#practicality fic

The entire journey home, Patton could feel Virgil’s emotions bubbling over. 

Anger. Panic. Desperation. It all burned inside Patton, twisting around and mixing with his own feelings so furiously that he could barely tell them apart; a concoction of anger and worry and panic brewing inside, try as he might to quell it. The morning had been quite the ordeal already, and Patton’s racing heart and shallow breaths were making it rather difficult for him to focus on anything.

He had managed the entire journey home by focusing his breathing and sending calming waves out in an attempt to soothe the others. He’d seen Virgil relax enough to make it home, though he was worried about how much his mind was panicking and how deep he would spiral by the end of this. As for Logan? Patton could feel the anxious energy radiating from him, but it was unsettling how calm and collected Logan appeared to be despite that. He seemed to be pushing down his feelings about what had transpired to be the level headed one of the group. Patton couldn’t imagine that was going well for him, but he let it slide for the moment.

Once they made it home, Virgil raced forward to get inside first as Patton felt his anxiety spike. Distance made calming him down near impossible at this point, though, so as Virgil moved further and further away, Patton couldn’t help but start to worry about himself. He’d already been struggling to put himself at ease; trying to send those calming waves to the others at the same time was becoming impossible. By the time they all entered the apartment, Virgil had already begun pacing and Patton couldn’t focus on his thoughts anymore. With all of them now together in private, they finally had a chance to process what happened. 

Roman was gone. Attacked and taken in the early morning despite their best efforts to rescue him. Virgil was stressing over how he had failed Roman. Logan was struggling to hold himself together for both of them. And Patton himself was concerned about what the kidnappers could do to Roman, and what if they were too late to rescue him, and–

“Please step out of the room for a moment while I try to calm down Virgil. Do those breathing practices like you taught me, okay?” Patton looked up to see Logan staring at him distressed. He turned to glance at Virgil who was even more panicked than he was, then back to Logan. 

Nodding, Patton turned and headed for his door without another word, focusing on getting away from the swirl of negative emotions storming in their living room. After accidentally slamming his door behind him, he turned his focus solely to himself and the hurricane of  emotions that had built up from the walk home. The separation between himself and the others seemed to be helping already as he promptly managed to settle his thoughts. As he started counting to himself, he could feel the anger and desperation melt away. Not entirely but enough to be notable. In the silence of his room with the muffled voices barely drifting through his bedroom door, Patton calmed down. It was almost startling how quickly he had managed to clear his thoughts with the distance from the others' emotions. It felt like so long ago since that day he sat down with Logan and discussed the possibility of him being an empath. Now he was nearly an expert on his newer skill.

With a much clearer mind, Patton could relax and gather his thoughts. With a few ideas in mind, he had come up with a plan but he knew that Virgil and Logan wouldn’t approve of it. He didn’t want to lie or hide anything from them, but part of him knew that keeping it secret would motivate him to just do it and get it over with. Patton was convinced that this was their best chance at finding Roman as quickly and as safely as possible. “Sorry, guys…” he mumbled to himself as he shut his eyes, hoping the others wouldn’t notice the flash of light from under his door.

As soon as Two had made his appearance, he looked at Patton and sighed. “You’re sure about this?”

“Well, don’t you think it’s worth a shot?” Patton turned towards his dresser as Two glanced away. “You’ll go with Logan and Virgil and I’ll start getting ready for work.”

“This doesn’t feel right,” Two said, looking at the door. “I don’t like the thought of tricking them like that.”

“I don’t either.” Two heard the sound of ruffling clothes as Patton got changed. “I’ll send Three off to work, so I won’t be lying about that part, at least. And we will be helping them search after! I just…”

Two exhaled from his nose and nodded. “Yeah. I get it. Besides, it’s about time, right? We… will tell them afterward?”

“Of course! By this afternoon I’ll have an answer and we'll tell them everything. It’s just a few hours.” Patton walked up to him, buttoning up his shirt. “Go on, I’m worried about Virgil. I’ll join you in a bit. I should call Roman’s job and let them know he’s not coming in for a few days, too. That’ll give him some time. I’ll just say he’s incapacitated and seeing a doctor or something…” 

Two stayed for a moment, watching as Patton pulled out his phone and searched for the number for Roman’s job. He had the number in case of an emergency and he was glad he had the foresight to ask for it. As Patton began talking to someone on the phone, Two reached for the doorknob and opened it up. “You both alright? Feeling any better, Virge?”

Patton was quick to apologize to the person on the phone  and finished the conversation before hiding it away and walking out into the living room, aware that he would probably be mistaken for Two. “Now, none of that! We need to start making a plan, right?” he said as he adjusted his collar, looking over at Logan. He questioned his boyfriend, taken slightly by surprise at his different attire. 

 “Um… ahem. What’s with the outfit change?”

One thing Patton liked about Two was that he never had to share his plan out loud. The Pals couldn’t read each other's minds, but it was almost just as good. They were always on the same wavelength, their ideas forming almost at the same time. It made sense since they were all connected, he supposed. 

Patton and Two were synchronized as they crossed their arms, berating Virgil for his lack of sleep. Virgil admitted to not getting a proper night’s rest in at least two days but lashed out at the idea of staying back to rest. He was running on fumes and anxiety, a dangerous mix, but couldn’t be stopped. Rebelling against the idea of a nap, Virgil turned and bolted out the front door, Logan following after him.

Two turned to Patton and their eyes met for a brief moment. They both nodded at the same time and Two ran out, shutting the door behind him.

Patton took a moment to celebrate his success. So far, the plan was going flawlessly. Two would spend the day looking for Roman with Logan and Virgil. Patton had some time before he needed to head out himself. He took the opportunity to pace himself and try to make sure everything kept going smoothly.

Another flash of light and there was Three in Patton’s work outfit. Three looked a bit uneasy, but smiled. “And you’re absolutely sure about this?”

“You just have to go to work and focus on that. If anything comes up, you know I’ll have the cell on me. If you need to contact him, Logan should have his. If Logan calls, just try to keep him distracted. I don’t want him to find out until I’ve spoken with her. Everything is fine.”

“Right, right… I’m sorry, I guess I’m just nervous.”

Patton chuckled anxiously. “So am I.”

The two looked at one another for a moment before Three gave a genuine smile. “Though, I am upset I’m not going to be there for that conversation with her.”

“Oh, don’t worry. You’ll be filled in on everything tonight.”

“Standing up to her will take a lot, One. I know you can do it. Just be careful with whatever you decide to do after."

Patton smiled at the nickname. “I’ve got this, Three. You go on ahead. I’ll leave in a moment. I have one more thing I need to do first.”

Three understood without another word and readied himself for the day before heading out the door for work. With that, Patton had completed step two.

Now for step three…

Locking up his apartment, Patton stood on the porch and took a moment to breathe. The sun was much higher now; Logan and Virgil had been out for a while. He had eaten and prepared for the most difficult task of them all, but first, there was one more important thing he had to do.

He turned to the other apartment door on the shared porch and knocked, hoping it wasn’t still too early in the morning. After a long moment waiting, he heard footsteps approach as the door cracked open.

Leslie appeared on the other side of the doorway and smiled. “Oh, Patton? Good morning!”

“Good morning, Leslie. I know it’s a bit early, but is Clyde awake yet?”

Leslie seemed confused, but nodded. “Yeah, I just made him breakfast. Is everything okay?”

“I just want to know if I could talk to him in private for a moment?”

Leslie gave a worried look before nodding again. “I’ll go ask him, wait right here.”

Patton felt his heart thudding in his chest as he stood on the porch in silence. This was probably the easiest thing he had to do today and it still had him on edge. After a minute, he heard Clyde groan and stomp down the stairway that led to the apartment door.

Clyde appeared in the doorway with a baggy hoodie on, the hood thrown up over his messy bedhead. “What do you want? It’s stupid early, so someone better be dying!”

Patton nervously chuckled and clapped his hands together. “I mean, I sure hope not! But, uh…” 

Clyde raised an eyebrow at him and crossed his arms, leaning against the door frame. “I’m listening, but make it quick.”

“Okay, well, I know you’re going to say ‘I told you so’, but Roman sort of…” Patton motioned with his hands as he tried to find a delicate way to share the news.

“Did that idiot get hurt?!” Clyde’s eyes shot open wide as he pushed off of the doorframe. “Is he okay?” Clyde caught himself and tried to appear nonchalant. “I mean, he probably got what he deserved.”

Patton was surprised by Clyde’s genuine concern, even if his neighbor tried to shrug it off. “I mean, he was… but he, um… was sort of taken last night.” Clyde didn’t move or respond to what Patton had said. “We think it was the APC. Anti-Prince Club.”

Finally, after a moment, Clyde huffed out a soft laugh and shook his head. “I knew it! I knew that damned idiot was nothing but trouble! So? Do they know about us, then?”

“I… don’t know. We tried not using powers to rescue him, though we eventually had to as they made their escape. We don’t know what they saw. I just wanted to warn you.” “And hear me say ‘I told you so’. Of course, that moron would be the one! What an idiot! I tried telling you all, but noooo! I’m just a kid, don’t listen to me!” Clyde threw up his arms in frustration.

“You’re right, I’m sorry. We really hoped to avoid all this.” Clyde huffed and crossed his arms again. “Um… well… that’s it. I guess.”

“Yeah, thanks for possibly putting me in danger. If they find out there are more people with powers and they find me, this is on you.”

“I know, Clyde. I really am sorry.” Patton hung his head shamefully. “I try to see the good in the world and sometimes I forget how much that can get me in trouble. But don’t worry!” He smiled and puffed out his chest. “I have a plan. I’ll fix this, just you wait!”

Patton turned to march off before he heard the door creak open wider. “Wait!” He looked over his shoulder and saw Clyde looking a bit uncomfortable and glancing away. “I mean… Look, I may be thinking too much into this, but I have a bad feeling, so..."

“What is it?”

Clyde closed his eyes and the air around him shifted. Soon, he was gone, and instead, the image of a middle-aged man was standing in his place. He seemed friendly, with smile lines on his face and a balding head with a widow’s peak. He had a bushy mustache and a beer gut and overall seemed like an average person Patton would see walking down a street. “If you–sorry. A-hem.” Clyde cleared his throat. “If you see me while trying to rescue Roman…” Clyde’s voice took on a much rougher, scratchier tone. “Don’t trust me, Patton. I’m dangerous, okay? Tell Clyde immediately and don’t let my appearance fool you.”

Patton nodded, still in a bit of shock at Clyde’s blatant display, before the image shifted back. “Who was that?”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll… I’ll tell you if you do see him. I’m just being paranoid, but it doesn’t hurt to be overly cautious sometimes, ya know?”

With a nod and a wave, Patton said goodbye to Clyde and began to head out for the most difficult step he had planned so far.

Step four: Time to give his mother a visit.

The entire bus ride to his parent’s house had him on edge. Patton couldn’t help but glance at his phone over and over again. He tried to keep his nerves down and focus on Two and Three, making sure they were alright. He felt them both on edge but okay for the time being before staring out the window as buildings zoomed past.

Finally, at his stop, Patton hopped off and practically started speed walking down the road. His heart was racing with excitement and nervous energy; he was trying to burn it off as soon as possible.

While he was approaching his parent’s neighborhood, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He jumped and pulled it out, looking to see the name ‘Logan <3’ pop up on the screen. He looked at the clock and sighed, realizing he probably had been found out, since he had been too nervous himself to have felt the other Pals. Of course, Logan had discovered everything faster than he had anticipated. He hesitated before he answered it, hoping to catch it before it went to voicemail. He opened his mouth and froze, his heart pounding heavily. How much had Logan figured out? How mad was he for what Patton had done?

“Patton?” Logan’s tone was even, which didn’t help his nerves.

“Logan? Everything alright?”

“Care to explain why Two is here and Three is at work?” Well, it seemed he’d figured out most of it, if not everything. “Did you really find it necessary to sneak away from us like that?”

“Would you have stopped me from doing this if I had told you?”

“I… We’re just worried. I don’t want you rushing into anything.”

“She’s my mother, Lo.” Patton smiled for a bit, though Patton could feel how empty it was. “I have to be able to talk to her about things.”

“I don’t want her to keep–” Logan paused as he rethought his words. “You always forgive her.”

“Not for this.” Patton’s nose wrinkled and he furrowed his brows in anger. He always forgave his mother for what she would say to him, but his friends? He should have stood up to her before, but this was as good a time as any to fix his mistakes. “I’ll call you back when it’s done. Trust me on this?” 

“Yes, of course. Always.” Logan answered immediately, with no hesitation nor hint of anger in his voice. “Just be careful.”

“Don’t worry. I have her outnumbered.” He heard Logan chuckle softly. “I’ll see you later.”

“Right, of course. Later.”

Hanging up, Patton felt much more at ease than he had before. Logan was behind him every step of the way. He could do this. He wasn’t alone.

As he approached his house, neither of his parents’ cars were in view. There was no sign of his dad’s small sedan which was a familiar sight. Patton was used to the car’s absence when his father would work longer shifts. Patton wasn’t sure when he’d return; he would often stay late, and go straight to bed when he got home. His mother’s beat-up pickup truck was also nowhere in sight. Wondering where she could have been only made Patton worry.

Patton fished out the spare key they had entrusted him with and entered the home he had grown up in. The lights were off and everything was silent, causing Patton to pause. He could almost close his eyes and imagine being a teenager again, coming home to an empty house. Then, it would have made him excited. A bit of peace and quiet alone where he could relax and work on other things. He’d hated being stuck in his room and avoided it when he could, especially since his mother had always made him leave the door open. Moments of privacy had always been a treat, rare as they were.

Now, he was walking into the empty house and the feeling wasn’t there anymore. He’d lived on his own for so long that it was never really quiet. It was a bit unnerving.

Flicking the light switch, Patton took in the familiar sights as a wave of nostalgia swept over him. The photos all around the living room, along with a random painting here or there. The couch with his father’s La-Z-Boy chair next to it. Patton chuckled as he shut the door and walked in–the chair reminded him of the one Logan had favored at their old apartment that was destroyed in the fire. It hadn’t been long since Patton had been back in the house, having moved in temporarily after they’d lost their old apartment. 

He walked around, inspecting the living room and kitchen before pausing at the end of the stairs. “Mom? Dad?” There was no response–not that he expected one. He pulled out his phone and checked the time, letting out a small sigh. “Dad probably stayed late for work again, so where’s mom?”

He paused as he glanced around the living room, the house to himself. A thought caused his heart to jump as his mind raced. Alone. In the house he always hated being alone in. He smiled and glanced around before shutting his eyes in a flash of light.

Patton Pals in the house were a big no-no, and only Two and Three had been around when he had tried as a child. But the rest? They all blinked and looked around, different levels of excitement on their faces as they all had the same thought.

“Mom is gonna be so pissed if she finds out.”

“‘If’? Oh, I am definitely telling her we did this.”

“I don’t wanna start a fight.”

“Yes, you do. Come on, how many times did we imagine doing this? Like stealing a cookie from the cookie jar before dinner.”

They all chuckled and gathered in a group. Four, Five, Six, and Seven all smiled at Patton and he returned the favor. “It feels so bad,” Patton giggled. “It’s as good as I imagined.”

“Yeah, well.” Six crossed his arms and turned away. “I’ve been wanting to do something like this forever, but you never listen to me.”

Patton blinked and threw up his arms. “You’re always trying to get me to rebel by doing something bad! This isn’t bad!”

“Yeah? Tell that to mom.” Patton frowned and turned away as Six rolled his eyes. “That’s why we’re here, aren’t we? We're finally going to tell her off?”

“I wouldn’t put it like that,” Five chimed in, “but we are going to say something, aren’t we? I mean, after that dinner with Logan, we have to say something. We’ve been avoiding her for long enough.”

Patton looked at the four Pals standing in front of him and took a deep breath. “I did want to ask if we were going to take… extreme measures.”

“Obviously, yes!” Seven said, throwing his hands in the air. “She basically admitted to being a part of the APC! And now they have Roman!” “We don’t have proof of either of those things for certain.” 

“Yeah, but we believe that they could be true, and that says enough!”

The Pals turned to Patton, as he hadn’t given his opinion yet. “Well, even still. This is a big decision and I don’t know what to do.”

“You can’t decide?” Seven questioned, as if Patton had said something ridiculous. “What is there to argue about?”

“She’s our mom,” Patton mumbled. “Cutting her out completely is a bit drastic, isn’t it?”

“Not really,” Seven shrugged. “After everything? We’ve asked her to hear us out how many times? We have to draw the line somewhere.”

“I’m with Seven on this,” Six added. “If she cares, she’ll hear us out.”

“I dunno.” Four turned and sat back on the couch, tired of standing. “I think it’s a bit much, don’t you?” Five nodded in agreement. “See? I just think there’s more at stake if we go all in! Why take the risk?”

“Five only agrees because that’s what Three would want.”

“Hey!” Five shouted. “That’s not true! And even if it is, it doesn’t matter because Two would agree with you, which leaves us at a stalemate!” Five turned to Patton. “So, we need a tiebreaker. What do you think? We hear her out and forgive her because she’s our loving mother?”

“Or, and hear me out,” Seven spoke up, holding up his hands defensively, “we stop giving her excuses and hold her responsible for her actions? Like this! ‘Margaret, tell me everything, or else I’m never speaking to you again.’ See? Simple!”

“She’s our mom, Seven,” Patton sighed. “She’s forgiven me for a lot of things. I’m not saying we let her off easy, but cutting her off from us completely is a lot, right? I just don’t know what to do.” “If we can’t agree on this, then how are we going to agree on what to do after we talk to her about Roman, hmm? That’s what we came here to talk about, right?! We need to make a decision and we need to make it now.” “Okay, let’s put it to a vote.” Patton turned to Four. “Four? Do you want to make the deal with mom? Cut her off completely if she doesn’t comply?”

“No.”

Patton nodded and turned to Five. He shook his head and frowned, looking over to the last two. When Patton turned to Six, he didn’t hesitate to answer. “Yes.” “Seven?”

“Yes.”

Patton sighed and pushed up his glasses, rubbing his eyes. “Okay. Well, we still have to vote on what we’re gonna do when we ask her about the Anti-Prince Club. Do we want to take the information back to the others first? Or shall we have her take us there to make sure she’s not lying and that’s where Roman is first?” Four watched as Patton turned to him for his answer. “I think we should go back and regroup first.” Five huffed and shook his head. “No, we need to go and make sure she’s not lying.”

“I’m with Five,” Six crossed his arms. “We don’t want to waste their time if he’s not there or if she takes us on a wild goose chase. We confirm it’s real first, then tell the others.”

“We’ll just worry them by taking too long! If we have a lead, then we should share it right away.” Seven nodded his head toward Four. “So I’m with Four, and we have a tie on both decisions. Now what?”

The front door jiggled and the five froze, eyes darting to the noise. The door opened and the sunlight shined through brightly as a figure stood in the doorway.

Patton watched as his dad tiredly shrugged off his shoes and shut the door behind him. He turned and removed his jacket before hanging it on a hook beside the door. He started walking into his home and looked up, taking in the five men standing in his living room.

“Well, what a wonderful surprise! My favorite son!” He smiled as his eyes wrinkled with age. “All five of them, it seems! Wow, that’s more than I remember. You’re getting good at that, huh? How many can you make now?”

Patton and the Pals all smiled at their dad; the old man’s beard had grown more since they had last seen him. His eyes were sunken in from exhaustion, like always, but he carried himself as tall as he could. He was always such a burly man, but Patton knew better: he was a total softie at heart.

“Hey, dad,” Patton spoke as he turned. 

“Now, none of that.” He held out his arms and wiggled his fingers. “Where’s a hug for your honorary Pal? You call them pals now, right?”

Chuckling, Patton raced forward and wrapped his arms around him and squeezed as much as he could. “You’ll always be my favorite Pat! And my favorite pal.”

“And you’ll always be mine.” He patted Patton on the back and chuckled at the silent joke as they pulled away. “Are you here to see your mother? She told me you argued again.”

“Uh, yeah. Do you know where she is?”

“I dunno, she joined some book club or something.” He rubbed the sleep from his eyes for a moment, but Patton could tell it hadn’t done much. He could just feel the exhaustion rolling off of him. “I’m glad she’s gotten out to be more social, but I’m not usually around to get all the details.” He yawned and ran a hand through his hair. “Want me to stay up till she gets back?”

“No, get some sleep. You pulled a double shift again, didn’t you?”

“Gotta pay the bills.” He shrugged and turned to walk towards the staircase to his room. “Let me know if you need anything, even if I’m asleep, got it?”

“Yeah, dad.”

He paused on the bottom stair and turned to them once more. “Patton?”

“Patrick?”

His father smiled briefly before it fell, his expression turning serious. “I love you and no matter what, I always will.”

“I know–”

“I know you know. But I also know your mother worries about you, and all this–” he waved his hand toward the pals, “–getting out scares her. But you’re an adult and you need to make your own decisions. Now, I don’t know what the fight was about, but due to your track record, that’s my best guess.” Patton turned away briefly in embarrassment. “You ever need to talk to me, I’m a phone call away. I don’t care what it’s about.”

“Thanks, dad. Really.”

Patrick nodded and started heading up the stairs. “I’m off to bed. Oh! And visit again soon, will ya? I know I missed that dinner with that boy of yours but he’s not off the hook yet!”

Patton chuckled and watched his father disappear up the stairs. “I will! Go get some sleep!”

He and the Pals sat silently, listening as Patrick made his way to the bedroom. The click of the door cut off any other sounds that could be heard, diverting their attention back to one another.

They looked around and Patton frowned as their topic came back to mind. “It’ll be hard to cut her out and not him.”

“We can work around that.” Seven spoke immediately to defend his point. “He’s willing to work with us! He can meet us at our place. That shouldn’t even be a factor.”

“You’re right.” Patton held up his hands to prevent any further arguments. “You’re right. Well, at least…” Patton looked up at the Pals with a look of surprise in his eyes. “I’ve got an idea.”

“What?” Six asked. “Is it gonna help us with a decision?” 

“Probably. It’s the best chance we have right now to make up our minds.” “How?” Four asked. “We’re at a total stalemate if you can’t make a choice.”

“No, not exactly,” Patton smiled as the realization sunk into the rest of them. “Not if I give someone else the choice as well.”

“Eight?!” Seven cried out. “You want to make Eight?! You’ve never made anyone past me before!”

“It’s our best bet, I guess.” Four mumbled. “I mean, if he can’t decide, it makes sense. They can vote on both and we get everything sorted.”

“Woah, hold on.” Six stepped into the center of the room a bit more. “Are you absolutely sure? You know that after making a new one, you can’t go back. We’re stressed out right now. You shouldn’t do anything drastic.”

Patton wrapped his arms around himself and paused a bit. Then, looking up at Six, he nodded. “I’m sure. We need Eight. Besides, I feel like… he’ll be helpful to have with everything going on.”

“Right, okay,” Six stepped back and motioned to the room. “The floor is yours, One.”

Patton nodded and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. 

Summoning a Pal was familiar to him. Reflecting in on himself, searching for that warm feeling like when you get a hug and then grabbing that feeling before pulling. But creating a new one for the first time was like breaking something apart. It’d fit back perfectly and he wouldn’t even notice it break, but he’d have to be careful. 

Concentrate and focus. Ignore the warmth building and the light you can tell is shining behind your closed eyes and just pull.

---

Roman was enjoying the view beyond the single glass wall he was imprisoned behind, but his desire to hear what the old man was yelling about meant he couldn’t sing. The two morons that had attacked him and brought him here were looking more like children being scolded for doing something wrong at the moment. They tried to speak up at one point, but Bruce cut them off quickly and they just looked more ashamed after that. Eventually, they walked off and he sighed before disappearing behind the door and out of view from the glass. Most of it was still covered, except for that one part that kept being lifted so people could look in on him. The last time someone looked in, Bruce had appeared and turned red with anger, chasing them off. Then he’d turned to the other two orchestrating the ‘viewings’ and started shouting. 

Roman was glad for the reprieve, but he just wanted to go home. He felt like a prisoner, which he supposed he was, but worse. Almost more like an object to be stared at and less like a person. The people coming in and ogling at him like he was some sort of spectacle made him feel uneasy. His roommates must have been worried and he was still exhausted beyond belief. They didn’t know where he was yet, or else Virgil definitely would have found a way to talk to him and yell at him himself, paradoxes be damned.

The door opened and Bruce walked in with another water bottle, sighing as he shut the door behind him. “Sorry about that. Those two are unbelievable.”

“Then why let them be in charge of anything?”

“In charge?” Bruce laughed at the thought. “No, they know someone who let us use this empty office space until it gets rented as long as we keep it clean. I think they told them we were cleaners, actually. They have no idea what we use it for. Otherwise, those knuckleheads wouldn’t even be here. They’re not in charge of anything.”

Bruce held out the water bottle and sat down slowly. “I told them to stop going out on searches, and said that kidnapping a person was illegal and that we are not the cops, but no. They have it in their heads that this’ll turn out like their comic books or a movie and they won’t get in trouble, and roped all of us into it in the process.”

Roman frowned and played with the water bottle, watching the small bubble of air move around. “So this was all a mistake? Can’t you just let me go, then?”

“Well, now that we have you, the others are arguing on what to do. Fortunately, I convinced most of them that letting you go at sundown was our best bet with the cover of the night where people might just think you’re on another patrol or something. As long as I can convince you not to press charges or anything.”

Roman’s heart jumped at the idea of finally being let go, but he didn’t let it show. “What proof do you have that I won’t?”

“They have your face, Charging. Those morons who brought you here never got a photo, but some of the others did, and I can’t get them to delete all of them.” Roman frowned at that, gripping the fabric of his jacket in one of his hands. He knew he had convinced the two idiots that had attacked him, and he had hoped that was it, but someone must have snuck a photo without him knowing. “So we’ll both have to agree to each other's terms and come to an understanding. Besides, the photos are of you locked in a room trapped so it’ll be hard for them to share it and also look innocent. Everyone wins.”

“All I understand is that I’ve been assaulted more than once and you want to get away with it completely.” He shook his head. “Short of you disbanding, I can’t agree to that. You don’t just have my face. You find out who I am and everyone I care about is in danger. I can’t have that.”

“Well–” Bruce leaned in a bit closer – “can your powers do something about that? Take out their electronics?”

“I told you, I don’t actually have powers!” Roman hissed out and turned away. “I would if I could, that sounds great! Point me in the direction and I’ll fry everything in this building if I had to. But I can’t do that! Because powers aren’t real.”

Roman waited a moment before turning to Bruce who just watched him carefully with a frown on his face. “You really don’t have powers, huh?” Roman waited a moment before he shook his head. Bruce sighed and turned away. “Damn, and I was really hoping. Shit.” Roman sat up in surprise at his reaction. “Well, I can still get you out, but it looks like my time in this club is done.”

“Really?” Roman squeezed the water bottle and heard it slightly crinkle. “Why is that? Sick at what they did to an innocent person?”

“I infiltrated this club to find someone with powers, Charging. If you don’t have any, I’m not interested. Sorry, no offense.”

“You infiltrated–wait, why? You said you knew someone else with powers, what’s going on?”

“I’m afraid that’s classified on a need-to-know basis.” Bruce leaned back and slapped his hands on his thighs. “Well, if you come across anyone with powers, you’ll have to let me know.” Bruce leaned forward and started to stand. “I’ll let you think about their proposition and come back for an answer.”

“Wait!” Roman dropped the bottle and reached out. Puzzled, Bruce knelt back down to look at him as Roman felt his throat close up. “Maybe I do know something…” He pulled his hand to his chest and could almost feel his heart pounding through his jacket. “How do I know you’re not lying? Who’s this person with powers?”

“You know someone with actual powers? You’re not lying to me?” In response, Roman shook his head quickly. “Well, ratting out someone else isn’t exactly fair, is it? But if we both know someone, maybe we can work something out.”

Roman sat a moment, processing his next words carefully. “I suppose… it depends. I’ll have to talk to them when I get out.”

“Alright.” Bruce began to push himself up from the floor slowly and leaned back to crack his back. “Well, then sit on this as well as your answer and I’ll return in an hour, okay?” He looked down at Roman and paused for a moment. “If you’re willing to share, then I’d love to meet up with this person. I’ve been searching for others with powers for years.” Roman watched as Bruce turned to walk out the door. “ Just remember. I’ll come for your answer in an hour, Prince. I hope you’re ready by then.”

---

Everything was still, no one willing to move and break the quiet that had fallen. They all stood there, staring at the new Patton Pal in anticipation. Patton had tumbled a bit as Eight appeared, catching himself on the side of the couch and glancing around the room.The others were all waiting excitedly for the newest arrival to speak.

“Eight?” As Patton spoke, the new Pal turned toward him. “Um, hi! Nice to meet you, Eight! We were kind of… stuck. Did you have any input? Or something you wanted to say?” Eight blinked at Patton and then looked back at the Pals, standing and stepping away from the side of the couch. “Eight?”

“Say something!” Seven cried out, frustrated. “We need an answer, please just say something already.” After a moment, Eight opened his mouth, abruptly spinning around and turning to Patton. “You’re going to tell mom that she’s going to bring us to the APC, or we walk out and find them ourselves and we won’t ever be coming back.”

Patton and the pals jumped as Eight spoke, glancing around at one another in surprise. “Are you sure?” Four asked from the couch. “She’s family!”

“Yes, and we gave her ten years’ worth of chances to hear us out. How many has she returned in kind?” Eight looked at Three as he spoke. “How many times have we asked to talk before she cut us off, saying what she says goes? How many times do we excuse her behavior? We’ve stood up to her too many times.” Eight turned to Patton and frowned. “It’s time to stand up to ourselves. She made mistakes, but that doesn’t mean we have to forgive her for them. I think you know that. I think you all know that. You’re just not brave enough to say it.”

“Is that what you are to me?” Patton spoke softly. “My bravery?”

“Another thing we need to discuss.” Eight spun around instead of answering. “Our plan. In a little more detail, at the very least.”

Patton and the others waited a moment before Eight squared his shoulders and looked at Patton. 

“I know we’re all afraid… but I think you know what you want to do.”

“But… Logan and Virgil…”

“It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. You know you can convince them, but we don’t have the time. We don’t know what’s happening to Roman right now. At least let them know we have a plan. We can keep them updated as we learn more.”

“But…” Patton sighed. “Are you sure? We could just get the location from her. She might not even tell us!”

“She’ll tell us. I know you don’t trust that she’ll be completely honest, though, so we need to make sure Roman’s actually there first. We can’t get the others’ hopes up. After we know where Roman is, then we can regroup just like you want. We need to do this, we’re risking more if we take the safe route. If we don’t pace ourselves, we’ll just be putting the others at risk.” Eight paused for a moment. “Don’t you think Virgil will just run there in frozen time the first chance he gets? We have to be sure.”

Patton slowly nodded before looking at the others. “Yeah. Okay. We go to the APC first, then we regroup.” Five and Seven looked a bit upset at the news, but nodded in agreement. “So, what do we tell her when she gets here?”

“We can discuss that together until she does.” Eight smiled. “We got this, One.”

---

“Thomas?” Logan spoke softly as he approached the other. “I just wanted to apologize again for my behavior in the past. It was rather uncouth of me. I may have had my reasons, but it does not justify my actions. I am sorry.”

Thomas smiled and shrugged. “I know you feel bad about it, and Patton said you had some personal reason why. You’re trying, right? So I can forgive you this time.”

“I don’t get it, though.” Virgil walked up with a new cup of coffee in his hands. “I didn’t think you wanted anything to do with this. Why are you here?”

“About that.” Thomas ran his hands through his hair. “I was talking with Joan and they kind of acted like they already knew I was going to do something. Even before I decided to tell them that I wanted to come on my own. Which was weird, because I kept getting this deja vu feeling like I needed to go find you guys and help.” He looked up at Virgil and Logan. “Is this something we’ve been through before? Maybe not this exact scenario, but similar? I just couldn’t stand by, something wasn’t sitting right with me.”

Virgil sipped his coffee, let out a loud sigh, and nodded his head. “Your memories aren’t completely gone, just locked up.Your body is responding based on what you’ve done before, I guess.”

Logan turned to Virgil, confused. “That’s not actually how any of that works?”

“Hey. Who’s sipping at coffee looking brilliant with his deductions, huh?” Virgil raised his mug. “That’s what I thought. I don’t have to be right. I just have to look like I know what I’m doing.”

“That’s not how that works at all either, Virgil.” 

Virgil shrugged. “Works for Tony Stark.”

Logan looked even more confused. “Who?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Thomas interfered. “So, what have you figured out so far?”

Two walked up at that point, rubbing at his chest. “Well, I don’t know what Patton is up to, but I just got a weird feeling, so I at least have an idea.”

“Are you alright?” Logan turned his full attention to the Pal. “Are the others alright?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry, Lo.” Two smiled sincerely, which put Logan at ease. “He’ll tell you later. Right now, he’s fine.”

Confused, Thomas turned toward Virgil, who mouthed ‘Patton Pal’ back. Thomas nodded and Virgil held up a hand, raising two fingers to signify it was Two talking.

Clyde walked in from the kitchen and up to the others, holding a mug in his hands. “So, you figure anything out yet?”

“Are you drinking my coffee?” Virgil looked offended as he stared at the cup. “Is that my Nightmare Before Christmas mug?!”

Clyde looked Virgil dead in the eyes as he brought the mug up to his mouth and took an obnoxiously loud sip. “No.” “What do you mean ‘no’?” Virgil pointed at him. “I can see you drinking my coffee in my mug right now!” “Oh?” Clyde tried to hide his smile behind the mug. “Do you have any proof of that?” Virgil stuttered, a bit speechless as Clyde held a shit-eating grin on his face. “Alright, enough of that.” Two stepped in and looked at Clyde. “Should you even be drinking that?”

“Should he?” Clyde motioned to Virgil with his totally-not-stolen mug. “Besides, didn’t you wake me up super early this morning?”

Two was taken aback by the comment and blushed in embarrassment. “You were already awake when Patton knocked on the door!”

“I’d like to see your evidence to this claim,” Clyde simply took a sip of his coffee again as Two was flabbergasted. “This is slander. I demand a lawyer.”

“You always like this?” Virgil asked with a quirked eyebrow. “I bet you’re fun at parties.”

“I light up the room more than you do, Tinkerbell. Don’t see me complaining.” Clyde felt a bit of pride when Virgil snorted out a laugh at the comment.

Logan stared at the two before turning back to Thomas. “Right. Well, to answer your question, Thomas, we’ve figured out very little since we discovered–”

“We don’t know jack squat,” Virgil cut him off, huffing as he took a big swig of his coffee. “I’ve been awake while trying not to panic for hours and we had to come back because Roman’s mom is on her way here to kick my ass.”

“She’s not going to harm you, Virgil. She was simply worried about her son and wanted to come help and figure out what happened.”

“He disappeared under my watch and she’s going to kick my ass.” Virgil stared down at his almost empty mug with a frown. “Not how I wanted to die, but I’ll take it.”

“Aww, Virgil, I’m sure she won’t kill you that slowly.” Clyde tried to seem genuine as he placed a soft hand on Virgil’s back. “I’ll totally miss you. It’ll be easier to steal this mug if you’re dead.”

“You’re putting that back or I’ll kill you myself before I die.” Virgil glared at him and Clyde smiled and rolled his eyes in response.

“Are we going to tell her about our powers?” Everyone turned to Thomas as he spoke up. He quickly became self-conscious with so many eyes on him and shuffled his feet. “I mean, she knows about Roman’s, right? What about us?”

Logan hummed and closed his eyes as he took a moment to think about it. “It would probably be for the best to wait for now. I’m sure we all aren’t comfortable with divulging such a big secret so let’s keep it to ourselves unless we need to ‘spill the beans’. Metaphorically speaking.”

Another cup of coffee and a worried scolding from Two later, there was a knock on the door. Virgil sighed and stood up from the couch to answer it. “Well, it was nice knowing you all.”

Opening the door, Virgil blinked as his gaze drifted downward. At least a foot shorter than him was a middle-aged woman with graying brown hair. She smiled up at him excitedly and threw open her arms.

“Oh, I’d know that face anywhere! My son has shown me pictures! You have to be Virgil! Come here and give mama a hug!” She waited for Virgil to hesitantly bend down and extend his arms a bit before latching onto him. She squeezed him and swayed back and forth before letting go. “Such a handsome, strong man! Oh, my boy better be taking good care of you! Come, let us talk.” Virgil moved out of the way as she walked in and inspected the room. “Oh, company! Hello, I’m Roman’s mother, Liz. I’m sorry if he’s been quite a handful.”

The room was silent for a moment before Clyde started snickering to himself. “At least someone apologized for that moron.”

Liz frowned and sighed, placing her hands on her hips. “My son is a brilliant boy who is just very passionate and thinks with his heart instead of his head sometimes.” Clyde blushed and turned away, focusing on his coffee. “But I understand. That is why we are all here, yes? What has he gotten himself into now?”

“Hello, ma’am. My name is Logan.” Liz turned to shake Logan’s hand he had extended already. “You may want to sit down, it’s not good news.”

“So I take it he didn’t just break something again?” Liz looked worried as Logan led her to the couch.

Two walked up and tried to smile, though it came off more as a grimace. “Hi, I’m Patton. Would you like something to drink?”

“After I hear the news, dear. I don’t know how much you’ll need to put in the glass.”

Two looked confused for a moment. “How much what? Water?”

“Tequila.”

Virgil covered his mouth to stop himself from laughing as Clyde’s eyes grew wide. 

Logan cleared his throat and ran a hand down his tie to distract himself. “I’m afraid Roman was assaulted and taken early this morning.” Logan diverted his gaze away and braced himself for her reaction. “As of right now, he is currently missing.”

Liz paused and nodded her head. “Ah, is that all?” She turned to Patton with a smile, though still seemed tense. “Water will be fine, dear.”

Virgil walked up to the couch as Two moved to go to the kitchen. “Wait, that’s it? You’re not mad?” Virgil ran both of his hands through his hair. “I was there! I froze and I didn’t stop them!”

“Well, goodness, Virgil! I sure hope not!” Liz reached for her purse and sat it in her lap. “I wouldn’t want to have heard you got hurt as well. That would be far worse!” She began rummaging through her purse for a moment. “It sounds like that hate group that was out to get him might be behind this if I had to guess. I’m a part of his fan club, though I’m sure my Ro doesn’t know that.” She pulled out a pack of gum and extended it out to Virgil. “Dear, take this. I hear chewing gum can help with the nerves.”

Virgil took it and stared at her before looking down at the gum. “You… figured that all out already?”

“He’s my son, my shining star! I will always worry about him so I like to make sure he’s okay.”

“Wait a second!” Clyde pushed past Virgil and looked at her. “You knew he was out there using his powers and you just let him?!”

“It is who he is, who am I to deny that? He’s not hurting anyone and is trying to put more good in the world. I’m proud of what he does.”

“He has powers!” Clyde threw up his hands. “He is showing the world that people with powers exist! He could be putting all of them in danger!”

Liz watched Clyde as he slowly grew impatient, waiting for an answer. “Honey… are you mad he is using his powers because you’re worried about someone else? Are you worried about yourself?” 

“What?!” Clyde shouted. Two jumped from where he stood in the doorway, holding a tall glass of ice water. “I mean, what do you mean by that?”

“Well, if he has powers, I always assumed others probably did as well. Is that what worries you?” She turned back to Clyde. “I could just be guessing but… sweetie, do you have powers?”

Clyde turned red in the face before turning and heading for the door. “That’s it! I’ve had enough of all of you. I’m out of here! Don’t bother me again, he’s your headache and I want nothing to do with him!”

Clyde slammed the door and they heard his feet stomp all the way up the stairs to the apartment above him. Liz, however, seemed undeterred as she started to stand up to take the glass of water from Two. “Well, how about a plan to find my little bolt while he calms down, shall we?” Virgil was beginning to realize that he was still afraid of Roman’s mother, but for completely different reasons.

---

Patton’s phone began to ring, cutting short the conversation they had been having.

‘Mom’ popped up on the screen and Patton answered it immediately. 

There was a pause as both remained silent before Patton spoke. “Hello?”

“Patton? Is that you?”

“Well, you did call me.”

“I’ve been getting your answering machine all week! I didn’t expect you to pick up this time.”

Patton looked over to Eight who silently was cheering him on. “Well, I figured it was about time we talked. Where are you?”

“I was out running a quick errand, but I’m home now.” Patton watched the front doorknob twist as it unlocked and opened. 

“Good.” Patton pulled the phone away and hung up, watching as his mother walked into the house. “We can start there. What errands were you running?”

Maggie lowered the phone as she took in the sight before her. Her son who had not answered his phone in days was in her home, and he had made more of those copies. They stood there in the center of her living room without a care in the world, all of them watching her. After what she had just witnessed this morning? She wasn't pleased.

“What are you doing?!” She closed the door quickly and locked it once more before marching into the living room. “You know you shouldn’t be using your powers! What if someone saw?”

“The door was locked, mom. Please be quiet, dad just got home not too long ago and should be asleep.” Patton watched as his mother grew red with rage.

“Do not speak to me in that tone, young man! This is my home!”

“Which you have extended to me as my home,” Eight called out. Patton felt his heart flutter in fear as he spoke.

“I was not talking to you! I was talking to my son!”

“How do you know I’m the original?” Patton asked. “How do you know? Can you look and tell me that he didn’t just give me his phone? That he’s even in this room right now?”

“Don’t try to pull the wool over my eyes!” She quickly looked around the room before turning back to him. “I am very cross with you leaving dinner the other night! And hiding the fact that Logan had powers? Now I find Roman is Prince Charging and he has powers too! You moved into an apartment with a bunch of delinquents! I wouldn’t be surprised if Virgil had them; you're just keeping all sorts of secrets now, huh? What else have you been lying to me about? How many times have you told me you haven’t been using your powers and you’ve been running around with half a dozen of them out?”

Patton remained motionless as she berated him. 

“Well? Answer me!”

“Where’s Roman?”

“What?”

All of the Pals approached Maggie, surrounding her and cutting off all her exits. “Your little ‘book club’ has him. Dad told me about that, by the way. You’re keeping secrets too, mom. So, where is he?” 

Maggie looked around and opened her mouth to speak.

“Think carefully,” Eight cut her off before she could say a word. “Because whatever you say will decide how we handle the other conversation we will be having afterward.”

“What ‘other’ conversation?” Maggie backed off a bit as she glared at Eight.

“Well, mom, funny story about that,” Seven spoke up, crossing his arms. “When your friends decided to attack Roman and hit him over the head with a bat before kidnapping him,-”

“Remind me. Was that before or after they tried running us over?”

“They what?!” Maggie shouted as she stared at the Pattons in disbelief.

“Funny story, really,” Four cut in. Maggie gawked at all of their faces in her growing panic. “When you side with people willing to hurt others? They don’t care who gets in their way.”

“So.” Patton took a step closer and held his head up high. He imagined Logan standing beside him and supporting him every step of the way. He knew that no matter what happened, he wasn’t alone. “What did you want to talk to me about?”

Maggie looked anguished as her eyes quickly flickered from each Pal before landing on Patton, who she had talked to first. “They almost hit you?” Her voice was soft and it shook before she reached out. As she cupped his cheeks, Patton frowned and tried to cling to his wavering confidence. “My baby boy, are you okay?”

Patton felt his throat ache and close up and took a moment to calm himself. “Yeah.” He pulled her in for a hug and looked over her shoulder to the Pal staring at him. “I’m okay.” They embraced for a moment before Patton pulled away. 

“Mom, where’s Roman? Is he okay? What do they want to do with him?”

“The poor dear! He’s at the office, I just saw him. They’re trying to see if any of us recognize him.” Maggie watched as Patton paled at her words. “I didn’t say anything! They asked and I said I’d never seen him before! I said he was such a young boy that he reminded me of you, and that I had to go.” She reached out and grabbed his arms. “You have to believe me, sweetie, I didn’t say a thing! You’re all I talk about there, and they know that.”

Patton nodded and closed his eyes. “Okay. I believe you.” She sighed and he opened his eyes once more, standing up tall as he did. “But you have to take me to him. I want to see him for myself.”

“No, Patty, it’s not safe!”

“They have my friend, mom!” Patton stepped back and shook his head. “We’re all worried about him. Virgil was there when he was taken and he hasn’t slept, and Logan’s barely holding himself together.” Patton’s voice wavered. “I have to see him. We need to get him out.”

“Well, maybe no one will recognize him! Maybe we can come up with a plan, or...”

Patton shook his head. “No! No, he worked in public for years and he performs in plays! He puts his face out there every chance he gets. Anyone could accidentally recognize him. The sooner we get him out, the better!” Maggie looked conflicted. “He has a family. His mother will be worried sick. What if it were me?”

Maggie clenched her eyes shut and nodded. “Yes. You’re right, of course, you’re right.” She looked up at her son as her eyes glistened with tears she fought back. “I just wanted to protect you. You know that, right? I want to keep you safe. I haven’t been doing a great job of that, have I?”

“It’s not too late to start.” Eight spoke up. Everyone turned to him as he smiled. “We were going to walk out if you didn’t want to help, if I’m honest.”

“Walk out? W-what do you mean ‘walk out’?”

“Of your life, mom.” Eight stepped closer and left no distance between them. “Logan was right. We love who we are. Every quirk we have and everything we can do. But you lashed out with rude comments and backhanded jokes. You didn’t realize how harmful your words were. Every time we tried to talk to you, you didn’t want to hear anything about it. We gained empathetic abilities. Did you know that? Did you ever wonder if these powers grew to something more?”

Patton held a hand up to his chest and rubbed it. He was so overwhelmed with his emotions, but the heartbreak his mother felt at Eight’s words were blossoming. He watched as she shook her head and looked at him. 

“Is it true?”

“I’m okay with you not agreeing with my choices, mom. I’m okay with you worrying about me using my powers. But it’s more than that. It’s not just me anymore. When you start interfering with my friends, that’s when I have to realize that something isn’t right. I have to say something about it for their sakes.”

“Not the healthiest thing we’ve ever said,” Five chimed in. 

“But that’s our issue.” Seven said. He approached Patton with a smile. “Maybe we still need to learn to love ourselves more. Maybe we’re not selfish enough. Maybe we care about others over us and we need to work on that.” He reached out and disappeared in a flash of light. Maggie gasped, not used to seeing it again after so many years.

The others gathered and all smiled at Patton as they reached out one by one, each one disappearing in their own flash of light. When Eight reached out, Patton mouthed a quiet ‘thank you’ before he disappeared. The rush of the Pals’ emotions from their conversations surged for a moment before he turned to Maggie once more.

She tried to smile at him before she launched and pulled him in for another hug. “I never meant to hurt you. I’m so sorry, I hadn’t realized it was so bad!”

“It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Well, yeah. You’re right, it’s not.” Patton chuckled and felt his tears finally overflow. “But we can work on that together. I’m not exactly the perfect son either.”

“Yes, you are. And maybe Logan isn’t so bad. When he’s not scaring the living daylights out of me with those eyes!”

“You don’t know half of it.” Patton pulled away and removed his glasses to wipe at his eyes. “Gosh, I’m not ready for this talk.” He put them back on to catch his mother doing the same thing. “It’s going to have to wait, unfortunately. I want to see Roman.”

“Okay. Of course, absolutely. I’ll take you there right now.”

---

“So, that’s it, then.” Liz seemed frustrated with the plan they had shared, which hadn’t been much. “You think you might know how to get in?”

Two nodded and crossed his arms. “I’m working on a way to get into the APC. I’m just waiting to hear back from my source that’s checking to see if they even have him. I don’t like waiting around but we’re running out of ideas.”

Liz sighed and nodded. “That’s good. What other plans do you have?”

“We aren’t sure,” Logan frowned and looked at Two. “Patton’s plan was all we came up with, really. We were going on a manual search when you had called. We came back here to tell you everything we knew.”

“Well, what about the fan club?” Eyes turned to Virgil, who ducked his head and began nervously chewing on the gum Roman’s mother had given him. “I mean, would they know anything?”

Liz smiled and pulled her phone out of her purse. “That’s not a bad idea! I’ll contact Sammy right away. We may just get lucky, maybe they can reach out to the others. I know some old members left to join the other club as a way to get inside information, like spies! We can ask the rest to keep their eyes open.”

“Is there anything we can do as we wait?” Thomas ruffled his hair a bit, then leaned in and whispered as Liz started to call someone, distracted. “I mean, power-wise?”

Logan shook his head. “Not really. I mean, I could scan the city for him, but that could take days, and it’s not a perfect process. I missed Clyde the first time.”

“That’s if he’s even in the city,” Two chimed in. “Clyde mentioned moving from the suburbs. You didn’t miss him, he just wasn’t here. So there’s a chance Roman’s out of reach, too.”

“Can we extend that reach?” Thomas asked. “There’s got to be something we can do.”

“We’d have to amplify his powers to do that,” Virgil pointed to Thomas. “But our power amplifier is busted and we don’t have a manual, so that’s a no.”

Thomas’ eyes widened in realization as he turned to Logan. “Well, that just leaves one thing left to do.” He smiled at Logan before fishing into his pocket and pulling out a small, beaten up memo pad. “I was actually planning on bringing this up anyway and now seems as good of a time as any.”

Logan seemed perplexed as his eyes went from Thomas to the small memo pad. “Thomas, as you sure? You don’t have to do this now.”

The trek home took far longer than any of them had hoped. When they managed to make it back to their apartment, the sun was already in the early morning sky. Virgil jogged up the stairs and pulled out a key before running in ahead of the others. He tossed the backpack onto the floor next to the door and raced over to the couch. He spun around and fell back before pulling up his legs and burying his face. The fabric of his hood, which he pulled up a while ago on their journey back home, completely hid his face.

Logan closed the door, and Patton watched Virgil closely while tugging at the hem of his shirt. 

“That was good thinking, Patton,” Logan whispered. “Telling the cops you were looking for a friend’s missing pet. At least they have records of something happening to the Prince. It may come in handy in the future.” Patton nodded and looked back to the floor, silent. Logan let out a soft sigh when he hadn’t received any kind of verbal response. Patton glanced up at Virgil, and his frown deepened and he took a step back. Logan took the opening as an opportunity to slowly approach the couch. “I know you don’t want to talk about it, Virgil, but we need to make a plan if we want to get Roman back.” Logan waited for Virgil to move and the heavy silence between them grew. “We should rest a bit and then-”

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Virgil threw his head up, his face barely visible from his hair covering his face. “We don’t have time to rest! Roman just got fucking kidnapped! The longer we wait, the more danger he is in!”

“Yes, and what do you expect us to do in our condition?” Logan raised his voice a bit in retaliation. “We can’t help him even if we do find him right now. We should rest and come up with a plan first.”

Virgil stood up and grit his teeth. “Fuck that!” His hands balled into fists and he stomped forward. “We go out there and we find him! Just like you found us the very first time, you can manage that, right?! Then when we know he’s safe, we infiltrate, and I bash everyone’s stupid face in! How’s that for a plan?”

Logan held up his hands in surrender as Virgil grew closer. “It took me days to check the whole city last time and the buses won’t be running this early!” Logan commented, hoping to ease Virgil’s anger. “The sun is only just starting to rise.”

Virgil backed off and began to pace. “No no no no no! We need to find him now. I can’t just sit around and wait!” Virgil growled and kicked a pillow on the ground from the bed he had placed before everything. The sight of the blankets and pillows seemed to be Virgil’s current target for his frustrations. He had been in denial about the whole thing the entire walk home. He was silent, almost in a daze as the reality of the situation started to settle in. Now he was simply frustrated with himself that he was so useless to stop it! When Roman needed him most, he stood there, frozen and too afraid and in shock to do anything. Now he was fired up and unable to stand by and wait.

Logan watched Virgil’s panic fueled rampage from the sidelines, unsure how to help as he looked over at Patton. “Any help here?” Patton looked up, his fists were now on his chest grabbing at his shirt, balling them up in his hands. Patton seemed a little panicked himself and shook his head quickly. Logan looked between the two as something clicked. Desperation. Panic. Empath. “Patton, please step out of the room for a moment while I try to calm down Virgil. Do those breathing practices like you taught me, alright?”

Wordlessly Patton nodded in agreement before turning to retreat into his bedroom, shutting the door loudly behind him. Logan turned back to Virgil and went to stop his pacing and destruction of the pillows before thinking better of it. He didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire. “Virgil, can you breathe with me?”

“This is all my fault, Logan. He’s hurt and gone and it’s all because of me.” Virgil finally stopped his pacing and let out a gasp of air. “I did this.”

“You were not the one that attacked Roman so I don’t see how this is your fault.” Virgil huffed out a silent laugh, shook his head, and started pacing once more. He almost looked like a caged animal searching for a way to escape. Logan’s mind raced as he tried to think of ways to deescalate the situation. “Vir-”

“Oh, let it go, Lo!” Virgil spun around with a shout. “I did this! I left him alone when I knew he was tired! Because I knew he likes to have a moment to himself before he comes home! And because I wasn’t strong enough to keep the portal open because I was tired, I let him get kidnapped! This is my fault!”

“That is factually and objectively not true!”

“Bullshit!”

Patton’s bedroom door let out a soft squeak as it opened back up, causing the other two to stop and turn. Patton stood there much more calm and at ease. He smiled and walked out, looking carefully between the two. “You both alright? Feeling any better, Virge?”

Virgil seemed to settle just enough to realize what he had done to make Patton step away for a moment. “Oh shoot, Patton!” Virgil ran over and held out his hands. “I’m so sorry, I made you panic, didn’t I?”

Patton smiled and pulled him into a hug. “You don’t have to apologize for how you were feeling, Virgil. I know you were trying to keep it together the whole way home. Besides, it was a bit of all of our feelings that kind of became too much for me.”

Virgil pulled away and tried to give a smile to Patton as reassurance. “I’m a little better after my freak out. I’m still sorry, though.”

Another Patton walked out of his bedroom and adjusted the collar on his button down shirt. “Now, none of that! We need to start making a plan, right?”

“Um…” Logan cleared his throat as the newly appeared Patton turned to him. “What’s with the outfit change?”

“Oh,” they looked down at their outfit confused. “What do you mean? These are just my work clothes, you’ve seen them before.”

“You’re going to work?!” Virgil cried out, turning to the other. “Today?!”

“It would be suspicious if we all called out. I already have for Roman, promising a doctor’s note after all of this. That should give us some time.” 

“Oh, no!” Virgil called out, searching his pockets. “I have work this morning!”

“Not anymore, you don’t!” Both the Pattons crossed their arms at the same time, giving Virgil a stern look. “When I got out of bed yesterday, you were up and cooking breakfast.” The first Patton spoke.

The second nodded. “Did you just get up super early or did you have trouble sleeping? You obviously didn’t sleep last night.”

Virgil ducked his head, confirming both their suspicions. 

“Virgil,” Logan spoke slowly as he turned to them. “Pat and Two seem to be insinuating… you are exhausted due to lack of sleep. Which I’m afraid I’ll have to believe since you just told me you were unwilling to keep the portal open too long due to exhaustion... When was the last time you slept?”

“Do naps count? Cause I took a short one...” Virgil flinched as the three looked at him. “Okay, so it’s been a day or two, so what?!”

“Virge, calm down,” the one Logan referred to as Pat Two said, reaching out, “It’s probably for the best you get some sleep soon.”

“I can’t just--I have to do something! I have to start searching or, or… I can’t just go to sleep right now!” Virgil turned and stormed out of the apartment, quickly grabbing the backpack he had left by the door as he did so. “Virgil!” Logan called out, chasing after him. “Wait, hold on a moment! Wait for us!”

The two Pattons looked at one another and nodded. The normal dressed one turned and ran out the door, leaving behind the other for them to head to work.

---

Roman was completely bored.

The kidnapping attempt, if you wanted to call it that, was absolutely pathetic. It only took Roman minutes before he broke free of the zip ties and threw them out of reach before inspecting the room he was trapped in. There were no windows lining the walls so there was no way to pinpoint where in the city he was located. Though, one wall was made completely of glass covered by blinds on the outside. He could almost imagine a long table with chairs all around the white room and people in suits having a meeting for some boring office job they had. It reminded him of his own old office job he used to have... He had to be in some office building downtown, trapped in an old meeting room if he had to guess though there was no way to be sure. They could look in on him from the other side, peering through the blinds to see what he was up to. The only thing that blocked him was the door, locked from the outside. It would be easy for Prince Charging to break free, but after much thought, he decided against it. He wasn’t willing to give them the satisfaction of being right. Not about his powers and not about him attacking to escape. He was going to be quiet and patient and wait it out.

Well, not completely quiet. After a bit of waiting, he started getting bored. A quick walk around the room revealed nothing but a few covered outlets and a paperclip that had been left behind. Sliding down against the wall, Roman sprawled out his legs in front of him and tapped his fingers on the carpet before he started humming to himself. They were not going to get the better of him. Seriously, they had no idea what they were doing. Still airing on the side of caution, he sat down and winced at his throbbing headache and rubbed his cheek where he had been struck.

Once the two he had labeled ‘Harry’ and ‘Marv’ made their first appearance, their tune was completely different than it had been last night. They offered him ice for his wounds and water to stay hydrated. While he turned down the ice, the water bottle was very much appreciated. He didn’t want anything they could have possibly tampered with. They were being polite and checking on him, though Roman wasn’t an idiot. He smiled and thanked them, fully aware he wasn’t wearing his mask and keeping his distance as much as possible.

Once they asked his name, he fell silent. His short responses had made them bold enough to ask but he wasn’t playing any games. They asked again along with a few more questions. They asked about his powers and how they worked and what he could do, but Roman did what he does best. Besides from being dashingly handsome, of course. He performed.

“Wait, you don’t think I have actual powers, do you? You know that, right?” He chuckled awkwardly as he took a sip from the water bottle they had given him.  “I’m just a guy in a costume. Powers like that are only things you find in comic books.”

They weren’t pleased to say the least. Their little kindness act dropped fast and the hero watched as they grew tired of his silence and lack of answers. One took out his phone and went to snap a picture before Roman panicked.

“Wait!” Roman covered his face and held out a hand toward the camera. The shouts were enough to get them to stop just long enough for him to come up with an excuse only a gullible moron would believe. “The only advantage you have against everyone else in this city is that you know what I look like. Would you really take a photo and ruin that?”

They looked to one another before nodding, and Roman watched the phone slide away… apparently he was dealing with two gullible morons. He wasn’t sure if that made things easier.

After that, they began whispering to themselves. Though, in a quiet secluded room with no one else around, Roman was able to pick up a few things. They were worried about someone but desperate for a solution. At least, those were the only pieces of the puzzle he was able to pick out from the murmurs. Eventually, they walked out and left the lonely prince once more.

That’s where they had left Roman now. Alone to entertain himself in a room blocked off from all outside light and noise. Roman flexed his hands in his gloves and brushed his face where his mask usually lay. 

He heard a muffled noise and glanced up, his hand falling from his face. One section of the glass wall was revealed, the blinds pulled up from the other side. With it’s reveal, someone new was standing there. It wasn’t ‘Harry’ or ‘Marv’ or anyone Roman had seen before. They stared at one another wide eyed and in a bit of shock. The figure turned to the side and spoke to someone he did not see. Then they glanced back and shook their head with a defeated look. They turned back and stared into the office before the blinds cut off their view of one another and left Roman alone once more.

Were these members of the APC? Were they trying to see if they recognized him? The blinds went up again with a new person once more. It happened a few times, again and again. With each shake of the head, the blinds fell and they vanished before the next person walked up. With each face, there was the realization that there were so many people who hated him… for what? For stopping a purse snatcher? For chatting with people who needed someone to just listen? What had he done that was so bad that warranted this much hate? It stirred something in his chest and made him shift on the floor, but he was still in costume. Mask or no mask, he swore Prince Charging was going to help the people of this city and nothing would stop him. Roman needed to distract himself, and he knew exactly how.

He started singing Disney songs.

“You feel like some classic Disney?” Roman leaned against the wall, shouting through the closed door to the people on the other side. Sitting down, he could see their shadows and knew he wasn’t alone. “Something slower? I can do some Mulan!”

The voices never gave a loud response as Roman started singing. He started with some classics and went to new school, only seeing one or two people check in on him while he did so.

Luckily, it was when he was in between songs when he saw her. Staring through the glass and frozen in shock was Patton’s mother. He was glad he managed to catch himself and keep his expression from giving anything away. As he watched her at a loss for words, Roman simply felt anger bubbling underneath the surface. Her own son was a man with powers just like his and she had the audacity to join a group that forcefully kidnapped him just to get what they wanted?

Eventually she jumped and mumbled something before running away, the blinds falling shortly after. To her credit, though, another person came in not long after as they continued their search. Had she not ratted him out? Or, he had hoped this wasn’t the case, was she planning on using this information against Patton somehow? He wouldn’t pass her, the scoundrel. Roman took the opportunity to keep up his charade and continue on as if nothing had just transpired.

“Oh, I just thought of a great song that fits perfectly! You’ve ever seen Oliver and Company?”

Roman sat up and crossed his legs before clearing his throat. He bobbed his head as he began to sing. “One minute, I’m in Central Park! Then I’m down on Delancey Street…”

They continued to ignore him as usual until he heard a loud bang come from outside the room. He paused a moment, listening carefully, before picking back up on his song. “Whoo whoo whoo whoo whoo! I’m street wise! I can improvise!”

Another resounding bang echoed out, causing Roman to pause once more.

“What did I tell you?!” Roman jumped at the new voice shouting from outside the room. His heart began pounding in his chest. He sat waiting in silence, the silent ringing in his ears all he could make out. Then the blinds from before began moving up, revealing yet another new face.

This man was older, bigger with a widow’s peak and a bushy mustache sat atop his upper lip. The man seemed to gasp in shock as he looked in on the unmasked prince before turning to the side, enraged. 

“I told you to leave him alone! What part of that told you to bring him here?!”

The man vanished as the blinds dropped, and the hushed conversation on the other side came to an abrupt end. Roman was once again left in silence, unsure of what had just transpired outside of the room.

With a deep breath, he kept singing to keep himself calm.

“Why should I worry? Why should I ca-are? I may not have a dime, but I got street savoir faire!”

---

They chased Virgil down the street, who was marching on with determination to an unknown destination. They both managed to catch up quickly and struggled to keep pace with him. 

“Virgil,” Patton spoke up, walking in step next to him. “Where are we going?”

Virgil finally stopped and turned to Logan who almost ran right into him. “I don’t know, where do we start, Lo?”

Logan blinked and reached for his glasses as he gathered himself. “Well, anywhere is a good start. We know where they started but we couldn’t eliminate any part of the city. We can always start downtown and work our way there, it’ll cover the most ground. But they could just as likely have left the city. It could take days before we find him.”

“Wait, we’re starting now?” Patton looked between the two. “Shouldn’t Virgil get some rest? He’s exhausted! He even said so himself!”

Logan shook his head and frowned. “His anxiety has him wide awake and is causing a sort of ‘fight or flight’ response from him. Since there is nothing to fight or to run from, having him burn off the energy can help lower his anxiety and settle him enough for him to rest.” Logan turned and smiled at Virgil who huffed in response. “Until he gets to that point, it’s best we let him be. We just need to figure out a plan first.”

“That makes sense…” Virgil mumbled to himself. “I should try it more.” Silence quickly fell over the group as they all started to think about their next plan of action. Virgil quickly began to shuffle his feet and grow impatient before letting out a sigh. “Let's walk and talk. We need to come up with a plan, right? I can’t just stand here anymore.”

“Yes, though it is not quite as simple as that.”

They walked in silence a bit before Patton chuckled awkwardly to himself. “Talk about deja vu, am I right??” Both stopped and turned to Patton. “I mean, we are looking for a danger but we don’t know where or who it is and when it will strike. Kinda… less supernatural this time but just as scary.” Patton shrugged. “All we need is to call Thomas about all this and it’s just like last time.”

“Thomas…” Logan murmured. “Do you think we should warn Thomas about this? Like we had in the past?”

“Maybe…” Virgil fussed with the backpack strap over his shoulder and shrugged. “Even if he said he wanted space, this is kinda big.”

“Well,” Patton interjected, “he might feel bad if we don’t tell him, right? He is Roman’s friend. We could give him the choice.”

“Excellent,” Logan clapped his hands together. “Patton, you call Thomas while Virgil and I discuss what to do next.”

“Oh, um…” Patton shuffled on his feet and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I don’t have it on me.”

Logan paused for a moment before turning toward Virgil. They stared at each other a moment before Virgil shook his head. “Mine is dead, dude. I’ve been out all night and my human phone charger got shoved into a van a few hours ago.”

When both Patton and Virgil looked at Logan, he immediately grew uncomfortable. “Well, of course my phone is on me and charged! B-but Thomas would never--I mean I really shouldn’t bother him. He wouldn’t want to hear from me anyway.”

Patton smiled and placed a hand on Logan’s arm, causing him to stop his rambling. “Lo, I can call him for you, okay? No need to worry.”

---

The vibrating and generic default tone of the phone rang out across the room. After a moment, the lump laying next to it groaned and lifted their head, tiredly blinking the sleep from their eyes.

Another groan let out from the other side of the couch. “Shut the fuck up, noise.”

“Joan…” Thomas mumbled as he blinked down at his phone. Logan. The call ended and Thomas sighed as the time appeared on the screen. Who calls at eight in the morning? Thomas dropped the phone and laid his head back down on the pillow. He had stayed up late last night with Joan while catching up on a show, and they both fell asleep on his couch. His phone was nearly dead, and the sun was trying to shine through the blinds, though it wasn’t nearly bright enough to succeed just yet.

Thomas shut his eyes and snuggled into the warmth around him, ready to go back to sleep when his phone went off again. Joan groaned and rolled over, covering their ears from the noise.

Thomas tiredly picked up the phone and huffed in annoyance before answering. “Logan, tell me someone is dying or I’m hanging up.”

“Oh, um…” Oh. That wasn’t Logan’s voice. “Well, we don’t actually know? Sorry, Thomas! Want me to call ya back later? I was just planning on leaving a message. I forgot the first time and--oh. Sorry, you’re right Lo, I’m rambling.”

Pulling the phone away, Thomas looked down at the caller id once more. Logan. “Patton?”

“Yeah, good morning! Sorry, we’ve been up for a while, and I guess we just lost track of time.”

Letting out a yawn, Thomas flopped back onto his pillow. “What’s up? Everything okay?”

“Oh, um, not really? I really didn’t want to do this over the phone, maybe we can meet up later?”

“Patton, the last time we met up for you to tell me something important, you almost died.” A flash of a memory went through his mind. Patton, or more specifically a Pal, grabbing Thomas’ hand and running out of the alley and away from the danger they had found themselves in. The same pal panicking on the bus while the others fought that smoke monster. Though, Thomas was grateful they told him…

It was a memory he had completely forgotten about until just then. The memory took a second to flash in his mind before he let out a gasp and bolted up. “Wait, you wouldn’t call me unless it was something super bad.”

“No! Well, we don’t really know? You should be fine!”

Thomas groaned and ran a hand through his hair. “You said that last time… I think.”

“I did. I’m, sorry… I don’t know how I should say this.”

“Just say it or I’m going to start panicking.” Thomas saw Joan turn back over and look at him a bit confused. “What’s wrong?”

“So, um. Prince Charging was kidnapped last night.”

“He what?!” 

“Thomas?” Joan sat up looking concerned.

“What do you mean Prince Charging was kidnapped?!”

“Wait, the fuck?!” Joan threw the blanket off of themself and walked over to the other half of the sectional couch.

“We are looking for him, but we just wanted to warn you! You might hear some stuff, and we didn’t want to leave you out of the loop. I’m sorry, this could have waited until you actually woke up. I didn’t know what to say when the voicemail popped up the first time.”

Thomas immediately shook his head. “No, no! This is definitely something important I needed to know. Thanks for telling me.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll find him, okay? Leave everything to us! We will update you if anything changes!” Thomas bit his lip as he heard Patton trying to reassure him over the phone. “I’m sorry, try and get some sleep if you still need it, okay? We’ll talk soon.”

“Yeah, okay bye.”

Thomas pulled his phone away and watched the call end before letting out a big sigh.

“Well? What did he say?” Thomas looked at Joan and shook his head. “What happened?”

“I dunno, I didn’t…” A million questions suddenly hit him all at once as he shook off his sleep. What did actually happen? Where? How?! He didn’t even think to ask, the shock of the news was a bit overwhelming and it seemed Patton was in a rush, panicking and tired. Why did he use Logan’s phone in the first place? “He just told me they were looking and would give me updates when they could.”

Joan mumbled to themself before leaning back onto the couch. “Well, that’s one way to start the day.”

Thomas looked at his best friend as a feeling squirmed inside of him. He wasn’t exactly sure what it was, but he felt the need to move. He stood up and stretched before looking back to the couch. “What now? I don’t think I can sleep after that.”

“Me neither. I mean… maybe if I wanted to, but…” They trailed off and shrugged. “You think Roman’s okay? Maybe that group had something to do with it? Or it could have been like, a super obsessed fan or something.”

“I dunno…”

Joan shook their head and smirked to themself. “Alright, well, what are you gonna do?”

“What?”

They leaned over and patted Thomas on his shoulder. “Come on, we need to get some more sleep before your big day.”

“Joan, what are you talking about?” Thomas whined, unsure of what was happening. 

“Thomas,” Joan turned and looked at him seriously. “What do you plan on doing about it?”

Thomas stared at Joan confused for a moment. “Doing about--what? About Roman? I don’t, I’m… I'm way over my head here, I think it’s best I just sit this one out.” Thomas gripped his hair as he nervously ran his hand through it again. “Right?”

“Whatever you want, Thomas. As long as you’re sure. And I get pancakes beforehand.”

---

Patton tapped on Logan’s phone to end the call and handed it back. “There. Taken care of. So, come up with anything?”

“Yeah,” Virgil huffed out angrily. “By the time we find Roman, if he’s still alive, I’m going to kill him myself.”

“Virgil-”

“That’s enough, Virgil.” Logan cut off Patton, holding his arms out. “Of course Roman is still alive. What is a pity party going to do?”

“I can’t do anything else! What do you want from me? There’s three of us and a city full of people! They’ve had him for hours now, who knows if we will even find him!”

“Yes, we will, alright?” Logan spoke in a softer tone. “We will find him, I promise you that.” Giving in, Virgil nodded and shoved his hands into his hoodie pocket before turning away. “Now, Patton,” Logan spun around and looked down at the other. “Virgil is right, there’s only three of us. However, I know you can help us increase the odds a bit.”

“Oh, well,” Patton spoke, flustered.

“With a few more of us, we will split into groups.” Logan turned and faced Virgil. “We will split the city into divisions and spread out from there. Patton and I will start with the westside while a pal and you search where we last saw Roman.”

“Logan, I-”

“Then the other groups can search remaining parts and search for the Prince’s fan club and give them a heads up about what happened. Surely one of them might know something.”

“Logan!” Patton looked flustered as he yelled, completely red in the face with his hands balled into fists.

“I am sorry, was there something you needed to say?” 

Patton flushed when Logan spoke and gave him his undivided attention. “Oh, um… yeah. I can’t.”

The other two waited for Patton to elaborate before growing confused. “I’m sorry,” Logan shook his head. “You can’t what?”

“I can’t make more pals. I, um… I’m Two?” The words slowly sank into Logan’s brain as his eyes slowly widened. “Tada? Sorry, I should have said something sooner.”

“That’s why you don’t have your phone.” Logan mumbled to himself before shaking his head. “No matter, the real one simply went to work, correct?” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone once more. “I’ll simply call him there, they should be open by now.”

“He’s not.” Logan froze half way through dialing the number. 

“What did you just say?”

“He’s not at work?” Two chuckled awkwardly and cleared his throat. “Three went to work today.”

Logan took a step closer and looked Two directly in the eyes. “Tell me the truth. Was it Patton I saw wearing his work clothes before we left.”

“It was.”

Logan frowned and paused for a moment. “Then he made a pal after he left to go to work for him?” Two nodded and Logan leaned back. “So where is he?!”

“About that…”

Not waiting for an answer, Logan pulled out his phone and pressed the button to speed dial his boyfriend’s cellphone. The other two waited quietly as Logan silently seethed, waiting as his phone rang over and over and squeezing it tightly in his hand. “Pick up, pick up,” he mumbled to himself impatiently, his back turned to the others on the sidewalk. He heard a click and a noise as the ringing stopped. “Patton?”

“Logan? Everything alright?”

“Care to explain why Two is here and Three is at work?” Patton sighed and looked up at the others as they watched him nervously. “Did you really find it necessary to sneak away from us like that?”

“Would you have stopped me from doing this if I had told you?”

“I…” He knew the answer. If Patton was going to talk to his mother, he would have wanted to be there or would have tried to talk him out of it completely. “We’re just worried. I don’t want you rushing into anything.”

“She’s my mother, Lo.” Logan’s heart broke at the soft tone. “I have to be able to talk to her about things.”

“I don’t want her to keep--” Logan bit his tongue before he said too much. “You always forgive her...”

“Not for this.” Logan tensed at the serious tone he heard through the phone. “I’ll call you back when it’s done. Trust me on this?”

Logan nodded and closed his eyes. “Yes, of course. Always. Just be careful.”

“Don’t worry. I have her outnumbered.” Logan chuckled and managed to relax. “I’ll see you later.”

“Right, of course. Later.”

Logan heard the phone call end and pulled it away, watching the numbers on his phone fade into darkness. He took a moment to let everything sink in before spinning around to the others.

“He went to visit his mother?!” Logan knew shouting so early in the morning would only get him in trouble, but his brain was buzzing with everything that happened and the new information he was just given was a bit too much. “What would he go to her for?”

“This is it, we’re doomed.” Virgil began biting his fingernail and started to pace. “If only I could have stopped this from before. I could go back, couldn’t I?! There must be something I can do!”

Two held out his hands, unsure of which one to attempt to soothe first. “She will know something, we know she will!”

“That’s not the point.” Logan lamented. “She’s trouble! He didn’t have to go alone.”

Two pulled his hands to his chest and rubbed them together for warmth. “We aren’t even sure it’s going to work. We wanted to try first and if something came of it, we were going to tell you.”

“When?” Logan looked heartbroken as he spoke. “When were you planning on telling us?”

“Today, I promise.” Two reached out and grabbed one of Logan’s hands. “We were going to tell you even if nothing came of it, but you were going to find out after it happened.”

“I would just have to go back and follow the truck, right?!” Virgil spun around, still pacing back and forth. “I just have to find where he went then return to the present! Then we can just go rescue him!”

Logan squeezed Two’s hand before letting go and turning around. “Virgil, you know how dangerous that could be to mess with the past, let alone let a portal sit there in the open like that.”

“Then I’ll take his place! Something! I have to be able to do something, Lo!”

A sudden ringing rang out and all three of them looked at one another. Logan patted his pocket and shook his head. “That’s not my phone.”

“I don’t have one on me.” Two responded.

Virgil’s face lit up with recognition and he threw the bag he was carrying over his shoulder onto the ground. The ringing had stopped briefly before starting up again as Virgil dug around for the source of the noise. An old flip phone sat in his hand, vibrating and demanding to be answered.

“He has a burner phone?” Logan asked.

“In case of emergencies, but I thought I was the only one who had the number.” Virgil stared down at the phone as it stopped. A brief moment later, it started up again. “So who is this?” Virgil looked at Logan and Pat Two who both seemed as lost as he did. He sighed and flipped the phone open before answering. “Hello?”

“Oh, goodness! Finally! You know you worry me when you don’t call!” The feminine voice over the phone threw Virgil for a loop.

“I’m sorry, who is this?”

“Wait, who is this?”

“I asked first!”

“Where did you find this phone?” The voice yelled back with a bit of anger.

“In a backpack.” Virgil was vague, wondering if it’s a wrong call at this point.

“In whose backpack?” Virgil looked up at his roommates. 

“In… Prince Charging’s backpack.”

“Yes, so…” Did they know who they just called? Who did Roman give this number to? “Where is Prince Charging?”

“Who wants to know?”

“His mother!”

Virgil gasped and gripped the phone tighter. “Elizabeth…?”

“Wait,” Two furrowed his brow as he started to remember. “Roman’s mother?”

“Who is this?!”

Virgil suddenly became frozen in fear just as he did hours before. What was she going to do when he found out he failed to protect her son? 

“Hello?”

“Yes, sorry. Um, it’s, uh… It’s Virgil, ma’am.”

“Oh! Virgil sweetie, hi!” The harsh tones from before vanished completely. “I should have known. I was concerned for a second there!”

“Yeah… How do you have this number?”

“Come on, now. I know what Roman’s been up to! I told him to call me before and after every patrol to check in! He knows I tend to worry. But he hasn’t checked in last night and his phone is going straight to voicemail! I got worried and tried calling you but I got the same thing.”

Straight to voicemail? Then Roman’s phone shut off too. Probably forgot to plug it into a charger before he left it at home, so used to it always being charged thanks to his powers. “Yeah, um, about that-”

“Something happened to him, didn’t it?” Virgil couldn’t find an appropriate way to answer. “I was worried as much. Are you alright?”

“Oh, yeah, I guess.”

“Good. Then I’m coming over.”

“What?!”

“I’ll be there in a bit and you can tell me everything!”

“Wait a minute-”

“Virgil,” Roman’s mother spoke over the phone in an assertive tone, demanding to be listened to. “Is Roman in any trouble that I could be of any help with?”

“Well, yeah? I guess, but Elizabeth, that’s not really-”

“Then I will not stand by when my son needs my help! I’ll see you soon, Virgey!”

Virgil heard the phone click and the call ended before he could get another word in. He flipped the phone shut and turned around to see Logan and Two staring at him confused. 

“Virgil?” Two asked, approaching carefully. “What happened? What did she say?”

Virgil glanced at the phone before looking back up at Two. “She’s coming over.”

“Over?” Logan questioned before jutting a thumb over his shoulder. “You mean over to the apartment? Where we currently are not?”

“We have to go back and meet her there!” Two jumped and spun around, marching down the street. “She has a car, right? We have to hurry back!”

Logan looked between the two before turning to Two. “What about Patton?”

Spinning around on his heel, Two looked at Logan with a frown. “He’s fine, alright?” Two placed a hand over his heart. “I’ll let you know if anything changes. Don’t you trust us?”

“Of course I do. Sorry, I’m just worried.” Logan sighed and gave in. “Right, so, back to the apartment as quick as we can.”

Virgil threw the phone into the backpack and began to follow them down the street. “What kind of plan is this? We’re getting nowhere! Couldn’t we, like, split up?” He fell in line behind them, looking down at his feet as he walked. “There’s got to be a time I can jump to in the past to do something so we’re not wasting time, right? Maybe I could-”

Logan spun around and stopped on the sidewalk causing Virgil to almost walk right into him. “Virgil, I know this is hard, but his mother needs to know. Besides, our best bet is to trust Patton’s plan works. Okay?”

“Okay…” Logan nodded and turned, continuing to walk down the street. “But, wait, what is his plan anyway?”

“My mother.” Two called out over his shoulder. “She’s part of the Anti-Prince Club. We’re gonna convince her to take us there. Or at least tell us where they could be keeping him.”

“Wait, what?!” Virgil jogged up past Logan to fall in step with Two. “She might know where he is?” Two nodded and pursed his lips. “If she sees him, would she…?”

“I don’t know.”

---

Roman wasn’t anywhere near exhausting his vast library of Disney songs, but he was almost out of water and had opted to stop. He turned and layed on the carpet and stared up at the tiled ceiling, tracing it with his eyes and desperately trying to convince himself to not count them just yet. He had to save himself something to do later, after all.

The door creaked open and Roman turned his head away. He didn’t care if it was a new face or not, he was on a break thank you. He could entertain these fools later.

“They haven’t kept you in here long, have they?” Roman heard the door click shut and listened for the figure to approach. “This place was empty last night. You could have only been here a few hours tops.”

“Yeah, sorry, don’t exactly have a clock in here.” Roman waved a hand toward the voice. “Also, can I complain about the room service? It’s dreadful.”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

Roman sat up and gave in, glaring at the older man. It was the one from before, who had yelled at the others for bringing Roman here. “What is your plan, exactly? You gonna just keep me here until you figured out who I am? I have a life and people who care about me. You can’t keep me here long without repercussions, you know.”

The older man sighed and ran a hand through his thinning hair. “I know, I am truly sorry. I’ll get you out as soon as possible. I promise.”

“Okay,” Roman answered slowly, squinting at the older man. “So what is it you want in return for my freedom? My name? Where I live? You gonna drop me off at my house so you can keep tabs on me?”

“No! I didn’t want them to do this in the first place! What kinda morons kidnaps anyone anyway?! I’m surprised they managed to sneak you in without anyone noticing.” The man placed his hands on his hips as he began to pace. “Now that they let everyone know you’re here, I have to figure out how to get you out without suspicion!”

“Hold up, what are you talking about?” Roman crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall. “You act like you don’t hate me.”

“That would be because I don’t’.” The man turned to Roman and slowly approached him. “My name is Bruce. I’m, well, there’s not a leader to this whole thing really. I help organize the meetings and keep track of everything.” He stopped a few feet away from Roman and kneeled down. “I’ve been trying to keep these people off of your back for months by working from the inside. I don’t hate you, Prince. I promise you that.” Roman watched as the man sighed and reached out before reconsidering. “Look what they did. You okay there, son? Is your cheek still hurting, there?”

Roman reached up and gently brushed his cheek that had been struck by the bat. Obviously it had left a mark, not that he could tell. “Oh, not really, it’s fine. The one on my head hurts more but it’s manageable.”

“I’ll go get some ice.” Bruce stood up and turned toward the door, pausing as his hand rested on the door knob. “Do you need anything? I’ll come back and we can plan your escape.”

“Um, no.” Roman pulled his legs in closer, feeling uncomfortable at the sudden kindness he was being shown. “Why are you doing all this for me?”

“Because,” He smiled sadly, “you’re not the first person I’ve met with powers.”

---

The walk back home was quiet just as it had been that morning. The difference now was that Two led the way walking with determination unlike Virgil who was marching furiously and with impatience hours before. Cars drove past as most of the city had already started the day. Virgil lamented in the back of the group, worried about what Roman’s mother would say when she heard the story.

“She’s going to be so mad at me. I’m doomed, she’ll hate me after this.” He bit his thumbnail in worry. “This is all my fault, he’s probably dead and I’m next.”

“Virgil, you need to stop thinking so negatively.” Logan turned and watched Virgil stare at him with a blank look. “Yes, I know that’s not easy for you but you’ll be fine. I promise.”

“You can’t promise that.” Virgil pulled his hoodie closer to himself as his worries grew. “There’s nothing we can do now but accept we’re failures and wait for the end.”

“No.” Two perked up as they turned onto their street. “I refuse to give up. We’ll get through this, Virgil, together.”

The rest of the walk remained silent until their building came into view. Virgil groaned and mumbled out loud. “So glad everything we did was pointless since we ended up right back where we started.” 

Two ignored him and waited for Logan who had a key to unlock the door. He stepped aside as Logan pulled his small keychain from his pocket. The apartment door next to theirs suddenly swung open, causing Logan to jump and fumble with the key, almost dropping it. “Sweet Newton’s cradle!” Logan grabbed his chest and felt his heart pounding. “A little warning next time, Clyde?”

Clyde kept his eyes on Two and marched up with a look of worry. “You’re back! Did you find him? Did you see the guy?”

Two raised an eyebrow and leaned back. “Uhhh, no idea what you’re talking about there, kiddo.”

Huffing at the nickname, Clyde took a step back and crossed his arms. “Roman. Did you find him? And did you see the guy I warned you about?”

Virgil and Logan exchanged a look as Two shook his head. “We didn’t, but I don’t know what guy you’re talking about.”

“The… The guy! I told you like, not even two hours ago?!”

“I get that, but that wasn’t me.” Two held up his hands defensively. “You talked to Patton. I’m Two. He’s still out.”

“Perhaps we continue this conversation inside so you can enlighten us, Clyde?” Logan held up the key and turned to their apartment door, quickly unlocking it and making his way inside for the others to follow.

“Oof, who made this mess?” Clyde eyed the pillows and blankets on the ground as Logan began to pick them up. “You always this messy?”

Virgil ducked inside and hunched over a bit. “Princey and I were gonna nap on it when we got back this morning.”

“Eww,” Clyde scrunched his nose at the thought of the two together. Virgil turned and glared, causing fear to spike in the younger man. He didn’t forget the threats Virgil made toward him in his apartment from before. “I mean, aww. What a shame…”

Virgil scoffed and sat down, staring at the floor as Two began to help fold the blankets from the floor. “So, while we wait for our inevitable demise, mind telling us who you warned Patton about?”

“Because I know exactly what you’re talking about. What ‘demise’ is coming for you this time?” Clyde shoved his hands in his pockets. “You managed to screw anything up in the two hours you were gone? That’s a new record.”

“No, Roman’s mom is on her way here.”

“Roman’s bad enough, I do not want to be here when she shows up…” Clyde mumbled, not exactly hiding what he said. “It was nothing, anyway. Just have a bad feeling that someone I sort of know may be involved.”

“Oh?” Two turned, holding a blanket to his chest. “Who is-”

A knock on the front door cut Patton off, silencing the room. 

“Oh, great. She’s here already. I’m dead.”

“That was rather fast,” Logan commented, making his way to the door. “I was under the impression she lived in the suburbs, does she not?”

Logan opened the door and found himself once again somehow surprised what the day had brought him. “What…?”

“Heeeey, Logan.” Thomas chuckled and awkwardly smiled, running a hand through his hair nervously. “Mind if I come in?”

---

Chapter 17>>

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With the morning sun brought a new brightness to the apartment. The light seemed to shine through the heaviness across the residence from the night before that still lingered about. Virgil got up with a groan, walking like he was still halfway in his bed as he trudged across the apartment and straight for the coffee pot. Roman made a concerned comment before shrugging it off, Virgil reassuring him while mumbling into the mug that he 'needed the coffee to function today'. Roman sighed and acquiesced. The banter was typical of them so early in the morning, something Patton appreciated after his restless night. Virgil sat in a chair grinning while Roman kept up the conversation with Patton, knowing Virgil would be a dead end. Besides a few witty quips, Virgil kept silent, watching the two fall into their normal pattern, but the empty spot where Logan usually occupied remained empty. Eventually, Virgil woke up enough to form complete sentences and waved the others off as he made his way to work. Roman perked up and headed out himself, not wanting to be late for his new, albeit still dreadfully boring desk job. Patton smiled and waved them off before looking at the breakfast leftovers and feeling the full brunt of the silence in the apartment.

After mentally yelling at himself to just suck it up and talk to Logan, Patton found himself outside the only bedroom door that hadn't opened that morning. Normally Logan would have been up and dressed by now. He would have visited the bathroom to adjust his appearance properly for the day, then made his way to breakfast, but it was well past that time and Patton had yet to hear any noise coming from the room beyond the closed door. He still hesitated before he knocked, the first few too soft before he got the nerve to properly knock loud enough. Patton shuffled on his feet, nervously berating himself over his knocking skills, telling himself that Logan wouldn't even think that was a person actually knocking. It was so strange; who knocks like that? Of course, Logan wouldn't answer to that! It wasn’t enough. Patton should knock again. Or would knocking so quickly afterward only annoy his boyfriend further?

The door opened and Patton jumped, making a high pitched noise in shock as he did.

"Patton?"

"The knock!" Patton's face grew even redder in embarrassment.

Logan raised a confused brow. Patton couldn't help but notice he had already gotten dressed, but his hair was still a bit of a mess. Since Logan hadn’t left his room that morning, he probably hadn’t styled it yet and Logan always had suffered from severe bedhead. "The knock?"

"I knocked... weird. Sorry."

"I do not understand why you choose to apologize for that, but I shall forgive you if it makes you feel better." Logan shuffled on his feet and glanced away awkwardly.

Patton nodded and cleared his throat. "I uh, I just wanted to, um..." He attempted to smile as he pointed behind him to the kitchen. "I made breakfast? If you're hungry, that is! You always say how eating is important and how you shouldn't skip any meals."

Logan nodded, putting his hand on his door. "Is that all?"

"No!" Patton reached out before putting his hands to his chest. The rapid beating of his heart was so loud he wondered if it might be dangerous to his health. "I wanted to apologize. I pushed you to talk after upsetting you and that wasn’t right. I’m sure you had a reason for getting upset! Sorry."

Logan sighed and his hand slid off the door and to his side. "No, Patton, you don't need to apologize. I was upset and took it out on you." He lifted his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "You were entirely correct, it is Thomas' decision whether he chooses to train his abilities. I just wish I could have talked to him before he made such a rash choice, but I would never force him..." Logan seemed to wince more and dropped his hand, keeping his eyes closed. "I apologize for my abhorrent behavior yesterday. I do hope you could forgive me."

When he opened his eyes, Logan jumped and took a step back. Patton stood there, his hands pressed into his cheeks, the smile on his face so bright it lit up his eyes. Logan felt his heart jump. Something about being able to see Patton so happy, let alone knowing he was the one who had managed to do so, was more than enough to bring a blush to his own face. "Oh, Lolo~!"

"Please don't call me--" Logan was cut off by Patton reaching forward, wrapping his arms around Logan's torso. "--oof! No, Lolo can’t stay, don’t give me that look!"

"Aww, you like it, don't deny it!" Patton pulled away and smiled up at his boyfriend. "Now! You better comb your hair and get ready while I'll prepare your plate!"

"I can take care of my own breakfast!" Logan called down the hall and shook his head as Patton disappeared from view. "Not that you mind, I suppose."

When Logan entered the kitchen, he saw Patton place a plate onto the table with a smile. “Here you go!” “I told you, I can cook myself, but it is very appreciated.” “Aww, you know how I like to keep busy!” Patton jumped up and reached down, patting his pants before realizing he was still in his pajamas. “Oh, gosh, where did I leave my phone?” Patton glanced around before heading toward his bedroom, mumbling to himself. Logan ate in silence, mentally preparing his day ahead. He still wanted to talk to Thomas and perhaps hear him out. It sounded like he should also apologize for being a bit too pushy. Logan ran through different versions of the conversation in his head in hopes of not screwing it up and making things worse. Preparing what he could say helped eased his nerves about the whole dilemma. A chime rang out and Logan looked over, spotting Patton’s phone sitting on the counter near where he must have been cooking. “Patton?” He looked toward the doorway but heard no movement from the other. “Patton, your phone seems to be out here and you are receiving a call!” Logan stood up from his chair and walked over, seeing it light up and vibrate along with the chimes. “You found it?” He heard Patton cry from across the apartment. “Can you answer it?” Logan cleared his throat as he picked up the phone, holding it carefully to his ear. “Hello?” “Patty! Oh goodness, I was hoping you would answer!” said a cheerful voice. Though it sounded familiar, Logan couldn’t quite place who it belonged to. “Unfortunately, no.” Logan was quick to cut off the person on the other end, lest he hear something he shouldn’t or would rather not. “Patton had misplaced his phone, give me one moment to retrieve him.” “Oh! Is this Logan?” Patton ran into the kitchen and smiled, slightly out of breath. He would have definitely missed the call if Logan hadn’t answered it for him. Giving himself a moment to catch his breath, Patton placed a hand on his chest and evened out his breathing before walking over. “Yes, Patton is right here. Just give us a moment,” said Logan. “No, wait! This is perfect, I’ve been meaning to talk to you!” Logan froze, ready to hand Patton’s phone over. Patton had his hand out, ready to accept it as he watched on, curious to who could be calling him so early in the morning. “You wanted to speak to me?” They shared a confused look as Patton lowered his hands. “I’m sorry, who is this?” “Oh, silly dear! It’s me, Maggie! Patton’s mother!” “His mother?!” Patton looked more panicked then Logan felt. Patton frowned, shaking his head with wide eyes. His frantic actions gave Logan an anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach. They hadn’t talked much recently, had something happened with Patton and his mother? “Is there something I can help you with, ma’am?” “Oh, pish posh! No need to be so formal! I already told you to call me Maggie!” Logan looked to Patton for something to say while his boyfriend stared back, panicked and confused as he couldn’t hear the conversation going on. “I was hoping you would come over for dinner soon!” “Dinner?” repeated Logan. Patton immediately shook his head frantically once more. “I’m not so sure that’s such a good idea.” “Come on, I don’t bite! Are you saying you don’t want to get along with your boyfriend’s mother?” “No, but-” “It’s settled, then! I’ll see you tomorrow at six!” “That’s not what-” The click of the phone caused Logan to freeze up before he heard the inevitable sound of the phone alerting him that his call had ended. He pulled the phone away and looked down at it, seeing the photo of Patton and his mother smiling as her contact photo before it faded away. Patton reached over and carefully grabbed his phone, chuckling to himself. “Let me guess, she decided for us and hung up before we could say anything?” He smiled up at Logan, not too bothered by the turn of events. “She does that a lot, sorry. Don’t worry about it.” “I am terribly sorry, I can come up with an excuse to cancel.” Shaking his head, Patton held his phone close before walking over to the kitchen table and practically falling into a chair. “No, it’s fine. Besides, lying isn’t going to make things easier.” Logan walked up and placed a comforting hand on Patton’s shoulder. “I won’t lie, then. I can take a shift so I will be preoccupied.” “Do you want to go? I don’t mind if you don’t.” “It seems you don’t want me to, so I am simply trying to make you feel comfortable.” Patton closed his eyes and leaned back into his chair. “She’s not a bad person. She’s just stubborn and can be… a lot.” “Then I shall go. There’s no need to cause drama over a simple dinner.” Patton rolled his head over to Logan’s and opened up his eyes. “I think I can manage that much, at least.” “Don’t say I didn’t warn ya. She’s a handful, even for me. And I can make copies of myself!”

--- The day was colder than most recent ones, making Roman regret his decisions the second he took a step off the bus and made his way down a couple of blocks. The slight winds chilled him down to the bone as he let out a slight shiver, wishing it was just a little bit warmer. He was still dressed for work, a button down shirt that stylishly had the sleeves rolled up until recently and some of his nicer dress pants. His hair was even slicked back a little more than normal, but not to the extent of his hero persona. He fussed a bit with his shirt sleeves as he walked up the walkway to the front door, excited yet nervous as he rang the doorbell then knocked twice. It creaked open a few seconds later, the middle-aged short woman looked up at him, standing just under his shoulders. “Roman!” “Hey mom,” Roman smiled as his mother reached out and pulled him into a hug. Roman leaned down and bent his knees to help her out as she stood on the tips of her toes. “Sorry, it’s been so long since I’ve visited.” “Nonsense! You’re here now. Come on, I was just preparing some dinner!” She walked in and Roman obediently followed, closing the door behind him and kicking off his shoes by the door. “Now, tell me why my boy is all dressed up. You have a special date with that boy of yours tonight?” Roman chuckled and followed her into the kitchen. “No, I just got off of work.” “Oh, a new job! What do you do?” “I work for the city as an assistant receptionist in the--” He cut himself off as his mother turned around, the annoyingly smug look on her face causing him to dramatically sigh as he rolled his eyes. “Yes. I got another boring desk job that has to do with numbers. You happy?”

“I told you that degree would help you out. Being an actor isn’t a stable income by itself!” “I know, I know.” Roman rounded the island in the center of the kitchen and sat on a stool, leaning on the countertop. “It’s hard getting a job as a paying actor all the time and now with a big job it might be impossible to even audition.” “I’m sure you can work something out, honey,” She pulled out a pot from a cupboard and placed it on the stove. “It’s not that I don’t want you to act! I just want to look out for your best interest, as long as you’re happy.” “I know, I know,” Roman moaned begrudgingly as he rested his arms on the counter. “Besides, you haven’t missed a show of mine yet.” “I’m just glad you are out of that terrible restaurant. It wasn’t doing you any favors, you were miserable. Those boys were just jealous you were an actual actor.” Roman smirked and rolled his eyes at his mother’s behavior. “Your talents were being wasted!” “This is why I’m so humble, mama. Thanks for reminding me.” The woman turned around and smirked at her son before rolling her eyes and sighing heavily. “Pretty sure I get the dramatics from dad.” “Oh, hush,” She started gathering things around the kitchen, bringing a bag of potatoes to the sink to wash off. “We both know that’s not true. Anyway, how is that boyfriend of yours doing?”

Roman watching his mother with a look of suspicion on his face. “Why do you ask?” She huffed and shook her head, keeping her attention on preparing for dinner. “You’re my son, Roman. I know you well enough to know that if it were up to you, you would be taking that boy around the city and showing him off to anyone you could find. So it’s safe to say that the reason I haven’t met him is that he’s shy. So.” She turned around and grabbed a paring knife off of the wood block before turning to peel the washed potatoes. “Until he feels comfortable enough to come over on his own terms, I will ask some questions and leave the poor boy alone. He has enough to deal with dating you.” Roman stuttered speechlessly and gasped, holding his hands to his heart. “Elizabeth!” “Roman!” She spun around quickly, pointing the tiny knife in his direction. “I am your mother!” “Sorry, mother Elizabeth,” His mother smiled and quickly turned away to attempt to hide it, going back to peeling the potatoes. “He’s doing alright. I guess he’s been stressed out lately but it seems he’s getting better. He had this moment the other day where I think he kind of exploded and got all that stress out of him, though. He’s been very relaxed since, but he’s always a little tense.” “I would assume he’s stressed out with you running around the city like a superhero every night. You make me worry with that! At least let me know you’re okay once in a while.” “W-what are you talking about?” “Honey, what other people in this city has your exact abilities and love for being the hero to save others?” Roman ducked his head and blushed in embarrassment. “I know you’re Prince Charging. It’s pretty obvious, sweetheart. Your sister is still upset you never went to superhero school.” Roman snorted and smirked. “If there were such a thing, trust me. I’d beg to get in.” He mumbled into his hand and turned back to his mother. Part of him had panicked knowing his mother had discovered his secret, but he wasn’t surprised. His mother was perceptive and clever and there weren’t many people running around the city that could shoot out lightning bolts. He was lucky to have such a supportive mother and that thought alone eased his worries. “So, how close have you been keeping tabs on me?” “I haven’t much, but I hear you have a fan club now! I’d love to go, though it would be hard to not be proud as they talked about you.” Roman groaned loudly and let his head rest on the counter. “I could edit your baby photos with the mask and show them off!” “Moooooom…” Roman whined. “Oh, hush. It’s not like I actually would, as tempting as it is. I would want your okay to go anyway if that’s alright.” With a sigh, Roman slowly lifted his head up. “Yeah, I’m sure Sam and Sammy wouldn’t mind as long as you don’t give anything away. They run the club.” He watched his mom peel a bit of a potato before smiling. “It’s gonna cost you some dinner, though.”

--- Logan’s apology to Patton was enough for him to smile and let it go. Of course, Logan still kept a close eye on him. Patton knew Logan was still hiding something and he was acting much more reserved than he had usually been, but he was afraid to push the matter. Logan was stubborn almost to a fault. Patton didn’t want to pressure him to talk about something he wasn’t quite ready to discuss in fear of pushing him away further, so he patiently waited. Patton knew a moment would arise where he could talk to Logan, perhaps help ease him a bit as they discussed it. Forcing someone to talk about something when they were not ready wouldn’t do either of them any good. So, they talked about other things instead. Patton managed to get Logan to go on one of his long-winded rants about something related to Doctor Who. Something about the newest actor taking the role being a woman and how Logan believed it should have happened years ago because ‘the probability of being able to change form and you change into a British male every time is outrageous’. Patton never watched the show but could agree and at least pick up a few things Logan was talking about. It felt completely normal again between the two, though Logan seemed to try to apologize for almost anything. He seemed lost in his thoughts for one moment before getting up and doing something for Patton a second later. Even going as far as taking one of Patton’s stuffed animals with his psychokinesis and making it dance around the room as if it were alive, causing him to laugh. When the next day came, Patton still didn’t seem too worried about dinner with his mother, though he offered to just go himself. Logan was nervous but still too stubborn to back out. So Logan and Patton got on the bus and made their way across the city to the outskirts and walked a few blocks to Patton’s old childhood home. “Are you sure this is alright with you, Patton?” “Of course. I know my mom is a bit strong but she’s my mom! It’ll be fine!” Logan nodded and followed after Patton as they passed a few houses, the sun still high in the sky. “Will your father be there?” “Nah, dad usually works evenings or nights and is asleep all day so even if he’s not working, he probably won’t say much.” Logan gave a hum to signal he had heard him before staring off as they passed a few more houses. Eventually, Patton spun around and smiled, holding out his arms to the house they were standing in front of. “Tada, we made it!” The house was small, plain white with pale blue shutters on the windows. The front yard was almost nonexistent but Logan could only wonder how big the backyard looked. “It looks lovely.” “Yeah, wait til you see the inside. My parents are lame decorators, it’s just photos everywhere.” He almost ran up to the front door and onto the porch, not waiting for Logan before knocking on the door. By the time Logan caught up and stood behind Patton, the door had creaked open and revealed the shorter woman, who Logan hadn’t seen in a while. “Oh good, you made it!” she said. “Hey mom.” Patton reached out and wrapped his mother in a big hug. He quickly let go and turned back to Logan. “I brought Logan, just like you asked and asked and asked…” “Hmph, and it took talking to him to get him here!” Logan awkwardly managed a smile as he stepped in, holding out his arms for the inevitable hug he knew he was going to receive. He remembered first meeting her the day they moved in and how firm she had been on the fact that it would be hugs from here on out. “He learns quickly! Good, come here!” The hug was quick which Logan was grateful for. He held mixed opinions of Patton’s mother from his experiences and the squeeze she gave didn’t sit right with him. She eagerly led them into the home and Logan paused at the door as Patton made his way in.

Lots of photos were on the walls, some old paintings and some family portraits through the years. It wasn’t hard to find a few different versions of Patton and his parents smiling on the walls. Photos of small Patton as a child smiled in every one, along with his parents. Maggie smiled back happily as well, a much taller and scruffier man had an arm around her shoulders and pulled all of them close. Some were taken with plain backgrounds while some were in front of various homes. Something in the back of Logan’s mind recalled a conversation where Patton mentioned moving a lot as a child. The loneliness had probably played a part in the creation of the pals. Patton reached out and grabbed Logan’s hand, pulling him further into the house. Logan had to admit, despite how tense he was, seeing Patton eager to show him around was really helping him ease up a bit. “Come on, I want to show you my room before dinner!” “Be quick about it, it’s almost done!” Patton pulled Logan to the stairs and let go of his hand, running up as quick as he could. Logan followed a bit more slowly behind, grabbing the railing as he went. “Come on, Lo! This way!” Logan managed to catch Patton waiting outside a closed door, bouncing on the balls of his feet. He was smiling as his hand rested on the door knob, waiting for him to catch up. As soon as he was within arms length, Patton twisted the knob and turned, entering the room. Honestly, Logan wasn’t very surprised. The room was almost exactly what he had expected. The small twin sized bed held a plethora of stuffed animals, much more than his one at home had. There was almost no room to sit on it, but the quilt underneath poked through. A cartoon dinosaur poked out from behind the plush animals, Logan almost missed it at first glance. He walked over to the bed, inspecting it curiously. “Oh, of course…” He mumbled and sighed, pushing a plush out of the way. A cartoon dino was printed on the pillow case, a big speech bubble taking up most of the space. ‘Time to Dino-snore!’ stared back at Logan, threatening to burn into his retinas. He pulled his hand away and turned around, taking in the rest of the room. The walls seemed faded in spots where old posters must have once taken residence, the shelves filled with old trophies and random things. Snowglobes and more stuffed animals took residence, slightly covered in dust from the years of sitting there. The entire thing just screamed warm and child, but Logan still smiled at the things he hadn’t expected. A few board games he wondered if Patton played with the pals, a star chart hanging on a wall, even a science fair project that had an award hanging off of it. The bookcase made him smile the most. It was completely filled to the brim with books and there even seemed to be a type of system in place to organize them. Patton came over and found Logan inspecting the back of one of his older books, a dashing thief with incredible luck being wrapped up in a mess involving gods and things that defy all logic, but it was a fun book Patton had enjoyed as a kid. “Well?” Logan jumped and looked up, staring down at him. “What do you think?” Logan replaced the book back into its proper place. “I must admit, while it is a lot of what I expected, you always manage to surprise me.” “Really? I work in a library, I didn’t think my love for books was any secret.” Patton shrugged and spun around, taking in his old room. “I kind of left it after high school started, I didn’t really bother updating it.” Logan watched Patton stare at certain things, his eyes darting around as he started to get lost in his own thoughts. “How about we go back downstairs, hmm? You can show me everything later, after we eat.”

---

Falling back gracefully onto the couch, Roman groaned and placed a hand on his forehead. “I can’t go on! It’s too much!” “Pretty sure that’s just you.” “Please! Virgil, I need you to come closer before I slip away.” Virgil sighed and used his elbows to push himself off of the floor where he had been laying on his back. “Roman, you’re not dying.” “But I’m boooooored.” “Then go do something.” Virgil carefully fell back onto the floor.

“Virgiiiiiil.” The purple haired man took a moment to breathe. “Viiiiiirgiiiiil!”

“What, Roman?” “I’m bored, let’s go do something.” “I’m kind of busy.” Roman sat up from the couch and watched as Virgil laid down on his back on the floor, holding his phone up while he tapped away. “Doing what?” “Nothing.” “You’re busy… doing nothing.” “Yep.” Virgil let the ‘p’ out with a pop, not bothering to look away. Roman sat up and stomped his feet onto the ground. “VIRGIL!” His boyfriend jumped, dropping the phone in his surprise and flinching as it landed onto his face. He reached up and removed it, rubbing his nose with his other hand as he did so. “What was that for?” “Would you really rather spend time on your phone than with me?” Virgil sat up and watched Roman’s distraught look before he sighed, letting his shoulders sag. “Roman, we’re out almost every night so you can be a hero and then we go to work the next day. Is it really so much to ask to just relax for a night?” “I’m not…” Roman blushed a bit in embarrassment as Virgil huffed from his spot on the floor. “I’m not saying you can’t do nothing, but can’t we, I don’t know…” He looked up at Virgil to gauge his reaction. “Do nothing together?” “That’s what we were doing.” “No, it’s not!” Roman pulled his legs back onto the couch and looked away. “You were doing nothing over there without me.” Virgil stood up and dusted off his ripped jeans before walking over to the couch. “So, if I do nothing with you over here, you’ll be satisfied?” Roman stubbornly didn’t react before shrugging and nodding his head. “Good, move over and put something on, then.” “I knew you’d see things my way.” Virgil sat down and looked at Roman with an intense glare. “Keep it up and I’m freezing time and using you as a pillow to take a nap.” ---

Maggie didn’t hide her excitement when they entered the room, dinner was set out across the table as she ran around gathering the final touches. “Just about ready, you boys can dig in!” Patton brought Logan over to the table and pointed to a chair for him to sit before pulling out the chair on the left. Patton smiled and started handing things to Logan, easing the tension he wasn’t aware he was holding. Maggie brought over glasses of water and sat them down before running off once more with a smile. “See?” Patton leaned in and whispered. “I told you it would be fine.” Logan gave a hum in response but still didn’t seem absolutely sure. By the time Patton’s mother sat down and joined them, Patton and Logan had already begun and their dinner continued on in a reasonably comfortable silence. After a bit of time had passed and they had eaten most of what was on their plates, Logan could tell Maggie was almost ready to explode with the questions she was holding in. She kept glancing up at him when she thought he wasn’t looking and it didn’t take him reading her mind to figure out why. “This is lovely, thank you for having us.” Logan saw the relief on her face, excited to be given the opportunity to speak. “Why thank you, dear! Eat up, there’s plenty left.” “Of course.” “I hear my Patton has been teaching y’all to cook for a while now!” With a nod, Logan dabbed a napkin on his face. “Yes, he has. I have taught him a little bit of baking in return.” Gasping in delight, Patton turned toward his mother. “I can make cookies and they’re so good! I need to make them for you sometime!” “Oh, I would love that! Does it take you long?” Patton’s smile seemed a bit off as he shook his head. “Not at all! It’s pretty easy.” “Just seems like something that would take a few hands to do.” “Not at all.” Logan wasn’t sure what social cues he had missed, but he felt like something had passed him by without notice. “It takes one person to bake cookies in a short amount of time, even if you’re not adept at baking yourself.” “That’s great to hear! Good, good.” She poked down at her plate with a fork. “So, Logan, what do you do for work? You work in a bakery?” “I have relatives that own one, yes. I worked there when I was younger and recently terminated another job that was leaving me unnecessarily stressed. It will suffice until I can get another job that is more fitting.” “That sounds wonderful!” Maggie ‘s face lit up as Logan talked, genuinely interested in what he had to say. It was so strange. From the outside, he knew what she could be like, but the woman in front of him now was warm and comforting. She listened and never pushed, but Logan couldn’t stop thinking about that one moment where she had somehow made Patton uncomfortable. As they talked, Logan had noticed Patton had gone pretty silent which began to worry him. He glanced over before reaching and placing a hand on Patton’s that he had under the table. Patton perked up and smiled, lacing their fingers together. Maggie began cleaning up the table and told them to sit while she prepared dessert, leaving them alone momentarily. Logan waited until her back was turned before taking the opportunity to lean over and whisper. “Hey, are you alright?” Patton nodded and kept his eyes on his mother. “Yeah, it’s gone great so far but…” Biting his lip, he finally looked up at Logan. “She’s really anxious about something, I can feel it.” Logan simply hummed and watched as she turned back, holding a pie in her hands. “Well! Look at you two.” Logan blushed and pulled away from Patton a bit, sitting properly in his chair. “I hope you have some room left!” She placed it down onto the table and smiled at Logan. “It won’t be as good as what you’re used to, I’m sorry. It’s store bought and nothing beats a fresh one from a good bakery!” “I’ll try not to hold it against you this time,” he joked as she grabbed a few plates. “Pie is a bit tricky at times.” “I’m still excited, pie is pie!” Patton said as he reached out and cut himself a slice. Logan rolled his eyes. “Though if you want to show me what a real pie should taste like, I’m up for that.” “Of course, but perhaps we should cut back on the sweets?” Patton pouted and stuck his tongue out before taking a bite of the pie. “He’s right, sweety, you eat like you have more than one stomach!” Patton winced at the words and turned to his plate. Logan looked between the two, noticing how tense it became once more. “Would you like some, Logan?” He didn’t answer, staring down Patton’s mother a moment before his eyes widened. “Why did you say that?” “Say what, dear?” Logan huffed and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. “You know, I think I finally figured out why Patton didn’t want me here.” Patton gasped and jumped out of his chair. “That’s not true! Mom, that’s not true.” Logan remained defiant in his seat while Margaret looked between the two, baffled. “What is going on? We were having a lovely evening, what is this all about?” “I’m not quite sure, Maggie, why don’t you tell me?” Logan leaned forward onto the table and folding his hands together as he frowned. “Why are you bringing your son down for no reason?” “Excuse me?!” Patton reached down and lightly placed a hand on Logan’s arm. “Hey, it’s alright.” Logan looked up at him and his anger melted away. “Does she do this to you often?” “Well-” “Is this the joke about his appetite? I meant no harm by it. Really! He's a healthy boy.” Maggie huffed and placed her hands on her hips. “It’s not his appetite you were commenting on and you know it.” Logan stood up from his seat and reached out for Patton. “We can go if you’re feeling uncomfortable.” “Excuse me, I don’t appreciate you coming into my house and acting as if you know everything. My son is his own person! Patton, I don’t think I like you with this boy.” “Yes! That’s the point! He is his own person,” Logan stood in front of Patton protectively. “So let him make his own choices and stop beating him down for being who he is.” “You don’t know everything about him, you hardly know him! I’m his mother!” “Will you two STOP IT?!” Patton broke away from both of them, wrapping his arms around himself. “I don’t like the yelling so just… knock it off!” Patton’s shout had shut them both down immediately, ending the argument they had started. Maggie was in shock, rarely having heard her son raise his voice in such a way. She was ready to reach out and comfort him but was beaten by Logan who gently placed an arm around Patton.

“Yes, I’m sorry,” Logan was quick to apologize. “I just got rather upset, I wasn’t thinking. I apologize.” Patton turned toward his mother who looked red in the face. Whether it was from the anger and yelling or from embarrassment, no one could tell. The room was swirling with negative emotions coming from Patton and it made them feel fuzzy. “I’m sorry, mom, but I think we’re going home.” “For a silly joke? Patty, don’t you think you’re overreacting a bit?” Logan took a step forward once more, staring the woman down. “I know about Patton’s abilities.” The room felt quiet as everyone tensed, staring at Logan in shock. “I understand those subtle little comments you make toward him and I do not appreciate it.” Maggie frowned and bared her teeth in her rage. “You know? He told you?!” Patton pulled back and looked up, ashamed. “So, what? You’re dating him because he’s interesting? Are you threatening him to be with you? Gonna tell others if he doesn’t go out with you?” “Oh, would you give it a rest?!” Logan raised his voice for the second time that night. “Not everyone is like that stupid anti-prince group! Not everyone is out to get rid of anyone that is different!” “They’re just getting rid of that menace running around the city!” Margaret froze at her words, quickly turning toward her son. Patton was frozen, staring at his mother in shock as his jaw unclenched. “Mom…” He took a step forward, finally standing in front of Logan. “You’re a part of it, aren’t you? Please tell me you're not.” She quickly shook her head. “Patton, listen-” “No,” Patton shook his head and his voice cracked as he spoke. “No, you don’t get it, do you? They’re not going to just stop once they’re done.” He used his sleeves to wipe at his eyes quickly, not wanting to turn away from his mother and seem weak. “Once they get rid of Prince Charging, they’re going to look for the next target!” “He’s right,” Logan spoke softly, rubbing Patton’s back, just as upset as his own eyes watered. Logan wasn’t sure if it was his anxieties or Patton’s sadness radiating from him to cause the tears. “They know that if there’s one person with abilities in the city, there could be more. They’ll go on a witch hunt once they’re done. They’ll come after both of us next.” Logan looked up and saw Maggie’s face blanch pale as she held a hand over her mouth. “W-wait. Both. As in you both…?” Logan nodded and turned to Patton who looked up at his mother once more. “Oh, honey.” “No,” Patton blinked rapidly and wiped his palms against his damp cheeks. “I’ve begged you for years to understand. I listened to you and pretended I didn't have these powers. I kept away from other kids growing up because I was afraid I’d let it slip. I’m done, I can’t…” Patton felt his throat close up and he turned away, unable to speak without risking a sob coming loose. “The fact of the matter is, Margaret, your son asked you to not understand, but to accept him. Just an ounce of respect.” “I do!” “Words!” Logan growled out. “Words are one thing, actions are another. You say you do, but you don’t act like it.” Logan looked down at Patton who had his face covered in his sleeves. “Come on, I can get us home.” Margaret didn’t stop them as they turned and walked out. She opened her mouth to speak before her jaw clenched up, falling speechless. It wasn’t until after the front door had closed that she sprang into action, ripping it open quickly as she spotted them walking down the street. “PATTON!” She stepped onto the porch and ran down the pathway. “PATTON!” Logan looked back and she froze in fear, his eyes shining bright, flashing between a gold and menacing blue before he turned away. “Oh, Patton…”

---

Virgil let out a low whistle as Logan finished retelling a vague story about the evenings' events. “Wow, I knew she was kind of a bitch but really?” Logan nodded and turned to Patton’s bedroom door. Roman was currently in there giving Patton some emotional support since Logan had been drained by the time they had come home. “Joining the club trying to attack Roman? How would that help Patton?” “I don’t know, but I’m sure she had some messed up reason.” Logan removed his glasses and ran a hand through his hair as he leaned forward on the couch, resting his arms on his knees. “I feel terrible for lashing out but she was just…” He growled angrily at the thought of what had happened. “It’s so subtle and it’s obvious Patton is used to it. I’m so angry I didn’t notice the first time she said something!” He scoffed and turned away. “A few hands to bake some cookies, I’m sure.” Virgil’s nose scrunched up in distaste. “And that was in front of you! Imagine what she’s said to Patton when they’re alone.” Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. Logan frowned deeper, clenching his fists as his eyes threatened to light up. He caught himself and took in a deep breath. “Wow, she’s really gotten you fired up.” “It’s mostly that but… it’s everything! My parents, the situation with Thomas, and now this?” “You need to chill out, Lo.” Logan put his glasses back on and looked to Virgil. “You’re acting like a dick again, just like you did before.” “What do you mean by ‘before’?” Virgil crossed his arms and stared at the ceiling. “Remember when we found out it was because of you we all lived together?” He glanced at Logan and saw the man nod. “You’ve been losing control of your powers a little bit again. We figured out that it was because you were withholding your emotions and not expressing yourself, remember?” “Patton mentioned that might have a negative effect on me.” Logan nodded to himself. “I suppose… I suppose I hadn’t realized, have I really been doing that?” Virgil sighed and blew at his bangs before letting them fall back into place. “Let’s see… you’re acting like a controlling moron, holding in your emotions, not asking for help with your problems… short of me storming out of here, it’s exactly like before.” Virgil watched as Logan was deep in thought about everything that had been happening lately. Finally, he let his head fall into his hands with a loud groan. Virgil smiled. “There we go.” “You’re absolutely right.” “Always nice to hear.” “I am an idiot.” “There it is. How does it feel to say it out loud?” “Terrible,” Logan lifted his head from his hands and stared at Virgil, shaken from his realization. “What do I do?” Virgil hummed before he nodded his head toward the door. “Tell Patton. Oh, and probably apologize to Thomas and explain it to him too, if you want bonus points.” Logan nodded and stood up, walking to the door before he lost his nerve. He hesitated for a moment before he heard Virgil clear his throat loudly, urging him to continue. With a quick knock, he opened it and peered inside. Patton was on his bed surrounded by all his blankets and the few spare stuffed animals he kept with him. Roman sat on the bed, one arm wrapped around his shoulders as he held him comfortingly. “Hey, specs,” Roman spoke in a softer tone. “You feeling any better?” “Frankly, no. There’s something I’ve kept from the two of you and I told Virgil to keep it secret. Honestly, it’s been weighing heavily on me and may accredit to my behavior lately.” Logan closed the door behind him. “I know it’s not the best time, but I know you should hear it…” “Logan.” Looking up, Patton was giving a small smile while he reached out with his hand. “Come here.” Logan slowly and awkwardly made his way over before sitting on the edge of the bed. “Logan, why didn’t you want to tell us?” “It, uh… It’s… not something I’m rather proud of.” Glancing up, he saw Roman watching on with interest while Patton nodded eagerly, encouraging him to continue. “I’m afraid of… of what you’ll think of me after.” “But you told Virgil?” Roman whispered. “Virgil wouldn’t…” Logan sighed and turned away. “He’s made his own mistakes, I knew he wouldn’t judge me for mine. I knew I could share it with him and he would be honest.” “Well,” Patton reached out and grabbed Logan’s hand. “We’re willing to hear you out, too. We love you, Logan, we’re like a family.” Logan smiled briefly at his words. “Whenever you are ready, we will listen.” “I am, if you are,” Logan watched Patton and Roman nod before Patton tugged on his hand, pulling him further onto the bed. Logan adjusted himself accordingly and stared down at his hands, anxious about another retelling of his darkest moment. Taking in a slow breath, he prepared himself mentally, the image of that night still fresh in his mind. “It’s about my parents…”

With his hands steeped in front of him, Virgil sat on the armrest of the couch with his feet on the cushions, facing Thomas who stared back silently. Virgil would randomly tap his fingers together as he was lost in his thoughts he kept to himself. Thomas looked over to Patton who was sat on the floor in front of the couch and looking in between the two periodically. He shrugged and Thomas silently huffed before turning back to Virgil. “Maybe-”

“Shhh,” Virgil laced his fingers together and leaned on his knees, squinting at Thomas a bit. Thomas wrinkled his nose and leaned away, unsure how to take Virgil’s strange behavior. Eventually, Virgil nodded to himself and slid down onto the cushions and crossed his legs on the couch. Patton was the empath but it didn’t take one to be able to see how unsure Thomas was. He was putting up a front, obviously. The nervous energy rolled off of him so much, Virgil was almost unsure of how own plan. “Okay,” holding out his hand, Virgil smirked a bit to himself. “Shake my hand.” “What? No!” Thomas pulled away and stared at Virgil’s hand as if it would lash out at any moment. “We’ve been over this when we met, Virgil! I’m not just gonna shake your hand like that!” “Oh come on!” Virgil didn’t actually seem upset as he let his hand fall into his lap. “This is completely different and you know it.” “How is this any different?” “Because you’re not going to hurt me this time.” Thomas made no attempt to move as he stared skeptically at Virgil’s hand. “You won’t. You know what your powers do now, Thomas. You don’t want to hurt me, so you won’t.” Thomas reached up slowly and kept his eyes locked onto Virgil’s. “I dunno…” With a nod of encouragement, Thomas finally grabbed his hand firmly and slowly started to shake it. He tried to pull away and Virgil whispered a soft encouragement to him, holding onto his hand tighter. “You got this, Thomas,” Patton whispered from his spot on the floor. “We believe in you!”

Looking back to Virgil, Thomas seemed a bit unsure of himself, squeezing his grip tighter. “I just… I don’t want to hurt you.” Their hands suddenly felt warm, too warm, too hot, and both pulled back, the familiar feeling of Thomas taking energy recognizable to both of them at this point. “You had it, what happened?” Thomas was sure Virgil was going to be upset with him for failing when he did have control, but Virgil seemed concerned as he rubbed his hand. “I… I dunno. I’m not used to this! I’ve never had to use my powers, I don’t know what I’m doing.” “Yes, you do. Are you really that dense?” Virgil leaned back into the couch and sighed. “Come on, Thomas!” Patton perked up from his spot on the floor. “We believe in you! You said you were ready, right? You got this!” “Well, maybe I…” Virgil groaned and leaned forward and rested his arms on his legs as he spoke. “Thomas, you’ve had these powers your whole life. It was just never apparent until now. That means you’ve been using them the whole time! My portals weren’t always so wobbly. They probably weren’t even portals at first, but that’s what they grew to be. The same thing goes for you, you just need to be open to the idea.” “Yeah!” Patton perked up and leaned onto the couch, smiling up at him. “I wasn’t an empath at first, it just grew like that!” “So… Do you think I didn’t just take energy at first? That’s kinda what Logan thought, but...” Thomas looked from Patton who nodded before staring down at the palms of his hands. “I don’t think that’s how mine worked. I mean, how can I use them if you were the first superpowered people I met?” “You’re not thinking about this the right way.” Virgil leaned back in closer as he perked up, excited to explain himself. “What if you don’t take powers? What if you take energy instead?” “Energy?” Thomas shook his head. “Wait, I’m confused. Where did that idea come from?” “Me. Just now. Or like, ten minutes ago, doesn’t matter. Think about it!” Virgil started waving his arms around as he spoke excitedly. “We are throwing things at the wall here to see what sticks! So, we have to question everything until we can find the right answer. We haven’t questioned if you worked with energy yet! We need to at least test the theory to see if it’s true, but it makes sense if you think about it.” “How so?” Patton tilted his head and rested his arms on the couch. “If he hadn’t noticed things before, how would we know?” “Yeah, I never even had the idea I could do anything until I met you guys.” Virgil turned to Thomas and smiled. “I don’t like that look,” he mumbled, leaning away from Virgil once more. “They could have been things that you could write off as normal. Have you ever gotten excited around others? Just… a sudden burst of energy?” Thomas raised a brow at Virgil’s question. “Or perhaps you feel exhausted when around too many people?” “That doesn’t explain anything, Virge. That just makes me an introvert.” “Humor me. Have you been with others and suddenly felt tired? You could have been passing around energy and never known it.” “Wait…” Thomas mumbled as his brain started to understand where Virgil was coming from. “Like, when I’m performing. Could I get energy from others and the audience? Or, during a scene, give it out unknowingly?” He looked down at Patton for a moment. “I passed out after a scene once while still on stage. That could explain it, couldn’t it?” “I think it could! It’s worth testing out anyway!” Patton smiled and stood up from the floor. “How about you stop thinking about your ability as taking power and think of it more and sharing energy like Virgil said?” Patton held out a hand and Thomas smiled. “I think that could work. I’m willing to give it a shot, anyway.” Despite his words, Thomas hesitated and Virgil frowned. “Promise to do something if this doesn’t work?” “It will work, Thomas. You’re ready for this.” Virgil’s words didn’t seem to encourage him, but he nodded and reached forward, taking Patton’s hand. “Now, let’s start slow.” ---

Logan was literally pushed out the front door the second he had hesitated in the doorframe. They had told him Thomas was going to come over for training on the rare day he had work at the bookstore. The bakery? He could call and explain and his aunt and uncle would be fine with that. But the bookstore? He had perfect attendance and had never been late and no matter how much he thought about doing it just the once, Patton had pushed him out the door and promised he’d take care of everything. It did ease Logan’s worries a little bit, perhaps Patton could get through to Thomas where he could not. He was so close, he knew it, but something held Thomas back every time. At least working at the bookstore wasn’t the worst thing he could be doing instead. The best thing about it was how the shifts seemed to fly by for Logan. He could easily get lost in the sorting and organization of the small local shop and business was usually slow except for the college students buying second-hand books cheaper there than most college recommended sites. Still, the mornings were calm and quiet where Logan could usually pick up the slack that was left behind at closing. He wasn’t the most sociable person but he usually was so organized the owners looked past that. Social skills weren’t as important for a shop tucked away on the side, it never really became too busy. He started his days off like he always does, at the community board. Anyone was allowed to put up fliers for events as long as they were appropriate and it was his job to take down old ones that may have passed. One or two fliers that had been up for far too long and that usually was the most he ever took down, but he would also organize it so there was plenty of space for others. Then came organizing the books that had been shipped in. Ones people requested or new releases they managed to get a hold of. There was never any rush during the quiet mornings and Logan usually hummed softly to himself as he prepared the store for the rest of the day. One or two people came in, but otherwise, it was a quiet day. It also felt incredibly, painstakingly slow. Knowing Thomas was over at the apartment while he could be there to assist caused him to be very aware of every passing moment. While he knew Patton and Virgil could take care of things, there was nothing more than he wanted to do besides be there. There was more on the line for Logan than Thomas himself had realized. Thomas was learning to control his abilities and he was doing so well! They were so close! Logan could basically feel it each time, Thomas would get it any day and who said that day couldn’t be today? The bell above the door chimed as a customer walked in, earning a quick greeting from Logan. It was almost a reflex for him to speak whenever he heard the bell these days. The customer had headed straight for the community board with a paper in hand. Logan made a note to inspect the flier to make sure it was appropriate before they left before returning to his work sorting books. The way they marched in with the board set as their destination didn’t seem out of the ordinary but something told Logan to be safe, just in case.

“Hello? Do you work here?” Logan turned and put on his best customer service smile. “I was looking for the non-fiction section?” “Come right this way, I can show you where that is. Was there anything in particular you were looking for?” The poor college student was content being brought to the right place and Logan was not envious of the panic that crossed their face as they inspected their options. He thought back to his days in libraries and research papers. It certainly was something he didn’t miss. He was almost to the front of the store when he heard a tearing noise of paper in the shop. A few big strides brought him back to the community board where a man was tearing a sheet of paper in half, his back to Logan. “Excuse me, sir?” He approached the guy who didn’t seem to care he was being addressed. “Are you the one that put the flier up?” “What does it matter?” He took the paper he had hidden under his arm and pinned it in the previously empty spot. “Just making room. It was an old flier.” “I see.” He eyed the scraps of paper the man had bunched in his fist. “Next time, our policy is to inform us and not remove it yourself. That being said, I do appreciate it. I can take the old paper and recycle it for you if you’d like.” The man scoffed and handed the paper over before quickly heading for the exit. “Just one moment,” Logan turned around, waving the scraps of paper to the man. “This was not an old flier.” “It’s a stupid one you didn’t need hanging up, you’re welcome.” Logan looked down at the Princey Fan Club advertisement he had recognized before turning back to face the board. “He’s a menace anyways.” “I see, and the new anti-prince poster in its spot has nothing to do with that?” Logan reached over and pulled down on the paper, tearing it from the push pin that was keeping it in place. “Hey!” The man squared his shoulders and puffed out his chest, probably in an attempt to appear more threatening. Unfortunately for him, Logan couldn’t care less about how tough the man tried to look. If need be, he could have him out of the building in an instant without moving a finger. “If you can not respect the rules that are in place, I’m afraid I’ll have to decline your poster as well.” “You can’t just do that!” The man marched up to Logan as he turned red in the face. “That stupid prince is pretending he’s better than the cops, running around with a taser! Someone’s going to get hurt.” “So we have a mutual agreement, needless violence is unneccessary.” Crumpling up his paper with the shredded poster, Logan never took his eyes off of the man. “Simply follow the posted rules next time and your flier can stay. Have a nice day, sir.” The man was angry but chose to huff and walk off instead. He slammed the door behind him and marched off down the street and away from view. Once he was gone, Logan let out a sigh and tossed the paper in a bin. It was going to be a longer day than he thought. He had to talk to the others when he got home.

---

“Okay, go ahead.” Thomas reached out and grabbed Virgil’s hand like he had done before and took in a slow breath. They waited a moment before Virgil’s hand grew warm, but he gripped the hand tighter. “You’ve got this.” Thomas nodded, focusing more and finally let out the breath slowly. He felt his own hand turn cold this time and kept the grip as his shoulders tensed. “It’s cold.” “I think you did it.” Virgil hesitated before he let go. “I think you gave me energy that time. Not much, but you did it!” “I did… I did it!” He laughed and threw himself at Virgil, wrapping his arms around him. “I did it, oh my goodness gracious! That’s so cool! I got it!” Virgil was frozen stiff as Thomas giggled gleefully, hugging him and rocking back and forth. “Yeah, whoo…” He was entirely unenthusiastic as he slowly raised an arm and gave him a pat on the back. “Knew you could do it.” “You did!” Thomas let go and sat up, turning to Patton. “You both did! Gosh, I needed something like that. Logan was being a bit pushy.” “What do you mean?” Patton smiled but his face showed concern. “Was Logan being too rough?” “More like he made it seem like… Like I had to do it! That I was going to.” Thomas slumped over at the thought. “Like I needed to, not that he believed I could.” Patton grew more concerned when Virgil sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “W-well, I’m sure he was just so excited! He gets really into these things,” Patton tried reassuring Thomas. “You should have seen him when we first met him! He’s gotten better.” Virgil shook his head and mumbled to himself. “I’m not so sure.” He looked over at Thomas and smirked. “Doesn’t matter, you got it! Just a bit of practice and you’ll be doing it like it’s nothing.” Thomas couldn’t stop his smile from dropping at that. “Oh, yeah, great.” “Are you okay?” Patton immediately switched to his overprotective mode. “Are you feeling alright? Is something wrong?” “It’s just…” Running a hand through his hair, Thomas gathered his thoughts before he shook his head. “I’m glad I’m able to figure all this out, but I’m still a little overwhelmed. Like, okay.” He held out his hands as he spoke. “I still don’t remember a lot of things and I know using my powers can help me but… I dunno. I feel like I woke up one day with half my life completely gone and everyone’s been telling me who I am! I want to learn who I am myself, you know? No looking at photo albums and hearing stories. I want to go out and experience things and relearn myself. I know I said I wanted to learn my powers but I’m more than just my powers, aren’t I?” “Well, of course,” Patton smiled and reached over to Thomas, rubbing his arm reassuringly. “We don’t want to force you into anything you don’t want to, we just want to help!” “Yeah. I mean, it sucks for us, but it’s worse for you right now,” Virgil shrugged at the look Thomas and Patton both sent him. “What? I’m being honest. We can handle Logan, I know he’s really been pushing you about this. You go hang out with Joan and Talyn and all your friends and go have fun. We’ll always be here when you’re actually ready. You don’t have to force yourself for us.” “Really? Are you sure? Because I know that this could be helpful and I do want to learn eventually!” “Thomas,” Patton smiled and reached over, rubbing his arm reassuringly. “You matter to us more than your powers. We’re you’re friends too!”

Reluctantly, he had agreed to let it go. They were happy he wanted to learn but forcing himself for their sake wasn’t healthy. Thomas thanked them again for helping him so far with his powers before venturing off back across the city. Patton sighed when he was out of sight before shutting his door and turning to Virgil. “We’re doing the right thing, aren’t we?” “Of course, now come on. I’m energized and hungry, let’s go get a bite to eat.”

--- Pacing the living room until Logan came home became the worst thing Patton could do. He was nervous about this conversation with Logan but he wasn’t even entirely sure why. Logan would understand Thomas’ decision! He had to, he was so sweet and kind, he just needed to explain it all first. Virgil was tired after his little boost of energy from Thomas wore out and had decided to take a nap. Patton originally protested, stating that taking one so late in the day would through off his whole internal clock. Virgil simply replied ‘I don’t obey the laws of time, I don’t need to listen to clocks.’ It was a silly point from Virgil but Patton couldn’t argue with it, he wasn’t wrong after all. To kill some time, he had finished an entire puzzle with Two and Three and watched dozens of animal videos on his phone. While he was laying on his bed, he was zoned out for a while before he heard the front door creak open. He paused the video and leaned to peek out his bedroom door he left wide open, but he was sure the quiet entry was made by Logan. Roman usually announced his appearances one way or another but it was still too early for him to be home from work. Once he saw Logan, he jumped up in excitement, momentarily pushing back the conversation he was dreading having for the flutter that appeared in his gut at the sight of his boyfriend. “Logan!” Patton perked up and reached out, carefully tugging Logan’s arm into the apartment. “You’re finally home!” “Please don’t tell me you sat here waiting for me.” Despite his tone, he smiled as Patton shrugged, bringing him to the couch. “Have you had an eventful day?” “Oh, not really. Virgil and I went out for lunch but now he’s taking a nap! Roman’s not home yet, so it’s just you and me!” “Ah, I see.” Clearing his throat, he adjusted his glasses and tried to appear uninterested. “And how was Thomas? He was over earlier, was he not?” Patton’s smile became a bit strained as he nodded. “Yeah, we made progress! I need to talk to you about that, though.” “Progress?” Patton didn’t like the way Logan perked up eagerly at the news. “What sorts of progress?” “Well, uh, it seems we managed to get Thomas to use his powers to give energy to Virgil willingly. He had-” “He did?!” Logan jumped up from the couch with a grin stretching from ear to ear. “This is wonderful! Goodness, this is the best thing I’ve heard all day! Perhaps all week! I should contact him immediately and-” Patton reached up and grabbed Logan’s hands, tugging on them to get his attention. He took a moment to breathe and tried letting a wave of calm wash over both of them as best he could. He felt so anxious and he wasn’t entirely sure why. Virgil had asked him to wait until they were both there to talk since he didn’t know everything that his boyfriend went through. He knew he was missing something important, something that caused Logan to push Thomas a bit too hard. He recalled Logan saying his parents kicked him out and not elaborating further, but Virgil must have known and it must have been the missing link between Logan’s parents and Thomas somehow. Patton tugged on Logan’s hands once more, causing him to sit back down on the couch slowly. “We need to talk about that.” “Did it go okay? Were you injured? Is Thomas okay? And Virgil?” The smile that grew on Patton’s face as Logan started to worry was undeniable. “No, no. Not that. Everyone is fine. It’s just…” Licking his lips, he prepared for how he was going to be able to explain this clearly. “Thomas is thankful he’s managed to control his powers a bit, but he wants to take a step back. I think things are still too much for him and he kept pushing through for our sake.” Logan didn’t react at all which caused Patton to panic a bit. “Not forever! He just wants to try and fill some things himself before we give all his memories back! It’s just too much happening at once for him. I don’t think all of us have fully recovered from that monster.” Logan opened his mouth before hesitating, calculating his words exactly. “I can bring his memories back if he can boost my abilities. He realizes that, does he not?” “Well, yes! But he’s more than his lost memories, Logan. He just wants-” “He just said he wanted to learn to control his powers.” Logan tugged his hands out of Patton’s and stood up tall. “What happened today? Why did he change his mind?” “I told you, Lo. It’s okay, he just wants to take it slow!” Patton held up his hands defensively. “We were pushing him too much, he needs more time. We need to respect that.” “No, I don’t…” Logan’s eyes started to glow and Patton winced at the sight. “He said he would, he can’t change his mind like that! Doesn’t he see how important this is?” “To you or to him? Why do you care so much?” Patton frowned before gripping onto the couch as it shook. “Please, I want to help but I don’t understand!” Logan shook his head as small objects took to the air, his eyes glowing brighter. “We have to get his memories back! We need to get them back!” “Or what?” Logan blinked in surprise as Patton finally glared, his anger flaring wildly enough that Logan could start to feel it mix with his own. “Would you force him to? Huh?” Logan blinked as the anger melted away, turning into something else… “Would you make him do what you want? Just take a moment and poof! You can have him totally agree to do whatever! Is it worth that? Would you do that to him?” Shaking his head, Logan’s eyes dimmed and flitted out, his normal brown eyes staring back scared. Panicked. “I wouldn’t, you know that. I said I wouldn’t. I couldn’t.” “Well then, Logan, you need to calm down and think about what Thomas wants.” “I just…” Logan ran a hand through his hair nervously. “He said himself, he wanted to learn. I wasn’t trying to be overbearing, I simply wanted to help Thomas help himself!” Logan started growing desperate in his explanation once more. “Don’t you see? This isn’t about me!” “Logan-” “No! No, you don’t get it, I have to do this! I have to make everything right!” Patton stood and tried chasing after Logan who quickly retreated to his room. He was only a few feet behind when the door slammed shut in his face, barring him from going any further. Patton sighed and wrapped his arms around himself, rubbing his arms up and down to help generate warmth. He slowly made his way back to the living room and sat on the couch, replaying the argument in his head over and over. He sat in silence for a few minutes, trying to figure out where he had gone wrong. Even more important, how he could apologize and make it right. A knock on the door brought him back to reality. Patton only hesitated a moment before deciding to answer it. As he opened to door, he was surprised to find Clyde sheepishly standing on the other side. “Hello? Clyde?” “Hi, Patton. I, uh…” Clyde seemed unsure as he looked at Patton and eyed the door to his own apartment with his aunt. “I heard yelling and I wanted to make sure you were okay.” Patton honestly thought about waving it off and turning him away. He also debated pouring his heart out to his neighbor. True, Clyde couldn’t be completely trusted, but he did deserve a second chance. Patton didn’t know all the pieces of the story anyway, so there wasn’t much to tell him. Closing the door behind him, Patton nodded and headed for the stairs of the porch, sitting down and facing the road. Clyde took the hint and followed, sitting right next to him. “So, how much did you hear?” “Not really anything. It was muffled. It was you and Logan again, right?” Patton nodded and sighed, his shoulders falling as he slumped over. Patton thought of a million places to start before he shook his head and bit his lower lip nervously. “It’s like someone hit a reset button on him. He said he wouldn’t do this again but he fell back into his old habits at the first sign and he doesn’t even realize it!” Patton waved his arms around, talking passionately as he did so. “He’s started clinging to that book again and only thinking about what he can learn and not about how we feel! I don’t know what happened and he doesn’t want to talk about it but…” Patton stopped and his arms fell, defeated. “I’m not going to sit by and watch him go down that path again! He was getting better, but without forcing him to talk, I don’t know what to do.” Clyde slowly reached an arm over Patton’s shoulders and awkwardly pulled him in closer. Patton was more than happy to take the invitation as he attempted to rest his head on Clyde’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Patton. You’ll figure it out. I’ll help you any way I can.” Patton hummed and wrapped his arms around the younger man. “Thank you, Clyde.” He hesitated before returning the gesture and hugging him back. “Of course, Patton. It’s my pleasure.”

When Virgil first discovered his abilities, he spends weeks trapped in frozen time. After the initial panic had died down, he remembered his way to the corner store and ate snacks like there was no tomorrow.

When he would discover how to unfreeze time, his parents would be confused as to how their son grew, his hair longer, and the pile of wrappers that sat on the floor.

When Virgil first learned how to use his abilities to help someone, he prevented a kid from breaking their arm as they fell off the monkey bars. Simply stopping time and placing a pile of leaves and blankets from the kindergarten naptime closet, he restarted time as the girl grunted and sat up, perfectly fine.

The first time he learned he couldn’t save everyone was when his mother died.

She was sick and had been for years. Cancer had made her lose her beautiful long brown locks and she spent far too much time in and out of the hospital. It was a small cold that had hit her one day that spiraled out of control. Virgil stopped time and held her hand, knowing when he went back, she would be just as sick and not a moment would have passed. He wasn’t sure how long he spent like that, crying on his mother’s frozen, but still alive, form before pulling back and giving her a kiss. He promised then that he would thrive to save others the best he could.

Of course, not everything went according to plan. After struggling through high school, Virgil took up craft hobbies and started forming a superhero outfit for himself, but always delayed actually going out for fear of the worst. What would he do, walk around until he found trouble? Stop it in frozen time and prayed he was quick enough that no one got hurt?

Years of worrying went by before it happened. The Masked Prince appeared, dressed as if he was pulled from an old Disney movie to save the day. Virgil watched a bit in awe the first time he saw footage of the prince in action. Soon, the fans online started calling him ‘Prince Charging’ and he was everywhere. Spending every night stopping purse snatchers and carjackers and occasionally someone trying to abuse someone else.

Until one day, the news was filming the Prince battling an armed man. He had taken a drink of something and had created a barrier, but he was losing energy quick as the man continued to shoot at him.

Virgil froze time and put on his costume, watching the tv as it displayed the location before running out the door and across town. He was terribly out of breath when he had done so and took a moment, surveying the scene.

Virgil grabbed the Prince and tugged, suddenly pulling him free from time. The Prince looked up at him in shock as they sat there before Virgil blinked and squeezed his eyes shut, starting time once more. The attacker shouted as he saw them on the ground, Virgil quickly standing up and disappearing from sight. Suddenly behind the attacker, he grappled him and unarmed him, the Prince using his electromagnetism to steal his weapon away quickly.

The news reporter stopped him and asked for his name, quickly giving a look before pulling his scarf up to hide his face. “The Vigilant.” With that, he froze time once more and disappeared, knowing it would look as if he simply vanished.

He thought that Prince Charging would appreciate the help, but next time he showed up, the Prince proclaimed that they were rivals in heroism. The news reporter got his name wrong and started calling him the Vigilante instead. Public opinion of him saving the Prince was not as great as he had thought it would be, most people saying he dressed ‘too dark for a hero.’

Despite all that, Virgil never gave in and continued helping out when he could. He always dreamed he would be a hero and he didn’t care what the Prince or anyone else thought, he was going to be one.

“I can’t believe you’ve been keeping this from me!” Patton couldn’t hide the waver in his voice as he tried to hide how hurt he truly felt. “You know how much I wanted this so why did you lied to me?”

“I did not lie!” Rolling his eyes, Logan shook his head as he spoke. “You never asked.”

“Withholding information is a lie of omission, Logan!” Patton stomped a bit closer as Logan seemed uncomfortable as he was called out. “You knew I wanted it more than anything! Why would you keep it from me?”

“We are not ready for the responsibility-”

“I can handle it!”

“We are not getting a dog!” Patton opened his mouth but didn’t get a word out before Logan cut him off once more. “Or a cat, you are allergic! Yes, the lease says we can have a pet but we are still settling in! We are not home enough or financially stable enough to handle a dog.”

“Puppies, Logan!” Patton sounded defeated, knowing Logan made complete sense in his argument. “They need a home! And!” Patton perked up and smiled at a thought. “I can just leave Two here to watch after it every day! There, problem solved!”

Logan’s shoulders tensed up more and he turned away. “Patton, making copies drains you, you can’t do it every day or you’ll be too tired to do anything after a week.” He looked back to catch Patton’s face falling, the smile washing away. “Perhaps we can talk to the others about it but I don’t see it being feasible for us right now.”

“Is that a maybe?” Logan knew he would regret it but he nodded his head a bit as his boyfriend perked right back up. “Oh yay! Thank you! It’ll be great, we can raise it together and it can be like our child!”

“No!” Logan’s shout was a surprise to both of them, but he refused to back down from his answer. “No. I said it wouldn’t be possible right now. No pets.”

“B-but you just said-”

“Well, now I’m saying no!” Logan turned and quickly headed for the door. “I have to go to work.”

“Wait!” Logan hesitated with his hand resting on the doorknob. “You said you had the day off! We were going to have a date night!”

Squeezing the knob, Logan threw the door open quickly. “When I return back we can discuss this. I am needed at the bakery for a little bit.”

Patton watched the door softly shut and wrapped his arms around himself, replaying their discussion over in his head again and again. Logan’s behavior changed suddenly, but Patton couldn’t quite figure out why. He marched halfway to the door before stopping, deciding against chasing after Logan. A little bit of time was all he should need to cool off from whatever made him snap.

“Patton?” Turning around, Patton spotted Virgil standing in the doorway, eyeing the door warily. “You okay?”

“Yeah, of course, I am!” Virgil seemed to huff and Patton didn’t bother with a smile as he sighed. “I don’t know, something is bothering Logan. I’ve been trying to get him to talk to me about his feelings but it feels like he’s starting to close himself off again.” Rubbing a spot in the center of his chest, Patton closed his eyes. “I can’t get a good feeling on him lately. He’s been all over the place.”

Virgil walked up and placed a hand on Patton’s shoulder, getting his attention. “I’ll go talk to him for you, Pat. Don’t worry.”

Virgil immediately headed for the front door and ran out, chasing after his moody roommate. He looked both ways down the sidewalk and noticed him standing at the bus stop just at the end of the block. He walked to the end of the street and looked both ways before jogging up to the bus stop. Logan was standing underneath the protective overhang above the bench, doing his best to look away from the sound of footsteps that were approaching.

“Hey.” Logan quickly looked up in surprise to Virgil who tucked his hands into his hoodie pockets. “You okay? It’s not like you to snap like that.”

“I did not snap. I merely had prior engagements.” Logan crossed his arms over his chest and stared into the street at passing cars.

Virgil almost laughed as he shook his head, standing next to Logan and looking out at the traffic with him. “Your so-called prior engagements were with Patton before you suddenly snapped. You’re wound up tight, Lo. You need to talk about what you’re feeling before you royally screw something up.” He looked over at the other who refused to make eye contact. “Patton’s gonna start thinking he did something wrong. Heck, he probably already does with the way I heard that conversation end. You need to tell him what happened. Or at least tell someone before something so stupid does more damage.”

Logan pulled his arms in closer, hugging himself as he finally looked over at Virgil. Their eyes met briefly before Logan turned away, his shoulders falling as he let out a big sigh. “Fine. It’s stupid, it doesn’t make any sense for me to feel like this.”

Virgil reached out and patted Logan on the back as he smiled. “Emotions aren’t stupid. They make no sense and are impossible to completely understand but if something is making you feel weird you need to figure out why and work on it.”

Logan glared out at the street before closing his eyes and nodding his head. “Okay, fine. If you’re so sure it will help.” He slowly inhaled deeply through his nose before releasing it, the tension from his chest lightening a bit. “It took me months to recognize and admit my feelings for Patton.” His cheeks flared up red as he glared back out at the street. “It seems that in a matter of weeks, Patton is returning these feelings. Ones that took me forever took him no time at all. Am…” Logan licked his lips and looked up at Virgil, eyes wide with fear. “Am I wrong about what I feel? What if it’s not real? What if I’m mistaking my feelings for something else, something lesser. I don’t want to hurt Patton like this.”

“Dude, what are you talking about?” Virgil turned and faced Logan, confusion written all over his face. “You have real feelings for Patton, any moron can see that. Just because his feelings formed differently than yours doesn’t invalidate what you’re feeling. You’re worrying over nothing. Where did you even get that idea?”

Logan went to speak, gathering his thoughts as his jaw silently moved. “Patton… suggested getting a pet. He made a comparison to raising it like a child together, and I suppose…”

“Really?” Virgil shook his head and watched Logan fall completely silent. “That’s fine to freak out over comments like that, but this is Patton! He makes comments like that all the time. Besides, you’re dating. You should talk to him about these things, not turn and run. What’s gotten into you lately?”

“Nothing.” Logan knew the words fell flat, Virgil not believing him as he tried to drop the discussion. “Just a bit is all going on at once, perhaps all these changes are getting to me more than I had realized.”

“You mean with work and the move? Buddy, we’ve been living there for a while now. This isn’t something new. What’s going on?”

Logan saw the bus coming up the street and shifted uncomfortably before turning to Virgil. “Promise not to tell anyone? It’s something I think I need to share personally.”

The bus pulled up and hissed, lowering to the ground enough for them to get on. Logan turned and walked on before Virgil shot a hand out and grabbed his wrist. “Fine, but I didn’t bring anything with me. You’re paying for my ride, L.”

“L? I assume that it is short for Logan?”

“No, it’s short for Lawliet.” Logan turned from stepping onto the bus and raised a concerned eyebrow. “Don’t worry about it, just get on the bus.”

---

Patton had been watching Logan and Virgil from the sidewalk in front of the porch. As he saw them board the bus, couldn’t help but feel almost helpless. As it pulled away from the curb, Patton turned and marched back into the apartment and closed the door behind him before falling back and leaning on it. He debated texting Logan that it was fine, he didn’t need a pet! It wasn’t worth arguing over, but that didn’t feel like the real reason the other had snapped.

Patton tried ignoring the heavy ball of dread in his chest as he replayed the argument over and over again. It was such a small thing, nothing for him to stress over too much, but it was his first argument with Logan. It was over puppies! What bad thing could happen with puppies?!

The apartment was quiet with him being the only one home. He thought about texting Roman who had left for the theater earlier. Pulling out his phone, Patton pulled up his messages and hesitated as he looked down the list of names.

He tapped away and pulled up a different contact before holding the phone to his ear while it rang. He had started mentally preparing what type of message he would leave before there was a soft click and the ringing stopped.

“Hello?”

Patton smiled and walked into the apartment to pace around while he talked. “Hey, Thomas! It’s Patton.”

“Hey, Patton!” There was another voice in the background that got cut off before he heard Thomas say something. There was a ruffling sound before it grew quiet for a moment. “Joan also says hi.”

Patton chuckled a bit and began circling the kitchen before turning back to the living room. “Hi, Joan!”

“So, what’s up?”

“Oh, nothing! Just wanted to call and say hi!” The line went quiet and Patton pulled the phone away to make sure they still were connected. “Thomas?”

“Is this about Logan?” Patton froze his pacing and looked around the empty apartment to make sure he was truly alone. “He’s been acting strangely.”

“Y-yeah. You’ve noticed?” Patton brought his other hand up and held the phone before turning to the couch and sitting down. “Has he said anything to you?”

“Yeah, I mean. He’s been really encouraging me to learn to use my powers.” Patton frowned and tried to recall any situation where Logan had mentioned Thomas recently. There wasn’t much, he had mentioned texting him in passing comments but nothing like that. “After our discovery, it was fine, but then the other day he just started texting me all these ideas he suddenly had, it was kind of weird. Did anything happen?”

“I’m starting to think so. He’s been quiet lately. More, I don’t know… More stressed? I don’t know about anything happening, but I have a feeling he’s just not telling me something.”

“Well, calm down and start at the beginning.”

---

Roman returned home from work with a spring in his step, eagerly rushing through the door and kicking off his shoes rather quickly before marching toward his room. He shut the door and quickly rushed to his closet, throwing it open and smiling at his costume that sat inside, waiting for him.

“Hello, beautiful. Did you miss me?” He reached up and unbuttoned his shirt, leaving it open and exposing the white tank underneath. “Just a quick dinner and Virgil and I are off into the night!”

Roman jumped suddenly at the loud clanging sound of metal banging around. He raced out of his room and to the kitchen where he found Patton quickly picking up pots and pans that fell out of the cabinet, muttering to himself. “What’s going on, pops and pans?”

Patton looked up and smiled, or at least tried to. Roman thought it looked more like a grimace than a regular Patton smile. “Oh, hey Roman! Just being clumsy as usual.” He turned and started stacking everything back into the cabinet they had fallen out of. “Any recommendations for dinner?”

“I dunno, something easy. Like macaroni and cheese.” Roman kneeled down and carefully placed his hand on Patton’s back. “How was your day with Logan?”

“Oh, he had to go to work suddenly and ran off!” Patton kept his tone light but refused to turn around. “I haven’t seen him since.”

“So you’ve been home with Virgil all day?”

Patton froze and turned and smiled at Roman. “Ah, no. He ran after Logan when he left.”

Roman decided to feign innocence and blinked at Patton. “Oh! Had he forgotten something here?”

“Ah,” Patton cleared his throat and turned back to the cabinet. “Not really, he just-” Roman reached over to Patton’s arm and placed his hand on it. He pushed it down and Patton’s arm lowered, placing the pan onto the ground as he did. “No. He hadn’t forgotten anything.”

“Seems like he forgot about your date.” Patton shook his head but didn’t turn or elaborate. “What happened?”

“We, uh… we got into a fight. He ran out the door saying he had to work and Virgil followed him. It’s been a few hours but I hadn’t heard from them.”

“So… You’re sitting on the floor organizing our pots and pans?” Roman stood up slowly, pulling Patton up with him. “Pat, where’s your phone?”

Biting his lip, Patton slowly walked over to the countertop where his phone resided. He turned and handed it to Roman who carefully took it and looked down at it. “Here you go.”

Roman opened his mouth to speak before he froze, eyes glued to the phone. “Why do you have several missed calls from your mother?”

“Oh, well, funny story about that! Ha ha, you see, she visited me at work yesterday and…” Patton looked up at Roman, forcing his awkward smile on his face once more. Roman frowned and watched Patton, upset at his behavior. “I told her I went to a Prince Charging meeting once and she got really upset. She said it wasn't safe for me to get mixed up in things like that. We got in a small disagreement and she’s been trying to talk to me since.”

Roman watched Patton shift around uncomfortably as he gripped onto his friend’s phone tighter. “Patton…” When his roommate looked up, it was almost as if he was staring at a little kid who knew they had done something wrong and just had gotten caught. “Why didn’t you say anything?” Patton didn’t answer anything more than a shrug as he looked away ashamed. “Buddy, first off, we’re going to talk to Logan. Then we’re all going to talk about what your mother said to upset you. But first,” Roman handed Patton his phone, placing it in his hands and holding it tight. “Call your boyfriend, Patton. I’ll go call Virgil.”

As soon as Roman let go, Patton felt like his phone had become heavier as it weighed down his hand. He stared at it for a moment before tapping away, pulling up Logan’s contact information. He hesitated before pressing the green button and closing his eyes, listening in wait for the ringing. He waited, slowly holding the phone up as it rang again and again. Then, it stopped and he heard Logan’s voicemail answering back at him. With a sigh of defeat, he ended the call without leaving a message and turning to find Roman.

He tapped his foot impatiently before groaning and hanging up angrily, mumbling about the dramatics of having a flip phone over a smartphone and how he missed it. He turned and saw Patton, knowing the other hadn’t gotten anyone yet either. “I’ll get into costume and go looking. If he hears I’m out without him, he’ll come find me to chew my ear off.” Roman smirked and tried perking himself up more. “Call the bakery and go get something for dinner. It’s early enough, they may still just come home.”

---

“Are you sure turning it off is a good idea, Virgil?”

The man in the hoodie sighed and pulled out his own phone. “Here. I’ll turn mine off as well, ok? You’re too distracted by it. We’ll turn them back on when you have an answer. Staring at it and waiting for it to do something isn’t going to help.”

Logan conceded and shut off his phone, watching Virgil hold down the power button on his own. “So, you’re saying about Thomas? You think if you get him into training more, he can fix your parent’s memories?” Logan nodded, staring at the blank screen of his phone. “Gotta say, kinda thought they died with the way you kinda almost never mentioned them.”

“Last we really spoke, they were confused by my existence. I just don’t understand why my auntie and uncle would hide that from me. They’re my parents, Virgil.” He looked up from his phone and stared out at the park from the bench they were sitting on. “I want to mend my relationship, but I don’t feel it is earned unless I am able to fix everything.”

“You can’t fix everything, Logan. You certainly aren’t helping by making things worse with Patton.”

“I’m just…” Logan groaned and leaned forward on his knees, resting his head in his hands. “I’m feeling so much and they’re all conflicting one another. I don’t know what to feel.”

Virgil hesitated before placing his hand on the other’s back. “That’s fine. Just take it one by one. What’s the thing you can work on now?”

“Well, talking to Patton first off. Then I need to cut some of these things from my life so I can focus on what’s important.” Logan slowly sat up, looking at Virgil as he did. “This isn’t going to be very pleasant, is it?”

“Just make sure you are positive of your decisions before you act. Then we can head on home. I’m sure Patton is worried.”

--- While he hadn’t expected to get much from calling the bakery to check in on Logan, Patton was disheartened to hear that Logan and Virgil had never even arrived there and they had no idea where they had gone. With their phones off, all Patton could do was sit and wait… that lasted all of five minutes before Patton grew stir crazy and decided to quickly run to the store to gather some things for dinner. It technically wasn’t his turn but he couldn’t just sit and wait around any longer.

Patton returned home with a bag in his hand and a smile on his face. Roman’s idea of macaroni and cheese was a good one, but Patton needed something that could distract him a bit more. So, he figured he should go all out and make something special, boiling up some noodles and making mac and cheese from scratch. It will take far longer than he wanted, but he knew how to make a roux and it could feed the others plenty, no matter when they got home.

Turning the knob to the door, Patton froze in the doorway, staring across the living room. “Logan?”

The other was almost out of the room before he stopped in the doorway, his back facing the rest of the room. Slowly turning, he gripped the book he was holding closer as he almost glared over at Patton. “Patton. I hadn’t expected you home so soon.”

“I went to buy some stuff for dinner.” He shut the door and watched Logan stare at him intensely. “You knew that. We were supposed to have date night, remember?”

“Ah.” Logan wrinkled his nose and turned away. “One would have thought our argument this morning solved that issue.”

“It was a silly argument.” Patton placed the bag on the ground and took a few steps closer before stopping at the sight of Logan retreating back to his room. “I’m sorry, it wasn’t worth fighting over. Just forget about it, okay?”

Logan watched him closely before shaking his head. “No, I think it was just a good peek into our future were we to stay together.”

“What?” Patton’s voice was soft and small. “Logan, that’s…” Logan’s expression never changed from the unamused glare he shot back. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that we’re over, Patton.”

---

Roman marched across the city without much luck before his phone finally started to vibrate. Usually, he didn’t carry his personal phone on him but he knew Virgil would be upset if he went out patrolling and only had the burner phone that didn’t take his calls half the time. He pulled it out and noticed the familiar name on the screen before answering. “So now you turn on your phone.”

“I was trying to get Logan to stop being distracted and think about his feelings. It took everything I had, you’re welcome. Where are you?”

Roman looked around for the nearest street sign. “I hope you got through to him. Patton was a mess when I saw him last. Speaking of, we should meet up and talk with him. I’m on the corner of--oh, ha!” Roman smirked as he read the signs. “I’m on the corner of Monarch and Crown. That’s perfect.”

“What are you doing over there? Wait. Don’t tell me. You better not be running around right now without me, Princey!”

“Oh shush. I haven’t even found anything yet. Wherever my pull is taking me is very out of the way. I’m sure you can get here in no time.”

“I’m not gonna pop in there and I don’t have much cash on me. I only have what Logan gave me, and that’s not gonna get me across town five different ways.”

“Don’t worry about it! Just pop in, you got this. I believe in you.”

Virgil snorted on the other end and Roman couldn’t help but smile, imagining the face he made as he did so. “Thanks for the confidence. Just give me a few and I’ll be right there. I need to figure out where exactly that is before I pop up in the wrong spot.”

“I eagerly await your arrival.”

When Roman hung up the phone, the itch of the pull tugged a bit, gaining his attention once more. He tucked the phone away carefully before continuing on, hoping that it was close by and Virgil would be there shortly.

---

Logan only got to his bedroom door before Patton came thundering down the hall, shoving his way past and blocking Logan’s bedroom door. He threw his arms out and stared down the other, eyes glossy as he fought back tears. “We are not just ending things like that! We need to talk about this more!”

“What is there to talk about? I don’t feel anything for you, Patton. Now, get out of my way.”

“No!” In a quick flash of light, Two and Three popped out and each grabbed one of Logan’s arms, pulling him away from his door. Patton stood tall in front of the doorway with a ready stance. “We are talking about this! Why are you breaking up with me over the fact I wanted a dog? You’ve been hiding something from me that’s been stressing you out! Just talk to me, Logan, I’m going to find out either way!”

Logan scoffed and turned to the Pals with a sneer. “Let me go before I make you.” His eyes started turning a soft gold before he ripped his arms away, marching back into the living room. “If this is how I will be treated in my own home, then I am leaving.”

Two and Three raced to catch up, Patton close behind. Three managed to block the door while Two blocked the kitchen, leaving Patton taking care of the only other exit back to Logan’s room.

“You will stop acting childish and talk to me!” Patton was desperate to get any other answer from the man in front of him. “I’m your boyfriend, talk to me, please.”

“Not anymore, you’re not.” Logan turned to Three and bared his teeth. “Move. Now.”

Three looked over at Patton who sighed in defeat before nodding. Three looked back in despair before slowly stepping out of the way and leaving the front door unguarded.

Before anyone else could move, the doorknob turned slowly and opened up, the room falling still at the sight of the newcomer as they glanced around the room.

“Patton,” Logan questioned as he spoke slowly, staring into the apartment from the front door. “Who is that and why are they in our apartment?”

---

When Virgil finally pulled up a map on his phone and managed to figure out exactly where Roman was, he just had to duck into an alley and freeze time. Easy enough. He had done it plenty of times before. Heck, he did it on the first day of the new place and again to treat Roman but… but he had done it always with someone else there. He wasn’t ever alone, tucked away and out of sight as to not get caught. He felt his mouth go dry and tried taking even breaths to calm himself down before he lost his cool. Was he calm enough? He couldn’t be too panicked before he did this, bad things would happen. Oh gosh, why is the thought of panicking making him panic?!

It took a while before he was able to calm down and take the plunge, peeling away from time with that gentle nudge it gave him and staring back at his portal. He stopped as if waiting for something to happen but he was only met with the complete stillness and silence that frozen time left him. He smiled a bit before chuckling. Then Virgil was full on laughing, staring at his portal as if it was the answer to life. He did it! Nothing bad happened! He was alone and froze time and everything was okay.

Well, first he had to duck through the portal and take a look around. He was cautious, sticking his hand slowly in before walking through like he always had. He looked around and noticed a street sign and smiled.

“Roman?” He knew the other couldn’t answer unless he unfroze time, but it was nice to call out to him as he looked around, hoping to spot the familiar flash of white and red. Frowning, he ducked away and started time once more before looking around. “Princey? You here?”

Virgil paced that block twice before pulling out his phone and dialing for Roman. “Come on, pick up, pick up…” He was met with an answer on the final ring and let out a sigh of relief. “Oh thank goodness. Roman, where are you?”

“Uh… About that… promise you won’t get mad?”

---

Logan immediately shut the door behind him as his eyes glared up gold. “Who are you and what do you want from us?”

The Logan standing in the center of the room suddenly seemed a lot more panicked at the sight of the original. He looked around at all the Pattons in the room blocking every exit before he shut his eyes and vanished from sight.

“He’s gone!” One of them cried out.

Logan shook his head, his eyes still shining brightly. “No, he’s still here. I can tell.” He slowly swept his eyes across the room and back up against the door. “I can't get a grip on what I can’t see but I can hear your panicked thoughts. Reveal yourself! There’s no use hiding any longer.” The room was quiet before he appeared again, grabbing Three who let out a yelp and tugged at the arms holding him in place. Suddenly, another fake Logan copy appeared in front of them, a smug and victorious smile on their face. “Now, let me go free or this one gets it.”

“Three!” Patton and Two cried out at the same time.

Logan looked over at Patton, watching him quiver in fear as he thought through possible scenarios a mile a minute. Two looked just as worried as he did. He turned back toward the fakes and Three before holding up his hands. “We let this one in front go, then you let go of our Pal. Once he’s safe, you can go.” The imposters seemed to debate it silently before Logan’s eyes flared up once more. He stared down the one in front before blinking, eyes widening. “I can’t read your thoughts.” The two imposters jumped in unison as Logan flickered his eyes to the other. “No, I can’t read their thoughts… because there’s no one there. You can create false imagery!” “Illusions?” Three had stopped struggling before and stared at the fake image in front of him. “So he doesn’t even look like Logan!” Three stood up and stomped on the imposter’s foot, grabbing his arm and swinging them around. They crashed through their illusion as they stumbled back into the center of the room.

“Okay, okay! I’m sorry!” The imposter looked around at the three of them as their panic increased. “Just let me go and we can forget about this, right?!”

“Wait.” Patton took a step forward, ignoring the worried look the real Logan had shot him. “I know you, don’t I?”

“I doubt it.” Patton watched the fake shift uncomfortably and turn away under his watchful gaze. “You wouldn’t recognize me anyway. Illusions, remember?”

“You’re him. You’re Leslie’s nephew. The one that lives with her just upstairs.”

The Logan copy froze, looking at Patton speechless before closing his mouth. “She said… She told you about me?”

“Well, kind of. I recognized you from the other times we met too.” Patton looked over at the real Logan and smiled. “You were pretending to be Logan before and came and took his journal. That’s why it went missing. Then you came in as Roman to return it. I ran into you both times. I thought they felt a little off. They seemed so nervous which is really unlike either of them.” Patton took a cautious step forward, smiling as the other didn’t move. “You’re the one she asked me about the other day. She was worried and had questions and wanted to be careful. I didn’t even think of the possibility of you being just like us!” Patton stopped his advancement and smiled. “You have powers, wowie!”

“Wait, this is the other roommate that lives upstairs? The other footsteps we have been hearing?” Logan frowned, still tense and ready to attack. “What are they doing here? Explain yourself.”

Patton ignored Logan’s harsh tone as he smiled. “Your father kicked you out.” Patton spared a glance to Logan, watching as he saw a spark of recognition pass his eyes. The faint glow from his eyes faded and Logan eased up a bit. “So your aunt took you in because you just graduated school and you don’t know what to do. She doesn’t know how to help so she came to me.” Logan was still ready to move but not able to be so harsh in a situation he knew far too much.

“It’s okay.” Two smiled and stepped closer to Patton. “We won’t hurt you, promise. Just introduce yourself.” He reached forward and tapped Patton’s shoulder, disappearing in a flash.

Three didn’t move from his spot, the imposter standing between him and Patton. Leslie’s nephew turned and looked at him and he simply smiled and waved. “A-and you’ll let me go?”

“Well, you’re holding onto something that isn’t yours, kiddo. You’ve also stolen from us before. Maybe you can answer a few things before we let you go?”

“It’s not as if I can’t simply follow you upstairs.” Logan countered. “If you read my journal then you know what we’re capable of. It wouldn’t be wise to get on my bad side any further.”

The imposter seemed to stew and think, looking back and forth before looking down at the book in his hands. He sighed and nodded his head, his form melting away as he did.

Stood before them was a young man, scarf around his neck and a black beanie hat on his head. Half of his hair fell out almost in his face while the other seemed shaved from what Patton could tell. He looked up and frowned, tossing the book onto the ground and shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “The name’s Clyde.”

---

Roman’s eyes fell onto the man his feet had pulled him to and it only seemed to befuddle him. The middle-aged man stood there looking bored, not a care in the world. He wasn’t distressed or anything, why would he be drawn to him then? Was he planning on doing something bad?

He approached cautiously before the man turned and saw him. He froze and smiled at the stranger, puffing out his chest like he normally would. “Well, hello there, citizen!”

The man frowned and looked back confused. “Who the hell are you?” He questioned.

Roman threw his head back and laughed. “Why, I am Prince Charging!” He placed a hand on his chest and smiled, closing his eyes and striking a pose. At the silence that followed, he slowly glanced back over to the man and frowned when he didn’t react. “Uh… the Masked Prince! Vigilante and protector of the people!” Roman turned and smiled again, striking another pose with his arms raised but frowned again when he still didn’t get a response. “Really? Nothing?”

“What on Earth are you wearing?” Roman looked down at his costume, admiring it as he had a million times before. “I thought you wore a hoodie.”

“Oh, that old thing?” Roman waved a hand as he smiled. “No, that was just until I had this made! I mean, a hoodie doesn’t fit the theme, you know?”

“I guess. So, you’re this prince everyone is talking about? Who apparently has real powers?” Roman smiled and nodded, earning a scoff from the man. “Don’t believe it.”

Roman almost gasped, offended by the stranger’s words. “Excuse you! I am the genuine thing! A real, true hero! I have a great gift and I simply was to help all of those around me and-” Roman froze as he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He slowly started to turn around before he heard a loud clicking noise ringing in his ears. He tensed up, his hair shooting up and standing on end with a shiver down his spine. Roman stayed still until the clicking noise finally ceased, slowly moving his fingers as he did so. Clenching a fist, Roman slowly turned around and found another man standing right there, a black box in his hand and panic on his face. “Wait, did you just…” Roman looked at the object as his thoughts pieced together. “Did you just use a taser on me?”

The man panicked and pressed the button to lunge and attack once again. Roman reached out and grabbed it, small blue sparks shooting off his hand as he gripped the object as tight as he could. The man let go of the taser, stepping back as Roman grit his teeth, the electricity coursing through his hands as he squeezed as tight as he could. The taser broke apart in his hands, partially melted before he tossed it onto the ground in a smoking mess. Roman looked up at the man who had attacked him and frowned, watching him panic and turn to run. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the other man had already turned and fled the scene.

Turning back, Roman sprinted and tried catching up to the other stranger when his phone starting going off. Virgil! He moved and forgot to tell Virgil! He sighed and stopped, deciding to let the man go free while he answered his phone. “Hey, Virge. Oh. Uh, yeah… about that.”

Chapter 11>> Whoooo I’m nervous about this chapter. 9 chapters of hints and some of you got them! Just a quick note, for those who missed it! I commissioned a beautiful pic of Logan from the end of chapter 8!! Send them love, it was beautifully done by one of my favorite artists! Tag list: @cyberpunkjinx @phlying-squirrel  @equipodeleo @ace-anx @tisithelittleelephant @sanderslays @fandomsofrandom @thestoryofme13 @herequeerandverytired @too-random-for-me @midknight-mania @sleepyssnail @dragonsight9 @queer-human-being @ab-artist @arandompasserby @musikasworld @hellomusicalnerdhere @izzynuggets @noahlovescoffee @rosesisupposes @detective-lemon @kanejandkruge @draw-till-die

The sky was blanketed gray on an overcast afternoon in the city. Virgil stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and perked up when he saw the man in front of him standing, almost as if waiting for him. With a smile, he raised his arm and waved at the other who stared back and started to smile. “Thomas!” Virgil walked closer, noticing the busy street seemed a bit less busy for this time of day. “Surprised to see you on this side of town. You visiting Logan again?”

“You could say that.” Virgil blinked and furrowed his brow before looking around. It was silent. Completely still as no one, not even the sound of traffic buzzed nearby. The street was empty and the clouds overhead must have blocked out the sun as they grew darker. “It’s good to see you again, Virgil.”

Turning back, Virgil jumped as Thomas reached out and grabbed his arm. “Hey! What’s wrong with you, man? Let go!”

“Oh, now why would I do that?” Thomas’ hand gripped tighter and Virgil winced at the sudden pain. “After spending all this time looking for you, Virgil, why would I let you go now?”

Virgil tugged at the vice grip but didn’t see a way out. “The hell are you talking about?”

Virgil froze as the sudden quiet was broken by white noise. He looked at Thomas as the man smiled a bit too wide, the pricking noise of static growing in intensity. He chuckled as little wisps of blackened smoke escaped his mouth and Virgil jumped back, grabbing the man’s arm and tugging on it desperately. The more he tried pushing him away, the louder Thomas seemed to laugh. The smoke only grew and surrounded both of them and Virgil shut his eyes in his panic, willing himself to break free. Of the grip, of time, whatever it took to get away. The sound of static grew louder and louder and louder…

With a gasp, he shot up and gripped his chest, his heart pounding so loud he almost didn’t notice the sound of static in the room. He felt sweaty and gross but cold at the same time as a shiver made the hair on his arms stand on end. He looked around frantic and saw the television staring back at him, the white noise coming from the speakers. Virgil surveyed the room and found himself on the couch, Roman passed out just next to him and groaning as he moved his arms in his sleep as if searching for something. Virgil looked around and grabbed a pillow, placing it where he was as he stood up. Roman groaned and pulled it close, burying his face in it and sighing as he drifted off back to sleep.

They were watching a movie. Roman was nervous about starting his new job so they sat down to watch a movie after dinner and must have fallen asleep on the couch. It must have ended and the tv started making the noise that caused Virgil’s nightmare.

He slowly backed out of the room and into his own, pacing back and forth with the rush of adrenaline that had shot through him. Once his mind calmed enough to start to think properly, he slowed down and took a deep breath. He shouldn’t be alone right now but he knew climbing back on the couch would wake up Roman. Logan was eager to get to his room after dinner, talking about figuring something out before he went to sleep, and he wasn’t eager to wake up Patton just to have someone to talk to.

He snuck back out into the living room and froze seeing a figure standing, facing the tv. They held up the remote and shut it off before looking at him and smiling. “Hey.” He whispered, placing the remote down slowly. “You okay?”

“Why are you up, Pat?” Virgil slowly walked over and Patton nudged his head to his room. Virgil nodded and followed as Patton led them away from the sleeping Roman on the couch. Virgil slowly clicked the bedroom door shut and watched as Patton let out a big sigh. “You okay?”

“Just a nightmare.” He rubbed his arms as if he were cold before sitting on his bed, staring out his big window. “The noise from the tv didn’t help.”

Virgil had a moment of realization as he slowly took a few steps closer. “What was your nightmare about?” Patton shook his head and Virgil carefully sat next to him. “Mine was about that creature. He had come back again.” Patton froze and his head turned to watch Virgil, his eyes wide in shock. It was then that Virgil realized he wasn’t wearing his glasses. “It had gotten to Thomas and he grabbed me and the noise got louder and I couldn’t get away…” Virgil licked his lips and looked away, ducking his head in embarrassment. “I guess the movie got to me.”

“What… what were you watching?” Virgil smirked at Patton’s quiet, careful tone.

“Anastasia. We only had it on VHS and I guess Roman brought it with him since I lost my DVD player and he lost all his Disney movies in the fire. Must have hit the end of the tape.” He looked at Patton and bit his lip before swallowing his pride. “Uh, Pat?” His roommate looked up at him silently. Virgil held his arms up slowly as Patton blinked at him. “Do you, uh… need a hug? Or, like, do you mind if I give you one?”

Patton smiled and launched headfirst into the hug with no hesitation, causing Virgil to let out a soft ‘oof’. He smiled and pulled his best friend in closer as they sat there for a moment. “Virgil?” Patton whispered, pulling away a little bit to speak. “I had a nightmare about it too. My door was cracked open and I heard I guess. I know you didn’t mean to but I felt your panic and I had a nightmare and it was back and…”

Virgil shushed Patton and pulled him back into the hug. “That’s fine, Pat. I get it. It’s gone, don’t worry.” As they sat in silence, Patton slowly ran his hand up and down Virgil’s back before slowly pulling away. “We should get back to sleep.” He scooted back on his bed and smiled, wrapping himself with his blanket. “We all have work in the morning and you are going to need your rest!” “Of course,” Pushing off of his bed, he felt a wave of calmness hit him and turned to smile at Patton. “Thanks, Pat. Good night.”

---

Roman blinked awake and groaned before throwing his arm over his eyes. His back ached and he felt heavy while the room was completely dark. Was he even in his bed? No… No, he was on the couch with Virgil watching a movie and then…

He jumped in shock and looked around, not finding his boyfriend anywhere. Roman pushed himself up and groaned softly before blinking and looking at the VCR, seeing the digital 12:00 blinking back at him. He spotted his phone on the coffee table and grabbed it, closing his eyes as he turned it on. The battery immediately started charging while in his hand naturally as Roman blinked to adjust to the sudden light. The screen wasn’t too bright but he still had to squint, catching the time a bit after 3 am.

He stood up slowly for the couch and looked around before sneaking over to Virgil’s room. He peeked the door open and stared over at the pile of blankets at the bed. It was too dark to see but Roman let out a sigh once he saw something move before slowly backing out of the room to let Virgil sleep. Roman made it to his own bed and plugged in his phone so it stayed on long enough to be his alarm in a few hours before snuggling into his sheets.

When his phone started buzzing a few hours later, Roman whined and smacked in the general area of the noise. He opened his eyes and stared at the numbers before forcing himself up and out of bed. He ran a hand through his hair and felt it sticking up in a million directions. It was far, far too early than necessary but he wanted to look at his best for his first day.

Roman had managed to get showered and dressed before he even heard anyone else bother to even get out of bed. He walked out of his room buttoning up his shirt and his hair slicked back and still wet from the shower, not wanting to use a hair dryer so early in the morning. He spotted Virgil in the kitchen first, staring at the coffee machine as he made a fresh pot, still half asleep on his feet.

“Good morning.” Virgil groaned and closed his eyes, leaning against the counter to keep himself upright. “I see you moved off of the couch last night. You sleep okay?” Virgil shrugged and didn’t open his eyes, causing Roman to frown. “I’ll take that as a no. Everything alright?”

Virgil finally looked over at him and blinked the sleep from his eyes. “Yeah, sorry. Didn’t want to wake you last night.” Virgil reached out and grabbed Roman’s arm before stepping forward, resting his head on Roman’s chest and leaning on him for support. Roman reflexively brought up his arms around Virgil and chuckled. Virgil simply shushed him as they stood there in silence for a bit before Roman pointed out that the coffee was done. Virgil stood there for a moment before sighing and pushing away, turning to the cupboard to pull out a mug. “So, the first day huh?”

“Yeah, I’m a bit nervous so I got ready faster than I expected.” As Virgil poured coffee into his mug, Roman shifted the weight on his feet. “Maybe I can make us a quick breakfast before we have to go?”

“Nah, there’s this place right next door I like to grab a quick bite from. Thanks, though.”

Roman adjusted the cuffs of his shirt as he looked away. “Oh, well, the offices aren’t too far from the store! Maybe I can stop by on my lunch? I can make you something.”

“Probably not a good idea,” Virgil ducked into the fridge and missed Roman’s dejected look, causing him to bite his lip as Virgil continued to speak. “I’m going to be stuck with inventory all day. Won’t really have time to stop.”

“Maybe we can have dinner after?” Roman shrugged and shifted weight on his feet before glancing away. “You know, to celebrate my first day or something? I can pay!”

“I’ll be too tired, Princey. We can just do a quiet night in.” Virgil turned around with his mug and walked by, patting Roman’s arm as he did. “Don’t look so upset. I know you’re nervous but you’ll do great, okay?” Roman smiled as Virgil walked out and to his room with his mug of coffee before sighing once more.

Deciding to head out extra early, Roman said a quick goodbye before ducking out of the house. It wasn’t until Virgil was almost halfway out the door, heading into work earlier than necessary as he usually did, that Patton made an appearance. Virgil hadn’t realized he was there at first, staring down at his phone and nervously biting his lip, his thumb hovering over it as if it would bite him if he dared touch it. “Hey, Virgil!” His roommate quickly looked up and nearly dropped his phone in his surprise. “Woah, sorry! Didn’t mean to scare you!” “No, you’re good.” Virgil glanced down at his phone before pressing on the screen and almost throwing it on the counter. “Just wishing Roman a good first day. Looked like something was bothering him this morning but I was still dead on my feet.” “He’ll do great! I just know it!” Patton rubbed his hands up and down his arms as he made his way to the fridge. “It’s all this nervous energy in the air between all of us. We need to just relax a bit!” A hum of agreement was all Patton got as an answer before he pulled out a carton of eggs from the fridge. “Hey, does Logan work today? He’s usually up by now.” Patton turned and saw Virgil looking toward the other end of the apartment where Logan’s room resided. “No, and he went to bed early last night. I mean, I hope it was to go to bed. He didn’t say much.” Virgil glanced back at his roommate and their eyes met for a brief moment. “I’m sure he’s fine! I have to get ready for work but I’ll talk to him tonight.”

---

When Patton got to work, he felt a bit more relaxed then he had at home. The change of scenery and lack of nervous energy he kept feeling from his roommates put him much more at ease. He waved to the librarian and got straight to work, logging in on his computer. As it loaded his email for the day, Patton took a moment to take a deep breath and enjoy the calm air around him. He had always felt the anxiousness from Virgil, but Roman was a newer addition with his new job. On top of that, he could feel a faint nervousness from someone else, probably Logan. However, after his long, restless night, he wasn’t in the mood to paint on a smile and help someone with their problems. He didn’t even leave Two at home today, wanting to simply be himself and not deal with the head rush he always had when parts of him merged back together, their memories colliding into one.

He started getting texts from Roman about noon which was rather peculiar. After his phone went off for the third time in a conversation with a customer, he decided to duck away to the side and call his friend instead of reading the flurry of texts he was receiving.

The phone only rang twice before Roman picked up. “Patton! Sorry, was I texting too much? I was, wasn’t I?”

“Roman, calm down. What’s wrong?” Roman sighed on the other end. “First day that bad?”

“No, actually. It’s rather pleasant. Everyone’s nice so far and I definitely am a bit overqualified so no harm in that. Just… I’m overthinking this probably but…”

“Ro, just tell me what’s up. Can’t help you if you don’t talk and I can hear you spiraling.”

The phone was silent for a moment before Roman whispered into the other end. “I don’t know if Virgil and I were really ready for this dating thing. How do you and Logan do it?”

Patton perked up and looked around before walking into the back room. “What are you talking about? You two are doing great! You were snuggling on the couch last night!”

“I know, but… Like, he doesn’t want me showing up to his job, he doesn’t let me simply buy him flowers or do anything romantic… Besides cuddling he doesn’t want anything to do with me! Am I doing something wrong?”

Patton gave a small sad smile before chuckling a bit. “Roman, that’s just how Virgil is. You have to see the little things he does. You would write a whole musical about your feelings for him, but that’s not what he wants! You have to think about the things Virgil likes.”

“You’re right, I know you’re right. Quiet nights in and small little things are better. He doesn’t want me buying a bouquet of roses but… perhaps a single rose would be more his style? Maybe? Is that still too much?”

“Calm down, Roman. Deep breaths. That sounds perfect for Virgil. Just take things slow.”

“I don’t want to screw this up, Pat. It’s all I can think about today. I offered to bring him a lunch or to go out and just hang and he shot all my ideas down. Those aren’t too crazy, right?”

Patton frowned and bit his lip. “It sounds like you need to talk to him about how you feel, Ro. That’s all you really can do.”

“Yeah… Sorry, I didn’t mean to bug you at work. I’m just sitting here, eating this bagel. Well, picking apart this bagel at this point.”

“Roman, you better eat something or I’ll give you a stern talking to when I get home!” He heard Roman scoff over the phone. “Then I’ll tell Virgil you aren’t taking care of yourself!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll eat the stupid bagel…. Thanks, Patton.”

“No problem, buddy.” When he hung up, he turned and saw the head librarian standing there with a smile. “Oh, sorry! Personal problem, all taken care of!”

The librarian smiled, his eyes shining through his glasses as he adjusted his cardigan. “No worries, Patton! Though, perhaps you should take your lunch a bit early today? Someone is here to see you.”

Confused, Patton excused himself and left the back room before walking to the counter and freezing. “M-mom?” Margaret perked up and waved at her son from the other side of the counter. “Mom! What are you doing here?” Patton ran around the desk, almost bumping into the side of it in his haste. “You haven’t visited me at work in forever!”

Patton pounced and wrapped his arms around his mother, pulling her into a tight embrace. “Well, sweetie. I don’t have to visit you when you live with me but then you moved out again!” She swayed side to side with her son in her arms. “Oh, I’ve missed you so much. The house is too quiet without you!” Pulling away, she smiled up at her son and held him at arm's length, inspecting him carefully. “You’re looking good! Have you been eating properly? I can take you out for your lunch.”

Patton smiled and jabbed his thumb over his shoulder. “I packed a lunch today, mom. You don’t have to feed me.”

“Nonsense! Come on, we can go to that cafe just down the street you like!”

Patton perked up at that idea. “The same one I met Logan at?”

Maggie frowned and folded her arms over her chest. “Sweetie, I thought you didn’t meet Logan until you moved in together?”

A beat of silence passed before Patton realized what she had meant. “Oh, yes, not formally! Apparently, he went there sometimes and told me about this customer who was telling the cashier puns! I mean, what are the odds?” Patton smiles bright and thought about the full story, the small white lie he was keeping from his mother. Yes, Logan had gone there once before and yes, he had seen Patton there… but that was when Logan found out there were others like him in the city, that they weren’t truly alone. Logan knew it was Patton because he read his mind, but his mother would probably respond… poorly to that bit of information.

“Aww, it was fate! My little boy! Now, we have to go and you have to tell me how everything has been with Logan!” Margaret spun around and started walking away, refusing to take no as an answer.

Patton looked over his shoulder and spied the librarian in the doorway smiling. He waved Patton on to go and motioned toward the retreating figure. “Take a long lunch, it’ll be fine! It’s mostly college kids and essays until afternoon story time with the little ones!”

“Thanks, Emile!” Patton turned and jogged up to his mother and matched her pace.

“So, how is that boy of yours treating you?”

“Logan and I are doing great!”

---

“This is terrible!” Logan threw his journal down on his messy desk, leaning back in his chair with a frustrated groan. “This should be so easy! I have everything right here, why is this so difficult?”

Logan turned from the papers on his desk and stood from his chair, pacing the room. “I have Thomas. I have my parents. I reversed his memories already so, in theory, this should work! Why is everything getting in my way?!”

Logan had called Thomas and explained how he wished to train his abilities to be able to get a better handle on them. He wasn’t expecting the man to turn around and air his grievances about the whole thing.

‘I’ve hurt you before.’

‘I just want to be as safe as possible.’

‘I don’t think I’m really ready yet.’

‘Can I just let this all sink in a bit? I’m still reeling from everything. The powers, the memory loss… did you know I had a dog growing up? How could I forget that!’

“Exactly why we should train! I can repair your memories, why is that so hard to understand?” As Logan began to pace more, he was aware of the rattling in his room. The objects on his desk shaking and threatening to lift off the ground. “I’m so close, I can’t stop! I have to get this done!”

He stopped pacing in the center of his room and turned toward his bed, marching over and sitting down on the edge of it. His sheets were messy as he hadn’t bothered to make his bed that morning. His head fell into his hands as he noticed just how shallow his breathing had become. His racing heartbeat pounded and he could feel each and every pulse ache through his body. Logan shook his head and tried calming down before looking back up at his desk, his hands falling away from his face.

It wasn’t just that. He knew he had to take it slow with Thomas, but he hadn’t expected to learn his parents had been trying to reconnect with him. He had no idea his aunt had been shielding them from him, or that his uncle refused to give out any information about what he had been up to.

Logan remembered talking to them when he graduated high school. He had just turned 18 and looked out to the crowd to find his parents completely missing. Auntie Em and Uncle Murphey would give small updates to his parents from time to time, but apparently, that was the thing that made them start to crack. Once they realized that they may have missed such a vital part of their only child’s life, they apparently reflected on everything that happened. Sure, Logan accidentally erased, or suppressed is more accurate, their memories. It was an accident and they chased him out, not quite believing him at first… but the evidence was there. His aunt and uncle explained everything. The lost years, the memory gaps, the photos of Logan through the years, everything they could. Logan had accepted his fate as punishment for his acts. He cut back on his powers almost completely, using them to remind him what he had done. No more altering people’s minds and causing his eyes to shine blue. No. If anything, his eyes would stay golden. He could move things around and maybe take peeks but no more messing with people.

But it had been so tempting. He hadn’t quite realized how much he relied on his abilities and had to completely reteach himself everything. Even then, Logan found himself reflexively going back to his old ways. It felt like forever ago, but he remembered that first night on the rooftop with Roman and Virgil. He remembered watching them talk and debating with himself silently before offering Roman a way to improve on his abilities. Glad that at the time, Virgil and Roman were a bit preoccupied and neither had really seen him use his abilities to question the blue shine to his eyes over the gold. That they were a bit frantic when it happened again when he was trying to reverse what he had just done to Thomas.

And then there was Patton. The issues with Thomas and his family were one thing, but Patton was a different issue. Honestly, he didn’t even like calling it an ‘issue’ at all! It was just… the years of Logan going on dates and dating and everything… it wasn’t much to go off of since there wasn’t much there but Patton just felt different. Past partners could make Logan happy and excitable but Patton simply made him just… feel. Feel good and bad, excited and nervous, eager and shy, just… more in general. He took his time and always made sure Logan was heard and taken care of. When Patton had, gosh, kissed him! Even though it was an in the moment thing, it felt so natural. Logan wasn’t against it at all of course and eased any worries. Though he did have to mention he was somewhere on the ace spectrum and there would be limits which Patton smiled and nodded to without hesitation. Still, this relationship was different and Logan wanted it to work, but despite knowing Patton for a while, he didn’t know exactly how he worked. Logan couldn’t predict what he would do next and that almost terrified him.

Looking at the issues, there was really only one thing Logan could really work on fixing. While he knew he would be made fun of for it, there was one thing Logan did best and that was research. So he walked back over to his desk and pulled out his phone, still terribly missing his laptop that was lost in the fire, and pulled up the search engine.

---

Roman’s ride home felt like forever as he squeezed into the packed bus. Getting off of work at rush hour was not going to be enjoyable but his first day was actually pretty nice. Although, they had needed someone to help for a while and it wasn’t until Roman showed up and overqualified that they even considered finally hiring someone, the work should be easy to sort through and catch up over the next few weeks. He wasn’t quite sure if he was too mentally exhausted to go out in costume tonight, but he had a feeling he could also just blow off some steam.

Virgil had outright stopped answering his texts at a certain point. He knew his boyfriend said he would be busy and he knew that the sudden lack of response was due to that and nothing Roman himself had said but he still couldn’t help his worries eating away at him slowly. His relationship with Virgil was different than any other boyfriend he had in the past. They always wanted him to do the flattering and take the lead. It was always fast and intense and wonderful before they calmed down and started enjoying the things he and Virgil did. It was different, territory he wasn’t that familiar with… so every step he felt was new for him. New and perhaps, though he dreads to think of it, wrong. Why was it different? Was it something he had done? Hadn’t done? What can he do to fix it?

When he arrived home, Virgil had been in the middle of his daily 'after work ritual of hating life itself' while lounging on the couch.

“Hey.” Roman smiled at the long moan of displeasure coming from the lump on the couch. “So, I don’t have to ask how work was, hmm?”

“They’re all idiots and I had to reteach them freight. Which I just taught them. Why are kids so stupid?”

“Anything I can do for you?” Roman kneeled down next to the couch and softly rubbed Virgil’s back. “I can give all those kids a stern talking to.” Virgil huffed out a laugh and pushed himself up to turn to the other. “Or give them swirlies for ruining my boyfriend’s day.”

Virgil’s smile fell when he looked over at the other. “Hey, you okay? You look upset. Was work that bad?”

“Oh, no. It was fine.” Roman jumped a bit as Virgil suddenly sat up and glared down at the man in front of him. “What’s wrong?”

“You’re upset with something. You seemed upset this morning but I thought it was new job nerves. What is it? Was it something someone said? Who was it?”

“I’m fine, Vee. Don’t worry about it so much.”

Soft footsteps approaching caused them to break their stare with one another and turn to Logan who had just left his room. “Oh, good. Roman. I need your help with something.” He smiled at Virgil on the couch. “Mind if I borrow him? I’m not interrupting, am I?”

Roman didn’t hesitate to push himself off the floor and smile to Logan. “Nope, you’re good. What can I help with?”

“Roman.” Glancing down at the couch, Virgil was shooting Roman a glare, his frown intensifying with every passing second. “We have to talk about what’s bothering you when you’re done.”

“I promise.” Nodding, Roman turned and followed Logan back into his room, eyeing the slightly messier than normal room curiously as Logan’s eyes flashed and the sound of the door behind him clicking closed. “What’s up, nerd? What has you stewing in here all day?”

“Well, I have a number of dilemmas I was trying to work out all day but I can’t work on some of them just yet so this one has all my attention.” Logan picked up a pile of papers and sifted them neatly before holding them up. “So, my relationship with Patton thus far has been a failure.”

Roman jumped at those words. “E-excuse me? You and Patton have been fine! What issue could you have possibly found?”

“Well, Patton and I are two completely separate people with our own thoughts and feelings trying to merge them together.” Logan waves his arms around, the papers flapping about wildly before he held them out and gestured to them. “So I have spent the last few hours writing down a formula to-”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Roman held up his hands and cut the other off. “A formula? Logan, math and science aren’t going to help your relationship.”

With a sigh, Logan turned and sifted through the papers before pulling one out and placing the others on his desk. “Not necessarily but I do believe it can help. For example, based on the book by Gary Chapman, the five love languages can be beneficial to any relationship. Even platonic relationships.”

Roman went to make a comment before he stopped. “Wait. That’s… actually kinda smart.”

Rolling his eyes, Logan smirked and held up the paper as he read from it. “I know. I did think of it after all. For example, Patton reacts to and responds best to words of affirmation.”

“Okay, now you lost me.” Roman crossed his arms over his chest as he started to think. “Patton’s always doing things for us around the place. Wouldn’t that be the one he responds to the most?”

“Ah, you mean acts of service. No, I believe that is more of a coping mechanism for his stress and when he is bored. Also, his powers help with that a lot, but he responds the best to hearing the words most overall from what I’ve been able to gather.”

“I… I guess I didn’t think about it too much.” Roman frowned and focused his attention on the floor. “I love spending time with Virgil but maybe that’s not… quite right. Then what’s mine? And Virgil’s?”

“May I be of assistance?” Roman looked up at Logan as he adjusted his glasses and tried to suppress his cocky smirk. “How about simply asking him?”

Before Roman could respond, Logan walked over to his door and opened it, retreating back into the living room. Virgil was scrolling through his phone while he looked up. “Hey. Ro finish helping you with the thing or whatever?”

“Well, he was helpful but I was hoping to get your input on something.” Logan looked down at the paper still in his hands. “Are you familiar with the five love languages?”

“Uhh, sort of? I’ve heard of them before.”

“To put it simply,” Logan directed his attention to his notes as he began reading off of it. “They are words of affirmation, acts of service, quality time, physical touch and receiving gifts.” Logan looked over the paper to the roommate on the couch. “I am simply curious to the one you believe you respond to the best.”

“Well, I like hearing it, I guess.” Virgil bit his lip and looked over at Roman before turning away. “I suppose physical touch would work best for me.”

“Really?” Roman perked up and scooted passed Logan toward the couch. “I wouldn’t have guessed that but it does make a lot of sense.”

“Yeah, and yours would probably be acts of service.” Roman blinked in surprise at that, causing Virgil to chuckle. “Are you really that oblivious? How many times have you tried doing something for me today alone?”

“Huh.” Roman looked back at Logan before turning to his boyfriend. “I… hadn’t thought about that.”

“Yeah, duh. I guess I should have taken you up on something then if that’s what you wanted, but I honestly don’t care what we do as long as it’s together.”

Roman blinked and started to smirk evilly, ignoring how uncomfortable it started to make Virgil. “So that’s why you always are trying to be subtle and snuggle with me, huh? Very clever, Virge.”

“Yeah, well.” Virgil ducked his head and looked away, hoping his bangs covered the blush on his cheeks. “Whatever.”

“I will leave you two alone, then,” Logan smirked and turned, looking down at his notes. “I believe this has helped me with what I needed.”

Roman kept his eyes on Logan until the sound of his door clicked shut. He quickly spun around and Virgil froze, their eyes locked as they sat in silence.

“So,” Roman leaned in and his smile grew. “You have a crush on me.”

Virgil sputtered before pushing Roman’s face away, turning around on the couch. “We’re dating, dumbass. Of course, I like you.”

Roman grabbed Virgil’s hands pressed against his face and held them to his chest. “Viiiirgiiiil~” his boyfriend tugged in attempt to free his hands while refusing to turn around. “Virgil, come on. Just look at me.” Roman lowered his voice as he began to whisper. “Virgil.” Turning his head, Virgil glanced over at Roman as he smirked. “There you are. Come on, Ed Sneer-an. What are you so upset about?”

“Not upset, you jerk.” Virgil looked away before turning back. “Just, you know, anxious. It’s kind of what I do like, all the time.” He looked up and smiled as Roman sat there, staring back at him. “What?”

“Just thinking.” Roman leaned in a bit closer and Virgil froze. “Virge, can I kiss you?”

Virgil tensed as his eyes lip up in realization. “Roman.” The man in question backed up a little bit at the sound of his name. “You’re an idiot.” Virgil finally freed his hands from Roman’s and grabbed his cheeks carefully, leaning forward while he pulled the man’s face to his own. Virgil smiled when their lips met, Roman letting out a noise of surprise before finally pulling the other close. Virgil pulled away only to have Roman grab the back of his head and pull him right back in. Virgil huffed out a quick laugh as his hands slid behind Roman, getting blissfully lost in the moment.

--- Patton very quietly made his way across the living room, his hands covering his peripheral toward the couch at his other two roommates. If he hadn’t been itching to see Logan all day, he would have waited and given them their privacy. Fortunately, they either didn’t care he was there or they were a bit busy to even notice him. Patton happily made his way to Logan’s room and knocked on the door, perking up when he heard footsteps approaching. “Well, Roman. I was hoping that I helped you enough for-” Logan stopped and froze at the sight of the wrong roommate. “-Patton!” “Oh, Lo! Why were you helping Roman for me? That makes no sense!” Patton smiled as Logan connected the sentence he had just said before letting out an irritated sigh. Patton knew he meant nothing by it, however. “You have a nice day alone? You seem tense.” Logan shook his head and gestured for Patton to enter his room. “I understand as an empath you can’t control what you feel from me, but if I am stressed about something, that does not mean you must take on the responsibility to help me relax.” Patton blinked at his words as Logan smiled. “You care about me a lot, Patton, but I am not dating you for you to try and make me feel better.” “Oh?” Patton tucked his hands behind his back and leaned forward a bit. “So, why are you dating me?” “For the food, mostly.” Patton couldn’t help but let out a laugh, covering his mouth as he fell into it with his whole body. His shoulders shook, his hair bounced, and he even wrapped his other arm around his stomach. “Oh, that was a good one!” Patton smiled and Logan wondered if his eyes could also shine without his abilities at how bright they were. “What did you do all day?” Logan looked over to his notes before smirking. “Planning on how I could be an even better boyfriend for you.” Patton’s smile fell as his eyes widened. “I’m new at a lot of these feelings and I don’t like not knowing, but I think I figured some things out.” “O-oh?” Logan could almost feel the nervous energy coming from Patton. Maybe he actually could, as the man was still trying to get a hang of his powers. “And what did you figure out?” Logan walked up and stood in front of Patton silently. He smirked and quickly pulled the other into a hug, Patton speechless at the sudden act. “I think I like you quite a bit, Patton.” Logan felt arm arms reach up and wrap around him as well. “I know I like you a lot, Lo!” Logan slowly pulled away after a moment as he felt all the nervous energy in the apartment seem to melt away. Most of it, at least. “I know I can be quite difficult to deal with, but I hope you are quite patient with me.” “Aww, Logan!” The smile that grew on Patton’s face made Logan tense up and shake his head. “I’m sure we’ll ace it!” “No! Why must you make me suffer in such a fashion?!” “I’m sure things will pan out!” “Patton!”

Chapter 10 >> (I am removing those from the list that it will not let me tag due to possible name changes or your settings do not allow me. Message me if this can be fixed!)

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