Author's Note: Hey guys! Blazedveggies556 here with the longest one-shot that I've ever written. Hope you enjoy it!

"Michael Wazowski has just reached another milestone with the first to garner half a million laughs!"

A group of Monsters Inc. employees swarmed over to Mike to heap on their praise as the announcement rang along the metal walls.

"Well done, buddy!"

"Wow, what a feat!"

"That's certainly not something to sneeze at!"

"Way to go… eh… you! (Psst… what's his name again?)"

Mike took in the praise with a shrug of his shoulders and a sly smile. "Aw, it's really nothin'… nothin' a true comedian like myself couldn't handle!"

His captivated crowd gave a small chuckle.

"You're so awesome, Mr. Wazowski!" Needleman admired.

"Yeah!" Smitty agreed, nodding his head vigorously. "You gotta have some tips for monsters wanting to go into the business!"

Mike put a hand to his chin and rubbed it thoughtfully. "Hmm… well… if I told ya all my secrets, then my comedy would lose its charm."

Needleman gasped, covering his mouth, and Smitty smacked the back of Needleman's head. "I knew you shouldn't have made me ask him! You almost made him lose his charm!"

Mike laughed. "Well, I could tell you guys one thing." He bent down low and scooped up the air with his hands.

"Y'see, before you can get in there, you gotta psych yourself up. You gotta get in front of some reflective surface, reach into the cockles of your heart, look yourself straight in the eye, and yell at the top of your lungs— Schmoopsie-poo!"

Mike ran over to his girlfriend, Celia, much to the confusion of the other monsters. Celia beamed at him, her hair squeaking in excitement. "Googley Bear! I just wanted to say congrats on the milestone! Sulley would have congratulated you too, but he got caught up in some business about a new shipment of doors." Mike looked behind Celia where he could see Sulley near the entrance to the laugh floor. He wore a puzzled frown as he listened to a couple of anxious warehouse monsters but perked up when Mike caught his eye, giving him a grin and a thumbs-up. Mike returned the same gesture.

"Aw, you guys didn't have to stop everything to see me… I mean… heh… just doing my job…" Mike downplayed, but he could not help but stand a little taller. "But, wow, was that last gig I had amazing! I really knocked it out of the park, let me tell ya! Water wasn't just coming out of that kid's eyes."

As Mike was talking, a large crowd of employees suddenly ran over to where a tall red monster was emerging from a cabin door. "Huh," Mike wondered out loud, "what's with all the commotio…" but his voice trailed off as he noticed how fast the numbers were going up for one of the employees on the scoreboard. The employee's number bumped up from 499,442 to 499,802.

"A 360-point jump…? Can you even do that?" Mike thought to himself. Meanwhile, the other employees were applauding the monster of interest.

"Wowza! How'd you do that, Frank?! That's really something!" one of the monsters commended.

"Yeah!" another monster enthusiastically agreed. "I haven't even seen Mike pull off something that big. Must be that pure improv technique!"

Mike's shoulders slumped as he looked on at the gawking crowd.

"Looks like you have some good competition there. He's one of the hardest workers we have," Celia observed.

"Who? You mean 'Mr. Frankfurter' over there?" Mike jeered.

"Michael…" Celia chided, giving Mike's shoulder a tap.

"What? Does he or does he not look like a walking 6-foot hotdog?"

"Well, I don't think that's very nice. He's a sweet guy, and I hear he's been a great hit with the human kids. He really knows what makes them laugh. And I think a little competition is good for you. It really keeps you on your toes."

Mike looked at the crowd with a furrowed brow. "Hmm…"

"Anyways, honey bear, I should go. The phones are probably ringing off the hook without me. This is the busy season after all and we're still adjusting to the new system." Celia gave Michael a quick peck on the cheek, though he was still deep in thought. She called out to him as she exited the laugh floor. "Don't forget our luncheon today, okay, Woogley?"

"…Huh? O-okay Schmoopsie. Okay…" Mike's eye was still on the crowd. "Tch… doubt the kids are laughing with them. It's at him. That sounds more like it," he thought. But Mike couldn't deny the stiff competition. His own comedic technique was a mix of improv and routine, though he was good at knowing what a kid might laugh at depending on their profile. "Maybe, though… I need to practice more on my improv. If I'm gonna keep my top ranking, I'm gonna have to start stepping up my game. But it's not good enough if I'm just practicing in front of a mirror. Maybe the simulation room would be better…"

[…]

At the start of lunch, Mike slipped away to the simulation room without anybody noticing (though, no one was really paying him any mind). Before he went through the double doors, he made sure no one was around. It was against the rules for employees to use it if they already completed their training hours, but considering he knew all about the safety regulations and protocol, he figured there would not be a problem. Besides, his friend was the boss. He would understand the situation.

Those were good enough reasons for him to continue, so he went inside and closed the doors behind him.

Not much had changed since the last time he had been in there. The simulation stage was still at the center with the training bedroom in place, the door station was before it, and the observation panel was still set to the left. Nothing out of the ordinary, except for those crazy memories he had of the room.

Those memories reminded him of somebody. "The kid! Why don't I just practice my jokes on the kid? A real gig would work tons better than any simulation." He tapped a claw against the metal doors as he thought more about the idea. "… Nah, that wouldn't work. I know her too well. She's an easy crowd… heh, 'nless I insulted Sulley in some way, then the kid's practically a brick wall. But, nah, the simulation will have to do." So he made his way to the training bedroom door, but as he did, a large shadow seemed to materialize in the far corner of the simulation room.

He stood still. "H… Hello? Sir? M-ma'am? Dark… rectangular figure?" he called out. When he got no response, he took a couple steps closer to the shadow and saw what it was.

"Doors…? What in the world are doors doin' here?" he wondered. As he got closer, he saw that there were manila folders in a pile next to them. "And their information, too? What moron would just leave these lying around?" He picked them up and examined them. The paperwork was in there, but they were blank, save for their cards and information about their location and timezone. There were no pictures of kids, either.

"What? Something's not right here. I need to go tell Sulley about this."

He turned to go, but then an idea struck him.

Real doors. No information. Perfect improv opportunities.

He shook the thoughts from his mind. "Woah, slow down there, Mike. What am I thinking? I can't just go waltzin' into some kid's door with no info... I shouldn't even be waltzin' into some kid's door, period! Not even Boo's! This practice ain't worth it… right?"

But those thoughts would not leave.

"Way to go… eh… you! (Psst… what's his name again?)"

"How'd you do that, Frank?! That's really something!"

"I haven't even seen Mike pull off something that big!"

…

Mike looked down at his watch. 20 minutes before the end of lunch.

Before he could completely register what he was doing, he pressed the eject button to the simulator and released the old door. It took some effort to carry it out, but once he had set it aside, he grabbed the first manila folder in the pile and scrutinized the little information it offered.

"Let's see here… this one belongs to… the balsa wood door… balsa wood? That's weird. Huh… in… Scotland… they should be in the middle of the night right now, so this is perfect." Looking through the array of doors, he found the one he was looking for— a door painted a dark brown with two thick, lighter brown stripes made to look like panels. The knob was the only genuine part of it.

"Talk about a makeshift door, but at least it should be easy to pick up," he thought. He grabbed its metal frame and pulled the door out of the assortment with ease. In half a minute, he had the door all set up and ready to go, the buzzing light at the top of the frame glowing red.

Mike forced out a breath and loosened his shoulders. "All right. Just gonna spend five minutes in there, get a few good ones in, then get out. Don't think about it. Just get in and do it." He looked down at himself. The only thing he had with him was his microphone. "Hmm, does feel a little weird not having my lucky bar stool, but hey, guess I'll know what it feels like to be a real stand up comedian! Ha ha! Eh heh… eh… well, on that note…"

He cautiously opened the door and peeked inside. It was dark, but the moonlight coming through a window illuminated most of the items. There was a large bookcase to his right with various children's books, an old computer to his left, and a racecar bed to his far right where a person was sleeping soundly.

"Cute. I'm sure this kid's got a great sense of humor," he whispered. He tiptoed inside, closed the door with a soft click, and crept over to the center of the carpet.

Mike cleared his throat, his heartbeat quickening. "Well, it's now or never. Gotta do this fast," he whispered to himself.

He took a big breath and held the microphone to his lips. "HeeeEEEYYYYOOOooo!"

The person jolted upright in their bed and turned to reach the lamp on their nightstand next to them.

"Hey, thanks for havin' me to liven up your night! Great to be here in ol' Sco… uh…"

When the lamp turned on, Mike did not see a kid in front of him. They were not even human. Instead, two hollow eyes stared at him.

It was a skeleton.

The two stared at each other in shock, the dying squeal of the microphone the only noise amidst the awkward silence.

"Uh…" Mike started to say, "… no one told me I was taking the graveyard shift. Eh heh."

The skeleton's face changed from shock to mild irritation. "WAS THAT A JOKE? UGH! A TRESPASSING LOOX WHO TELLS JOKES. THIS IS NOW MY NINTH LEAST FAVORITE NIGHTMARE, BUT SEEING AS THIS IS BETTER THAN TALKING ECHO FLOWERS, I WILL ALLOW IT."

"Uh, yeah, don't know what a 'Looks' is, but uh, this… this isn't Scotland?" Mike asked.

"NO, THIS IS MY ROOM," the skeleton replied.

Mike frowned. "Gee, thanks for the helpful info."

"YOU ARE MOST WELCOME!"

Mike stared at the other monster in disbelief. "Heh heh… this guy… he's got jokes." He turned on his heels to leave. "Welp, this is what I get for walking through a door I don't know nothing about. Somehow, someone made an error and made a door going to somewhere else in Monstropolis… Fableville, Wesenburg… I don't know, but I'm goin' before this gets any weirder."

"MR. LOOX, WHERE ARE YOU GOING? THE EXIT IS THE OTHER DOOR. OR PERHAPS THE WINDOW. IF YOU'D LIKE MY OPINION, I'D CHOOSE THE WINDOW!" the skeleton advised.

"I'm not going through the window," Mike said over his shoulder, "I came from the closet." The skeleton cocked his head. "Y'know… because I work for Monsters Inc. I think there's just been some mistake," Mike clarified.

"WOW, THAT IS AMAZING!" the skeleton declared.

Mike straightened up. "Oh, well… thank you!"

"A LOOX THAT WORKS AT A FICITIOUS COMPANY WHERE THEY COME OUT OF CLOSETS AND TELL JOKES. I HAVE SUCH AN ACTIVE IMAGINATION!"

Mike stared at the skeleton, blinking a few times. Then he turned back to the closet door. "All right, I'm going." He furrowed his brow. "You would think he would know about Monsters Inc. Every monster knows about us. Maybe I'm in a more obscure area than I thought…" he wondered to himself.

"OH, OKAY MR. LOOX. THANK YOU FOR INFILTRATING MY DREAMS! COME BACK AGAIN SOMETIME!" the skeleton exclaimed.

"Uh huh, yeah, sure." Mike turned the doorknob and opened the closet.

But there were only clothes inside.

"Oh no… no no no no no no…" Mike panicked, dropping his microphone. Where was the simulation room?

"WHAT'S THE MATTER MR. LOOX? MAGIC PORTAL GO KAPUT?" asked the skeleton, who was now standing right next to Mike.

"It's more than— woah, you're taller than I thought… i-it's not that it's broken, it's supposed to lead to another room, but it's gone! The door is just completely gone!"

"BUT THE DOOR IS RIGHT HERE."

"No! Not that door! Not th— I— you— augh! I cannot be stuck here! I don't even know where here is!" Mike slammed and opened the door a few times, but there was no change. He kneeled to the closet floor to get a closer look. "No, no! Th-th-there has to be a failsafe or something… I mean, i-it CAN'T be GONE! I was only here for a few minutes! C'mon, c'mon!

He combed the carpet for something, anything! "Mmm… do you maybe have a flashlight or somethin' I can use to see better?"

"sure. here, pal."

Mike grabbed an object from behind him. "Thanks… wait, this is a flashlight? Never seen a rectangulaAH!" He yelped at the new face staring at him.

"whoops. sorry, bud. didn't mean to rattle your bones," chuckled a shorter skeleton.

"UGH! I CAN'T EVEN ESCAPE MY BROTHER'S NONSENSICAL TOMFOLLERY IN MY DREAMS," moaned the taller skeleton.

"uh, pretty sure this is real, bro. we don't normally share the same dream," the shorter skeleton confirmed.

"REALLY? WHAT A RELIEF! MY DREAMS REMAIN UNTAINTED."

The shorter skeleton returned his attention to Mike, who was catching his breath. "so, uh, what's the deal with you, bud? as much as we love having company over, we draw the line on visits at two in the morning, heh. you a burglar or somethin'?"

The taller skeleton answered before Mike could get a word in. "MR. LOOX IS NOT A BURGLAR. HE WORKS AT A COMPANY WHERE EMPLOYEES USE A PORTAL TO GO THROUGH PEOPLE'S CLOSETS AND TELL THEM JOKES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT. SOUNDS LIKE THE KIND OF WEIRD BUSINESS YOU'D BE INTO."

"huh. i think a burglar would've been more believable."

Mike waved his hands and shook his head frantically. "No no no, I'm not a… uh… well, some of that was true, b-but! Let me just explain."

The short skeleton shrugged. "go for it. i'm all ears."

Mike took in a breath to calm down and started to explain.

"My name is not 'Looks'. My name is Mike Wazowski and I work for Monsters Inc. which is in Monstropolis. My job is to go to the human world and make kids laugh using these doors that connect their world to the monster world."

The short skeleton raised an eyebrow ridge at that statement as Mike continued to explain. "Their laughter is what we use for energy over there. I was… getting some practice in, but for some reason the door I used led me here to this room instead of a human kid's bedroom. I don't know how it happened, but I just know that the door I used to get here isn't there anymore and now I'm stuck. All because I… *sigh* oh boy…" Mike slid against the closet door's frame, holding his head with his free hand. The situation felt hopeless.

The two skeletons looked at each other, then the tall skeleton spoke up. "WELL, MAYBE YOU CAN CALL A FRIEND OF YOUR'S AT WORK AND SEE IF THEY CAN PUT THIS DOOR BACK," he suggested.

"Yeah… yeah, that could work! I'll just call work and ask for Sulley!" Mike quickly got to his feet. "Do ya have a phone I could use?"

"YOU COULD USE MY BROTHER'S PHONE SINCE YOU'RE ALREADY HOLDING IT, BUT IF YOU PREFER A PHONE NOT CLUTTERED WITH NOTIFICATIONS AND UNECESSARY APPLICATIONS, I SUGGEST USING MY PHONE." The tall skeleton pulled out a rectangular device from a pocket that looked like it had been crudely sewn onto his nightwear. "ALWAYS READY FOR FRIENDLY-USE!"

Mike looked at the object in his hand. "This flashlight's also a phone? Eh heh, I feel like I'm on a whole different planet."

"you're not far from the truth there, pal," the short skeleton commented. "from what i'm hearing, sounds like you're a bit more out of your element than you realize, so a phone call isn't gonna cut it."

"IS THIS ONE OF YOUR SCIENCE-Y THEORIES, BROTHER? I CAN NEVER WRAP MY HEAD AROUND THOSE. TOO MUCH NERDY JARGON."

"eh, sort of…" The short skeleton looked back at Mike. He was clearly perplexed by what the short skeleton had said, his contemplative gaze directed to the floor. "but, hey. mike." Mike's eye moved back to him. "maybe things will make a little more sense if we tell you a bit about where we live. we don't know what's going on either, but worrying about it isn't doing much, so how 'bout a cup of joe? relax a little. it'll do you some good."

"THOUGH I AM NOT USUALLY FOND OF MY BROTHER'S LAZY SOLUTION TO PROBLEMS, I THINK SOME RELAXATION MAY BE WHAT YOU NEED AT THE MOMENT," the taller skeleton agreed.

Mike looked at the skeleton brothers. He could not help but smile despite the situation. He held a hand out to the shorter of the pair. "Thanks. I appreciate that, uh…"

The short skeleton took Mike's hand and shook it. "sans. sans the skeleton. and this cool guy next to me is my bro, papyrus."

Papryus then took Mike's hand and shook it. "NICE TO FORMALLY MEET YOU, MIKE!"

"Great. And uh… is it a custom here for people to shake one guy's hand at the same time?

"NOPE! THIS JUST HAPPENS TO US SOMETIMES. WE'RE LUCKY LIKE THAT!"

[…]

"Really? For that long? Woof, you guys had it rough, and that's the understatement of this millennium!"

"yeah, yeah, but then the kid broke the barrier and we've been living peacefully with humans ever since. didn't take long for everyone to adjust. they've all been really happy."

Mike took a sip from the coffee mug in his hands, processing everything Sans had told him. "Huh… a world where monsters and humans live together. Who'd a thunk it? … You're not just messin' with me, right? Th-th-th-this is all actually true, right?"

"cross my heart," Sans said as he etched an "X" on the left side of his chest with his finger. "and i don't just say that for the heck of it, heh."

Mike leaned back in his seat and rubbed the back of his head. "Wow… that is really incredible. It's hard to believe, but… now that I think about it, so is a world where laughter is used as energy. I still don't know how that works. It always seemed like magic to me." After a pause, he sighed, resting a cheek against his hand. "'Course I had to get myself in this situation. How am I gonna get home? There's no way I can contact Sul."

For a few seconds, the short skeleton eyed the monster sitting across from him at the dining table, then he stretched out his arms and yawned. "welp, with all that exposition out of the way, i think it'd be good time for papyrus to pop back in."

Mike looked back up at Sans. "Yeah… wait, where is he anyw—"

KABLOOM!

WHAM!

Mike's head jerked towards the sudden noise. Papyrus was flat against the back wall until he peeled off it and fell onto the brothers' green couch, but he was unfazed, lifting his head up and giving a large grin. "I'M BACK!"

"great timing, bro."

"Woah! Are you okay?!" Mike exclaimed, jumping out of his chair. "What happened?! W-w-w-w-was that some sort of explosion?!"

The tall skeleton picked himself up from the couch and brushed himself off. "THE ONLY EXPLOSION THAT HAPPENED WAS MY IDEAS COMING TOGETHER INTO PERFECT UNISON… AS WELL AS THE TNT I MAY HAVE OR MAY NOT HAVE USED FOR THE TRAP."

"Trap?! What trap?!"

"THE TRAP I SET UP FOR WHOEVER OPENS THE CLOSET DOOR. DON'T WORRY, IT'S NON-LETHAL! IT'S ONLY MEANT TO TELL US IF SOMEONE FROM YOUR WORLD COMES TO OUR WORLD. THEN YOU CAN GO HOME!"

Mike stared at Papyrus, dumbfounded. "… What? Why… why would you—"

"—NEED TO GO THROUGH ALL THE TROUBLE OF SETTING UP A CLEVERLY DESIGNED SNARE WITHOUT REGARD TO MY SAFETY? ANYTHING FOR A FRIEND IN NEED! HERE! I'LL EVEN EXPLAIN IT TO YOU!"

He removed a small piece of paper out of his breast pocket and unfurled it, letting it roll to the floor. Mike glanced at Sans, who gave a small shrug and a smile.

"*EHEM*. IT STARTS WHEN SOMEONE OPENS THE DOOR FROM YOUR WORLD. A BELL AT THE TOP OF THE DOOR WILL RING, MAKING THE MOUSE THAT'S BEEN FREELOADING IN OUR HOUSE THINK IT'S DINNER TIME. IT'LL GO INTO MY ROOM AND START EATING THE PLATE OF MY FAMOUS LEFTOVER SPAGHETTI THAT'S BEEN PLACED CONVIENIENTLY OVER A ROPE THAT IS ATTACHED TO A PULLEY SYSTEM WITH A BOULDER ATTACHED TO ONE END OF IT. ONCE THE MOUSE HAS CHEWED THROUGH THE ROPE, THE SPRINGS IN MY BED THAT ARE ATTACHED TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROPE WILL SEND MY BED FLYING TOWARDS THE ENDTABLE WHICH WILL THEN PROCEED TO SWERVE TOWARDS THE BOOKCASE, KNOCKING DOWN A SINGLE COPY OF MR. TITO GAONA'S 'HOW TO' GUIDE ON JAPES AND PUZZLES. THE TREMOR CAUSED BY THE BOOK WILL THEN SET OFF A HYDRAULIC SYSTEM WHICH I HAVE BROKEN DOWN INTO FIVE PARTS—"

"well, while you explain everything to mike here, i'm going to go hit the sack," Sans stated, scooting back his chair and making his way towards the stairs.

"SANS, ARE YOU BEING SERIOUS?! WE HAVE A GUEST HERE!" Papyrus reprimanded. "IT IS OUR DUTY AS HOSTS TO ENSURE HE IS ENTERTAINED AND CONTENT. THERE IS NO TIME FOR YOUR USUAL LAZINESS!"

"heh, you know how i am. i'm always bone-tired," Sans winked. He was already halfway up the stairs.

"UGH! SANS!"

"aw, c'mon, throw me a bone here. i'm not usually up at this hour. besides, i'm a light sleeper. anything happens, i'll be up and at'em before you can even blink."

As soon as he said that, he was already walking through his open bedroom door. As he turned to close the door, he flashed a grin and sent a little salute to the two monsters downstairs. "night, paps. be seeing you, mike."

Mike sent a small wave back at him. "Night."

Then Sans' door closed with a click.

"HMPH, THAT LAZYBONES," Papyrus huffed. "OH WELL. IT CAN'T BE HELPED. AT LEAST HE MANAGED TO STAY AWAKE FOR THIS LONG." He looked over at Mike, who had sat back down and was rubbing his closed eye with his hand, grimacing. Then he looked down at the list in his hands. "…UH… WELL THE DETAILS OF THIS ARE NOT IMPORTANT. THAT WOULD RUIN ALL THE SURPRISE THAT IT STORES! I'D MUCH RATHER TALK ABOUT WHERE YOU COME FROM!"

Mike lifted his head. "Hm? Where I come from?"

"YES!" Papyrus enthusiastically exclaimed. "HERE WE ARE TALKING ALL ABOUT OUR WORLD, BUT YOU DIDN'T TELL US MUCH ABOUT YOUR'S! I LOVE A GOOD YARN, SO I WANT TO HEAR ALL ABOUT IT!" The tall skeleton immediately took his brother's seat, resting his face in his hands as he eagerly awaited Mike's story.

"Um… well, where to begin? Eh heh heh," Mike chuckled nervously. "… Um… to tell the truth, I-I wasn't much for history class, so I really don't know much about… uh… 'the world', so I guess I could tell you a little about my work…"

Papyrus still wore an enthusiastic grin, so Mike continued his story. "Um, so I've been working at Monsters Inc. since I was out of college, but not always as one of the respectable staff. I had to work my way up to get there. Wasn't always glamorous, but it was worth every second for a chance to be a part of one of the greats, especially when I was workin' with my best friend, Sul. I mentioned him, yeah?"

Papyrus nodded. "SEVERAL TIMES!"

Mike bobbed his head. "Yeah. Me and him, we worked our way up 'til we both became employees of the company together. He was originally in my current position… eh, sort of. I-it's a whole 'nother thing, but anyway, I was his partner, and man, did we make one heck of a team. He supported me and I supported him. There was nothin' that we couldn't do! And now Sulley… he's the new CEO of the company and I'm in his previous position…"

Mike noticed Papyrus tilting his head, his eyes showing a hint of concern. "Oh, d-don't get me wrong!" Mike clarified. "I'm happy for the big guy! Really, I am! And I am lovin' my job! And my life! I still got my supportive friend. I got a supportive girlfriend, the real apple of my eye. And I've been doin' great at my work! Top of my game, just like Sul was. And I've been getting a lotta respect for that from my peers, and… I really wanted to keep it that way, but… now there's this new guy on the scene who's been really amazin'… way better than me… I didn't want him surpassing me, you know? I wanted to keep all that respect. I really didn't get much of that when I was with Sul. Most of the praise all went to him. At the time I really didn't care, but now that I'm really makin' a name for myself… I don't want to let that go…"

He sighed. "And that's how I ended up here. I was so desperate to improve my skills, I used a door when I wasn't supposed to. I just… really needed them to tell me how great I was doing. I just… ju—!"

Suddenly Mike found himself a few feet off the ground as Papyrus had picked him up by the shoulders. "Woah, woah. Wh-wh-what are you—" Mike started to ask, who was a little uncomfortable, but he was cut off my Papyrus' stern voice.

"MIKE." Papyrus' hard stare caught Mike's full attention. "YOU DON'T NEED ANYONE TO TELL YOU THAT YOU'RE GREAT." The skeleton smiled warmly at the monster in front of him. "YOU JUST NEED TO TELL YOURSELF THAT!"

Papyrus put Mike down and struck a heroic pose. "MIKE, DO YOU KNOW HOW I CAME TO BE THE MAGNIFICENT MONSTER THAT GRACES YOU WITH THEIR PRESCENCE AT THIS PRESENT MOMENT?"

"Um… eh…"

"IT'S BECAUSE ONE DAY I CHOSE TO WAKE UP EVERY MORNING (AND OCCASIONALY THE DEAD OF NIGHT) AND BE THE BEST ME THAT I CAN BE! THAT'S HOW I CAN SAY WITH GREAT CONFIDENCE THAT I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus proudly exclaimed. "I ALWAYS COME OUT THE WINNER IN EVERYTHING I DO BECAUSE I ALWAYS TRY MY VERY BEST, NO MATTER WHAT! AND FROM WHAT I HEARD FROM YOU, I KNOW THAT YOU ALWAYS TRY YOUR BEST, TOO! AND I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT YOUR TRUE FRIENDS SEE THAT IN YOU, TOO, JUST AS MY TRUE FRIENDS SEE THAT IN ME! YOU JUST NEED TO BELIEVE THAT YOU, YOU MIKE, ARE VERY GREAT!"

Mike looked at the contented skeleton who stood there with his hands on his hips, then down at his hands. "… Heh… didn't think I needed to hear that… I… I'm not really sure what to sa—!"

Papyrus grabbed Mike by the hand and was running towards the front door. "I KNOW WHAT WILL MAKE YOU FEEL EVEN BETTER! A GOOD HOOT AND HOLLER AROUND TOWN ABOUT HOW GREAT WE ARE! THAT HELPED MY FRIEND, ALPHYS, WITH HER CONFIDENCE, SO I AM SURE IT WILL DO THE SAME FOR YOU!"

"W-w-wait wait WAIT!" yelled Mike, who was sliding along the carpet reluctantly. Papyrus abruptly stopped in his tracks at Mike's pleas, sending Mike into a faceplant across the floor.

"ARE YOU ALL RIGHT, MIKE?" Papyrus asked, picking up his friend from the floor and setting him down gently.

The one-eyed monster laughed. "Yeah, I'm good. Honest! I don't need to go out and do that. I'm… I'm gonna be okay. Heh… you secretly a psychologist or somethin'?"

"NOPE! I DON'T EVEN OWN A BICYCLE!"

"Ha ha ha! That's a good one!"

As Mike laughed at Papyrus' unintentional joke, there was a large—

CRASH!

SPROING!

BARK!

SQUEAK!

WHUMP!

WHOMP!

WHACK!

… tnk.

— upstairs.

The two monsters glanced at each other, then raced up the stairs to Papyrus' room. They threw open the door and were met with the sight of a large, blue monster hanging upside down, trying to untangle himself from pieces of rope and spaghetti noodles. His eyes were covered in spaghetti sauce, so he did not notice the two other monsters come in.

"WOWIE! MY TRAP WORKS EVEN BETTER THAN I THOUGHT!"

The blue monster froze. "Wh-who's there? Uh… I-I mean you no harm! I-I'm just trying… *augh*… *huff*… to find a friend of mine. I'm not here to hurt you, believe me."

"we believe ya, pal. you seem a little tied up at the moment to do anything."

"ACK! SANS! REALLY?! A PUN AT THIS TIME?! WHEN DID YOU EVEN GET HERE, ANYWAY?!"

Sans blew into Papyrus' eyes, causing them to flutter. "i was here before you could even blink, heh heh heh!"

"SANS!"

"Sulley!" Mike called out as he ran over to the trapped monster and wiped the sauce away from his eyes.

Sulley winced at the sauce that was still in his eyes, but a smile spread across his face as he recognized the familiar voice. "Mike! Oh, so glad you're okay! When Celia told me you didn't show for lunch, I wasn't sure what happened to you. I looked everywhere! Then Needleman and Smitty were telling me they saw one of those…*hff*… unauthorized doors in use and took it down. I thought maybe you were kidnapped!" He looked over at the two skeletons. "… Uh… you weren't kidnapped, were you?"

Mike's face went a little pale with guilt. "No no no no, these guys were helping me. I… ah geez, I'm… I'm sorry I put you two through so much grief. This was my fault. I was a little… jealous of that guy Frank and wanted to get some practice in. I saw the doors and thought I'd just do a quick gig, but… it was really dumb of me. Sorry, pal. I-i-i-i-it was against the rules, I'll take all the consequences comin' to me—"

"Woah woah. Mike. Mike!" Sulley interrupted. "It's all right. This… whole door business is already messy as it is and considering that…*huff*… you keep it secret about me seeing Boo every now and then, least I can do is return the favor, so don't worry about it. I forgive you."

Mike smiled at his friend. "Thanks, buddy."

"Though I think you'll be knee deep in flowers and chocolate if you're going to properly apologize to Celia."

"Eh heh heh… eh, boy…"

"AWW! I'M SO GLAD THIS ALL WORKED OUT! ALL THANKS TO MY INGENIOUS TRAP! NYEH HEH!" Papyrus gushed.

"Oh, s-sir, if you made this, do you… d-do you think you could get me down? *huff*… I'm… starting to lose feeling in my feet," Sulley noted.

"CERTAINTLY!" Papyrus picked up a bone from a pile he had in a box and threw it at the end of the rope barely hanging on to the ceiling, cutting it.

"Waugh! … Thank you…"

"YOU ARE MOST WELCOME!"

Mike helped Sulley up to his feet. "So… where is this, anyway? This isn't the human world. Is it Frankentown?"

Mike shook his head. "Whole different ball game, buddy." He patted his friend on the back. "I'll explain to ya when we get back."

Sulley sighed. "Well, this paperwork will be fun to fill out… but I'm just really glad you're okay, Mike." He directed his attention to the two brothers. "And thank you for taking care of my friend, uh…"

"Oh, right, right!" Mike led his friend by the hand to the skeletons. "Sulley, this is Sans and Papyrus. Papyrus and Sans, this big lug right here is my best friend, Sul."

"hey. how you doing?"

"NICE TO FINALLY MEET YOU, SULLEY! MIKE'S TOLD US SO MUCH ABOUT YOU, I FEEL AS THOUGH YOU WERE MY BEST FRIEND!"

"Ha ha. Well, I'd like to know you guys, too, but me and Mike should probably get going. I don't want anybody finding out about us using this door. But thanks again, fellas. I really owe you."

"cold hard cash or it's a no go."

"SANS!"

"what? i'm kidding, i'm kidding. heh heh heh. it was no trouble, bud. no worries." Sans winked, getting a chuckle out of the blue monster.

"All right. Well, we should go." Sulley nodded towards the closet. "C'mon, Mike." He opened the door. To Mike's relief, the simulation room was there once again. His friend waited for him by the door's frame.

Mike turned to his new friends. "Thanks, you guys. I appreciate your hospitality. This wasn't the greatest situation to be in, but I sure am glad to have met you two."

"AND WE FEEL THE SAME. RIGHT, SANS?"

"you took the words right out of my mouth, bro."

"AND, IF YOU WOULD EVER LIKE TO VISIT AGAIN, OUR HOME IS ALWAYS OPEN! I'D LIKE TO SHOW YOU MORE OF THE TOWN!"

"maybe we could even exchange a few jokes."

"UM… BUT GIVE ME AT LEAST A DAY TO GET MY ROOM IN ORDER. MAYBE NEXT TIME I SHOULD BUILD A TRAP THAT CLEANS ITSELF UP…"

"Ha ha ha. Well, if I can come back, I will. You can bet on that." He shook the hands of both skeleton brothers, then began to walk towards the closet.

"OH WAIT! MIKE!" Papyrus put a hand on Mike's shoulder. He smiled. "REMEMBER…"

Mike gave Papyrus' hand a pat. "Thank you…"

Then he picked up his mic and exited the door, closing it behind him.

"WELL, I SUPPOSE I SHOULD START PICKING THINGS U— SANS! GET THAT FILTHY TORNADO OUT OF HERE! I WILL NOT SUCCUMB TO YOUR LAZY HABITS OF CLEANING!"

"aw, c'mon paps. give it a whirl."

"SANS!"

[…]

"Thank you so much! I'll be here all night!"

Mike exited a howling kid's bedroom with a bit of pep in his step. He looked up at the scoreboard as he closed the door. He beamed. "3 more points than yesterday!"

He sauntered over to the worktables and took a breather, resting his microphone on a chair.

"Mike!"

He saw his best friend walking up to him. "Sulley!"

"How's everything going, buddy?"

"Oh, you know, business as usual. And by that, I mean fantastic! The kids love me! Even got a couple jokes in just off the cuff."

"Good to hear! And how's Celia?"

"Doing much better. She finally stopped hissing at me every time I tried to get a word in, so things are looking up!" Mike got a little closer to Sulley. "How's the d-o-o-r situation?" he whispered.

"Well, I checked the other ones and it seems like they all lead to the human world, so I had them sent back. The… balsa wood, though… since we're dealing with something a little different, I'm still not sure about having it get analyzed… we'll see. I still don't know why all those doors were left out like that in the first place."

"Well, I guess if this is gonna be a sticky situation, I'll be with ya to the end, pal."

Just then, an announcement rang across the floor with news about Frank becoming the #1 comedian with a point increase of 1,000. Accolades were sent flying Frank's way at this astonishing feat as a huge swarm of monsters gathered around the champion.

Sulley put a hand to Mike's shoulder. "You doing okay?"

Mike looked on at the crowd with a glint in his eye and a smile on his face.

"I'm doin' great!"

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