#ugghh

YAY I MADE STUFF, not a huge. Fan of the designs but they exist now so. Yeha YAY keychains and stickers and stuff yeah. This is mostly for fun. YAY

And then Thomas’ cancer comes back. And Thomas, the self sacrificial idiot he is, hides it for as long as possible. Vincent notices something is wrong, of course, but he fears driving Thomas away by being too much, so he doesn’t comment on how Thomas seems to be getting thinner, how his hair is shedding, or on the amount of time off he requests.

Thomas can’t hide it any longer when the date for surgery to remove the tumor comes. He sends an official request for medical leave without speaking to Vincent, and when the paper ends up at Vincent’s desk, he breaks down in tears.

Not wanting Thomas to worry, Vincent tries to handle everything himself. He doesn’t want Thomas to have to do any work during his treatment, so he takes on responsibilities that would normally not fall on him.

Aldo watches them both closely, noticing how Vincent is overworking himself, and how Thomas worries about how his health will affect the Vatican. Aldo tries to help by pushing them to do things together, but Vincent is too scared of hurting Thomas and Thomas is too scared of showing weakness.

Vincent wants to show up to Thomas’ treatments, but because he doesn’t want to overwhelm the man, he stays away - spending hours upon hours in his office as he ignores meals and breaks to take over all of Thomas’ tasks. He refuses to hire someone to take over while Thomas is away - thinking that it would mean that he is accepting that Thomas won’t return.

Vincent has nightmares every night, dreaming of Thomas dying, from the cancer - but also from gunshots or explosions as his memories mix with his anxieties.

Sister Agnes finds him at one point, as he is pacing the Vatican gardens long after sunset, his mind filled with worry and his body refusing to rest. She tries to coax him inside, and when that fails, she instead comforts the Holy Father as he cries over the uncertainty and fear he feels over potentially losing his best friend.

Ray tries to convince Vincent to let someone else take some of Thomas’ work, but Vincent refuses, and instead stays up all night making sure everything is finished. At one point Ray realizes that there’s no way to make the pope stop, and instead starts scheduling in a few hours every day where no one is to bother the Holy Father so that he can complete the work.

Finally, after months of treatment and scares, and both Vincent and Thomas losing so much weight that it worries their friends and colleagues; they finally start talking.

It all starts when Vincent tries to take a late night walk in the gardens, where he finds Thomas sitting by the turtle pond. Thomas’ red zucchetto is placed on his now bald head, and Vincent quietly approaches him.

They spend hours in the dark night - confessing their fears and hardships to each other. Thomas tells Vincent about how he feared that the cancer would finally kill him, and how he thought that distancing himself from Vincent would make it easier on the pope. Vincent tells Thomas about how he has been unable to rest because every night he sees Thomas dying.

They hold each other close, shielding each other from the cold winds that blow across the garden, their arms wrapped around each other as they watch the turtles swim slowly in the water.

The guards decide not to bother them, staying far away enough not to be able to hear the conversation, and not intervening as the two men lay back and watch the stars together.

The next morning, they wake up covered in blankets. The sun is rising above them, and at some point during the night their hands have clasped together.

No one mentions how the Holy Father refuses to attend meetings without Thomas at his side. No one questions it when Vincent requests time off every few days, and no one comments on the fact that the pope joins the dean of the college of cardinals for every visit at the hospital after that night.

New D&D character just dropped

Azriel:

Mermaid:

Meanwhile his shadows:

But can we take at least a peak please? No? Awww 🥺