#borrower!logan

Roman, who owned the shop of Logan’s previous residence, and who’s first reaction to finding a borrower was to flirt with him. Roman, whom Logan began bantering with against his better judgement, and who he found himself growing fond of. Roman, the strange, infuriating, intoxicating human that Logan currently lived with.

Roman, who, judging by the creak of their cottage door, had just arrived home.

“Hello, my sweetest honeybee! It’s so wonderful to see you again, my love!” A boisterous voice boomed out.

Roman must’ve had a good day at work. Certainly nothing to be worried about. The borrower allowed a small smile to slip onto his face.  

“It’s wonderful to see you as well, my prince,” Logan said.

Or at least, he tried to say, because before he could finish, a wall of flesh scooped him up and away from solid ground.

Logan blinked.

Confusion struck like a dull cord when Roman’s chest filled his vision. When was the last time he’d been manhandled without permission? When was the last time Roman had done so? Despite being one of the loudest humans Logan had ever met, he the first to ever listen to him, and respected his boundaries like a code of honor.

Suddenly, horror filled Logan when a warm, soft surface began rubbing against him, and with a start, he realized the human was nuzzling him.

Logan squirmed, only managing to free an arm before pressure enveloped him and the nuzzling continued. He gave one of Roman’s fingers a pat before asking, voice strained, “What’re you—doing there, ah, Roman?”

The human brought the borrower up to his face, mouth fluttering down into a pout. Logan froze.

Something was wrong.

Maybe it was the way Roman was cupping him, holding Logan like he was the most valuable treasure one could ever lay eyes on. Maybe it was the way Logan found himself blinded by Roman’s smile, or the way eyes were filled with so, so much love.

Or maybe it was how Roman purred, voice honey-slick and twice as sweet, “Can’t I show my undying love for my spectacular, talented, breathtaking sugar pea?”

Oh, God.

Logan gave Roman’s finger a hesitant squeeze. The human brightened further, and gave the borrower a gentle squeeze in return. Logan finally stuttered out, “Roman, are you—are you alright? Is something wrong? Why are you doing all...this?”

Roman paused, dopey look still on his face, before he cooed, “The only thing that’s wrong is how gosh-darn adorable my boyfriend is.”

Logan didn’t have time to protest before a massive finger booped him on the nose. He pushed it away only for another one, Roman’s thumb, to start petting his hair.

Logan swallowed. Were Roman’s hands always this warm or was it just him?

“Did something happen at work today, uh, darling?” Logan asked, trying and failing to ignore the gentle caressing. He wasn’t sure if his boyfriend would even stop if he asked. “Did something change? Are you okay?”

Logan looked up to see Roman doing his best impression of a puddle. “The only thing that changed was when I met you, my galaxy.”

“N—no, I mean like—” Logan resisted the urge to groan. “You’re not usually this...affectionate.”

“What do you mean, love? Why wouldn’t I be this loving towards my smart, stunning sweetheart? You light up my world, sunshine, you’re—you’re—”

Roman sniffed. What was most likely his partner’s other thumb brushed up against Logan’s side. “I—I just—”  

Logan realized with a shock of horror that Roman was crying. Over how much he loved the borrower. Logan’s eyes widened.

This was worse than he thought.

“Y—you’re so handsome and talented, lovebug,” Roman blubbered. Logan tried, foolishly, to shy away. His boyfriend’s fingers curled around him. The borrower gave them a reassuring pat. “You do—you do so much. You're so good. You’re so—so good.”

Roman’s inane—and, well, utterly touching—whimpering faded to white noise as Logan noticed the human’s eyes.  

His glowing, spiraling, wrong eyes.

“Roman!” Logan blurted as realization struck, both of the situation and of the fact that Roman was about to continue nuzzling him. He repressed a shudder. “Roman. Could you—could you do me a favor?”

Roman paused, before he whispered, voice almost as soft as the look in his eyes, “Anything for you, my darling.”

Logan glanced away at the intensity of Roman’s gaze, knowing if he stared too long into the swirling abyss, he’d never look away again.

“Could you get me one of the magic books from the shelf?” he asked. “The one with the rose on it?”

Roman made a noise in the back of his throat. “But—but that would mean setting you down! Seeing you go! Not being with you!”

“It’ll just be for a moment. Please, Roman.”

Roman bit his lip, brow furrowing in way that it did when the human was lost in thought. Suddenly, the human’s eyes brightened, and with a gush of air the borrower found himself with a side view of his boyfriend’s face.

“There!” Logan could feel Roman’s voice, vibrating up his legs and through his entire body. Set on a shoulder, then. Better than not moving at all. “Now we can still be together!”

Logan sighed, gripping onto Roman’s shirt, and they began to move.

After grabbing A Scholar’s Guide to Solutions and Spells, Roman made his way over to the table and sat down. Logan dangled his legs over his partner’s shoulder, about to slide off, only to be met with a hand hovering below him. Not sure how Roman would react if he didn’t take it, Logan scooted himself into the awaiting palm.

The borrower braced himself for the familiar drop of his stomach, but it didn’t come. The hand was still moving, but slowly, painfully so. Not even the lifts Logan had built for himself around the house operated at the snail’s pace Roman’s hand did. Logan sighed, knowing it would be too quiet for the human to hear.

After the mental equivalent of half a century, they landed. Logan crawled off of his partner’s palm, giving an awkward smile to the human above. Roman beamed back.

Suddenly, a warm, fleshy material enveloped Logan from behind. Roman’s gaze was soft, and the borrower realized he was cupping him, cherishing him one would like a precious jewel. Roman leaned down to lay his head in the crook of his arm, inches away from his treasure.

“Roman.” Logan shifted against the warm weight around his back. “I can’t exactly read with you like...this.”

“Oh! I’m sorry, darling! Let me just—” Roman’s hand moved to rub the back of his neck. He looked between the tome and Logan, and frowned. “Do you need any help with the book, Lobear? It’s pretty big!”

“I’ll be fine, please don’t worry.” The book was, in fact, big, almost too big for a borrower such as himself to use. Fortunately, Logan was used to operating in a world not built for him. He took a breath, and began the process of heaving pages almost twice the size of his body up and over his head. Immediately a chorus of ‘You’re so strong, my love!’ and ‘Look at you go!’s chimed out behind him.  

Things could be worse. At least Roman wasn’t snuggling him. Yet.

As Logan arrived at the section on persuasion magic, he decided to break Roman’s stream of gushing.  “What did you do at work today, Roman?”

The human paused. His eyelids drooped. A grin slid onto his face.  “Think about you, my light, my love, my—”

“Aside from that.” Logan interrupted, before dropping the page he’d been tugging. “Did you meet anyone strange? Ingest anything odd?”

“Well...” Roman trailed off. “We did receive a shipment of rather funny potions this morning. They were all red and swirly, and they smelled like roses. Probably made from them, too.”

Logan perked up. “Did you happen to get any on you?”

“One of the bottles was leaking so I threw it out. Probably wasn’t the best idea but—”

“How did you feel afterwards? Strange? Elated?”

“I...It was like I was hit with a tidal wave. I remember it now. I could hardly think of anything but you.” Logan heard a rustle of movement behind him. When he turned to look, Roman was leaning forward on his elbows, eyebrow raised. “Darling, what is all this about? You’re breathtaking. You know that.”

Logan beckoned him forward. Roman obeyed, leaning closer until his nose brushed up against Logan’s chest. His eyes darted past the borrower’s shoulder, keying in on the page he stood on.

Roman paused.

After a beat, he laughed, stilted and awkward. “Nothing’s wrong, is there? Is there something wrong with me, Logan?”

Logan patted his nose, before making a shooing gesture towards his partner. The human complied, moving his head off the page. “Nothing serious, I hope. The logical assumption I can make is that the potion you interacted with is responsible for your new...behavior.”

Roman tilted his head. “Behavior?”

Logan glanced back. Even through the confusion, a hint of that dopey, lovestruck look painted his partner’s face. Roman was looking at him as if Logan were worth more than all the gold in the world could buy, as if Roman was completely, utterly his.

Logan willed his knees not to go weak.

He turned back to the book, focusing on dragging another page across its surface. A grin slid on his face as the answer to this strange afternoon presented itself.

“Yes; behavior. And I think,” He beckoned Roman forward. “This may have had a part in that.”

Roman peered over the borrower’s shoulder, though the action was probably unnecessary considering said shoulder was smaller than his own eye. Logan felt the human swallow behind him. “A love potion?”

Logan shook his head. “The concoction acts more to induce an autosuggestion state, amplifying the bearer’s pre-existing inclinations in accordance to the intensity of the sample. Though the enchantment is most conventionally used for romantic or...other such feelings, it can be used to increase any emotion depending on tweaks made to...”

Roman blinked, uncomprehending.

Logan sighed, before muttering, “Yes. It’s a love potion.”

Roman’s eyes widened. He brought his hand up to his mouth. “I suppose I have been feeling a little...buzzed, today. Almost fluttery. I—I thought that was just my love for you.”

“In a sense, it was. It’s most likely a side effect of the hex, and should wear off when the spell does.”

Roman fell silent, processing. When Logan turned to look at him, he was deflated, solemn, like a puppet with its strings cut. When his partner he caught Logan’s eye, he choked. “Do I not love you enough normally?”

Oh.

Logan shook his head, and the first genuine smile of the afternoon slipped onto his face.

“On the contrary, my prince,” he began. “While I understand that sometimes we can, ah, figuratively butt heads, I know you love me more than anything else. You care for me, let me stay here don’t mind my rituals. You listen to me, and don’t expect me to treat you more, or demand anything because of your size. More than that, there’s something I feel around you. Even when we’re not together my thoughts are often occupied by you...and I know you feel the same way, too.”

By the end of it, Logan had rested his forehead against the bridge of Roman’s nose, gazing into his eyes the best he could. Roman sniffed, unshed tears threatening to spill. The borrower sighed as a warm weight settled behind him. Hexed or not, this was still his stupid, wonderful Roman. Logan smiled.

And was immediately caught off-guard as Roman pulled him forward and kissed him.

Oh.

A curious thing it was that Logan, a borrower of eloquence and articulation, found few words to describe the sensation of Roman’s lips covering his body.

Warm, he thought as found himself melting against the plush surface. Soft, lingered in his mind as he buried his face into the kiss. Heaven, was all the came at the intoxicating sensations, the scent of cherries Roman ate for lunch wafting over him, the taste of the rose lip product he liked to use overwhelming. Logan shivered as a thumb ran down his back. Liquified as wave of euphoria coursed through his veins. Felt the last coherent thoughts he had shrivel up at Roman’s pure, radiant love.

Finally, the rational part of Logan’s brain sighed—too soon, the instinctive part screamed—the couple parted.

Logan collapsed against Roman’s hand, face scorching.

Roman sniffed. Logan hardly heard what he said next over the pounding of his heart. “That was really, really sweet, Honey-Pie. I do love you, to the—the moon and back.” He paused to wipe his eyes. “Thank you, Logan—Logan?”

If there was anything that would snap Logan out of his gay panic, it was a gentle finger almost the length of his body maneuvering his head up. He stared, wide-eyed, into Roman’s beautiful, beautiful swirling gaze.

Logan, a borrower of eloquence and articulation, squeaked.

“Was that too much, my love?” Roman asked, a concern and a hint of amusement in his voice.

Logan’s tongue was too busy feeling like it was about to fall out of his mouth to form words. He nodded.

Roman’s expression softened. He gave Logan a gentle squeeze. “I’ll give you a moment, starshine.”

With a finale ruffle of his boyfriend’s hair—and a completely un-high pitched, non-existent yelp—Roman departed, leaving Logan on the table, alone.

The borrower took a deep breath, before collapsing to his knees and burying his face in his hands.

He exhaled. Took another breath and tried to ignore the way it tasted like flowers. Released that one with a shudder and a whimper.

In.

And out.

Breathe. Don’t think about all-consuming warmth or the smell of cherries the strangest, softest embrace or Roman—

After a few moments of being the epitome of the verb flustered, Logan hauled himself up and walked back over to the book, skimming the tome for any information he missed while being...distracted. He sighed, relieved, when he found the section on effect length.

The good news was the potion wasn’t permanent, and would, at most, wear off in the next 16 hours.

The bad news was that based on when Roman had encountered the solution, it would likely last for the rest of the day.

Logan glanced up at the sound at heavy footsteps, eyes meeting only a torso and hips. He craned his head back to find Roman looming over the table, massive shadow enveloping the borrower. In one hand, a finger was looped around an ornate teacup. In the other, the human delicately pinched Logan’s favorite mug, willing his hands not to squeeze too hard or too light.

Noticing his presence, Roman took a seat across from Logan. The shadow vanished, and Logan found a cup of sweet-smelling liquid in front of him.

“I made blackberry and pomegranate,” Roman said, voice low as not to damage his boyfriend's hearing. Logan was struck with how brightly Roman’s eyes shone, full of passion and light and love. “Your favorite.”

Patton could have smacked himself. Had he really forgotten to tell Roman? What else might he have forgotten? “Yes, Virgil, that’s um, well that’s the name of the lil’ guy. Sorry, I meant to tell you that… he also really, really doesn’t like to be touched. You haven’t grabbed him, have you?”

There was a long pause on Roman’s end. “No.”

Patton sighed, rubbing at his temples. “Just- okay, don’t do it again, and apologize, probably. And he likes pancakes.”

“Well, ah, I would, although I sort of doubt he wants to see me at the moment…” Roman explained slowly. “Last time I entered your room I got cussed out.”

“What? Really?” Patton frowned. That didn’t sound like his little scared Virgil. Patton didn’t know if he wanted to hear what Roman could’ve done to earn such a reaction.

Patton jumped, suddenly distracted by a round of loud shouting from the other room. 

“MOM MAY BE A BITCH BUT YOU’RE THE FOOL WHO MARRIED HER!”

“THE APPLE DOESN’T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE!”

Patton bit his lip, trying to decide if he should even bother trying to keep them away from each other’s throats at this point. It seemed he just kept making things worse, always getting accused of taking sides no matter how impartial he stayed.

“...Sounds like things are going great on your end as well.” Roman awkwardly chuckled.

“Yeah, uh, I should probably get back and mediate.” Patton cringed, but he made no move to do so. “So what about your lil’ guy? How’s he doing?”

“He’s doing alright.” Roman explained. “Both of them were very cold when I got back, the heat got shut off.”

“Oh no!” Patton gasped.

“Oh yes.” Roman said mournfully. “But it’s alright, they’re warming up. Virgil seemed no worse for wear; mine’s a bit under the weather, he’s been passed out on my chest all day.”

“Aww.” Patton at least got a happy chuckle at that image. “That sounds so adorable, I wish I was there.” He grimaced as a smashing sound from the other room- he wished he was anywhere but here, actually.

--------------------------------------

“Oh, hold on, he’s waking up.”

Logan let out a soft yawn, trying to remember what was happening. He was still exhausted in his bones, but his mind seemed to have decided it was time to be awake. Logan was against this decision, determinedly nestled further into the warm surface beneath him.

Roman covered his mouth, overwhelmed with a sense of awe at how adorably sleepy Logan was as he cuddled into his chest.

“I’ll call you back.” Roman whispered into the phone, hanging up and carefully setting his cell phone to the side to not jostle the tiny. Roman brought his hand up, gently brushing Logan’s back. “Good morning, sleeping beauty.”

Logan groaned, recognizing the teasing tone. He blinked his eyes open, taking in his surroundings. What…why was he out in the living room again? And- Logan felt his cheeks turn a bit pink, realizing that the surface he had been nuzzling into moments ago was Roman himself.

Roman laughed, watching at the tiny frantically pushed himself, looking quite embarrassed. Before Logan could stumble right off Roman reached out, scooping Logan up in his palm and sitting up further.

“I had no idea you were such a little cuddler.” Roman teased, bringing Logan closer to his face. “If I had known, I would have done this sooner.”

Logan growled, pushing Roman’s nose away when it came forwards to nuzzle his chest. What a positively tedious way to wake up, if only because he knew Roman wasn’t going to let this drop anytime soon.

“At least you seem to be looking better.” Roman relented his touching, giving Logan a slight break. His face fell, remembering the image of Logan shivering helplessly at the bottom of the cage. Roman gave a little shiver of his own. “You really scared me back there.”

Logan was of the opinion that it was Roman’s own fault. If he was truly so concerned, he wouldn’t have left Logan alone. Indeed, the borrower had a strange phenomenon occur over his brief period of alone time. He had found himself… missing Roman. Logan attributed that to the fact that when the human was around, Logan was never bored, for better or worse.

Not to mention, Logan wasn’t feeling right in the head.

“You do feel warm though.” Roman murmured, moving his thumb to Logan’s forehead. The tiny squirmed weakly, and the lack of a true protest was just another indicator that Logan was ill. “Alright, let’s get you some tea.”

Logan let out a squeak, startled as he was suddenly placed in Roman’s pocket. He tried to struggle, but Roman just wrapped his hand around and kept him gently contained. Logan gave a tense sigh, trying to relax as he heard Roman moving about. He vaguely remembered being in this pocket before… what happened yesterday? Did Roman take him somewhere?

Roman hummed to himself, carrying out the delicate balancing act that was attempting to craft tea one-handed. What sort of tea would Logan like? Did tiny people even drink tea? Well, there was only one way to find out, seeing as how Logan certainly would not answer him if he asked.

The human prepped the kettle, waiting for it to make a noise that it was ready. The high-pitched shriek seemed to startle Logan, who jumped.

“It’s alright.” Roman assured him, brushing his shoulder with his thumb to remind Logan he was there. “Just the kettle.” He poured some into a little teacup, putting in a bag, some honey and an ice cube for good measure. It wouldn’t do for Logan to burn his tongue.

“Here you are.” Roman set the cup and the tiny person on the table, stirring his own mug. “Please be careful, it’s hot.”

“I can see that.” Logan rolled his eyes. Steam was still rising from the cup at an alarming rate, but slowly it looked more manageable. Still, Logan approached the mug with caution. Ever since coming into Roman’s care he had consumed a variety of warm foods, but never a warm beverage. Once he felt comfortable enough drinking it, the beverage was indeed quite soothing.

Logan looked up, only to see Ro staring at him. “...what?”

“Nothing.” Roman poorly hid a grin behind his own cup. “How are you feeling?”

And then, it suddenly all clicked in Logan’s foggy brain. His breath hitched, realizing what he had just done:

***

 When Virgil woke up the next morning, he didn’t recognize a thing. He blinked and then promptly jumped out of bed, looking at his surroundings in a growing panic. This was not his home in the walls. This wasn’t the place he had fallen asleep in. Had he been moved? But how? No one except another borrower should be able to reach him in the walls and why would another of his own kind move to...wherever this was.

 Virgil wasn’t even sure what this place was. It looked so much like a human’s house but...off, somehow. And he wasn’t just talking about how everything was his own size. What was happening?

“Logan?” A knocking came through the wall, rattling Virgil’s surroundings. “Come on, sleepyhead, it’s time to be awake. I’ve even brought caffeine as a peace offering.”

 Virgil flinched away from the wall, taking several steps back from the direction the voice had come from. What? Who was Logan? Was that a human? It had to be but…

 No, no time to think. He had to find a way out of here before the human saw him. He looked around the room, noticing the door and going through it. He found himself in a hallway and headed for the stairs that went down.

“Logan?” Roman knelt down, looking through the windows to try and get a read on where his pet could be hiding. He sounded far too active for this time of day.

 A giant eye suddenly appeared in one of the windows and Virgil was quick to duck behind a piece of furniture. It took him a moment to realize that he was hiding behind a borrower sized couch. Huh.

“...are you hiding?” Roman frowned, tilting his head in confusion. Logan never hid. “Are you okay? Did something happen?”

 Just go away. Leave me alone. Virgil thought. From his place behind the couch, his eyes scanned the wall he was facing. There had to be a way out of here? Right? Some sort of door-there. 

 A door near a window told him that it led out of wherever he was. Not wasting any time, Virgil stood and ran for it.

“Woah!” Roman leaned back, watching the shadowy figure dart towards the back door. Thinking quickly, Roman set down the mug on his dresser and came around to wait at the entrance.

 Virgil ran out but came to a screeching halt as he realized the human was now in front of him. He looked up into his eyes, shaking. And then he turned and tried to run back into the house.

“What the-?!” Roman gasped, grabbing up the tiny that was quite obviously not his Logan. He brought the borrower up, inspecting it for some sort of tag. “Who the hell are you?”

 Virgil yelped as he was picked up and struggled against the grip. He was reminded of the one and only time he was in Patton’s grip. Of course, it hadn’t lasted long but he had a feeling this would. “No! L-Let me go!”

“Come on, who do you belong to?” Roman pressed. “What are you doing in this house? Where’s Logan?”

 Virgil paused briefly, taken aback by the question. “What? I-I don’t belong to anybody!” What was going on? This human clearly knew about borrowers but how? 

“What?” That statement threw Roman off almost more than the appearance of the strange man. “You’re wild? I didn’t know there were still wild borrowers!”

 Virgil flinched at the use of his kinds name. It was one thing to know about tiny people, but to know their name. Whoever this Logan character was must have spilled the secret. But what this human said next threw him off even more.

 “What...What are you talking about? All borrowers are wild!” Or they were supposed to be.

“Um, nooooooooooo.” Roman drew out the word with a scoff. “Where have you been living, under a rock? I suppose under the floorboards is more accurate. Stop fooling around, what’s going on?”

 “Th-That’s what I want to know!” Virgil said, picking up his struggles. He just wanted to go home, maybe see Patton to get his mind off of this crazy human. “No one is supposed to know that we exist!”

Roman looked pityingly down at this borrower struggling in his grip. Had the poor thing hit its head and gotten a horrible case of ancient amnesia or something?

“Everyone knows about borrowers,” Roman explained gently, waving his arm behind him. “We’ve known about them for decades now. Why do you think my house is borrow-ified?”

 “Wh-What?” Virgil looked around, seeing what Roman was talking about. “No, no that isn’t possible. You-You’re lying! Humans always lie! You probably just found one of us and are trying to convince me for some reason!” That...That had to be it.

“Oh, yes, because that makes sense.” Roman rolled his eyes. “I don’t even know who you are! And frankly, I don’t care.” Fed up with this nonsense, Roman turned back to the dollhouse and began unlatching the side. “Logan? Logan, are you in there?”

 “There’s no one in there! He probably ran away first chance he got!” Virgil yelled, wishing he could do the same thing. It was obvious this human was crazy and he did not want to be around to find out just how much.

Roman frowned, beginning to worry when he swung the house open and it was confirmed empty. A few of Logan’s notes were scattered from the movement, but Roman couldn’t worry about that now.

“Did you see him?” Roman turned back to the borrower, now his only lead. “Where did he go?”

 “No, I didn’t. And like I said, he’s probably long gone. And good for him, our kind deserve to be free.” Virgil spoke, finding it weird about how brave he was feeling. Perhaps the fear hadn’t sunk in all the way yet.

Roman gave the borrower a warning squeeze, an irritated growl rising at the back of his throat.

“I don’t know what your deal is, but you’d better knock it off,” Roman warned, before standing up to begin searching the house for any sign of his own borrower companion.

 Virgil let out a small gasp of pain as the human’s hand tightened around him for a moment. His fear rose up as he realized just how much power this human had over him. He shut his mouth, not wanting to get the life squeezed out of him.

 “Logan? Looooogan?” Roman called out, traversing from room to room and careful to watch his step. Where could that little borrower be?

***

Logan gave a shiver, awoken from his slumber by a slight chill. Roman must have forgotten to close the window. However, as Logan opened his eyes, he was startled to notice his surroundings were not the familiar decor of his home. In place of his bed, a discarded glove was the surface upon which Logan slept. He cringed, quickly standing up to get off the filthy thing. 

A small amount of light filtered in through a few slits in the wall, and Logan took in his surroundings with hesitation. It seemed as though someone had compiled an assortment of trash to serve as a borrower room, almost like Logan’s ancestors used to do before being inevitably discovered.

Was that what this was- an old borrower home? But why was he here? Where was Roman?

“Hello?” Logan called out, cautiously peeking out into the other rooms. “Is anyone home?” 

Logan pushed on one of the doors connected to the complex, surprised to find light flooding in. Logan blinked, stepping out to see he was now standing on a counter he didn’t recognize.

 Patton walked into the kitchen, intent on starting breakfast when he noticed a tiny figure on the counter. He grinned as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. “Morning Vir-” He cut himself off when he actually took in the figure. That...wasn’t Virgil. He froze in the middle of the kitchen, not knowing what to do.

“Excuse me.” Logan turned to the human, unafraid to speak up. He lived in a world of humans, after all. Though usually Logan only spoke with Roman, Logan knew desperate times called for desperate measures. “Where am I?”

 Patton blinked at the bravery of the borrower. Thrown off guard by it. “Uhh, you’re in my house?”

“Do you know how I got here?” Logan asked. “Or perhaps, better to focus on the future. Do you know a Roman Prince? Or how I could set about getting to 421 Apsley Alley, Lightwilde?”

 “Oh, uh that name and place don’t sound familiar,” Patton admitted. “But I could look it up for you?” Anything to help out a borrower. Though it was weird if this borrower was, in fact, asking about another human. Were they like him and Virgil?

“Yes, please do.” Logan gave him a smile. “I have no recollection of how I managed to get separated from my human but it is of the utmost importance I return to his care.”

 “Right, uh, let me just…” Patton took out his phone and opened Google. He glanced over at the borrower. “Did Virgil send you to me for help?” It was the only reason he could think that the borrower would actually come to him.

Logan blinked. “Who’s Virgil?”

 Patton frowned. “Oh, I guess not then. Uh, he’s my friend! And a fellow borrower like you!” Patton explained as he started to type the place Logan had told him into his phone.

“I see.” Logan nodded politely. It was uncommon but not unheard of for a human’s borrower to be referred to as a ‘friend’; indeed, Roman had done it himself on a few occasions.

 Patton waited for his phone to load and then frowned as the results came up. “Uh, what was the address again?” Maybe he typed it in wrong.

“421 Apsley Alley, Lightwilde.” Logan prattled off from memory. Roman had ensured Logan knew it for just such a scenario.

 Patton typed it in again for good measure but the result was the same. “Uh, it...it says that place doesn’t exist,” Patton said with furrowed eyebrows, looking back down at the borrower.

“What?” Logan gave his own look of confusion. “Perhaps you spelled it incorrectly. If you would allow me, I can type it in myself.”

 “Okay.” Patton set his phone down on the counter, letting the borrower at it.

Logan typed it in, startled to find the same result. He typed it in again, and again. How was this possible? It couldn’t be… there had to be a logical explanation. Shoddy cell service? Low WiFi connection? Looking at the device neither were valid but there had to be something. According to this device, it was as though his home didn’t exist.

 Seeing the borrower getting more and more frustrated, Patton bit his lip. “Maybe you're remembering it wrong?” Patton suggested.

“I’m remembering it perfectly.” Logan snapped, before realizing what he had done. “I- I’m sorry, I just- I’m not-” Logan shook his head, too frazzled to think correctly. He turned to the search bar, now attempting to find any indication of his human at all.

 “Oh, hey it’s okay,” Patton said, noticing his distress. He thought for a moment. “Do you have his phone number?” Patton asked, figuring if he had the address he would have that.

“I, yes, of course, I apologize.” Logan hit his forehead. He clicked into the phone app, tapping away the ten familiar digits. He pressed speakerphone, knowing it was polite to include a human in his conversation when using their device.

The phone rang. And rang. And rang.

 Suddenly, it was picked up. “Hello?” A woman’s voice answered and Patton blinked. Well, that definitely wasn’t Roman.

 “Uh, hi.” Patton went ahead and spoke. “Is a Roman Prince there?”

 The line was silent for a moment. “Sorry, you have the wrong number.”

“We do not.” Logan insisted, knowing for a fact this was Roman’s cell. He had called it just yesterday. “Where is Roman? We desire to speak with him. Inform him it’s Logan, his borrower.”

 “His what?” The woman asked and, in a panic, Patton hit the end call button after a rushed goodbye. He turned towards the borrower.

 “Wh-Why would you say that?” Patton asked, knowing very well that borrowers were supposed to be a secret.

“Say what?” Logan frowned, unsure where he had committed a misdemeanor. “We need to get a hold of Roman, I’m merely attempting to acquire information.”

 “Well yeah, but you can’t tell some random woman that you’re a borrower. I mean, I can’t believe I’m actually telling a borrower this but you guys are supposed to be a secret.” Patton was sure Virgil would not be happy to have his kind be revealed. Especially by another borrower.

Logan raised an eyebrow. Had he stumbled upon some sort of intense historical LARPing? It would certainly make sense, considering the borrower hovel Logan had woken up in, but he was in no mood for this behavior.

“Look, I am not here to play games.” Logan said sternly. “Help me get home and you can return to your strange role-play scenario.”

 “R-Role play scenario? I-I don’t understand.” Patton said, eyebrows furrowed in immense confusion. What was this borrower talking about?

“The borrower secrets have not been relevant for nearly a century.” Logan reminded him. Unbelievable he had to give a history lesson at a time like this.

 “...What?” Okay, now Patton was really confused. “Borrower secrets are still very much secret, unless you keep trying to talk to everyone about it.” 

“I told you, I’m not playing games.” Logan’s mouth formed a thin line in his frustration. “Please cease this behavior. I’m not giving away any secrets that aren’t public knowledge.”

 Patton looked into the borrowers eyes. “You...really don’t believe me.” Patton honestly was so confused. Why did this borrower believe that everyone knew about borrowers? “Look, just look up borrowers on google and see for yourself.” Patton said, motioning towards his phone.

Logan did so, surprised to find no results. Surely this only confirmed his doubts about the functionality of the device.

“I regret to inform you, your cellular device is faulty.” Logan stepped away from it.

 “It-It really isn’t.” Patton let out a sigh as he took his phone back. How could he prove it to him? He glanced into the living room, at the tv. “Uh, how many times do you see borrowers on tv? Like on shows or commercials and things?” Patton asked.

“I suppose fairly frequently, why?” Logan gave him a suspicious glance.

 Patton nodded and ran to get the remote from the coffee table. He placed it in front of Logan. “Can you see the TV okay from here?” Patton asked.

“I suppose.” Logan answered, still confused as to what the human was implying.

 “Great! Now, uh, just go ahead and turn it on. Flip through some channels. You’ll see what I mean.” Patton said, sitting back and out of the way so Logan could see the TV better.

Logan did as was requested. Just as Patton had hinted, there were no borrowers present on screen. Logan had to give this LARP session credit for taking the time to create false advertisements.

“Yes yes, very clever.” Logan turned the television off. “Can I go home now? I wish to take no part in this.”

 Patton deflated. “You still don’t believe me?” Well, this was one stubborn borrower.

“Look, clearly you want my participation, but I will not indulge you.” Logan narrowed his gaze. “How did you bring me here? Where is Roman? What occurred last evening?”

 Patton put his hands up at all the questions. “Now wait a second. I don’t have anything to do with this! I didn’t bring you here and if I knew where your friend was, I would tell you.” Patton tried to explain. 

“What’s with the borrower hovel?” Logan gestured back towards the wall. “And the secrecy? And the cell phone?”

 “Well, that’s where Virgil lives.” Patton explained. “And I’m trying to tell you. There isn’t anything wrong with my phone. And before Virgil, I never even knew borrowers existed. And that hasn’t changed for anyone else.”

“You keep mentioning this ‘Virgil’.” Logan realized. “Where is he? Perhaps he has some answers as well.”

 “Well, he should be around. But I don’t really have a way to contact him. He usually just comes and goes when he pleases.” Patton would never even think about keeping Virgil here against his will. They both were perfectly happy with the arrangement they set up.

“Ah, yes, the ‘wild borrower’ act.” Logan rolled his eyes. For a moment, he had forgotten this tedious charade. “Well when does he usually appear? Where can I find him?”

 “Uh, you can look in the walls? That’s where he lives, anyway. And he never leaves the building.” That’s what Virgil had told him, anyway.

“I’m not about to traverse the walls, my clothes will become soiled.” Logan wrinkled his nose in disgust. 

 “Well, you could wait then? He usually shows up by dinner time, at the latest.” Patton said with a shrug, not knowing what else to do. It was also weird hearing a borrower talk about not wanting to go into the walls. When they lived there.

“I...suppose.” Logan relented. He was certainly against the idea of waiting around here so long, already missing Roman, but it seemed this human wasn’t going to provide him with any answers.