#underband

Archive of Our Own || Reader X Sans (Undertale)

Word count: 5441 (so far) Fandom: Undertale, Bandtale/Underband (I didn’t know if this was already an AU/what it was already called)

Creator chose not to use archive warnings, no archive warnings apply

You run a little music shop in the town of Ebott - yes, a town in the shadow of that particular Mt. Ebott where monsters first appeared. It has been eight years since monsters first came to the surface, and Ebott Town is as welcoming as ever. How could it not be when all these new monsters want to do is see the sun, see the stars, and play some music?

It's a day like any other when two skeletal monsters walk into the music shop you and your father maintain - the shorter needs his bass repaired. Cue laughter, puns, shop kitties, and the start to an epic adventure as you meet the gang and help them on a journey to get their little band into a big Battle of the Bands that will end with the winner scoring a great record deal. Frisk needs encouragement, Undyne is enthusiastic, Papyrus kills it on percussion, and Alphys supports behind the scenes as the sound tech.

Updates bi-weekly, hopefully. I work theater and I'm in college, so gods only know.

Frisk couldn’t help but remember the words the Flowey said as they looked at their harmonica. In this world, it’s play or be played, the flower said. Though, Frisk couldn’t believe that. Everything seemed so nice here, and no one would be mean enough to play with them, right? They could still remember how Toriel taught them how things work around here.

“As you walk through the Underground, monsters will invite you to play with them,” the goat mother had said, walking towards a dummy as they did. “If this happens, then you will use your harmonica to play with them. Try doing so with this dummy.”

Frisk, though, had just stared at the dummy, not sure how exactly they were going to play with this dummy. It wasn’t like it could play an instrument, so, instead, Frisk looked at Toriel and tilted their head slightly.

Toriel blinked and chuckled. “Oh, right, I suppose the dummy wouldn’t make a good playing partner, would it?” She shook her head. “Maybe you should just wait until you meet a monster willing to play with you, but remember, before you start the playing session, you must harmonize with your partner. Make sure you’re in tune with your playing partner. If you’re out of tune with you’re playing partner,then you won’t have a very good playing session.”

Frisk nodded, taking their harmonica out of their pocket and staring at it. Could they really play this thing? They could barely do so when they were on the surface, but right now…it felt like they could play this very well. It may have something to do about being in the Underground…though, that’s a silly thing to think about. Though, Frisk then looked at Toriel, pointed at her, and then at their harmonica.

Luckily, Toriel was able to understand what the child was implying. “Oh, me? Play with you? Oh, no no no. I haven’t played an instrument in a long time. It wouldn’t be a great experience to have me as a partner.” Toriel shook her head and made her way to the door.

Frisk could tell that Toriel wasn’t exactly telling the truth, but the child just shrugged and followed the goat mother. It wasn’t long until the child had ran into a Whimsun, who was nervously flying around and holding a flute.

“Ah, here’s someone who could play with you,” Toriel said before walking towards the Whimsun. “Excuse me, could you please stop for a moment?”

The Whimsun, who was almost so surprised he dropped his instrument, looked at Toriel and the human before nodding. “Y-Yeah, I can stop,” the monster muttered, obviously nervous. “W-W-What do you want?”

“I was wondering if you could play with the child here.” The goat monster gestured to Frisk, the human having a kind smile on their face. “I need to make sure this human gets used to the Underground.”

The Whimsun frowned and looked at the human, lowering himself down to his feet. “Oh…sure,” the monster muttered. “I guess I can do that.”

Frisk nodded and, without Toriel telling them to, took a few steps towards the monster, their harmonica still held in their hands as they did. The Whimsun would put the flute up to it’s mouth and blow into the instrument, holding a note to help get into tune. Frisk would glance at Toriel and, with encouragement, began to play their harmonica.

After a few moments of making sure the instruments were in tune, the Whimsun when then began playing, walking in a small circle around Frisk, and every time the monster changed a note on their flute, they’d take a step forward. Frisk just turned in a circle, following the Whimsun with interest. Was this how monsters got along? They could get used to this, if that was true.

Suddenly, the Whismur stopped, turned to Frisk and spun around, still keeping up the song he was playing. Little white butterflies flew around the monster and then straight towards Frisk. Still trying to keep the song going, Frisk backed up and sidestepped out of the way, adding a spin into the mix for effect. Wow, they didn’t know they could dodge like this!

When the butterflies disappeared, Frisk would walk towards the Whimsun, doing their best to keep up the music, but walking, playing, and thinking about what they were going to do at the same time was difficult. They were somehow able to approac the Whimsun, but they were barely able to keep up with the song, which was now going faster than before.

The human would walk circles around the Whimsun. Once they were behind the monster, they tapped on the creature’s right shoulder, and when the Whimsun jumped slightly and looked to the right, Frisk spun to the monster’s left and tapped their left shoulder. The Whimsun looked to their left and Frisk gave the monster a wink and a friendly wave.

This song and dance (quite literally, actually) would go on for a while, and the music would continue to get faster, the notes beginning to blend in with each other, Eventually, the Whimsun began to spin around almost wildly, and Frisk had decided to do the same. The Whimsun stopped facing Frisk and bowed, taking the flute away from his mouth as he did, while the human would stop spinning, take the harmonica away from the mouth and put their hands in the air.

As soon as that finished, the two could hear Toriel clapping. Frisk looked to the goat mother with a smile. “Bravo!” the mother said. “I am very proud of you. You did that very well. Your ending needs a bit more work, but other than that, you did great.“

Sans sat at his usual spot in Grillby’s and noticed that there was a distinct lack of music today, which was odd. Grillby’s was usually filled with all music, but now…it seemed empty. Sans took a look at the small stage in the corner, one that was supposed to hold performers, and looked at Grillby. “hey, isn’t a band supposed to be playing, grillbz?”

“Well, yes, they’re supposed to be playing,” the fire elemental said. “But apparently none of them are showing up. Not only is that rude, but now I don’t have any entertainers in today. My customer’s are going to be upset.”

“oh, that’s tough,” the skeleton said as he grabbed a ketchup bottle and took a sip of the red condiment. “wish i could help you out, there.”

“Actually, there’s a way that you can,” Grillby said, perking up slightly as he thought of something. “You could play for the customers. I know you play an instrument; every monster does.”

Sans blinked and shook his head. “grillby, i…i can’t play,” the skeleton said with another shake of his head. No, he didn’t want to play. He wanted to keep what talent he had a secret. It’d just be embarrassing. “i’m…not very good at it.”

“Nonsense, Sans,” the barkeeper said as he leaned forward and towards Sans. “Not only have I grown up listening to you play, but I also heard your trombone once when you were you in Snowdin. You were good.”

Sans let out a somewhat nervous chuckle. “no, grillby, i can’t play,” the skeleton muttered, taking another sip from his ketchup bottle. “it’d be too embarrassing…”

Grillby shook his head. “If you think it’d help, then I could play with you, Sans.” Of course, he wouldn’t be able to see to the customers, but he wanted to be entertained.

This seemed to catch the skeleton’s attention as he raised a non-existent eyebrow. “really? you’d want to play with me?” the skeleton asked, straightening up as he did. “i think i’d like that.”

Grillby nodded, a small smile visible on the elemental’s face, and a smile wasn’t common, so this was saying something. “Good. Now, what do you want me to play? Castanets, or the saxophone?“

“saxophone, of course,” sans said as he got out of the bar seat. “i’d have to go home to get my trombone, though. you can wait, right?”

Grillby nodded. “Of course I can, Sans,” he said, already looking around for his saxophone. He knew he kept one of those in the bar, he just had to remember where…ah, here it is. He bent down to pick it up, and by the time he stood up straight, Sans was leaning against the bar, holding his trombone.

“you ready?” Sans asked, checking the slide of his trombone to see if the instrument needed to be greased. The instrument worked well enough, so it should be good. When Grillby nodded, Sans shot the elemental a grin and lowered his hat so that it covered his eyes. “then let’s get started.”

The two then walked over to the stage and got onto it. Sans tapped the microphone on the stage to get the people’s attention and cleared his throat. “so, due to technical difficulties, the band that grillby over here promised you is not here.” There were a few people in the crowd that sounded disappointed, but Sans put his hand up to motion for silence. “but, we don’t want you getting bored, so me and the bartender over here have band together to bring you a song.”

The people in the bar looked at each other and muttered to themselves, not sure what to expect from these two. They usually just made jokes at the front of the bar; and didn’t play for an audience, but it was better than no entertainment at all. So, they payed attention.

Sans looked at Grillby. “you know that one song that blooky plays?” the skeleton asked, and when Grillby nodded, Sans grinned. “right, we’ll be playing that, then. so, let’s get in tune.”

The fire elemental once again nodded and blew into the instrument, of course making noise come out, and keeping it at a steady pitch. Sans was quick to join in with his trombone, and if they were out of tune, they’d correct themselves. It wasn’t long until they were finished, and Sans started to count off with his fingers. “one, two, and-a-one two, three, four.”

And just like that, the two started to play their instruments, Sans’s hat was adjusted so it was over his eyes, so it would be difficult to look into his eyes. It made it easier to block people out as well. He was imagining he was only playing with Grillby. Heh, speaking of Grillby, the guy was pretty good at playing that saxophone. He didn’t miss a single note. It’s been a while since Sans had actually played with anyone. It was nice.

Of course, eventually, the song ended. When Sans hit the last note, he moved his trombone away from his mouth, pointed it downward, turned towards the audience and bowed, Grillby doing something similar soon afterwards. To Sans’s surprise, the people in the bar actually applauded. Well, he thought they’d please the audience, but not that much.

“Well, they seem to like your playing, Sans,” the fire elemental said as he glanced at his skeletal companion. “You want to give them an encore? I’d be fine with you playing a bit more, but I need to get back to the bar.”

Sans slowly nodded. “well, i guess i can’t deny the people what they want.” he said before looking at his friend, his eyes still covered by the edge of his hat. “you go back to the bar. i’ll give them an encore.”

Grillby nodded and then walked off of the stage and went behind the bar, while Sans was already starting up with his next song. Heh, he was actually seeming to enjoy this, judging by the smile on his face every time he took the trombone away from his face.

This went on into the night, and eventually the bar was closing down. Sans, who was out of breath, hopped off the stage, trying to catch his breath. “wow, haven’t played for that long since i was in school,” he said. “i think they liked it, though.”

Grillby nodded. “Yes, I’m sure they did,” he said as he made sure everything was where it should be. “I appreciate the help, by the way. You really kept the crowd entertained.”

“hey, you also helped with playing your saxophone,” the skeleton said as he moved his hat out of the way of his eyes. “you were pretty good with that thing. you know what would be better, though?”

“What?” Grillby asked as he walked over to the door. He could sense a joke coming on, and he was prepared for it.

“if you gave me your saxo-phone number.” The skeleton chuckled and grinned at Grillby. “well? what do you say?”

Grillby let out a light chuckle and then picked up a napkin, taking a pen out of his pocket as he did. He wrote the number down and then offered it to Sans. “There you go, Sans,” he said. “Now, I should probably be leaving.”

Sans, who was slightly surprised that the joke even worked, took the napkin and put it in his pocket. “yeah, let’s get going,” he said before stepping out of the bar and walking home. “wow, that actually worked. wait until i tell papyrus.”

Of course this was going to be one of the first things that was posted! So, here we go.

Frisk: Frisk is nothing more than a fallen child that ended up in the Underground. The only thing they have with them is a bandage and a harmonica, and they have to make their way through the musical Underground.

Flowey: Flowey absolutely hates music, as well as most monsters in the Underground. He wants to break every instrument in the Underground and kill the ones who play them. Despite his hate for music, you can still hear him hum a tune every now and then. A tune he can never forget. It’s His Theme, after all.

Chara: Chara, like Flowey, hates music with a passion, but despite this, they seem to be incredibly good at playing the drums after being exposed to the Underground’s influence. Their weapon is a broken Drumstick, which broke when they had struck their drum too hard.

Toriel: The motherly figure Toriel, while already knowing how to sing beautifully, also plays the harp, and is attempting to try her hand at the Violin. She’s the guardian of the Ruins, and often sings for the monsters in the Ruins.

Napstablook: Napstablook doesn’t actually play an instrument, but instead makes music in computer programs whenever he’s at home. His music is actually well known in the Underground, but he remains anonymous as he doesn’t want any attention directed to him.

Sans: Sans is a skeleton who can often be seen wearing a business suit, of all things. The skeleton plays a trombone, of course, but doesn’t often play in front of others. He’s the manager for Undyne’s band, and he dresses up for the part, despite not always acting the part. It’s sort of a mystery how he got that position.

Papyrus: This innocent skeleton wants to be a part of the Royal Guard (which also doubles as the Royal Band), and he plays the xylophone. He is in a band with Undyne and Mettaton, and he looks to Undyne for musical guidance. Papyrus’s outfit consists of an orange hat that’s on backwards, a shirt that’s bright orange that has the word “COOL!” on all caps and in bold, and he has a pair of orange shorts to boot.

Undyne: Undyne plays the guitar, which Gerson had taught her to play, or at least tried to. Undyne eventually began to teach herself how to play, and eventually she was able to start a band with her friends. She’s also captain of the Royal Guard, as well as lead guitarist of the Royal Band, and close friends with the Royal Scientist Alphys. She tried playing the piano once, and…it didn’t go well. While she doesn’t prefer to wear her suit of armor, she will if she has to. She often just wears her casual clothes, such as her leather jacket. She also has a black streak in her hair.

Mad Dummy: This odd, possessed dummy is surprisingly good at beatboxing for having no mouth, and that’s what it’s been doing ever since he’s discovered his talent. His goal is to become one with his Dummy body, and still tries to every day. Don’t tick this dummy off, by the way, or you’ll get aggressive beatboxing.

Mettaton: This robot, built by Dr. Alphys, was nothing but a singer at first when he had his first, rectangular form, but since he received his EX body, built specifically to dance, he’s add dancing to his list of talents. Not only is he one of the biggest stars in the Underground, but he also is lead singer in a band with Undyne and Papyrus.

Dr. Alphys: Doctor Alphys is the Royal Scientist, who is frequently asked about her DETERMINATION experiments, but often dodges the question. She spends a lot of her time at the garbage dump, and has become great friends with Undyne. She doesn’t play uh front of others often, and usually only plays when she’s stressed. She plays a synthesizer, but she doesn’t believe she’s good at it.

Muffet: The spider lady Muffet, who not only runs a bake sale to help the spiders in the Ruins, but also plays for people’s entertainment for money. She plays the piano and also plays songs for her little spider dearies.

Asgore: The king of all monsters, like his wife, is very good at singing, but on top of that he plays a ukulele, which seems comically small for a man like him, but it’s what he enjoys playing. He knows he must fight Frisk, and while is reluctant to kill a child, he knows he must do this for his people.