… I guess you're right…" she more or less mumbled in reply, looking a bit defeated. Sans smiled lightly, joining her on the couch with a lazy flop. As soon as he did so, the lights in the house flickered, threatening for a moment to go out completely before returning to full power with an audible hum. He glanced up with a nervous smile, meeting Undyne's one-eyed glare once more.

"i'll, uhh… i'll just go get him before the power cuts out. don't need him stumbling around in the dark on his own." He announced preemptively before the sea sprite had a chance to question his decision once more. He slipped off the couch and made his way into the kitchen somewhat more quickly than he normally might have.

Papyrus was standing at the sink – the empty glass on the counter next to him suggesting that he'd originally gone in there to get a drink of water – but his hands rested on the edge of the counter as though he were having trouble staying upright on his own, and he seemed to be staring off into space with a somewhat confused expression. A wave of icy panic washed over Sans as he dashed over to his brother's side.

"p-papyrus! are you okay?!" he questioned hastily as he gently tried to get the taller skeleton to straighten up a bit. Papyrus wouldn't budge from where he stood, shaking his head stiffly in reply. Sans pressed a hand against the side of his brother's swollen abdomen. He soon felt the normally semi-springy barrier tense sharply under his touch, and Papyrus let out a grunt of pain through tightly gritted teeth.

"o-oh shit… undyne!" he called out, unable to hide the desperation in his voice. Undyne dashed into the kitchen without hesitation, immediately flying to Papyrus's side.

"Wh-what's going on?!"

"he's having contractions. here, help him out to the living room. i'll go get some towels." Sans instructed, dashing off to the upstairs closet once the sea sprite had Papyrus's arm around her neck to help keep him on his feet.

"W-wait, you're gonna do it here?! Shouldn't we take him to the hospital?!" she called after Sans as she helped the ailing skeleton out of the kitchen as quickly as he could manage.

"yeah, look out the window and tell me if that's gonna happen!" came Sans's voice from somewhere upstairs. "i'm not about to take him out there like this!"

Undyne opened her mouth to retort, but a loud cry of pain from Papyrus cut her off as he collapsed to his knees a few feet from the couch, dragging the Royal Guard down with him. She cursed under her breath, trying in vain to get the skeleton back up on his feet. Sans rushed over from the stairway at that point, his arms full with a stack of folded-up towels.

"n-no, just leave him there. that's as good a spot as any." he said as he set the towels aside for a moment, helping his brother into a more appropriate position where he could lean his back against the couch. Papyrus was in no state to protest being manhandled, resting his head against the seat cushion of the couch as another wave of pain hit him, his hand clutching tightly at the fabric covering his belly. Undyne knelt at his side and managed to pry his fingers from where they grasped at his sweater, letting him squeeze her hand instead. She looked down to where Sans was kneeling between his brother's legs, hastily spreading out the towels on the floor underneath him.

"Wh-why do you need so many towels?"

"skeletons tend to be, uhh… a-a little messy when they give birth." Sans admitted with a nervous smile as he took off his hoodie, tossing it off to the side where it couldn't get anything on it. "actually, all this probably isn't enough. with how big papy's belly's gotten, we'll probably still have a bit of a mess to clean up after it's all over. the phrase 'he's about to pop' is pretty much literal in this case."

Undyne continued to watch with considerable unease as Sans pulled Papyrus's sweater up to expose the bulging blue barrier that encased the normally-slender skeleton's abdomen.

"Have you done something like this before?!" she asked, her eye narrowing suspiciously. Sans couldn't stop a slightly embarrassed shade of blue from creeping across his cheeks.

"no, but i was there when papyrus was born. i still remember just about everything that was done, and it all seemed straightforward enough. h-how hard can it be?" he explained, not willing to make eye-contact. There was also the fact that he'd been reviewing Gaster's old notes on the procedure for the past month just in case something like this came up, but he wasn't about to get into all that. He rested a hand gently against his brother's barrier. It was already starting to get thinner, growing less springy and more fragile. It wouldn't be too much longer now. At this rate, they probably wouldn't have made it to the hospital in time anyway, even if the weather was on their side.

"alright bro, you're gonna hafta start pushing soon, okay?" Sans announced, flashing his brother a small smile that he hoped looked reassuring. Papyrus looked down at him almost in terror, tears already starting to work their way down his cheeks, mingling with the layer of sweat that had formed over his face.

"'P-PUSH?!' PUSH WHAT?!" Papyrus managed to shriek out painfully between heavy, labored panting. Sans felt a pang of guilt stab at him. He'd never got around to going into detail on that part, did he? Oh well, it didn't matter at this point. He'd just have to walk him through it as best he could. He pressed his fingers against the barrier down near where it met his brother's pelvic bone, making sure not to press too hard.

"push with your magic. when you feel the barrier contracting again, push down where you feel my fingers as hard as you can. the barrier might not pop right away, so don't worry if it doesn't happen the first time."

Papyrus gave a quick nod to let him know he understood, and the next contraction hit him a moment later. Sans felt his brother's magic pushing against his hand through the barrier for just a split second before it stopped, and Papyrus let out a loud sob of agony.

"h-hey, what's wrong? why'd you stop?" Sans asked, brows knit in concern. He didn't know what he should do if his brother couldn't break the barrier on his own. That was something they definitely needed the hospital for. The answer, however, was something he really should have expected.

"I-IT HURTS!" Papyrus whimpered out, tears now streaming freely down his face. Sans let out a sigh, but rubbed at his brother's leg soothingly.

"you're kinda having a baby, papy. it's gonna hurt. you just gotta bear through it 'til it's over. just don't panic, keep your breathing steady, and keep pushing."

On the next contraction, Sans was relieved to feel that Papyrus managed to push the whole way through, though he certainly wasn't remaining quiet about how much discomfort it caused him. Even better, the barrier seemed to be thinning further at the point where most of the pressure was being focused. That was definitely a good thing. It meant he shouldn't have much of a problem doing it on his own from here on out.

A few more like that brought the barrier to the brink of bursting. Sans looked up, intending to inform his brother that he probably only needed to push one more time when he heard a faint 'pop.' He let out a yelp of surprise when his hand – and most everything else below it – was suddenly covered in warm ectoplasm. He just barely managed to react in time to catch the tiny, wriggling infant that fell out in that same instant.

The newborn skeleton let out a loud wail as it shivered and trembled in Sans's hands, its little face scrunched up in discomfort at having been suddenly evicted from its rather cozy little bubble. The older skeleton couldn't stop a wide grin from spreading across his face at the sight of it, how it squirmed against his palms in protest at being out in the cold, open air, how its little blue soul pulsed strongly within its ribcage. He'd done it. Well, no, Papyrus had done it, but nonetheless… they'd finally brought Gaster back.

Sans gingerly set the infant down on the towels covering the floor for a moment, grabbing one of the softer towels he'd brought down to clean off most of the ectoplasm still clinging to the baby's delicate little bones. Once he was clean enough for the time being, he wrapped him up in a blanket and picked him up once more.

Papyrus was still leaning back against the couch, fighting to catch his breath when his brother knelt down at his side. Exhausted though he was, his face absolutely lit up when he looked over and saw the squirming bundle Sans held in his arms. The shorter skeleton held the infant out to him, and Papyrus wrapped his arms around the tiny monster with careful eagerness. The newborn seemed to calm considerably the instant he was in his mother's arms, resting his head against Papyrus's chest and clinging desperately to his sweater.

"so, whaddaya think? he's pretty cute, huh?" Sans whispered softly, not wanting to speak too loudly around the baby. Not that it really mattered much in this case. After all, the kid had just spent nine months inside Papyrus. He'd probably be used to loud, obnoxious voices already.

Papyrus looked over the infant lovingly for a moment. Suddenly, his smile flicked away, his brows knit in concern. Sans's soul clenched in guilt as he watched his younger brother delicately trace his thumb along the prominent crack running from the baby's left eye down to his mouth, and he could tell the lanky skeleton's gaze was fixed on the other large crack leading up from the infant's half-closed right eye as well. Papyrus then looked up at Sans once more, a look of pure panic on his face.

"D-DID I DO THIS?! DID I PUSH TOO HARD?! I-IS HE HURT?! OH GOD, WHAT DID I DO?!" he asked frantically, tears welling up in his eyes once more, this time in absolute terror at having possibly hurt his little baby.

"h-hey, take it easy, bro!" Sans assured immediately, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder to keep him steady. "h-he's perfectly fine, i promise! those are just, uhh… birthmarks! y-yeah! th-they don't hurt him at all, they just look a little funny. hell, they might even close up as he gets older."

It was a bold-faced lie, and Sans knew it. He knew good and well that those particular deformities were more than simple birthmarks, and he knew they wouldn't go away. But what else could he say? Nothing had gone wrong in Papyrus's pregnancy, and he'd genuinely done nothing wrong while giving birth. There was no way he could tell his brother that those cracks were simply supposed to be there because Gaster had been born with them before.

Even so, Papyrus seemed to calm down a bit at that explanation, running his finger gently along the crack once more and watching for any flinch or twitch that would have suggested pain on the infant's part. The baby, now quite content in his mother's arms, didn't twitch in the slightest. Instead, he reached up and curled his tiny little hand around Papyrus's fingertip. A warm smile soon melted its way back onto the lanky skeleton's face, his earlier scare all but forgotten.

"So, uhhh… What're ya gonna name him?" Undyne chimed in finally, peeking over Papyrus's shoulder to get a better look at the little tyke.

"I WAS THINKING 'GASTER.'" Papyrus responded thoughtfully, at which point Sans nearly choked on his own tongue.

"i-i'm sorry, what?!" the elder skeleton exclaimed without thinking, causing the infant in his brother's arms to squirm and let out a whine that almost threatened tears. He was a little too distracted to feel bad about that at the moment. Had he heard that correctly?! How did Papyrus even know the name 'Gaster,' let alone decide that it was a fitting name for a newborn who, after all, really was Gaster?! The younger skeleton merely arched a brow in confusion, rocking his son gently to calm him down.

"I SAID I WANT TO CALL HIM 'ASTER.' IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH THAT NAME?"

Sans could only stare for a moment. Oh, so he had heard wrong after all… But, with a name so similar, it simply couldn't be a coincidence, could it?

"uhh… nothin' wrong with it, but… why do you wanna name him that?"

"I… I DON'T KNOW. I JUST DO. IT POPPED IN MY HEAD ONE DAY AND I LIKED IT. WHY? DO YOU NOT THINK IT FITS HIM? SHOULD I THINK OF SOMETHING ELSE?"

"n-no, no. it's fine." Sans replied, giving his brother one of his usual goofy grins. He then looked down at his nephew once more, reaching over to gently poke the little guy's nose with a soft 'boop.' Aster merely stared at his uncle's finger for a moment before reaching up and grasping it. He then led it, as babies often do, right to his little mouth, proceeding to drool all over the adult skeleton's fingertip as he nommed it. Sans couldn't help but let out an adoring chuckle.

"yeah, i think aster works just fine."