Archive of Our Own

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Hurried footsteps echoed through the moonlit halls, almost deafening in the unnatural silence. The only thing louder was his labored breathing as he ran for his life.Darting around another corner the young man disappeared into the shadows, taking a moment to catch his breath. Far too soon the sound of footsteps began to grow louder and the man had to continue his escape.He couldn’t outrun them forever, there were far too many of them this time, but he couldn’t give up. There had to be something he could do to save the others.Taunting laughter began to echo through the darkness making him shiver. “You won’t get rid of us this time boy!”An idea popped into his head. They were right, he couldn’t get rid of them, but maybe, just maybe, he could force the others out instead. With a renewed determination the terrified man quickened his pace, weaving through hidden hallways and unused rooms with ease.By the time he reached the right wing of the castle he couldn’t hear the intruders, meaning he’d gotten at least a few minutes ahead of them. With a sigh of relief he thanked god for his extreme aversion of social situations giving him an almost perfect knowledge of the castles layout. With a few deep breaths to calm his breathing, the young man ran straight into the closest room.Almost immediately he felt his body relax as he crossed the threshold of the eldest’s room, all the bright colours a welcome sight. As usual the countless shelves, tables, dressers and baskets were overflowing with a random assortment of things, almost all from their host’s past. Of course he knew it was all sorted and in its place, but it still made getting to the elder tricky.When he finally spotted him curled up amongst his horde of stuffed animals, a wave of guilt washed over him. He looked so peaceful, but he knew he had to do it.He stood up straight, forcing himself to calm down.“It’s okay. You’ve done this hundreds of times before, you can do it again.”With one final glance at the elder he closed his eyes and focused on forcing him out. When he finally dared to open them again he was relived to find the elder missing.“One down, two to go.”The young man wasted no time in getting to the next room, just next door to the elder’s. Nowhere near as disorganized, but just as crowded, the second eldest’s room was as labyrinthine as ever. Thankfully he’d left one of the ladders near the entrance this time so it was an easy feat to get atop the massive bookcases. With a few well placed jumps the young man was easily able to reach the second eldest’s starlit balcony, overlooking his prized personal library.As he pulled himself over the railing, all he could do was shake his head in disappointment. Sprawled out underneath the skylight the elder was surrounded in astronomy charts, his old telescope set up only a few feet away.At least it made his job a bit easier.With a breathless sigh the young man closed his eyes and focused again, opening them to find him gone as well.Now all he had to do was get to the royal and-There was a sudden shift in the atmosphere as the mind palace adjusted to the elders disappearance. It could tell something was wrong so it was trying to shut out all outside influences. That should have been reassuring, instead it made the young man’s hair stand on end.There was no way the intruders hadn’t noticed, meaning they now knew what he was doing. He didn’t have much time left.Without a moment of hesitation he began a mad dash back at cops the bookcases, no longer caring if they fell.His heart rate only increased as he burst out of the room to the distant echo of footsteps. Throwing caution to the wind he ran down the hall and ripped open the Royal’s doors, almost immediately blinded by the moonlight reflecting around the room. He didn’t bother giving his eyes time to adjust instead running to the Royal’s bedside.Somehow, despite all the noise he’d made entering the room, the Royal was still fast asleep. Though a glance quickly revealed why.His hair was a mess, his eyes had bags under them, and he hadn’t bothered changing out of his clothes for the night or even tucking himself under the covers; all signs that he’d had a rough day. Seeing that made the young man hesitate, could he really do this to him?The intruders quickly answered his question as their voices rang out far to close for his liking. There was no more time.With one final breath he focused all the energy he had into forcing the Royal and himself out of the mind palace. He’d never done two at once before, and never this close either. But as the intruders burst into the room he knew he’d made the right decision.The last thing he saw before completing disappearing into the darkness was a hand, inches away from his face.And then, as if it was all a dream, he landed with a soft thud in his usual spot on the stairs. Immediately he looked around for the others, he had to make sure they were alright.He almost cried when he saw them all fast asleep in their normal spots. All of them were here, all of them were safe.While he could still feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins the young man moved his friends onto the couch. Once they were all in comfortable positions he began to relax.Unfortunately his body had other plans as his anxiety finally took over.As quickly, and quietly, as he could he ran to the bathroom; barely managing to close the door before releasing the contents of his stomach into the toilet. Staring blankly at the sickly black ooze in front of him, the young man began to cry.Pulling his hoodie tight to his body he let his anxiety consume him, hoping, praying, things didn’t get worse from here.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Thomas’ eyes flew open as he bolted upright, gasping for air. His gaze darted wildly around the room, senses on high alert, until he finally realized he was at home, safe in his bed. Taking a moment to calm himself he checked his alarm clock.
1:45am .
Letting out a loud sigh he fell back onto his pillow. Another nightmare about his sides, great. He stared up at the ceiling. This was what, the third time this month? It was starting to get annoying.

With another sigh he felt his eyes grow heavy. If only he knew what was causing them.

~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~

When the morning sun shone through the window everything seemed normal enough, but as Thomas begrudgingly pulled himself out of bed something felt... off.

He did everything as usual, get up, shower, brush his teeth, get dressed and so on, yet something still seemed wrong. Finally as he began down the stairs he figured out what was wrong.

There were people in his house.

Barely halfway down the stairs Thomas stood frozen in a mix of fear and shock. Sitting at his table, casually eating breakfast, were his sides, Patton, Logan, Roman and Virgil.

Virgil, being the anxious mess he was, had been flicking his gaze around the room so he noticed Thomas immediately. However when they locked eyes he could tell the youngest side wasn’t entirely there, like his mind was focused on something else. Still, as the two stared at each other Thomas felt the feeling of dread fade away; so even though his mind was elsewhere he knew the anxious side was still aware of his surroundings.

After a few more seconds of staring Thomas turned his attention to the others, tuning in to their conversation.

"Please?"

"No"
"Pretty please ~?"
"I said no"

"Come on Lo’ it'll only be for a few seconds!"

The logical side slammed his fist down, shaking the table, "I said no and that's final!"

Roman half heartedly poked at his cereal, a slight smile on his lips as he watched everything go down. He noted the way the elder’s voice and body shook as he spoke, a tell tale sign that he was close to folding.
How could he not be? He was stressed and trying to fight Patton’s maternal instinct, an impossible feat for any of them.
Patton whimpered, "It's just a hug, Lo. That’s all I’m asking for..."

The room went silent as Patton gave Logan his puppy dog eyes, making his lips quiver as the logical side tried to ignore him. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Roman let out a sigh.

“Just let him hug you Nerd, it’s not like It’ll hurt you.”

Logan glared at the creative side for a moment before letting out a sigh of his own.

“Alright.... Let’s get this over with.”

The elder’s face lit up with joy as he pulled Logan into a loving embrace, holding him tight as the logical side began to relax. As he did, Roman’s smile turned into a frown. Even though his face was buried in Patton’s shoulder, the Royal could tell he was on the verge of tears. He was terrified, just like the rest of them.

At this point, Thomas had inched his way down the stairs and was watching the two in surprise, most of his unease gone. Roman, finally noticing him, immediately switched on his usual persona; putting on a big, bright smile.

"It would seem our sleeping beauty has awoken from their blissful slumber!” The Royal loudly announced.

Unfortunately he was a bit too abrupt as his announcement scared Virgil back to reality, making him jump and topple unceremoniously to the floor.

The second Virgil hit the floor Patton was at his side.

"Are you alright kiddo!?!"

“Yep...” the anxious side muttered, a bit dazed, "Fan-tastic.”

As Virgil began to pull himself together Patton reached out to help, only to immediately have his hand slapped away in a panic. With a surprised gasp the elder backed away, locking eyes with the wide eyed side.

After a moment Virgil blinked, processing what he’d just done, “Ah! I’m sorry Pat, I didn’t- I wasn’t thinking!”

“No, no, no! It’s okay!” Patton immediately tried to reassure him, “I know you’re super stressed right now, I should have said something before reaching for you!”

Virgil looked around, like he was only just becoming aware of the others, “Right, R-Right... Sorry...”

“Again, it’s okay. You’re okay.”

Giving him more warning this time Patton reached out again, helping the anxious side up and back into his chair. Finally the elder let out a soft sigh, turning to address Thomas.

"Thomas! I'm glad you're awake!" He clapped his hands together, coming back to his usual bubbly self, "We were starting to think we'd have to send someone to wake you up."

Thomas let out a nervous laugh, “Yeah... That would not have gone over well.”

The room fell silent again.

"Soooo... How are you all, you know, here?" Thomas asked rubbing his neck as he talked, "I thought you only manifest through me, and only when I wanted you too?”

"We assumed you did this," Logan answered, turning to face him, "It appears that assumption was wrong."

"That's... Good."

There was another pause.

"Wait, hold on. How do I know you guys are even real?" The host asked suddenly, giving them all a skeptical look, "I mean I could just be having another crazy dream!”

“....We're as real as anything else in this room," Virgil muttered, seemingly trying to avoid Thomas’ gaze, "If you aren’t convinced just hug Patton. hittin' Princy works too."

“Hey!” Roman feigned hurt, "You wound me with your harsh words.”

"Do I look like I care?" Virgil scoffed.

Roman shrugged, "Touché.”
Thomas shook his head, keeping his attention on Logan, “Soooo... this whole being here thing.""Yes...” Logan grimaced, “ That ...”
He let out a heavy sigh, “Sometime this morning, for reasons now unknown, we were dragged from your mind palace and given physical form."

“This morning, hmm...”

Suddenly, something clicked in Thomas’ head.

"You wouldn’t happen to mean around one forty, two o’clock would you?”

“Possibly...”

Logan thought for a moment then turned to Virgil, “Does that sound correct?”

“Virgil? Why would he know?"

All kinds of warning bells went off in Virgil’s head, "W-Well, I-"

"Our ball of sunshine here rarely gets any sleep," Roman stated, jumping in to help him, “So he was awake when we were all rudely dragged out of your mind palace."

Thomas looked at Roman in surprise, Virgil stared at him in horror, and Logan looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
“And how, might I ask, do you know his sleeping habits?"
"Hmm? It’s not like he tries to hide it. We all know he’s a night owl."

Roman gave Logan a confused look as he spoke, stealing glances at the anxious side as he calmed down again.

"... ‘sides, it's hard to miss his cries when our rooms are right next to each other,” the Royal added, mumbling just barely loud enough for himself.

"What was that?" Logan asked.

“Nothing.”

Patton suddenly let out a gasp and stepped into the conversation

“Uh, Thomas? Do you remember your plans for today?”

The host tilted his head in confusion, “My plans?”

"You were going to hang out with your friends, remember? You said you’d meet them in less than an hour.”

Thomas’ eyes went wide and he whipped around to look at the nearest clock.
"Oh shoot! You’re right! Gaaahhh !! I have to leave now if I wanna get there on time!!!”
Without another word he rushed past everyone and grabbed a snack from the kitchen before running upstairs to change into something a bit more presentable.

“Thanks for reminding me!” He yelled from his room.

Patton giggled slightly and called back, “That’s what I’m here for Kiddo!”

Within a few minutes Thomas came running back down the stairs and to the door. Remembering his sides he turned to them, struggling to pull on his shoes.

"While I'm gone just, uh, make yourselves comfortable? I don't know, maybe you can all try and figure out what happened.” He rambled pulling on his jacket. “Just uh... Don't leave the house, ok?"

His sides all nodded in agreement and Thomas flashed them a relieved smile.

"Cool! See you all later, or hopefully not? Ahhh, Whatever. Bye!”

And with that he was gone, leaving the four of them to figure things out on their own.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The four sides sat in relative silence after Thomas left, unsure of what to do. As the silence stretched out longer and longer, the more nervous Virgil became. He started bouncing his leg, fidgeting with his drawstrings, biting his nails, anything to distract himself from the bile trying to rise up his throat.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity Patton spoke up.

“Well.... at least that was a nice conversation, right?”

Logan pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, “Ever the optimist aren’t you....”

As Patton let out a nervous chuckle Logan turned to Virgil. When he didn’t immediately grab the anxious sides attention he cleared his throat, making him jump again.

Virgil tried his best to seem annoyed, now hyper aware of the logical side’s gaze, “W-What?”

“Aren’t you going to answer my question?”

“What question?”

The logical side twitched, forcing himself to keep his calm.

“Did we arrive here around one forty, two o’clock.”

“I- umm, ah... m-maybe?”

“A yes or no would have been preferred.”

“Look dude, I don’t know!” Virgil suddenly snapped, “Figuring out the time was the last fucking thing I had on my mind!”

As the others eyes widened in surprise the color drained from Virgil’s face. He shouldn’t have said that.

Patton was the first to react, almost immediately stealing worried glances at Logan as things began to click. He knew exactly what the logical side would do next and it wasn’t going to end well for any of them.

Unfortunately all he could do was prepare himself for the fall out.

Logan’s expression went dark as Virgil began to shake.

“What did this?”

“I-I D-Don’t-“

“FALSEHOOD.”

Virgil flinched as Logan slammed his hands down.

“Virgil Anxiety Sanders I Want The Truth,” He turned to Virgil, fury burning in his eyes, “What Happened Last Night.”

The anxious side had curled in on himself, desperately trying to hide his face as he began to hyperventilate.

“C-Can’t... Can’t...!”

“Virgil!”

“Logan! That’s enough!”

The logical side turned on Patton, briefly redirecting his anger.

“No! He knows what happened and I want answers! Thomas could be at risk!”

The elder just barely resisted the urge to slap him, “And you think this is how to get them?!”

He gestured to Virgil and Logan suddenly noticed how bad he’d gotten. In his anger he’d ignored the telltale signs of the anxious side losing control, the deepening voice, the darkening eyeshadow, the deep echoes...

“Oh god! Virgil I-“

Both of their attention was drawn away for a moment as a chair was knocked to the floor. Before either of them could even register what was happening Roman had scooped Virgil into his arms, turning to Logan.

“Move.”

The logical side immediately obeyed and Roman quickly darted past, disappearing up stairs with the trembling side. For a moment he couldn’t help but feel like Roman had done this before.

That thought was quickly pushed out of his head as he began to process what just happened. After a moment he clenched his fists. His frustration still bubbled below the surface, but there was a twinge of guilt mixed in now.

The logical side stared at the floor, unable to look at Patton, “... I wanted answers.”

The paternal side let out a deep sigh in response.

“I know Lo’... but that’s not the way to go about it..”

“I just- Ugh!!!”

Logan ran a hand through his hair.
“I hate when people keep secrets, especially when it involves Thomas’ well being,” He shook his head, “We don’t know what could happen with us being out here! It could wear him out mentally, possibly physically, not to mention the fact that no one is running the mind palace while we’re here.”
“That’s true... well, partly.”
“You’re right about us not knowing what could happen, or how dangerous it could be for Thomas,” the paternal side agreed, “However, there is still someone running the mind palace. We don’t have to worry about that.”“Ah yes, the Dark Sides. The mind palace will absolutely be in good hands,” Logan pushed up his glasses and rubbed at his eyes, “Of course we should be bloody worried!”“Okay, we can be a bit worried,” Patton agreed again, “but it’s not like they’re going to hurt Thomas!.... on purpose...”
He let out a heavy sigh, “look, worst case scenario we have to rebuild the castle again, but that’s not that big a deal.”

“And what about the nobles? You know the things they try when Roman isn’t around.”
“And you know what the Dark Sides put them through on a daily basis. They’re not going to let them walk all over them.”
Logan looked ready to scream, “That’s my point! The Dark Sides will pounce on them like a pack of hungry lions! They could be seriously injured or worse!”

“Yeahhh- that’d be bad...” Patton cringed at the thought, “...but they kinda deserve it though.”

Logan stared at him in shock as he turned away.

“They’re bullies Lo’ and they keep getting away with it. I can’t stand it...” the elder admitted, “If it were up to me... I would have kicked them out years ago.”

“I- didn’t realize you felt that way about them, Patton.”

The elder’s shoulders began to sink so Logan quickly continued.
“Ah! I didn’t mean that as a bad thing, I feel the same way after all. In fact I’ve, ah, ... supplied ... a few pranks over the years.”
Patton let out a slight laugh at his sudden admission, “Glad to know I’m not the only accomplice!”

After a bit of a laugh the two fell silent; Logan biting his lip, lost in thought, and Patton absentmindedly rocking on his heels.

Finally Logan looked up.

“Should I... go apologize?”

Patton thought for a moment before shaking his head, “Wait until he’s calmed down a bit. You wouldn’t get through to him now.”

The logical side glanced at the stairs, “Will he be alright?”

Patton began to fidget with his hoodie again.

“... I don’t know. Maybe if he takes a nap he’ll feel better? He didn’t get any sleep last night after all....”

“He also didn’t eat anything...” The logical side replied, taking a mental note of Patton’s fidgeting.

“Oh! You’re right! He wasn’t eating like the rest of us!”

There was a sudden hopeful spark in Patton’s eyes as ideas started forming in his head.

“I could bake some cookies! Or! Or! Muffins! He might like those! And Cake, Banana bread- *Gasp* Cupcakes! I could make those too!!”
The elder was practically bouncing as he rushed to the kitchen, flinging open cupboards, “Where’s his cookboo-“
Patton paused as he realized something.

“Oh... Right...” his shoulders sank in defeat, “Thomas doesn’t have all the ingredients we’d need...”

Logan frowned, “That is a bit of a problem...”

The logical side started to think again and an idea quickly popped into his head. Surely it wouldn’t work out here... would it?

He shook his head, it was worth a try.

With all the focus he could muster, he began creating a mental list of baking ingredients. Flour, sugar, eggs, milk, butter, baking soda... on and on and on. Finally he began to focus on the room, willing it to change.

It was a bit of a struggle, far more taxing than in the mind palace, but with enough effort he made the room change. He knew because Patton let out a gleeful squeal as ingredients, books and utensils began to line the counters.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he was done. Exhausted and breathless Logan looked around at his work, proud.

“I assume... that will... suffice?”

“Of course!!” Patton was beaming, “This is more than enough!!!”

He immediately started flipping through one of the cookbooks, “I didn’t know you could manifest things like this! When did Roman teach you?”

Logan cleared his throat, a hint of a blush on his face.

“It... wasn’t Roman that taught me.”

“Oh?”

Patton blinked at him, confused for a second, but he was soon giving him a knowing look as things began to click.

“Oh~” the paternal side began to smirk, “I thought you didn’t like the Dark Sides?”

Logan’s blush deepened slightly and he began to frown.

“I don’t. Remus just... refuses to leave me alone, that’s all.”

“Sure~”

Logan tried to ignore Patton’s smug grin as he walked over to look at the cook book.

“What are we starting with?”

The elder tapped on one of the recipes, understanding that he wanted to change the subject, “I’d like to start with this one.”

Logan read the name of the recipe and adjusted his glasses, “Good choice.”

He raised an eyebrow, “Shall get started then?”

Patton started humming as he set up a mixer, “Fire away!”

With a nod the logical side picked up the book and began reading aloud, directing Patton on how to bake peanut butter cookies.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“...V~..... irgil~..... Virgil~....”

The anxious side let out a quiet moan as someone gently shook him awake.

“C’mon sunshine, it’s time to get up.”

With another moan his eyes fluttered open, slowly focusing on the figure above him.

“Ro...man...?”

The royal smiled softly, “Morning.”

“Where...?”

“You’re still in the bathtub,” He leaned back slightly, “Didn’t want to risk waking you.”

“Mmm.... Sorry....”

“It’s fine, I’m glad you were able to get some rest.”

Virgil let out a yawn and began rubbing the sleep from his eyes as Roman helped him sit up. Once he was able he glanced over Roman’s shoulder, immediately noticing the bathroom was spotless.

“You’re done.... already?”

Roman laughed, “We’ve been up here for almost two hours.”

“O-Oh...”

The Royal let out a groan as he stood up, stretching his legs and back. Virgil watched him for a moment then turned away, feeling guilty.

“... Sorry for the mess...”

“Ah, ah, ah! I’ll have none of that from you Brad Pitiful!” Roman held out his hand, “Its not your fault that that’s the way your body reacts to stress.”

Virgil stared at his hand for a moment, a hint of uncertainty in his eyes, before taking it. He stumbled a bit as Roman pulled him to his feet but the Royal quickly braced him so he didn’t fall.

Once he was sure Virgil had regained his footing he backed away, giving him some space.

Looking the younger side over Roman shuddered. There were trails of inky liquid still staining his skin, and the sight brought back images of what happened. Virgil had a similar reaction as he stared at Roman’s tunic, the pristine white cloth now stained with splashes of black.

He hugged himself tight and turned away again.

“Sorry about your shirt Princy....”

The Royal shrugged, “I can always make a new one when we get back. I’m sure Thomas won’t mind me borrowing one of his in the meantime.”

“But-“

“Virgil seriously, it’s fine! All that matters is that you’re alright.”

“Right, so-... Thank you.”

Roman ruffled the younger’s hair, “You’re welcome sunshine.”

Taking a step back the royal jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

“Now I’m gonna go change and make sure the other two haven’t set something on fire. While I do that, I’d suggest you take a shower.”

Virgil looked down at himself and grimaced.

“Good idea.”

He started pulling off his jacket, eyeing the Royal as he left, “Meet you down there when I’m done?”

Roman flashed him another smile from over his shoulder, “Sounds like a plan.”

With that he closed the bathroom door, leaving the anxious side to clean himself up.

Taking off his shirt as he walked, the Royal made his way into the center of Thomas’ room, letting out a tsk when he saw the state it was in.

“Looks like today’s going to be laundry day.”

Throwing his shirt over his shoulder, he kicked at a pile of clothes on the floor, “Hopefully there’s at least one clean shirt in this mess...”

Tossing his tunic onto the pile he began gathering all the dirty clothes. Once he was sure he’d gotten everything he ferried a few armful’s of shirts to the washer and got it running.

“There we go,” He dusted off his hands, turning back to the bedroom, “Now to actually put on a shirt.”

Heading straight for the dresser he pulled out the first one he saw, a white tee with a simple flower pattern. Quickly pulling it on he made his way downstairs to the others, almost immediately being greeted by the smell of cookies as Logan set out a fresh batch.

“I see you two have been busy!”

The logical side glanced up briefly as Roman swung himself around the corner, “Quite.”

Taking a moment to finish his work, the logical side turned his full attention to the Royal.

“I’ll assume you’ve been as well?”

“Yeah, just got done dealing with Thomas’ laundry and cleaning up the bathroom.”

Logan briefly looked confused but then he noticed Roman’s shirt and put the pieces together.

“He had a full blown attack, didn’t he?”

“Yeeeah....” Roman rubbed the back of his neck, “It was bad, but not the worst one I’ve seen.”

“...How is he now?”

“Still a bit of a mess, but he’s doing way better. A quick nap did wonders for him.”

Logan let out a quiet sigh of relief, “Thank goodness...”

The elder’s brows furrowed and he crossed his arms.

“I... Need to apologize to him when he comes back down. I shouldn’t have pushed him like I did.”

“Hey it’s alright,”
Roman put a hand on Logan’s shoulder, flashing him an understanding smile, “We’re all on edge right now and I’m sure he’ll understand that you didn’t mean to hurt him. No need to beat yourself up, okay?”

The logical side nodded slightly so Roman gave him a pat on the back.

“Anyways, we should probably snap Ol’ Padré back to reality.”

The Royal nodded towards Patton who was rushing through another recipe, completely oblivious to his surroundings.

“If we don’t slow him down soon, Thomas might have a heart attack when he walks through the door.”

Logan snapped to attention at that, whipping around to face Patton.

“Oh shoot! I should have realized he was being too quiet!”

Rushing to his side Logan gave the eldest a few good shakes, abruptly dragging him out of his thoughts and almost making him drop the bowl he was working on.

After taking a moment to collect himself, the paternal side turned to him with a questioning smile, “Is something wrong Lo’?”

The logical side let out a tired sigh, “look around the room Patton...”

“Oh?”

The elder did as he was told and looked around, his eyes going wide as he saw the piles of baked, and yet to be baked, goodies.

“Ooohh...” He turned back to Logan with a sheepish grin, “Uhh...Think I made enough?”

Pinching the bridge of his nose the logical side let out another sigh.

“What are we going to do with you...”

“Hey look on the bright side,” Roman leaned over the counter and grabbed a cookie, flashing the two a wide smile, “Thomas won’t have to worry about snacks for awhile!”

Patton let out a chuckle and Logan rolled his eyes, a slight smile on his face.

“Ah Roman, ever the optimist.”

“Oi’ One of us has to be,” the Royal retorted through a mouthful of cookie.

Logan just shook his head and started putting the next batch in the oven, leaving Patton to work on all the half done recipes that were scattered about. Watching intently as he munched on another cookie something suddenly dawned on Roman.

“Wait a second... Where’d you guys get the ingredients for all this?! There’s no way Thomas had this much just lying around!”

“Hmm? Oh, Logan made it all!”

Roman blinked in surprise.

“Made it? You mean-“ The Royal snapped his fingers as an example, “Like this? You know, how I do things?”

“Pretty much!”

“Then...”

Roman looked at his hand for a second then snapped again, making a small vase of flowers appear in front of him.

“Well would you look at that...” He carefully picked up the vase to look it over, checking for any flaws, “Guess that solves my shirt issue.”

“Shirt issue?”

Just as the question left his lips, Patton noticed what the prince was wearing.

“Oh! Where’s your tunic Ro’? Why aren’t you wearing it?”

The Royal shrugged off the question, “It was dirty, so I decided to throw it through the wash with Thomas’ things.”

“Ah, I’ve been meaning to remind him to clean up!” The elder was beaming, “Thank you!”

Roman glanced past him, catching the questioning look Logan threw him.

“No problem, Patton.”

When he turned around Roman quickly shook his head in response to Logan. Virgil didn’t need Patton going full ‘Dad Mode’ on him right now, not when the elder was overwhelmed enough to be stress baking.

As the two eldest continued working through their stockpile Roman pulled up a chair to watch, absentmindedly munching on a muffin as they all made small talk with each other. Once the muffin was gone his attention turned to the flowers he’d formed.

He poked and prodded at them, gently running his fingers along the petals to trace the veins. When that lost his interest he began turning the crystal vase to see the different ways the light caught the glass. Eventually he grew bored of that too, so he laid his chin on the counter to watch the elders through the vase; their blurred shapes bobbing back and forth as they worked.

Slowly his mind began to drift and soon he found it occupied by Virgil. Was he doing okay? Had he started to panic again? Was he able to get the shadows off him? Had he passed out in Thomas’ bed? In the shower? Did he need to check on him?

He glanced at the clock on the microwave.

It hadn’t been that long, only about half an hour or so. He was probably still in the shower. Maybe if he wasn’t down in a few minutes...

As if on cue Roman heard a slight creek from the stairs along with the soft footsteps of the younger side.

Letting out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, the Royal sat up and stretched.

“Welcome back to the land of the living.”

“Mmm...”

Roman frowned slightly at the tired response so he turned to face the younger side. When he saw him he was briefly shocked by his outfit, but his concern quickly won out.

“How are you feeling?”

“Exhausted...” The anxious side yawned and shivered slightly, “... and cold, but that’s probably because I just got out of the shower.”

Patton looked up as he handed Logan the final batch of muffins, “You should head back up and rest then kiddo, you don’t need to be down here.”

Virgil quickly shook his head and Patton frowned.

“If you’re sure...”

Deciding to switch topics Roman pointed out his outfit.

“So, what’s with the sudden blast from the past?”

“You saw my jacket dude.... I wasn’t about to put it back on....”

“What about the one Joan and Talyn made?”

“Couldn’t find it...” the anxious side snuggled into the worn out jacket, “This was the next best thing....”

“Safety blanket?”

Virgil nodded in response, letting out a soft hum as he looked over the counter. After a moment of silence he pointed at a pile of muffins and turned to Patton, his head tilting slightly in question.

The elder flashed him a wide smile, “Go ahead, everything’s fair game.”

Letting out a hum of thanks, he picked out a muffin and made his way into the kitchen before climbing onto the counter beside the fridge. He got a few surprised, and questioning, looks from the others but he either didn’t notice or didn’t care as he made himself comfortable.

Logan, of course, was the only one to verbally question his actions.

“There are more appropriate places to sit, Virgil.”

The anxious side barely lifted his head and let out a pathetic, half hearted hiss.

“... A reasonable response.”

Patton’s face was full of worry as he walked over to put a hand on Virgil’s knee “Kiddo... you really should go rest...”

The young side shook his head, curling in on himself as he began to shiver again.

A realization hit Roman as he put two and two together.

“You don’t wanna be alone right now, do you?”

“Mmm...”

The royal crossed his arms, taking a moment to think.

“Hmm...”

“Well, how about this then,” Roman got up and made his way around the counter, “Once the kitchen’s cleaned up I’ll take you back upstairs and stay with you while you sleep.”

He tilted his head in question, “How does that sound?”

Virgil perked up slightly at the suggestion making Roman smile.

The royal ruffled the younger sides hair, “That’s all the answer I need.”

“Now then,’ He clapped his hands together and turned to Patton, “Where do you want me?”

Retuning his smile Patton began delegating tasks; Roman on dishes, Logan drying and putting them away, and himself wiping down counters, all while Virgil watched from his perch, occasionally glancing out the window while also fighting to stay conscious. Pretty soon the kitchen was full of laughter and smiling faces as they began to poke fun at each other. There were splashes of water, joking remarks, and a few slaps with a towel, but it was all in good fun.

Before they knew it time had flown by. The kitchen was spotless, dishes all put away, and baked goodies neatly arranged on the counter. Just in time too, as at that moment Thomas walked in, obviously exhausted.

At first he looked around, slightly relieved, but the second he saw his sides his shoulders fell. For a brief moment they all stared at each other, silently, before Patton loudly cleared his throat.

“Uh...” The elder gave him a hesitant wave, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, “Welcome home?”

Thomas let out a heavy sigh.

“It really wasn’t a dream...”

He let out another, shakier sigh and began putting his things away. Once that was done he sat down at the counter.
“I guess this means you weren’t able to figure anything out?”
Patton shook his head.

“No. Though to tell the truth, we didn’t actually try to look into anything....”

“We got a bit... distracted, by other things,” Logan added, looking pointedly towards the counter.

Thomas followed the elders gaze and was taken aback by the pile of goods that he somehow hadn’t noticed until now.

“How the- What?!”

The host looked over the pile, turning back to his sides every few seconds in disbelief.

“Where did you get the ingredients for this?!? You didn’t leave the house did you?! What if someone recognized you?!”

“No, no, no! Its okay, we didn’t leave!” Patton quickly reassured him, “Logan made everything we needed!”

“He... Made it?”

“Some of our powers still work out here, see?” Roman chimed in, forming a simple rose, “Apparently Logan’s been practicing in his spare time, so he formed all the ingredients for Patton.”

“That’s cool! What else can you-“

Thomas suddenly let out a loud yawn, cutting himself off.

“You alright kiddo?”

The host nodded, rubbing at his eyes, “Yeah... Yeah! I’ve just been feeling super drained all day.... Can’t figure out why....”

The two eldest sides looked at each other for a moment.

“When did it start?” Logan asked, his head titling in question.

“Ahh, I dunno.... just after I left I think.”

“Interesting....”

The logical side paused to think, “Did you notice anything else unusual while you were out?”

“Not really? I’d have to think about it for a bit.”

“Then do you mind if I ask you some questions?”

“Not at all,” Thomas said with a shake of his head, “Go ahead and ask away!”

Roman chimed in again, jabbing his thumb back at Virgil, “Since you two are having an impromptu interview, I’m gonna take our little Stormcloud upstairs to get some rest.”

Patton flashed him a quick grin, “I’ll call for you when it’s time for dinner.”

Roman smiled back as he lifted Virgil off the counter, the younger side instinctively curling up in his arms, “Sounds like a plan Padré.”

As the Royal disappeared up the stairs with the sleepy side, he heard Patton call out; his voice calm and reassuring.

“Sleep tight kiddo’s.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“You know, you didn’t have to carry me... I could’ve walked...”
Roman had to hold back a laugh at Virgil’s comment. He glanced down at the tired side curled up in his arms, one hand weakly clutching his shirt.

“You sure?”

Virgil let out a growl and swatted at Roman’s face, making the royal chuckle and readjust his grip.

“Don’t mock me...” Virgil hissed.

“Sorry, Sorry!” Roman walked into the room and carefully set Virgil onto the bed, “Couldn’t help myself.”

“But yeah, you’re right. I didn’t have to.”

“However~” He smiled and ruffled Virgil’s hair, “I wanted to. Besides, it didn’t seem like you minded too much.”

The anxious side grumbled and Roman had to hold back another chuckle. Despite all his complaints there was still a tiny smile on Virgil’s face.

As the younger side curled up under the covers Roman sat beside him, letting him get comfortable before getting back up.

The second he moved Virgil’s head shot up, his eyes going wide.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m just switching the laundry over,”Roman gathered up the rest of the dirty clothes, flashing Virgil a reassuring smile, “No need to worry.”

“Oh....”

He noted how Virgil turned away at his response, fidgeting with the sheets and biting his lip.

The Royal leaned against the door frame, “I can leave the door open if you want? That way you can still see me.”

“.... Please.”

Roman smiled softly, “I’ll do that then.”

With that Roman started dealing with the last of the laundry, making sure to give the door a slight kick on his way out.

Meanwhile Virgil tried to get comfortable again; however, for some reason, he was finding it hard to. He tossed and turned, readjusted his pillow, kicked at the sheets; nothing was working.

He could feel his frustration reaching a breaking point, when all of a sudden Roman started humming softly.

The anxious side lifted his head, looking down the hall at the smiling Royal.

It was a simple, calming tune; one that he didn’t recognize, and yet it somehow felt... familiar. It made him feel safe and warm.

Letting out a content sigh, Virgil closed his eyes, letting the feeling of warmth surround him.

Everyone was safe, Roman was watching over him, it was okay to rest now. Everything was going to be okay.

And then his phone started to ring.

Immediately Virgil’s eyes shot open, his heart pounding in his ears as his adrenaline started pumping again. Of course Roman also heard the sudden ringing and had stopped his work to look at him with wide eyes.

“Vir-?”

Completely disregarding the Royal, Virgil flung himself to his feet. Within seconds he’d run into the bathroom and slammed the door shut, locking it tight. Frantically fishing through his pockets, he heard Roman knock on the door.

“Virgil wha- Is everything alright? Are you okay?”
With shaking hands he pulled out his phone, “I-I’m fine! E-Everything is fine!”
He quickly read the caller ID and swore.

“It doesn’t sound like it!”

“Look just- Just go away! Please?” Virgil felt ready to cry, “P-Please....”

At first there was a moment of silence, broken only by his ringtone, then he heard the faint shuffling of feet on carpet. When the sound disappeared he let out a shaky sigh. That was one less thing to deal with.

Finally, taking a few deep breaths, Virgil answered the call.

“L-Lennox! h-hey-“

"I just saw the notification!” The man on the other end blurted out, “What happened?! Are you okay?! Are the others!? Is anyone hurt!?”

“S-straight to the point huh?” A broken laugh slipped past his lips, “No s-small talk or anything?”
“I didn’t call to talk about the weather , I’m calling to make sure you’re all alive!!”
“R-Right.... right,” Virgil blinked back the tears that started forming in his eyes, “I, uh... things are.... w-well...”

"I-I'm... Not...” Virgil paused for breath as they started flowing freely down his face, “F-Fuck...”

Lennox stayed silent on the other end, giving Virgil the chance to gather his thoughts.

He tried futilely to wipe the tears away, “I-I’m not doing g-great...”

Another long pause.

“T-There was a whole group of them last night, more than ever before.”

“I tried my best to stop them b-but nothing I did worked,” He started to pace, “S-So I panicked and dragged everyone out.”

“T-They were asleep when I did it so no one knows what really happened, b-but when T-Thomas got up he started asking questions.”

The anxious side felt his heart beat faster as he started to ramble.

“T-the others tried to answer w-which led to more questions and then they remembered I don’t sleep well which meant the questions turned to me but I wouldn’t answer which led to Logan getting angry and yelling then that led to me having an attack and now I- I-“

He sank to his knees, “I don’t know what to do!!!”

“Oh, shoot!” There was panic in Lennox’s voice as he tried to reassure Virgil, “Uh, Uhhh- I-It’s okay! Everything is going to be okay! J-Just try to calm down, deep breaths remember?”

“B-But i-it’s *hic* it’s not okay!” He was sobbing uncontrollably now, “I-I’m tired a-and scared and *hic* a-alone! H-How can *hic* c-can I even b-begin to explain to them w-what’s going on?!”

“V-Virgil listen to me, please... You need to take a deep breath.”

“I *hic* I-I can’t, I can’t-!”

“Just try. P-Please just try for me, okay?”

He let out another sob and sniffled loudly, giving a slight nod even though Lennox couldn’t see him.

“C-C’mon, in for four seconds.”

He took a shaky breath in.

“G-Good, now count to seven...”

He tried his best to hold it but a choked sob escaped him, making him gasp for breath.

“I-I told you, I *hic* I can’t!”

“Hey, hey- It’s okay, just try again alright?”

The anxious side grabbed at his chest and screwed his eyes shut.

“I-In for four-“

One... two... three... four...

“Hold for seven-“

One... two... three... four... Five... Six... Seven...

“And out for eight.”

One... two... three... four... Five... Six... Seven... Eight...!

“Good, G-Good! Now let’s do it again... in for four...”

Virgil lost track of how long he sat there as Lennox gently coaxed him along, calming him down bit by bit. Eventually he wiped at his face, sniffling softly.

“How are you doing now?”

“A bit better...”

He heard a relived sigh through the phone.

“I’m glad that helped.”

They both went quiet.

“Hey Virgil?”

“Yeah?”

“You know we’re always here if you need us, right?”

“You remind me every time we talk...” The anxious side scoffed.

“I know I do, but I truly mean it. You’re not alone, we are here for you-“

A loud crash on the other end startled both of them, making Lennox cut himself off with a yelp. Through the phone Virgil could hear him run out of the room.

“Xaivion! Are you okay?!”

Virgil just barely made out a muffled response through the phone.

"I'm alri-! Wait, never mind, I'm bleeding...

“Not again.....” Lennox let out an exasperated sigh, “Hang on, I’ll be down in a sec!”

Virgil heard the phone shift and more hurried footsteps.

“Sorry about this Virgil...”

“It’s fine, things happen,” He wiped at his face again, “W-We can talk again later.”

Lennox stopped.

“Are you sure? I can put you on speaker if you want.”

“Yeah, it’s fine.”

“... you’re absolutely sure?”

“Yes.”

“One hundred percent positive?”
“ Yes.”
“You-“

“Lennox!” Virgil snapped, cutting him off, “I’m fine! Go make sure Xaivion’s alright.”

“Sorry....”

There was another silence and Virgil heard what he assumed was Lennox going through a drawer.

“I... I’ll message you later, alright? just.... please, call me if you need someone to talk to.”

“I’ll try.”

“And that’s more than I could ask for.... Talk to you later Virgil.”

“Same to you Lennox.”

With a familiar click the call ended, just as abruptly as it had started. In the moments afterwards Virgil sat quietly, starring blankly at the empty screen.

Without warning he flung his phone across the room, watching as it crashed to the floor with a dull thud. He could feel himself shake as tears warmed his cheeks again.

“Bastard!”
He wiped harshly at his face, “You can’t- You know you can’t do this to me!! I was just starting to feel okay dammit!!”
A sob escaped him, “I hate you...”

Even as he said it, he knew he was lying to himself. Lennox genuinely cared for him, and he was grateful for it, just talking to him lifted a huge weight off his shoulders. If only those two weren’t as messed up as he was.

After a few more minutes of cathartic sobbing Virgil started feeling better again, figuring it was about time he pulled himself off the floor. As he came into view of the mirror, he laughed.

He looked horrible.

His eyes? Red and puffy, his hair? All over the place, and his makeup? Oh man, it was bad! It was smudged all over the place, leaving trails where it mixed with his tears.

With a shake of his head he grabbed a face cloth and got to work, scrubbing his face and hands clean. Next he grabbed a comb to work through his hair. Finally he put everything away and stepped back.

Right away he frowned. With the makeup gone he almost looked worse.

His sickly pale skin and the dark bags under his eyes made him look like he hadn’t slept in years; the red tint to his eyes wasn’t helping matters either.

At least his hair looked decent.

Forcing himself to relax, Virgil tried to act like his normal self as he finally opened the door. Unfortunately his facade disappeared as he immediately found himself face to face with Roman.

His eyes went wide as the Royal staggered away from the door, terrified.

“You didn’t...”

“I’m sorry! I didn’t-
I wasn’t meaning to-!”

“Goddamnit, You Were!” Roman flinched as Virgil slammed his fist into the door, “You Were Eavesdropping On Me!!”

“Of all the bloody- I Told You To Go Away!!”

Roman took another step back, “I-I wasn’t trying to! I just- you sounded scared and then you started talking and I- I-!!”

Virgil lunged forward, grabbing Roman by the collar of his shirt.

“Shut Up!! Just SHUT UP!!”

The two locked eyes at that moment, both wild eyed and terrified, stopping Virgil in his tracks.

What was he doing?

The anxious side tsked and shoved Roman away. Mentally berating himself, he started to pace and bite at his fingernails. Finally he turned back to Roman who was shaking slightly.
“Don’t You Dare Tell ANYONE What You Heard, Understand?” He growled, “Not A Single Word.”
The Royal nodded fervently and Virgil let out a huff.

“Good.”

He let out an involuntary yawn as his adrenaline started to wear off.

“Maybe now I can actually take a bloody nap....”

Crawling back into bed, Virgil made himself comfortable; pulling the covers around himself. Just as he closed his eyes he felt Roman sit down behind him. For a second he tensed up, but he was able to relax again as Roman climbed in beside him. After all the Royal’s presence was oddly comforting, even though he was angry at him.
Finally, Finally, Virgil was able to let himself give in fully to his exhaustion.
As his mind drifted into nothingness he felt a twinge of hope. Maybe Roman knowing wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Three firm knocks rang out through the landing, disturbing the comfortable silence.

“Hey kiddos! Time for dinner!”

Patton waited patiently for an answer. He let his hand hover over the handle, but he resisted the urge to barge in. Thankfully the urge subsided as Roman and Virgil’s muffled groans reached him.

However just as suddenly as they started, they cut off; replaced by the hurried shuffle of sheets.

“Uh, kiddos?” He knocked again, cracking the door open slightly, “Everything okay in there?”

Before he had a chance to see in, the door slammed shut.

“Uh…. Yeah- Yeah! Everything’s fine Padré!” Was Roman’s hurried reply, “We’ll, Ah- be down in a bit!”

The elder paused for a moment, a bit stunned, then shrugged.

“If you say so,” He turned around, “Don’t take too long!”

“We won’t!”

Making his way back downstairs, Patton popped his head over the rails; checking on Logan.

“Finished with the table yet?”

The logical side looked up from his seat on the couch, a book in hand.

“Of course.”

Putting it down, he stood up, “Are they on their way?”

Patton smiled as Logan straightened his shirt, “Mmhm! They’ll be down in a minute.”

Rounding the stairs, he turned his gaze to the kitchen, “And how are things looking in there Thomas?”

“Just need to move everything to the table,” The host lifted a large pot off the stove, “Speaking of which, could you grab the sandwiches Pat’?”

“On it!”

Squeezing past him, the paternal side quickly moved the platter of sandwiches to the table; putting them down right as the creaking stairs signaled the younger two’s arrival.

At first the elder flashed them a smile, but it faltered a bit as soon as he saw their faces. Something seemed… off. At first he checked Virgil, as he was usually the one that gave him this feeling, but no, the anxious side was doing fine.

This time, it was Roman giving him the weird vibes.

He blinked in surprise and poked at the Royal’s aura, quickly spoting a hint of indigo and pink hidden among its usual colours. He let out a silent sigh. He was just nervous, meaning they’d probably fallen asleep together; Which also explained why the door had slammed on him.

Pushing away the urge to pry, Patton flashed them another smile; a bit brighter than before.

“Evening you two,” he tilted his head slightly, “Did you sleep well?”

Roman’s eyes widened, “How did you..?”

He snickered, “I have my ways.”

Virgil rolled his eyes.

“I slept pretty well, better than I have in awhile.”
The anxious side stretched, “And man did I need that.”
“Good to hear!”

Patton turned to Roman, “What about you Ro’?”

“Oh, uh, Pretty good actually,” He turned away, “it was… nice.”

The Royal coughed, “So ah, what’s for dinner?”

The elder gave him a knowing smile, the faint blush on Roman’s cheeks not escaping his notice.

“How about you join us and find out?”

~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~

Everything seemed to be going alright at first, everyone was relaxed as they told stories and chowed down on soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, but as the meal went on things started to get… tense.

It wasn’t like they were saying anything to sour the mood, it was more like they were running out of ways to ignore their problems. For Thomas, the most notable was Roman’s sudden aversion to eye contact.

It didn’t seem like a big deal at first, but as time ticked on he became a little suspicious. When he eventually noticed Virgil give the Royal a guilty look and the grimace on his face when Roman turned away, the host knew something bigger was going on.

What happened while they were alone?

He glanced at Patton, wondering if the elder had noticed, and got a smile from him. If he had noticed things were off, he was certainly doing a good job of hiding it.

Turning back to the others, Thomas let out a sigh. He had no idea how he could help the situation; plus, he was too tired to do anything even if he could. Besides, there was something else they needed to talk about.

“So,” He began picking at a crack in the table, “What are we going to do about rooms?”

Silence.

Logan blinked at him, “That was sudden.”

“Well we have to figure it out at some point.”

“That’s true.”

After a bit more silence Roman perked up a bit.

“I could try rearranging upstairs.”

Thomas tilted his head, “Hmm?”

“Well, we already know our powers work out here so I could use mine and maybe add a few rooms, kind of like a pocket dimension.”

“Ooo~ that could work!”

Patton’s eyes lit up, “Good thinking kiddo!”
“It is a sound idea,” Logan interjected, “However, we don’t know how it could affect Thomas. It could be dangerous.”
Thomas watched Roman’s shoulders drop and shook his head.

“I’m willing to take that risk Logan.”

He smiled, “Besides, after talking with you earlier I’m pretty sure the worst that’ll happen is you guys having to carry me to bed.”

“And,” he continued, “It’d be a good chance to see what I can handle from you guys.”

“But Thomas-“

“What if he only does two rooms for now?”

Everyone stopped to look at Virgil.

“If he does two bare rooms we can split off into pairs for the night.”

The anxious sides brain was going a million miles a minute, “It would put the less stress on Thomas, without cramming us all into one space.”

He looked up at the others.

“Well?”

“I’m fine with that,” Patton hummed happily, “What do you think Lo’?”

“… It’s acceptable.”

Thomas smiled

“Since we’re all on board now,” he nodded at Roman, “You ready to give it a shot?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” the Royal replied with a nervous smile.

Closing his eyes, Roman blocked out everything around him and focused on picturing upstairs.

First off he needed a bit more space, so a short hallway was a must. But for that to fit properly either the washer or the bathroom had to move.

His brow furrowed for a moment. The washer would be easier.

Mentally moving the washer into the hallway, he started focusing on rooms. They would work best right across from each other; one could face the street, the other the backyard.

Making them plain at first, he cringed. It looked like he was making an asylum.

Adding windows made things much better. The view and natural light made them feel more homey. Making sure to link them with existing windows, he varied the room shapes and finally started adding the beds.

Two simple, white sheet beds would be perfect for now. He played with placement in the back room first before moving to the front one. As he moved them around he started imagining the sunlight hitting the room in the morning.

Pausing for a moment to admire it, he suddenly realized he was no longer in the room he’d created.

It was another place, another time; familiar, yet so far away. It was bathed in golden rays of sunlight, the morning heat far out matched by the calming warmth of-

With a quiet gasp Roman’s eyes flew open.

Oh, that might not be good.

Coming back to his senses he quickly became aware of everyone’s eyes on him, all of them waiting intently.

Patton smiled wide as he realized Roman was done, “Did it work? Did you do it?”

“Uh, I don’t know. I-“

A quiet scraping, reminiscent of a chair being dragged, quickly cut him off. At first they all locked eyes in confusion, but once they realized what had happened they turned to Thomas; just in time to see him let out a huge yawn.

“I… think it worked.”

Patton let out a cheer, “Alright! Way to go Roman!!”

“Yes… Good job Roman,” Logan adjusted his glasses, letting himself relax, “That’s one problem resolved.”

Roman played off the compliments, trying to push down a rising feeling of dread.

“Thanks guys. It was nothing, really,” He glanced at the stairs, “But, ah, I should go make sure everything came out alright.”

Quickly standing up he started to leave, but paused to look back at everyone.

“That… would be okay, right?”

Patton and Logan stared at him for a moment, confused, then realized why he was asking.

“Of course it’s okay! We can handle things down here.”

The elder glanced at Virgil and Logan, “Right guys?”

Logan nodded in agreement but Virgil didn’t respond, instead staring at the table deep in thought.

After a moment he muttered something to himself and sighed.

“Actually I’m gonna join him,” the anxious side stood up, “Sorry. I’ll take over cleaning tomorrow to make up for it.”

Roman stared at him wide eyed, while Patton gave him a reassuring smile.

“That’s okay. Talk to you two later.”

“Same to you padré.”

Heading for the stairs Virgil gave Roman a smack on the back, snapping him out of his shock.

“C’mon Princy let’s get going.”

“Wha-? Ah, wait up!”

“Then stop standing around slowpoke-!”

As the two disappeared upstairs, their voices trailing off, the atmosphere in the room slowly changed; The uneasy feeling giving way to a more somber air.

Cutting the quiet with a yawn, Thomas turned to Patton.

“So… did you-?”

“Yes, I noticed,” Patton replied, a tired sigh escaping him, “I assumed he was just flustered about falling asleep with Virgil, but there’s obviously something else going on.”

He rubbed his temples.

“I was thinking about saying something, but we’ve already had a few confrontations today and I’m far too tried to deal with more fallout.”

Logan hung his head and nodded, “whatever happened is between them for now.”

Watching the stairs, Thomas leaned on his arm.

“Does this kind of thing happen a lot?”

“Hmm?”

“You guys being secretive around each other.”

“Oh of course,” the elder waved his hand dismissively, “We hide things from each other all the time.”

“Some people we’re more open with,” The elder glanced at Logan, “Others, less so.”

“For those two especially things can be slightly…” Logan frowned, “Complicated.”

Thomas perked up a bit, “What do you mean?”

“Well… Roman’s closest companions are the Dark Sides. Due to his responsibilities and constant ‘training’, or whatever it is that he does, they don’t get to see each other often.”

“Still, it’s far better than Virgil’s situation,” Logan sighed, “He can’t remember anything and no one will tell him who he was before the war; let alone who his friends were.”

“Woah, woah, woah- Hold up. Can’t remember? War?” Thomas looked at him like he’d grown a second head, “And what’s with the way you said training?”

“What do you me- Oooh shoot.”

The logical side face palmed.

“This isn’t the mind palace.”

“Mmhm,” Patton hummed.

“We’re talking to Thomas.”

“Yep.”

“I wasn’t supposed to talk about that until Virgil was ready.”

“Uh-huh.”

The logical side buried his face in his hands and groaned, while Patton reached over to pat him on the back.

“There, There~ let it out.”

“I’m an idiot!”

“No you’re not, you’re just tired.”

“That’s not an excuse-!”

“Shhh~” the pats turned to gentle rubs, “Deep breaths Lo’, deep breaths.”

Continuing to calm Logan, Patton turned to Thomas with a gentle smile; who was now throughly confused, but waiting patiently for an answer.

“Sorry but you’ll have to wait for an explanation of the war and training another time, it’s not something we can easily cover in an evening.”

His smile became sadder, “As for Virgil… Well he… Had his memories stolen a few years ago. We know it happened sometime during the final battle of the war, but nothing more than that.”

“We’ve talked to everyone we can but they’ve all said they didn’t know him,” His brows furrowed, “However I’m positive a certain few are lying.”

“Why they would though is still a mystery,” he finished with a shrug.

Thomas stared at him with wide eyes.

“That’s.... I never would’ve guessed…”

Patton smiled again, “And that’s what we wanted, for Virgil’s sake.”

“Besides there’s not really anything you could do to help,” He added with a sheepish look.

There was a brief pause.

“Has he... remembered anything at all?”

“Bits and pieces, like his name and a few abilities, but nothing really significant.”

Thomas closed his eyes and stayed silent for a moment, processing everything he was just told. Eventually he opened them again and sighed.

“Well, I’m glad I know now,” He said with a smile, “Better late then never, right?”

“Better late than never,” Patton reiterated with a nod, letting out a huge yawn.

Thomas smiled softly as he did. Looks like it was his turn to take over now.

"Why don't you two head off to bed? I’ll clean up down here.”

"What? No! We can’t just leave you to deal with our mess!”

The host crossed his arms, “Patton, you do realize Logan is asleep right?”

“No he’s just-!”

The elder looked down to see Logan snoring quietly, his back gently rising and falling.

“Oh.”

He stared fondly at him for a moment, before running his fingers through the logical sides hair.

With a soft huff he turned back to Thomas, already knowing his answer, “Are you sure you don’t want any help?”

"Positive,” the host flexed an arm, “You can leave it to me!”

With a sigh of relief Patton got up and pulled Logan onto his back.

“Thank you, Thomas.”

The host smiled as he began grabbing plates, “No problem. Sleep tight you two.”

With a quiet hum in response Patton disappeared up the stairs, leaving Thomas to himself.

Humming a simple tune to fill the silence he continued work on the dishes. Partway through cleaning, he couldn’t help but laugh to himself.

What a crazy day this had been.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

With each step they took the feeling of dread grew stronger and stronger; to the point he felt like he was going to be sick.

He glanced at Virgil. The anxious sides presence wasn’t making things any better.

“So..” Roman shifted uncomfortably, trying to distract himself, “Is there a, uh,

reason

you’re joining me?”

“Just cuz I want to,” Virgil answered with a shrug.

“Cool…”

As the landing came into view Roman swallowed hard. Everything seemed to be alright out here.

Virgil let out a low hum as Roman nervously checked over his work.

“Alright, what gives?”

Roman whipped around, wide eyed.

“W-What do you mean?!”

“You’re setting off all my alarm bells, meaning you’re panicked about something.”

He leaned against the wall, “So what gives?”

Roman backed down the hall, “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Dude, I’m

Anxiety

, you can’t hide this kinda shit from me.”

He pushed off the wall and followed Roman.

“Did you mess something up?” He grimaced, “Or… is this about earlier?”

“Everything is fine Virgil!”

The Royal pushed open the door to the back room, taking a quick glance. Nothing out of place there.

He felt himself calming down as he moved to open the other door.

“Don’t be such a worry-“

Roman slammed the door shut, blocking it with his body.

Locking eyes with Virgil he stood frozen to the spot, his mind reeling. Without a word the anxious side crossed his arms and watched him silently freak out.

Once he decided Roman had had enough time, he raised an eyebrow.

“So, what was that about everything being fine?”

“….

Fuck

.”

“What’s the problem?”

Roman stared at him, wild eyed. His mouth opened and closed frantically as he tried to say something, anything.

“I- It’s- My-“

The anxious side rolled his eyes, “Okay, never mind. Let me see.”

“No! Virgil wait!”

The younger side easily shoved past the panicked Royal and into the room, briefly getting blinded by a stray ray of light.

“I don’t see what your problem is, it’s just a stupid… room…”

The anxious side trailed off as his eyes adjusted to the light.

In front of him was a small attic room; exposed rafters, faded wallpaper, and worn out floorboards clearly showing its age. It was mostly empty, but obviously not by design.

Dark outlines hinted at missing furniture, half formed shelves and warped picture frames dangled precariously from the walls, a single torn curtain hung from a mangled curtain rod; the list went on and on…

The only thing that seemed to have formed correctly was the bed, pushed up against the left wall.

He took a few cautious steps forward, the floorboards creaking under him.

It was a complete disaster, far from anything he’d expect from the Royal, and yet… there was something endearing about it.

He flashed Roman a playful smirk.

“I think I see the problem now.”

The Royal buried his face in his hands.

“It wasn’t supposed to look like this…”

“Well obviously not, dumbass.”

He gestured to the mess in front of them, “This clearly isn’t the kind of thing you’d make on purpose.”

“Yeah… I just- things were going well.”

The Royal started to pace.

“I had everything exactly how I wanted it; room shapes, textures, bed placement, then I got here and my mind started to wander, which triggered a memory, which made me panic, which lead to me stopping prematurely and-“

He let out an embarrassed sigh, covering his eyes as he gestured to the room, “Well… you can see what came of that…”

“Ohhh- then was this your old bedroom or something?”

Roman tensed up at the question.

“Yes and No? It was one of the Dark Sides rooms, but me and Remus spent so much time there we ended up sharing it.”

“Mmm…”

Roman watched nervously as Virgil explored the room, eventually ending up on the bed.

“

So

….” The anxious side tilted his head, “You gonna fix it or what?”

Roman gave him a sheepish grin, “I was kinda… Waiting for you to leave?”

Virgil rolled his eyes.

“Then say that, idiot. I can’t read your mind.”

Once he was up he looked back at the bed.

“Hey, Can I ask for something?”

The Royal tensed, “Depends on what you want.”

Virgil ran his hand over the checkered sheets, “… could you Leave the bed? I like it.”

He looked from the anxious side, to the bed and back again, biting his lip.

“I’ll try.”

“Thanks.”

As he quietly shuffled out of the room Roman closed his eyes again. This time he made sure to stay completely focused, no wandering thoughts, and within a few seconds everything was back to how he’d wanted it; with his childhood bed still intact, per Virgil’s request.

Once he felt the floor shift under his feet a relived sigh escaped him, thankful that mess was dealt with.

A quick knock on the door reminded him that he wasn’t done yet.

“Got things figured out now?”

“Right as rain storm cloud! You’re good to come back in.”

He heard a whistle as the door creaked open, “Now this is the kinda thing I expect from our resident drama queen!”

“You don’t have to be so snarky about it, my chemical imbalance.”

“Didn’t mean to come off as rude,” Virgil went and laced out on the bed again, “I’m genuinely impressed with what you can pull off.”

Roman couldn’t help but smile at the comment. It was rare to get praise from him.

“Soooo… about earlier-“

Just as quickly as it appeared, Roman’s smile vanished, replaced by fear.

“Oh! I think I just heard someone call for me! Gotta go!”

The Royal rushed for the door; but before he could reach it shadows covered the handle, turning the lock and blocking him inside. Slowly he turned back to face Virgil who was now sitting fully alert, hand raised towards the door.

“You’re not getting out of this that easily.”

Roman swallowed the lump in his throat.

Virgil sighed, “You’re acting like I’m going to kill you.”

“Weeell-“

“Don’t finish that sentence.”

He motioned for Roman to join him.

“I just want to talk… please.”

The Royal looked at him skeptically, but seeing the guilt on his face he decided he could let his guard down.

“Alright,” he made his way over to the anxious side, “Just know if something happens I will not hesitate to jump out the window.”

Virgil rolled his eyes at that as they both got comfortable. After a moment of quiet he took a deep breath.

“I… wanted to apologize, for earlier.”

“Mm?”

“I was scared, but that doesn’t give me the right to snap at you like I did.”

“… it’s alright. I know I was in the wrong for eavesdropping.”

They went quiet again.

“I-… wasn’t lying when I said I didn’t mean too.”

“I’d gone to finish the laundry, but I had this nagging feeling and I just couldn’t bring myself to leave you alone,” Roman’s brow furrowed, “When I came to check in and heard you crying I-“

He shook his head, mumbling to himself, “… I couldn’t bring myself to walk away, not after last time.”

Virgil felt himself tear up slightly at his words, “How much did you hear?”

“I.. heard you talking about stoping some group, that you dragged us out of the Mind Palace,” Roman leaned forward, resting his arms on his legs, “Explaining everything that happened this morning to someone.”

“So everything then…”

For a moment he felt conflicted.

He’d tried desperately for months to keep quiet about everything, weeks of restless nights, unsure if he’d be alive by sunrise; all for nothing thanks to a crack in his façade. Yet, he could feel waves of relief washing over him knowing someone had finally glimpsed those secret burdens.

Roman watched intently as Virgil’s mind seemed to go a hundred miles a minute, then wide eyed as his expression suddenly softened. It was then they both realized he was crying.

“Ah…” Virgil wiped at his eyes, “Why am I crying? Why am I…?”

Roman kept watching, concern showing on his face as Virgil tried to keep himself together. Unable to sit back any longer, he shifted towards him.

Virgil blinked, responding to the movement by leaning over and resting his head on Roman's shoulder, giving in to his emotions. He stiffened slightly at the sudden contact, but forced himself to relax as Virgil started to sob quietly. Eventually the Royal worked up the nerve to embrace him and run a hand through his hair.

“Shh~ It’ll be okay Stormcloud. Go ahead and let it out, I’m right here.”

That seemed to make him cry harder, as the anxious side was no longer holding back. A few times he tried to say something, maybe an apology, maybe an explanation, but no words made it out. This went on for what felt like hours, but eventually Virgil fell quiet.

“Feeling better now?”

“…”

“Virgil?”

“…”

Roman pulled away slightly, worried, but quickly let out a relived sigh. The anxious side had fallen asleep, his chest rising and falling slowly as he lay against him.

He let out a chuckle, “Guess this means we’re sharing a room.”

As carefully as he could, Roman moved out from under Virgil before moving him under the covers him. Once he was tucked in He brushed some stray hairs away from the sleeping sides face.

“How long have you been hiding this? Days? Months?”

He felt the sting of tears at the corner of his eyes.

“You always were a bit too overprotective for your own good.”

Instinctively he leaned forward and kissed Virgil’s forehead before laying down beside him. There he stayed, watching over him as he slept, the last bit of sunlight slowly fading away behind him.

“Rest easy Virgil. I promise I’ll watch over you.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Virgil woke early the next morning, groaning as sunlight warmed his face. He had his arms wrapped around something soft and warm so he pulled himself closer to it, trying to hide from the sun.“Five more minutes….”Another groan sounded that the anxious side thought was his, until an arm wrapped around his shoulder. In a flash his eyes snapped open and registered the smiling Royal, fast asleep in his arms.Immediately he scrambled away from Roman, sitting up as his heart raced. His face went bright red. How long had they been cuddling?!Roman stirred at the sudden loss, causing Virgil to freeze, but the Prince only muttered something under his breath before turning over; his smile turning into a slight frown.He sighed in relief, taking a moment to view his surroundings. The room was bathed in sunlight mixed with the shadows of leaves dancing slightly in the wind, giving the white room a golden glow.His initial embarrassment gave way to a soft smile as he took everything in. The shape of the room was perfect to let the morning light illuminate everything equally. He would never admit it but he loved when Roman accounted for little details like that.Carefully he scooted himself off the bed, making his way to the door. With a quick glance at the sleeping royal he exited the room, staying as quiet as possible.Once outside he let out a big sigh.There was a lot he’d have to go over with Roman later. If only he knew where to start. Virgil’s thoughts started taking a darker turn but thankfully he was drawn back to reality by someone walking down the hall.“Mornin’ Kiddo!” Patton said with a wave, “You sleep alright?”“I guess,” Virgil replied with a shrug, noticing the towel wrapped around the elder’s shoulders, “Morning shower?”“Hmm? Oh yeah, I just finished.”“Mhmm, does anyone still need the washroom?”“Nope! Logan was up and finished long before me and Thomas is still asleep,” the elder replied flashing a smile, “So if you need the bathroom it’s yours.”“‘Kay, thanks Pat’.”Patton flashed Virgil another smile and disappeared into his room. Virgil watched him go, catching a brief glimpse of pastel coloured walls before the door closed.He was confused for a moment. Weren’t the walls white yesterday?He thought about trying to catch another glimpse, but quickly shook the thought from his head. He needed the washroom right now.Once he was done his business he decided to at least try his usual routine. Well, semi-usual as he’d mostly stopped the past few months; for fairly obvious reasons.Thomas didn’t have everything he’d need, but he could make due.After a quick rinse with a face wash, Virgil began to rummage through the cabinets. Where’d he put that eyeshadow yesterday…“Bingo.”In the back of a drawer was the lonely pan of eyeshadow he’d used yesterday, along with the mangled brush that had sat there for who knows how long.With a shake of his head he got ready to apply it… until he was stopped by his reflection.Something was off…He stared at himself, confused, but after a moment something clicked and he couldn’t help the laugh that escaped.His body was starting to recover. Some color had returned to his sickly pale skin overnight, and the bags under his eyes were slightly less pronounced.By no means was it a perfect recovery, but he couldn’t believe just a single night of good rest could do this much. Still, it was a welcome surprise.He smiled, “Guess sharing a room has its perks.”Finally the anxious side got to work, expertly applying his eyeshadow. He was doing a quick check once he was done to make sure his shadows linked to it properly, when he heard a knock at the door.He rolled his eyes, still checking his eyeshadow.“C’mon in, I’m almost d-“Virgil had to stop himself mid sentence. He was struggling to hold back his laughter at the sight that greeted him.Roman was standing in the now open doorway a complete mess. His hair was sticking out every which way and his eyes were puffy and blurred with sleep. The pillows had imprinted themselves on the Royals face, and the marks stood out against his fair skin.His pyjamas fared no better. They were in complete disarray; shirt hitching up one side, falling off the opposite shoulder. One pant leg rolled up and caught just above his knee, while the other was caught just above his ankle.“What?” The confused Royal asked.Virgil just shook his head, trying his hardest not to laugh. With a bit of effort the anxious side moved back, pointing to the mirror. The Prince kept giving him the confused look before finally turning to his reflection. His eyes went wide in shock as he realized what the problem was.Roman blinked a few times, then flashed Virgil a sheepish smile.“I never have been a morning person.”Unable to hold in his laughter any longer Virgil let go, not caring that he was loud enough to wake Thomas. Roman soon joined in, laughing just as hard as Virgil. They didn't care, it was just too funny.Unsurprisingly, Thomas soon woke up to their laughter, wondering what was going on. Once he’d wiped the sleep from his eyes he quickly joined in their laughing fit, finding Roman’s appearance just as ridiculous as they did.It took forever for them all to stop. Just as one would calm down the others would burst out laughing, setting them off again. Eventually though, they calmed down enough to speak.“Hoo boy-“ Thomas wiped the tears out of his eyes, letting out another chuckle, “I think I needed that.”"I-I think we all did!," Virgil wheezed, as he tried (and failed) to catch his breath.Roman let out another chuckle, shaking his head as he fixed his clothes, “Where were we?”Virgil let out another laugh, “I’m all good Princy, bathroom’s yours.”“Thomas?”The host shook his head, “Gonna need another minute to wake up.”“Alright, I’m going to shower then,” he smiled at Virgil, “Meet you downstairs in a bit.”The anxious side returned his smile and gave Thomas a nod, the host giving a wave in response as he wiped at his eyes.With that Virgil left them to do their thing and headed back to him and Roman’s room.One there he let himself lay back down, thinking for a moment. He absentmindedly ran his hand over a few lingering stains from yesterday, he definitely needed a change of clothes. How did Roman do it again?The anxious side took a few deep breaths as he closed his eyes, imagining one of his outfits. Something simple, just a clean shirt and some jeans would do, nothing too draining for Thomas.Once he’d imagined his chosen outfit laying beside him he opened his eyes and there it was. Nicely folded beside him was a pair of ripped jeans and a simple black shirt.He let out a sigh of relief and let himself relax, before remembering his conversation with Lennox the day before.Pulling himself up he got changed, dumping his dirty clothes by the door, then sifted through his pockets as his earlier thoughts resurfaced.How was he supposed to explain the situation to Roman? He’d basically promised to tell the Royal what was happening, but he had no idea where to start.Eventually he found his phone, pulling it out and checking it to see if there were any new messages. He had a few. Lennox had texted him about an hour ago.He’d sent a handful of pictures, medical supplies, some bloody bandages, the remains of broken glasses, and one of a very embarrassed Xaivion holding up his bandaged arm. He couldn’t help but snicker as he read the message that came after them.‘Xaivion’s rotten luck struck again, thankfully it wasn’t hospital worthy this time.’Virgil smiled as he sent a reply, ‘I was wondering what that crash was yesterday.’‘Yeah... you’d think he’d learn to be careful by now.’ Lennox texted backThere was a moment of silence.‘... You gonna be able to make it over here today?’‘Dunno,’ Virgil typed back, ‘I might be able to sneak past Thomas, Pat, and Logan but Princy’s gonna be a problem.’‘?’Virgil sighed, ‘He... overheard my end of our conversation’‘Dang... so he’s keeping an eye on you?’‘Yep.’‘Well... look on the bright side, at least it’ll be easier to explain to him!’‘Already am. We had a short talk yesterday about the whole ‘eavesdropping’ thing and kinda worked things out.’‘Ok now I want details!’‘Later,’ Virgil typed, waving to Roman as he walked in; blushing briefly as he was only wearing a towel, ‘Sir sing-a-lot just walked in.’‘Aww~ fine, but you better not hold back on me!’‘I won’t, talk to you later.’‘Bye!’Roman flashed Virgil a cheeky grin as the anxious side put his phone back into his pocket, “Talking to your friend?”“Maybe...,” Virgil replied, shoving his hands into his pockets, “What’s it matter to you?”The Royal shrugged, dropping a pile of clothes on the bed, “I was just curious, nothing wrong with that.”“Sure you are,” Virgil muttered, rolling his eyes.Silence fell over the room as the conversation trailed off, broken only by the occasional rustle of clothing. Virgil glanced at Roman as he got dressed. He was frowning slightly.The anxious man sighed.“I’m gonna head downstairs,” he announced, “get something to eat and stuff.”“Alright,” was Roman’s now half-hearted reply.Virgil gave Roman a worried glance, before sighing again and making his way out the door.As the door closed Roman let out a shaky breath. He could only imagine the look on his face.“Why do I keep doing this,” he muttered to himself, “Things are different now. He doesn’t remember anything, so stop getting your hopes up.”He took a few deep breathes and finished getting dressed. The Royal took one last moment to regain his composure. He didn’t need these thoughts right now.With another sigh Roman made his way to the door. He paused at the door, his hand on the handle, and looked back at the room for a moment. Maybe some food would help clear his head.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Roman wasn’t surprised to find Patton waiting for him once he made his way downstairs. The elder always made sure everyone was fed when they woke up, no matter what. Seeing him in an apron with a plate of food in hand only served to confirm this fact.“Thank you Patton,” the Royal muttered as the elder slid the plate to him.“No problem Ro’.”Roman eyed Virgil as he took his place beside him, flashing the anxious side a half hearted smile as he did. He said nothing, only giving Roman a worried glance in return.The two locked eyes for a moment after.He searched Roman’s face, trying to read him, before giving up and going back to finishing his meal. Roman did the same, trying his hardest to ignore the anxious side beside him.However he quickly gave up. He just couldn’t help but be hyper aware of him. Every move the anxious side made he noticed, no matter how slight it was.Eventually he was freed from his self inflicted plight when Virgil got up to leave. He watched as he disappeared from his peripheral vision, retuning a few seconds later as he headed back upstairs.Once Virgil was gone Roman let out a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding. Finally, He could focus on his meal.This feeling only lasted a few seconds though as Roman soon felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. Someone else was now watching him.Roman briefly scanned the room trying to find who it was. Eventually his gaze settled on Logan and Thomas, not even realizing the latter had come downstairs.They were both sitting in Thomas’ living room relaxing; one on his phone, oblivious, and the other doing some research, having set up Thomas’ Laptop on the coffee table. Thomas was fully focused on his phone, but Logan had clearly noticed something was off with Roman.The two locked eyes with each other, the logical sides eyes narrowing into a searching glare. Roman blinked in surprise before retuning to his meal, now attempting to ignore him instead of Virgil.Logan kept this up for a few more minutes as Roman tried to eat, resisting the urge to squirm as the logical side’s gaze burned into him. Suddenly, he blinked in surprise. Roman watched as worry etched itself onto Logan’s face, his lips turning into a hard frown.The logical side quickly turned to Patton, getting his attention, then gestured to Roman. The Royal flashed the logical side a confused look but Logan brushed it off with a shrug, putting on a more neutral expression. Roman then directed the look at Patton who only gave him a knowing smile in return.After quickly writing something down the elder called from the kitchen.“Hey Thomas?”The host looked up from his phone, “What is it Patton?”“Could you go shopping? You’re running low on a few things and, as much as I‘d like to, we can’t keep forming things without limits.”“Sure!” The host agreed with a nod, getting off the couch, “Do you have a list?”“Yep!” The elder handed him a piece of paper, “I just finished it.”“Alright, I’ll be back in a bit!”“Drive safe Kiddo!”As the door closed behind him, the two elders went back to what they had been doing. Patton continued to clean the kitchen while Logan turned his attention back to Thomas’ laptop, both acting like nothing had happened.Roman eyed them both sceptically before going back to his food, now unsettled by the calm air that fell over the room.The second he finished his last bite, Patton was at his side; gathering the dirty dishes.Flashing his signature smile, he addressed Roman.“Would you mind heading up to me and Lo’s room please? I’ll be right up.”Roman eyed him with worry, “..Why?”“Well you don’t want anyone overhearing our conversation do you?”Roman went wide eyed, turning from Patton to Logan and back again. Logan shrugged again when he caught the Royal’s horrified expression.“You may be an amazing actor,” Logan stated, eyeing Roman with worry, “But acting can only do so much when one knows it’s a ruse.”Roman stared blankly at Logan as his words sunk in. Eventually the Royal pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. Of course. The discomfort he’d felt earlier wasn’t just from Logan’s judging gaze, it was because he’d been reading his aura.“I guess I’ll be waiting in your room then,” Roman announced, catching the look of triumph on Logan’s face, “Though you shouldn’t leave me waiting for too long.”“Don’t worry Ro’ I’ll be up just as soon as I finish with your dishes.”As Roman climbed the stairs he let out another sigh. Now he had to figure out what to tell Patton.
When Roman stepped into the elders room he was surprised, and slightly disappointed. It wasn’t anything like he’d left it yesterday. The walls were a two toned blue, which went well with the plush beige carpet that now covered the floor. There were also fairy lights strung around the room, bathing everything in a soft white glow.There were a few random toys and books strewn across the floor and a handful of shelves, some with neatly stacked texts some overflowing with books, board games and more. The beds were still relatively the same, only one was made neatly, looking completely untouched, and the other was a mess with covers strewn every which way.Even through his disappointment he couldn’t help but think it was a perfect mix of the two’s personalities. Order and chaos, a mess where everything had it’s place.He looked around for a bit, the urge to snoop through everything rising, but he mostly resisted; forcing himself to choose only a single thing to look through.The Royal skimmed over the items on the shelves, unsure of what to pick, when he noticed something that seemed out of place. Pulling it down Roman looked over the cover.It seemed like a photo album, but unlike everything else on the shelves this was plain, with a simple leather cover, and it had obviously seen better days. It was worn down along the edges with some deep cuts down the back. On top of that it seemed hand made as the binding was hand stitched and poorly done. He could even tell that it was made up of scraps rather than one full piece of leather.Curious of its contents, Roman sat down on the floor beside Patton’s bed and flipped it open. The first few pictures weren’t that notable. They were just a handful of landscape shots of fields, forests and towns. About four pages in Roman was contemplating grabbing something else, then he spotted something he thought he’d never see. It was a picture of Patton. One from at least fifteen years ago.The picture was from a time before Patton had gotten his glasses, and if Roman remembered right that was a time the elder refused to talk about.The young side looked like a prisoner. His clothes were a plain cloth, he had shackles around his ankles, didn’t have any shoes, and he was filthy. The picture was like a mugshot, probably taken after a fight. He was cut, bruised, and bawling his eyes out. Even so Roman could see a wide smile on the elders face.Roman stared at the picture, stunned, before flipping the page. The first thing he saw when he did was an almost identical picture of Logan.The logical side had on the same thing as Patton and, like him, didn’t have his glasses. Both his hands and feet were shackled and there was a large swollen spot on his face where someone had punched him. Along with the swelling he had a black eye, multiple bruises, and a sickening amount of dried blood covering his body. What ever had happened Logan had surely taken the blunt of the attack.Unlike Patton, Logan’s face was devoid of all emotion, making him look defeated. The only thing that gave him away were his eyes. It was difficult to spot, but there was a determined fire burning behind them.There were a few more pictures next to Logan’s of what looked like a mining operation and a slave camp. The next page had more pictures of the elders, this time together and with someone he didn’t recognize. If he didn’t know any better the Royal might have mistaken the unknown man for Thomas. The three of them looked happy together, despite the horrible conditions they were obviously in.Roman went to flip the page again, but stopped when he heard the door open. Without thinking the Royal flashed the album away, mentality cursing himself afterwards for his panicked reaction. He looked away guiltily as Patton walked up to him with a worried smile. Hopefully the elder wouldn’t notice it was missing.“Hey Ro’, hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long,” the elder said moving to sit beside him.“N-not at all!” Roman said, putting on a smile of his own, “You actually scared me when you opened the door.”“I, ah, assume you were going over our room huh?”“A little bit,” The Royal frowned “I’m not exactly happy about it.”“What happened to not pushing Thomas’s limits?”The elder sighed and sat down, “I know, I know, but it wasn’t entirely on purpose.”He rubbed his neck, “Me and Lo’ both had nightmares and we started changing things unconsciously. We had to clean up a bit once we realized what we’d done.”“Mmm, okay that I can understand,” the Royal looked away sheepishly, “to be honest I had to change some things with me and Virgil’s room too.”The room fell quiet as Patton pulled his legs in so he was sitting criss-cross. He watched Roman from the corner of his eye as the Royal turned away, his brow furrowed in thought.The elder continued watching Roman as the Royal began to pick at the carpet, “So... what’s on your mind Ro’?”Roman flinched slightly at the question, staying silent as he continued to pick at the carpet. Patton waited patiently. He knew better then to push for an answer, especially when it came to touchy subjects. The elder had learned that much from his infrequent chats with the so called ‘Dark Sides’.After a few more minutes of strained silence Patton spoke, “You know, I can’t help if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.”Roman grimaced.“...I ...” He hesitated, trying his best to sort out his thoughts, “I was thinking this morning and some... unpleasant thoughts started hitting me.”“Of course Its nothing I haven’t had to deal with before, but today... well they hit me pretty hard...” The Royal explained looking to Patton for his reaction.The elder hummed in understanding, “Things from your past coming back to haunt you?”“In a way...” the Royal said vaguely.Patton bit his tongue, stoping himself from pushing the Royal. He didn’t really like when people were vague with him, it was one of the reasons he tried to stick close to Logan. The logical side could easily fill in missing bits of information with his ability. At the same time Patton could gauge the conversation from a distance and take over in more touchy-feely situations.The bubbly side briefly contemplated going to grab the younger at that moment. He decided against it though as it would most likely make Roman less talkative.Patton sighed internally when Roman stayed silent, “Were these thoughts triggered by your laughing fit with Virgil and Thomas this morning?”Roman flinched again, “So you heard that huh...”“From start to finish,” the elder said with a nod.Roman went silent again. After about a minute he nodded slowly, “Hearing him laugh then having him make one of his usual jabs not long after... “Roman paused again as he thought of a way to phrase the next bit.“... well it reminded me of one of the dark sides,” he finally said, being vague again, “We used to laugh and play together... now when we see each other we’re at each other’s throats.”Roman balled his hands into fists as he let his words flow, “Remembering how close we were, how much trust we had in each other... then knowing that there’s now a rift between us. Words can’t describe how it makes me feel.”“Have you tried talking with them?” Patton asked quietly seeing the pain in Roman’s eyes, “Seeing if you can mend whatever rift is driving you apart?”“Even if I could it wouldn’t really help,” Roman replied, feeling tears form in his eyes, “this isn’t something words alone can fix.”“I wish it was, I wish I could just talk to them and fix everything but they- He, won’t listen,” Roman continued, “Even if he just gave me a reason as to why he did what he did it would make this so much more bearable, but he won’t.”The tears began to blur Roman’s vision, “I just want him to tell me why...”They both fell silent as the tears started rolling down Roman’s cheeks. Without missing a beat the elder wrapped his arms around Roman, holding him tight. They stayed that way for awhile as the Royals tears silently streamed down his face.Eventually Patton pulled away, letting Roman wipe at his face.“Feeling any better?”Roman nodded, “a little...”“That’s good,” Patton replied with a sad smile.“...I’m going to go wait for Thomas to get back,” the elder said helping Roman to his feet, “You go wash up and relax for the rest of the day.”“Alright...” Roman said making his way out of the room, “... Thank you Patton, for listening to me.”Patton flashed Roman a sad smile as the door closed behind him, “No problem, Kiddo.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Virgil shivered as he turned up the volume on his headphones, trying desperately to focus on the video playing on his phone. He’d assumed the others would’ve started their usual playful banter, or at least turned on some music, tv, something. There was the footsteps he heard come upstairs twice, but other than that- nothing.It was making him nervous, not hearing much from the others. Usually he would be begging for some peace and quiet; the sounds of Roman pandering to the pompous nobles, Patton chatting up a storm with anyone who would listen, or Logan getting into a heated argument were always floating around the halls. Heck even at night when they were fast asleep there was usually still the ‘Dark Sides’ running around wrecking havoc. They were always setting up pranks for people to find in the morning, so it wasn’t uncommon to catch their distant laughter as they raced through the halls...Virgil curled in on himself as he shivered again, he didn’t need to think about that right now. He shook his head in an attempt to clear it and turned back to his phone.Before long his attention wandered again and he found himself stealing glances at the door.He was torn between heading back downstairs or staying put. On one hand he wanted to make sure everything was okay, but on the other he didn’t want to bother them if things were fine and he was just being paranoid.Just as he began to seriously debate the idea, the door to the room swung open; causing him to jump as it hit the wall with a loud thud. Ripping off his headphones the anxious side whipped around to face the sudden intruder, only to find Roman standing in the open doorway. He looked mortified, obviously not meaning to slam the door.“D-Dude!” Virgil shouted as Roman stood frozen in place, “What the Hell was that for?!”“M-my apologizes Virgil,” He closed the door, being extremely gentle this time, “I didn’t mean to use that much force.”Virgil’s expression softened slightly as he let out a shaky breath, “Be more careful next time…”He held the Royals gaze for a moment before slowly putting his headphones back on. As freaked as he was, the anxious side was grateful to see him; It helped ease his worries.Finally able to focus, he turned back to his phone, assuming the Royal would do what he needed to and leave. However he was surprised when, instead of leaving, he made his way over to the bed and flopped face first into the space beside him.He watched as the Royal rolled onto his side and curled in on himself, hugging his pillow close. As Virgil watched him get comfortable he couldn’t help but feel the scene was familiar. He frowned, where had he seen this before?Virgil bit his lower lip as the video continued to play on his phone. He tried to dig through the few memories he had but came up blank. He kept digging, if it was a memory trying to surface it must have been important.There was a young boy beside him in the same position on a bed, someone important to him, but it was a bit too hazy to make out much more than that.Just as he felt close to breaking through the haze, the memory began to fade. The anxious side let out a frustrated sigh as it disappeared completely. He hated being so close to remembering but falling just short of it.He ended up so caught up in his head he almost didn’t notice the rustling of sheets beside him. Glancing over he found Roman now starring at him. He rolled his eyes as he pushed his frustrations aside.Letting out another sigh Virgil took off one of his headphones, “What do you want Princy?”Roman blinked, then flashed him a tired smile, “Well I was wondering what you were watching.”“Oh.... nothing much,” Virgil said showing him the screen, “Right now I’m watching some Disney theory’s, but I’ve just been letting stuff auto play.”“Really?” Roman said, pushing himself up to get a better look at the video, “What’s this one about?”Virgil turned the screen back around, “I think this ones about the true villain of Frozen, maybe. I haven’t been paying much attention.”“Oh?,” The Royal replied with a smirk, “Too busy checking me out?”“You wish!”He pulled his headphones off completely, “I was just distracted by my thoughts, nothing out of the ordinary.”“Hmm... then would you mind if we restarted the video and watched it together?” The Royal asked, getting into a sitting position, “It sounds interesting, and I don’t have anything to do right now.”“Plus I see some others that might be interesting,” The Royal added, pointing to the recommend videos.Virgil turned from him to the phone and back, shocked, “uhhh- Sure? It might be tough with such a small screen...”Roman nodded, “Why don’t we hook it up to the TV then? It’s a bigger screen and we can get into a more comfortable position on the couch.”“Alright,” The anxious side said hopping off the bed, “Let’s go get set up then.”
A few hours later the two had managed to watch a good chunk of Film Theory’s videos and at some point had transitioned into more science based videos, which managed to drag Logan out of his research. They’d stopped their YouTube binge briefly twice. Once when Thomas came home and Patton made them all lunch and a second time when he called them over for supper.The two sides were just finishing up a video where someone decided to test if frozen gasoline would burn when Roman let out a loud yawn.Virgil snickered, “Tired Princy?”“Just a tad,” The Royal said with another yawn.“let’s all call it a night then,” Logan suggested as he stretched, “it has gotten quite late.Roman nodded, doing the same, “sounds like a plan.”As a chorus of yawns sounded as everyone but Thomas packed up their things and headed to their rooms, each working on their nightly routines. Virgil was the first to get back to their room, just about ready to crawl under the covers, when he felt his phone vibrate. It was then that he remembered his earlier conversation with his friend.Without hesitation the anxious side fished out his phone to read the message.‘Soooo~ what happened to talking later?’Virgil cringed, ‘Sorry, got distracted.’‘That’s Nice...’ Lennox responded, ‘You could’ve given me a heads up.’‘I know, I know!’ Virgil texted back, ‘Just... nvm what’d ya want?’There was a pause, ‘I need you over here.’‘What?’‘I need you to come over’ Lennox replied, ‘I know it’ll be hard to get away but we need to talk. Learned a few things today and can’t risk a phone convo’Virgil bit his lip and glanced at the door, ‘it cant wait?’‘No.’Virgil sighed, ‘Alright. Give me an hour or two and I’ll be on my way.’‘I’ll be waiting.’Virgil sighed again as he shoved his phone back into his pocket. This was going to be interesting. Getting away from Roman would be a challenge but not impossible, after that the biggest problem would be getting to the front door. If he ran into Thomas it’d be easy, but if he ran into Patton or Logan he was done for. Those two were like walking lie detectors, he couldn’t get anything past them.The anxious side shook his head. Right now he needed to focus on getting past Roman. Thankfully he didn’t have to wait long for the Royal to arrive as he soon walked through the door, heading straight for the bed.As Roman sluggishly crawled under the covers Virgil finally came up with a plan. With how Roman was acting he would most likely pass out the second he got comfortable, so all he had to do was stall until he did.With his plan in mind Virgil watched Roman closely, slowly taking off his hoodie and kneeling down to fold it; buying himself some time. He could tell Roman was almost asleep as his breathing slowed, so all he had to do was wait and-“What’re you doin’ that for...?” The Royal suddenly muttered, causing Virgil to freeze.The anxious side shot up to stare wide eyed at the drowsy Royal. He had pushed himself up slightly in order to see what the other was doing. Terrified Virgil began frantically wracking his brain, searching for something to say.“A-ah, I- I was a bit warm last night so I figured I’d take off my jacket tonight” he eventually forced out, “but I wanna make sure it’s easy to pull on if I do need it.”Roman hummed in response as he snuggled closer to his pillow, seemingly satisfied with the blatant lie.Virgil let out a shaky breath as he heard Roman’s breathing finally turn to soft snores, signalling that the Royal was actually asleep this time. As quietly as he could he picked his jacket back up and headed for the door.Virgil turned to look at the Royal one last time as he turned off the lights. He felt bad not telling Roman after their conversation the other day, but it couldn’t be helped. If Lennox needed to talk with him in person then he needed to get there. He couldn’t risk getting caught.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The anxious side breathed a sigh of relief as the door clicked shut behind him. He’d made it past the first hurdle, now he had to get past the other three. Virgil paused for a moment, taking the chance to calm his nerves, before slipping on his jacket.Once on he began to make his way down the hall, making sure to be extra careful as he passed by the others rooms. He didn’t know if they’d gone to bed yet, and even if they had it wouldn’t have made much of a difference.The elders were normally light sleepers, rousing at the slightest noise. Thankfully the other night was one of the rare exceptions as both had been utterly exhausted from dealing with the angry nobility. It also helped that Sleep had decided to pay the elders a visit...He mentally cursed himself for his wandering thoughts, now was not the time to think about that; he needed to focus. With a shaky breath he continued, slowly making his way to the stairs.Once there he almost let out a sigh of relief. The living room was quiet, with the occasional snore breaking the silence. Peeking past the railings Virgil was able to spot Thomas sprawled out on the couch, fast asleep. As his pulse began to race he couldn’t help but smile, even with them physically there to remind him he still insisted on pushing himself past his limits.He hurried down the stairs, just making it to the kitchen entrance when his body froze. The colour drained from his face as he heard footsteps making their way down the hall, towards the stairs. Without a second thought the anxious side dove into the kitchen and pressed his back up against the cupboards trying to make himself as small as possible. As an extra precaution the anxious side clamped a hand over his mouth, stifling any sound he might make.Virgil’s heart pounded in his ears as the footsteps made their down the stairs, their owner letting out a heavy sigh about half way down.“Geez...” the intruder mumbled as they made their way over to their host.“Hey kiddo,” they said softly, probably shaking Thomas slightly, “You know you can’t sleep on the couch, you need to head up to bed.”Oh god, it was Patton.“Don’t wanna.... ‘s comfy here,” was the hosts muffled reply.The elder chuckled, “I know, but you really should get to bed.”“Don’t wa-nna....” The host whined.Rustling could be heard as the elder helped Thomas to his feet, “I know, I know.... how’s about I tuck you in? Would you like that?”“Mmmm.....”“Okay, then let’s go get you into bed.”Virgil listened closely as the two made their way back up the stairs, counting every step they made. Once the footsteps got far enough away the anxious side scrambled to the door. As quickly as he could Virgil grabbed his shoes and Thomas’ spare keys; unlocking the door and rushing out the second he heard the last lock click.
As quietly as he could Virgil closed the door and re-locked it, shoving the keys into his pocket once he was done. Carefully the anxious side backed his way down the front steps, his breaths staring to come short and fast. He stared wild eyed at the door as he sank to his knees and forced himself to take deep breaths. Tears pricked his eyes as he began to shake violently.That had been way, way too close.After a few minutes of coaxing, Virgil forced himself to his feet. He needed to get moving. Slowly the anxious side pulled on his shoes and made his way to the edge of the driveway; staring down the empty street. With one final deep breath he pulled his hood up, shoved his hands into his pockets, and started down the sidewalk.He kept his eyes focused on the houses as he passed, counting them as he went.One... two...The leaves rustled in the trees and Virgil forced himself to stay focused on the houses, quickening his pace.Three... Four... Five!The anxious side let out a relived sigh as he walked up to the familiar door. Before he even had a chance to knock the door was flung open to reveal a young brunette waiting for him. His dark eyes shone with relief as he stepped aside, making room for Virgil to come inside.“Thank god you made it!” he exclaimed, the relief in his voice apparent, “C’mon in and get comfortable, you’ll probably be here awhile.”The anxious side smirked as his friend closed the door behind him, “I would hope so Lennox, I’d be pissed if I had to go through all this just for a minute long conversation.”“So just getting to see your friends doesn’t make this trip worth it~?” Someone cooed from the living room, “Thats harsh Virge~”“Don’t start drama queen,” Virgil said as he kicked off his shoes, “You haven’t exactly made an effort to keep in touch with me.”“Harsh but true!” Lennox called from the kitchen, “You want anything Virg’?”“Can I have some coffee?” Virgil asked as he hopped onto the couch.The room went silent for a moment.Virgil turned around and met Lennox’s disapproving gaze, “I‘ll take that as a no.”Lennox sighed, “Would hot chocolate work as a substitute for coffee?”“Absolutely.”Lennox nodded, “I’ll get some ready then.”Virgil sighed and closed his eyes, listening as Lennox stared rummaging through the cupboards. Unconsciously the anxious side began to relax into the plush cushions, all the earlier tension leaving his body. This was one of the few places he felt he could truly relax the past few months, since the younger two knew what was going on and because they reminded him of the others; loud, playful, and kind.As he began to sink deeper into the cushions he heard a slight chuckle from across the room.“You’re that tired already~?” Xaivion teased, a smug grin on his face, “I thought Virgil Sanders could withstand more then this~”“Oh shut up,” Virgil groaned, “this is the first chance I’ve gotten to rest in months.”Even with his eyes closed Virgil could tell Xaivion was rolling his eyes, “And whose fault is that?”Virgil groaned again and forced himself to sit up, opening his eyes to glare at the brunette. Xaivion responded by flashing him a smug smile. Virgil’s glare quickly changed to a look of confusion as he spotted a bright pink mark on the younger’s face.“What’s that, under your eye?” Virgil asked, leaning forward in an attempt to get a better look.Xaivion gave him a weird look before realizing what the anxious side was talking about.“Oh! You mean this?” The dark haired man said pointing to the pink mark, “it’s a tattoo, I got it a few weeks ago.”He then brushed his hair away from his left ear revealing a tiny, blood red dagger dangling from two glittering blue jewels, “went and got my ear pierced too.”Virgil stared at the tattoo and earring for a moment before humming in approval, “they really suit you.”“Thanks!” Xaivion said with a smile, “I wanted to do something to try and set me and Lennox apart.”“And I keep saying that you don’t have to do stuff like that,” Lennox chimed in, setting a mug down in front of Virgil, “We’re already easy enough to tell apart.”“Yet people still get us confused,” Xaivion replied, making room for Lennox to sit beside him, “Hence the reason I’m trying to look different.”Virgil gave Xaivion a skeptical look which made the dark haired man sigh, “ok, that and I want to draw attention away from my dead eye.”“Jeez...” Virgil said with a chuckle, “I don’t understand how you can be so insecure about your looks, yet still have the confidence to flirt with everyone in a five mile radius.”“Yeah well, old habits die hard,” Xaivion said with a shrug.He pointed an accusing finger at Virgil, “You should know that better then anyone.”Virgil grimaced as he picked up his mug to take a sip, “don’t even start.”He accidentally spilled a few drops on himself as he looked away and muttered a silent curse in response. Getting a disapproving look from Lennox he rolled his eyes, putting down his cup to halfheartedly rub at the stain.“Anyways, what’s going on? Why’d you need me here so bad?”“First tell us what happened with Roman,” Lennox replied, “Cause that’s something we need to know.”Virgil grimaced, “Right.... I did say I would tell you about that huh?”The room went quiet as Virgil thought about what to say.“They’d just gotten me to lay down for a nap when you called. Roman had taken me upstairs and was cleaning up Thomas’ room while I slept cuz I didn’t want to be alone; so he heard my phone go off.”“He’d been shocked, and tried to get me to talk, but I locked myself in the bathroom and told him to go away. Apparently for the first bit he had, then I started crying and well… you can guess the rest.”Xaivion had leaned forward, resting his head on his hands, “So he knows the basics of the situation.”“Which isn’t a bad thing actually,” Lennox added, his arms crossed, “You need to tell all of them eventually, but starting with one extra shoulder to lean on is good.”“I know….” Virgil sunk into his hoodie “I just kinda wish it wasn’t Roman…”“Why~? Because you have a crush on him~?”“No, because I know the least about him,” Virgil glared at Xaivion, “He’s only recently stopped avoiding me thanks to Thomas. All I can really say about him is that he won’t blab to the others since he’s so secretive all the time.”“Besides even if I did like him like that it’s not like he feels the same…” he muttered after, hiding a blush.“You never know.”Lennox moved the conversation forward, “Do you remember Perry?”“Uh, that peppy dude you said was your younger brother, your host’s morality?”Lennox nodded, “He came over for the first time in awhile to introduce us to his girlfriend… and so she could fill us in.”The younger man went quiet for a moment and stared at his mug, “Turns out we weren’t the only ones stranded the day our host died.”He started relaying in detail what he’d been told. The day his host died he’d gone to protect his close friend, a girl who they’d known to be another host. They’d all assumed her sides had died with her, but it turns out two had survived- her creativity and anxiety.The two had been found by a group that had been trying to find their host, due to a special mark she’d possessed, and were taken in, protected, and trained. One had infiltrated the group that killed their host, while the other, Perry’s new girlfriend Carla, had moved here to find other hosts and protect them.The reason for choosing here? They had specifically ramped up efforts in this area for unknown reasons, so with the help of another double agent they’d been disrupting search and attack efforts. Unfortunately they could only do so much, which is what lead to everything that happened in the past few months.Virgil sat stunned for a moment, taking everything in.“So the entire reason we’re in danger is because they’re too fucking stupid to realize they already killed their target.”Lennox grimaced at his profanity, “They originally found you because they’re idiots, but there’s something else they’re trying to do here.”“There’s no way they’d be able to get into your hosts mind unless they’d tried something previously, plus what’s the point of scaring you all out if their goal was to kill him?” Xaivion added, “They’re just making their job harder that way.”“Exploit, experiment- ether way, whatever they wanna do with you isn’t good.”Virgil shivered at the thought of being used like a tool, “Let’s hope we never find out.”He stared at his now cold drink, thinking.“I still can’t believe it, It’s all so hard to wrap my head around.” He clenched his fists, “All of this because of some dude with a god complex.”“What’s so special about this stupid mark anyways?! Does it make you invincible or something?”Xaivion shrugged, “I wish we could say, even Carla couldn’t really explain it other than it’s an inherited thing that makes a person super strong, physically, mentally, etc etc.”“The only people that can really explain it are a little-“ he made the motion for crazy, “-at the moment.”Virgil tsked, annoyed, “God, this whole situation royally pisses me off.”He let out a loud yawn.“Well I’m at least glad you told me all this,” he pulled out his phone to check the time, “but I should start heading back before it gets too late.”Lennox looked worried, “You could stay here for the night if you want.”Virgil thought for a moment, glancing out the window and shivering. He was seriously considering the offer, but then he let out a sigh.“No, I have to head back. If they see I’m not there in the morning they’ll freak and ask questions I’m not prepared to answer.”He started to stand up and the younger man seemed to panic.“You could always head back early in the morning, we-““Lennox,” He stared the man down, “I’ll be okay.”He blinked, then knocked himself on the head, “Right, Right. Sorry Virg’.”The two younger men got up, Xaivion doing so with a stretch.“Would you at least like an escort? Just so you’re not alone.”Virgil paused at the door and bit his lip, “I should be good.”Lennox looked at the anxious side with worry again before suddenly running upstairs. Curious as to what was happening the anxious side finished pulling on his shoes and waited. A few minutes later Lennox returned carrying a fairly sizeable book.The young man flashed Virgil a worried smile as he handed him the book, “I’ve been meaning to give this to you for awhile, I thought it might help.”Without a word Virgil took the book and glanced at the title, nodding in thanks as he pulled up his hood.Lennox stayed by the door as Virgil made his way out, “Stay safe Virg’...”The anxious side nodded again, “I’ll try.”With that Lennox closed the door, leaving Virgil to begin his lonely walk home.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Roman woke with a start, his eyes going wide with fear. Immediately his gaze began to dart around the room before landing on Virgil. The anxious side was fast asleep beside him, blissfully unaware of his surroundings. He let out a shaky sigh as he watched his chest rise and fall with each breath.Thank god, It had just been a nightmare. Virgil was safe, everything was ok.Slowly he began to relax, his rapid heartbeat evening out as he brushed the hair from Virgil’s face. The sleeping side almost purred at the action, subconsciously pushing into Roman’s hand, making him blush. Him being shirtless wasn’t helping.Roman blinked. Why was Virgil shirtless? Had he taken it off in the night? He had mentioned he was hot the other night.He let out another sigh and looked towards the window. A faint stream of sunlight was beginning to shine through the leaves.There wasn’t much of a point in trying to go back to sleep now.He stole a quick glance at the sleeping side again before pushing himself out of bed. With a deep stretch he decided to head downstairs. There wasn’t much point sticking around up here while he waited for everyone to wake up.He crept down the hall As quietly as he could, freezing every time the floor made even the slightest creek. He knew how easy it was to wake the two elders and as much as he loved Patton’s cooking, those two needed their rest.After multiple pauses, and a few near trips, Roman finally found himself in the living room. He briefly glanced at the empty room, noting how peaceful it seemed and how restless that seemed to make him. Without thinking he let out a loud, frustrated sigh.The second he did, he heard a surprised yelp and loud thud come from the kitchen. He hurried over to the noise and cringed when he saw his host kneeling in front of the open fridge, clutching the back of his head.“Sorry Thomas,” Roman apologized, offering the host his hand, “I assumed that I was the only one awake.”Thomas took his hand and stood up, still rubbing the sore spot on his head, “it’s alright, I did too.”The host closed the fridge and flashed Roman a tired smile, “Were you having trouble sleeping?”Roman froze at the question before letting his shoulders sag, a defeated look on his face.“I-....yes...”The Royal rubbed the back of his neck and sighed, “I had a nightmare and didn’t see the point in trying to sleep again...”“Really?” Thomas said giving Roman a worried yet questioning look, “Do you get nightmares often?”Roman bit his lip and tried to avoid the hosts gaze, “Unfortunately yes, three or four times a month actually.”“Sometimes I’ll have more, sometimes less,” The Royal admitted, trying to play off his confession with a shrug.“... these nightmares involve the others don’t they?”The Royal froze, his darkening expression confirming the hosts question.Thomas moved a bit closer, trying to meet his gaze, “Do you want to talk about them?”Roman bit his lip as he thought, eventually shaking his head.“I’d...” Roman took a deep breath, “I’d rather not.”The Royal lifted his gaze to lock eyes with the worried host, flashing him a self loathing smirk, “Sometimes its best to ‘let sleeping dogs lie’.”Thomas frowned and nodded, unhappy with the response but not wanting to press him further.“Alright,” The host laid a hand on the Royals shoulder, “but if you ever want to talk about it, I’m all ears.”Roman smiled slightly “....Thanks Thomas.”“No problem,” The host replied with a worried smile.Without another word he reached past the Royal and grabbed a few of the muffins still left from the other day. After a moment Roman followed suit, grabbing a handful of cookies then a glass and some milk.“Now I believe it’s my turn for questions,” Roman said as the host began to eat, “Why are you up so early?”“Mmpfh?” The host swallowed his mouthful, “Ah, I’d planned to do some filming with friends last week but things came up so we had to cancel.”“Everyone’s free today and the weather is perfect so we’re gonna try again before something else comes up,” he explained between bites.Roman nodded in understanding, starting on his own food as he tried to stay focused on the host.“Will there be any filming at the house?”“I don’t think so,” Thomas answered with a frown, “but if there is I’ll find a way to get ahold of you.”Roman took another bite as he thought for a moment, a smile quickly spreading across his face as an idea came to him. With a snap of his fingers he made a cellphone appear in front of him.Thomas stared at him with a confused look on his face, then looked down at Roman’s phone and had to keep himself from laughing and spewing bits of muffin everywhere.The Royal raised an eyebrow as the host attempted to swallow, “What?”“S-Sorry Roman Its just Ah ,” Thomas paused for a moment to catch his breath, “Your phone case....”Roman looked down at his phone case then turned back to the host with an annoyed glare, “I’m your creative side, what were you expecting?”“I don’t know, but it definitely wasn’t a glitter rainbow!” Thomas replied finally laughing.“Oh for the love of-,” The Royal sighed and rolled his eyes quickly moving to sit across from Thomas, “Look, Do you have your phone right now or not?”The host gave a quick nod, pulling said phone out of his pocket while trying to calm himself down. Within seconds Roman had it unlocked and was adding a few new numbers to Thomas’ contacts. He handed, well more like threw, it back once he was done, letting out a slightly annoyed huff as the host wiped a few laughter induced tears from his eyes.“I just added me, Patton and Logan’s numbers into your phone,” The Royal explained trying his hardest to ignore Thomas, “So now if something happens you can get ahold of us.”“Does Virgil not have a working phone?”“Hmm? Oh no, he does,” Roman replied, “I don’t have his number though and neither does Patton. You’d probably have to ask Logan for it.”Thomas gave him a confused look and Roman rolled his eyes.“Last time he gave Patton his number he wouldn’t stop calling him and never gave it to me. Doesn’t trust me enough.”He felt his shoulders sag a bit as he said the last part.“Oh, so he changed his number then?”“Nah, got a whole new phone,” he waved off the question, “Pawned the old one off on Remy.”“He only got his new one recently anyways, as far as we knew he was still using his beaten up MP3 player.”“That’s fair,” Thomas nodded in understanding “Nice of him to give it to Remy though. He’s practically glued to mine when I call on him for videos, so I bet he appreciates it.”He quickly wiped the crumbs from his face, getting up, “I’m headed out. Thanks for getting me your guy’s numbers.”“No problem Thomas!”Roman turned back to his cookies as he watched Thomas hurry over to the door. His attention shifted again though as a look of confusion crossed Thomas’ face.“Hey Roman?” The host called out, kneeling down to pick something up, “Were any of you messing with my keys the other day?”Roman looked at him with an equally confused face, “As far as I’m aware none of us went near the door. Why?”“I just found my spares in my shoes,” Thomas explained as he hung them back up, “but if you guys weren’t messing with them then I guess they just fell from the hook.”Roman’s eyes narrowed slightly as things started clicking together in his head, “yeah, I guess they did.”“Oh well, I’ll see you later Roman!”“Good luck!” The creative side called out, the door soon slamming closed behind the host.Once Thomas was gone Roman quickly scarfed down the rest of his cookies and went over to the door. He looked closely at the hook Thomas had put the spare keys on and could immediately tell there was no way that they could have fallen themselves. The only way they could have been on the floor was if someone had dropped them. Looking at the shoes he also noted that there was a certain pair missing…More pieces slid into place as he quickly cleaned up his mess. He needed to check their room.Once back upstairs he checked on Virgil, making sure he was still asleep, then began his search. It wasn’t a difficult one in the near empty room, as he quickly found the anxious sides jacket crumpled up at the foot of the bed. Another point against him as he was certain it had been folded neatly the night prior.Lifting it up, all his suspicions were confirmed. There in a pile were Virgil’s missing shoes and shirt. His shoes were dirty, with dead leaves clinging to the soles and his shirt had a brown stain that he knew wasn’t there last night.Maybe he had gone outside for some air, and maybe he had made himself something to drink in the night- but things just weren’t adding up.The final nail in the coffin was the book, tucked carefully behind everything.Pulling it he could easily tell it had seen better days. The cover was worn out and it’s pages slightly warped from years of use. Its golden letting was barely hanging on, the title ‘the in’s and outs of Manifesters and Partials: A guide to being a host’, almost completely worn away.Turning the book over in his hands he was almost entranced by it, his curiosity begging him to flip through its pages. He ended up so focused he almost missed the sheets rustling above him.He looked up quickly, his expression softening as he watched the colour drain from Virgil’s face.“M-Morning Roman,” The anxious side stuttered, his eyes flicking from the book to the Royal and back again.He stared at him and blinked, then gave him a soft smile.“You missed the hook when you put the keys back.”Virgil flinched at the statement then let his shoulders sag in defeat.His expression changed to one of worry as he put the book down and moved to sit beside him. The anxious side turned away in response, biting his nails.“You know...” he started, leaning back slightly to try and catch his eyes, “the other day you said you’d explain the conversation with your friend.”Virgil grimaced at his next words, “But I have yet to hear an explanation from you.”The room went silent as Roman searched Virgil’s face, trying to gauge how the younger was doing.“... Someone is hunting us,” Virgil suddenly muttered his expression dark, “and they’ve been slipping into the mind palace for months now.”Roman’s eyes went wide as Vigil continued.“I’d been fighting them off the best I could, even resorting to dragging them out when they became to much to handle,” Virgil explained drawing his knees to his chest, “b-but they kept coming, and t-then the other day...”The anxious side began to cry, “T-There was too many of them, I-I couldn’t just fight t-them off so I.... I...”“I Dragged You All Out Here!” Virgil exclaimed, a loud sob following his outburst, “I-I don... I don’t know h-how I did b-but... but I kn-knew if all f-four of us were out h-here t-then they wouldn’t b-be able to access the mind palace...”The anxious side looked up at Roman and in that moment the Royal didn’t see the gloomy side. He saw a child, a terrified child that was lost and alone.“I didn’t kn-know what else to d-do, I-I had to protect e-everyone somehow... I-I had to- to...!”Roman stopped him there by pulling the anxious side into his arms. Virgil yelped at the sudden movement but quickly melted into a sobbing mess. Roman only squeezed tighter as Virgil let go, this time letting out all of the emotions he’d been trying to hide.Roman began rubbing soothing circles into Virgil’s back and running his fingers through the younger’s hair."Shhhh... It's ok Virg, it's ok. I'm here, you’re safe,” The Royal started to coo, reassuring the sobbing mess in his arms, “just let it out, everything will be okay.”Virgil’s sobs grew louder."Shhhh... it’s alright,” Roman continued, “You’re safe I won’t let anything hurt you.”They stayed like this for what seemed like an eternity, Roman resorting to singing when he ran out of words to say. Slowly but surely Virgil calmed down, his sobs eventually giving way to whimpers and finally a content silence.“Feeling better?” The Royal asked flashing Virgil a reassuring smile.Virgil nodded slightly as he buried his face in Roman’s shoulder."I’m sorry for not telling you sooner but I.... I didn’t want to make you all worry," the anxious side muttered, “You all have so much to deal with right now, and we only just learned why this is all happening.”“We?” He gave the anxious side a questioning look.“My... friends,” Virgil answered with a sigh, pulling away from the Royal, “the ones I’ve been talking to.”Roman let go of Virgil and let him sit up, “the ones you visited last night?”Virgil cringed, “Y-Yeah...”They both went silent again.“Lennox and Xaivion,” Virgil eventually said, “that’s their names.”Virgil started to fidget as he spoke, “I met them a few months ago, around the time I started dragging those things out of the mind palace.”“Thomas was going to wake up soon and it was still too risky for me to go back into the mind palace,” He explained, “To keep from getting spotted I took a walk around the neighbourhood but I was still pretty shaken up.”“If I’m remembering right Lennox had been at the hospital and was just walking home when he spotted me,” Virgil let out a nervous laugh, “I hadn’t noticed at the time but I was shaking pretty badly, so he did the first thing he could think of to help.”Roman gave Virgil a questioning look, “which was?”“He, ah...” the anxious side rubbed the back of his neck, “He dragged to his place, asked me if I wanted anything then buried me in blankets and ordered pizza.”Roman flashed him a sympathetic smile, “I’m going to assume you were panicking the entire time.”Virgil laughed again, “Yeah... it was an... interesting experience to say the least.”Roman laughed along with the anxious side before putting a hand on his shoulder.“You gonna be okay?”Virgil nodded, wiping at his face, “I’ll be good for a little while at least.”Roman let out an amused huff and pulled him into another hug.“I promise that I’ll protect you and the others with everything I’ve got,”
The Royal said running his fingers through the anxious side’s hair, “So whatever happens from now on we’re in it together, alright?”Virgil pushed his face further into Roman’s shoulder, “Alright.”The Royal smiled and gently pushed the anxious side away.“Why don’t you go get washed up?” He said as he ruffled Virgil’s hair slightly, “I’ll head downstairs and make you something to eat, if Patton hasn’t already”The anxious side smirked and straightened out his hair, “whatever you say Mom~”Roman rolled his eyes in response as Virgil stood up, “Just go get cleaned up Sunshine.”“I’m going, I’m going!” Virgil called as he made his way to the door.The anxious side grabbed the door handle and paused for a moment, taking the chance to glance back at Roman who was now completely bathed in sunlight.“Thank you Roman...” Virgil muttered before leaving the room.Roman’s smile grew a little wider as the door closed behind him, “No problem Virgil.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The smell of eggs and toast met Virgil as he reached the bottom of the stairs. The anxious side smiled as he turned to the kitchen, easily spotting Roman who was humming softly to himself as he cleaned up. The Royal paused briefly when he heard Virgil walk over.Roman smiled and gestured to a plate set out on the table, “Im not the best at cooking so I hope scrambled eggs and toast is fine with you.”The anxious side nodded as he moved to sit down, “As long as it’s edible I won’t complain.”“Im not sure if I should be thankful or offended,” Roman replied with a laugh.Virgil responded by rolling his eyes, a playful smirk forming on his face as he started to eat. A few bites in he paused to watch Roman as the Royal made his way from the kitchen over to the couches.Virgil gave him a questioning look, “Aren’t you gonna eat too?”“I already ate earlier,” Roman replied waving his hand in an attempt to dismiss the comment, “So I don’t need anything right now.”The anxious side‘s eyes narrowed into a skeptical glare, “Really? what did you have?”Roman tensed at the question, “some cookies...”Virgil turned himself around in the chair so he could talk to Roman easier, “So cookies now count as breakfast, good to know.”“Could you please stop questioning me and eat?” Roman said in a slightly annoyed tone.Virgil’s smirk grew as he pushed his chair closer to the couch, “No ‘cause now Im going to bother you until you eat something actually nutritious.”The Royal sighed, “Well I suggest you give up now because I’m not hungry and I probably won’t be for awhile.”“Too bad,” the anxious side said as he poked Roman’s face, “Eat something.”“No.”“Eat.”“No.”“Eat.”“Virgil...”“Eat~.”“Virgil stop.”“I’ll stop when you get something to eat.”They both went silent for a moment.“Eeeeeeee-“Roman snapped, “I Told You I’m Not Hungry So Shut Up Already!”Virgil’s playful expression disappeared as he threw up his arms in defence, “Alright, Alright! I’ll stop, No need to shout.”Roman’s eyes went wide as his mind registered his outburst, “O-Oh! I’m sorry Virgil, I didn’t-“The anxious side put up a hand to stop him. “It’s alright Princy, I was just messing with you,” Virgil said his playful smirk returning, “though I do think you should have at least a bit more for breakfast.”The anxious side jabbed his thumb back towards his plate, “I mean, It feels wrong eating a full meal when all you’ve had are a few cookies.”The Royal let out a relived sigh and glanced at him, “Why didn’t you just say so?”Virgil shrugged, “it’s more fun to mess with you.”Roman let out an amused huff at the response before turning back to the anxious side.“If it’s really bugging you that much then why don’t we share?”Virgil’s smirk softened into a smile at the suggestion, “I’m fine with it If you are.“The Royal smiled back and scooted over before patting the couch beside him, “Then get over here already.”Virgil nodded and smiled before grabbing his plate and passing it off to Roman. The Royal smiled back as he placed it on the coffee table, making sure it was out of the way as the anxious side hopped over the back of the couch and landed beside him. “So what now?” Virgil asked as he grabbed a piece of toast from the plate, “We gonna watch Tv or something?”The Royal thought for a moment, nibbling on the other piece of toast as he did, “I’m not quite sure.”“I don’t want to risk waking up the other two,” Roman continued, thinking out loud, “that and there’s probably nothing interesting on right now anyways.”“I guess you’re right,” Virgil agreed leaning back into the couch.“Too bad we don’t have access to any of Pat’s photo albums,” the anxious side said with a sigh, “Now would be the perfect time to go through a few of them.”Roman nodded in agreement, grabbing a fork full of eggs as he did, “It would be the perfect time wouldn’t it?”The Royal went silent for a moment as he chewed his food, his eyes slowly widening as he remembered something important.Within seconds the Royal had swallowed his mouthful and was sitting up straight, the old album from the other day soon appearing in his hands.Virgil gave the Royal a curious glance, soon sitting up as well, “Where’d you get that from?”Roman grimaced, “I... accidentally took it from Patton’s room yesterday.”“He’d wanted to talk to me in private and I found it while waiting for him,” The Royal admitted, “Its got some pretty dark stuff in it so when he opened the door I panicked and flashed it away.”The Royal turned away, a red tint beginning to dust his cheeks, “I was going to tell him afterwards, but once the talk was over I just wanted to get out as soon as I could so it slipped my mind.”Virgil flashed him a sympathetic smile, “These things happen. Trust me, he’s caught me off guard more times then I’d like to admit.”Roman frowned, “That still doesn’t make me feel better about it.”Virgil let out a soft huff before moving closer to Roman, “Then let’s go through it together, that way if he’s angry about it we can both share the blame.”The Royal stared at the anxious side in shock.“A-Are you sure?” He stuttered slightly, trying to regain his composure, “L-Like I said it’s pretty dark, and I only scratched the surface.”Virgil gave him a slight shrug as he leaned over, trying to get a better look at the album, “So? I’m not scared of a few pictures.”Roman bit his lip and thought for a few moments before giving in with a sigh.“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he mumbled as he finally opened the album.Virgil gave him a confused look as the Royal flipped through the first few pages, not understanding what was so ‘Dark’ about it. His confusion soon turned to shock as Roman reached the photos he’d found the other day.The anxious side stared wide eyed at the picture of Patton, occasionally turning from it to Roman and back again, “That was Patton?!”“That’s the same thing I thought,” Roman answered as he flipped the page, a worried frown on his face, “There’s one of Logan too.”Virgil’s eyes went even wider as he saw the second picture, “He looks horrible...”The two went silent as they looked over the page. Eventually they locked eyes with each other and nodded, coming to a silent agreement before turning the page. Within moments they were going through the other pictures together, both shocked and horrified at the cruel reality the Elders had been forced to endure.After coming across a picture of a riot in the camp Virgil turned to Roman, fear on his face, “What caused this?”“What do you mean?”“This!” The anxious side exclaimed pointing to the album, “Everything we’re seeing in these pictures!”Roman turned to Virgil, stunned, before grimacing as he remembered the younger’s amnesia, “Right... you don’t remember the Dragon Witch...”Virgil gave him a half confused, half terrified look which caused the Royal to sigh and turn back to the album.Roman ran his fingers lightly over the picture, his expression going dark, “... things weren’t always bright and cheerful in the mind palace.”“When Thomas was younger, much younger, the Dragon Witch ruled over the mind palace,” The Royal explained, keeping his eyes glued to the photos, “Everyone was forced to work, either serving her or in slave camps scattered throughout the kingdom.”“I was one of few that managed to escape to the briar forests and beyond, the farthest reaches of the kingdom where she had no power,” Roman continued, running his fingers over the picture again.He stopped them over the two figures that resembled the elders, “Others weren’t so lucky.”Virgil looked down at Roman’s hand as What he said sank in, “I wonder how lucky I was?”“You were one of the luckiest out there” the Royal began slowly, careful not to say too much, “The day Deceit found me he told me the whole reason he was even out that far was because he’d seen you form a few weeks earlier.”Roman paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, “He didn’t say much else but I do remember him mumbling something about a bright purple light that lead him to you.”Roman turned to face the anxious side after and was caught off guard by the sad expression on his face.Virgil looked up to meet his gaze, “Did you ever talk to me?”The colour drained slightly from Roman’s face at the question, though it wasn’t enough for Virgil to notice.“O-Of course I did!” The Royal exclaimed, “though it was only once or twice when Deceit forced you to come out of your room.”The anxious side furrowed his brow as he thought, “So I was a recluse...”Roman nodded in agreement, avoiding the others gaze, “as far as I could tell you were scared of being around others, and to an extent... they were scared of you.”Virgil scoffed at the Royal, “Thanks, that’s totally what I wanted to hear.”Roman sighed, “I’m sorry Virgil.”The anxious looked down at his hands, “Don’t be, it’s my own fault that I didn’t make any friends.”“Besides it’s probably my own fault that my memories are gone.”Virgil was suddenly startled out of his thoughts by a choked sound coming from Roman. He turned to glance at the Royal and saw he had tears in his eyes and a look of regret on his face.The anxious side turned away, letting out a sad laugh, “Sorry Roman I just... seeing all these old pictures got me thinking.”Roman shook his head before wiping the tears from his eyes, “No! No, it’s alright.”“I can’t imagine how hard it’s been on you, having lost your memories,” The Royal said putting a hand on Virgil’s shoulder, “But if it’s any solace I’m positive that you have at least a few happy memories waiting for you.”“Even if there isn’t you’ll at least be happy to have them back!”Roman and Virgil both jumped at the sudden interjection, quickly turning towards the source of the voice.“Da- Patton!” Virgil yelped, spotting the elder leaning over the stair rail, “how long have you been standing there?!”Patton giggled, a bright smile on his face, “Only about a minute or two, no need to panic.”The two younger sides let out a collective sigh of relief which made Patton giggle again.“So what have you two been up too?” The elder asked as he made his way down the stairs.Roman turned away, guilt written all over his face, “We, ah.... We’ve been going through one of your photo albums....”“I had a feeling you’d taken one,” Patton said flashing him a forgiving smile, “The shelf seemed a bit empty when I checked last night.”Roman hung his head in shame, “I’m sorry Patton I should have told you right away instead of hiding it.”Patton let out a quiet huff before walking over and ruffling the Royal’s hair, “It’s okay kiddo, these things happen.”“Besides you should know by now that I love showing off my collections,” He reassured with a smile.Virgil locked eyes with Roman, “Are you absolutely sure about that Pat’?”“Of course I am silly!” The Elder said with a giggle as he plopped down beside Roman, “Now then I wanna see which album you took ‘cause I couldn’t figure out which one was missing last ni-“The elder’s smile disappeared when he saw the photo album on the table, his eyes going wide with shock, “-ght.”Patton stared at it for awhile before picking up the album, handling it like it could crumble at any moment. Carefully the elder placed it in his lap, running his fingers lightly over the pages once he did. Roman and Virgil watched with worry as hundreds of emotions seemed to hit the elder at once, his face quickly changing from joy to confusion to sadness before contorting in anger and finally landing on a tear filled smile.“Are you okay Patton?” Virgil asked softly, concern written all over his face.Patton wiped at his tears, “I-I’ll be fine. I-... well I thought I’d never get to see this again.”Roman eyed the elder with concern and confusion, “Did you lose it?”“No! No...” Patton exclaimed giving up on fighting his tears, “It wasn’t mine to begin with.”He turned back to the album, “It belonged to an old friend...”The Elder trailed off as his tears started falling faster, blurring his vision. Roman put a hand on his shoulder, getting ready to try and comfort the elder, when someone let out a screech from the stairs.Everyone turned almost immediately to see Logan, still in his pyjamas, about halfway down the stairs, his expression a mix of fear and anger.The usually calm side rushed down the rest of the stairs and flicked his gaze between the three of them, his eyes eventually landing on Patton and the album.“How Did You Find That?!” Logan yelled, his voice cracking slightly as he did.Patton wiped his tears away and stood up to face him, the album held close to his chest, “I didn’t find it, Roman did.”The logical side turned to Roman at the response, seeming even more furious, “You!? I Had Hoped That You Of All People Would Have Kept Yourself From-!““Logan That’s Enough!” Patton yelled, hugging the album tighter.Logan shut his mouth and turned away, his anger still written all over his face. Suddenly he began to shake, a few stray tears rolling down his cheeks.Patton’s expression softened, “How long have you been hiding this from me Logan?”The logical side took a deep breath and swiped at his face, trying to get rid of the tears. After a few seconds he turned back to Patton, opened his mouth to speak, and was immediately cut off by a loud ringtone.The second it went off Roman scrabbled for his phone, putting it on speaker so everyone could hear.“Roman!” Thomas exclaimed quietly from the other end, “Thank goodness you picked up.”Everyone turned to the Royal with confused looks on theirs faces, briefly ignoring the situation with the album.A look of concern crossed Roman’s face and he motioned for the others to stay quiet, “Whats wrong Thomas?”“You know how this morning you asked if we were doing any filming at the house?” The host explained, obviously trying to keep his voice down.“You’re on your way over aren’t you,” Roman stated, a hint of panic in his voice.“Yeah so you guys need to fix things and hide, like right now!” He hissed in an obviously panicked tone.“Who you talking to Thomas?” A muffled voice on the other end suddenly asked, obviously scareing the host.“O-Oh! Just ah, accidentally butt dialed someone!” Thomas lied, his voice taking on an overly cheerful tone, “I was apologizing to them before hanging up.”Whoever asked the question was seemingly satisfied with the answer as they didn’t try to pry any further. The host went quiet again, his voice taking on an even more panicked tone, “I’m sorry for the short notice, but please I need you and the others to hide!”Without another word Thomas ended the call, leaving the four sides speechless. Eventually they all locked eyes with each other.Patton was the first to open his mouth, “D-Did he just...”Roman nodded, attempting to swallow the lump forming in his throat. Without another word the three elders turned to Virgil just in time to see him let out a terrified whimper. Within seconds he was curling in on himself, his mind shutting down as panic began to set in.This immediately set Roman and Logan into action.The Royal gently shook Virgil, bringing him back to his senses, as the logical side grabbed Patton.“Roman Change Upstairs Back To Normal!” Logan ordered as he dragged the elder away, “Patton You’re Helping Me With The Kitchen!”Roman nodded in understanding and snapped his fingers, before turning back to the anxious side, “Think you can help me clean up the living room?”Virgil nodded slightly as he forced himself up, immediately getting to work clearing away their unfinished food and cleaning the table.Within moments they’d all finished their separate tasks, the four of them meeting up at the stairs once they had. The elder three let out a collective sigh of relief.Logan smiled slightly, pleased with everyone’s efforts, “Okay now we just need to-“Without out warning the doorbell went off making all four sides freeze. A few muffled voices started to drift in afterwards and at that moment Virgil’s fight or flight instincts kicked in making him bolt up the stairs. This in turn set the other three back in action as Logan took charge again and urged the other two up after the anxious side. They all made it upstairs not a moment to soon as the second Logan’s feet reached the final step they all heard the door swing open. Laughter and jokes abounded as Thomas and his friends began to crowd into the small living room, all of them but Thomas oblivious to the secret guests hiding just out of sight.Roman turned to Logan, panic evident in his eyes, before grabbing hold of Virgil who was beginning to whimper again.Logan stole a quick glance at the stairs then began to usher the others down the hall, leading them towards the office. The second oldest easily herded the others into the empty room and quietly closed the door behind them, slowly backing away from it once he had. Eventually he turned back to the others, huddled and panicked in the middle of the room, and let out a relived sigh.The elder three stared at each other in relative silence for a moment, all of them at a loss for what to do as muffled laughter drifted up from below and as Virgil clung to Roman, most likely on the verge of a panic attack.Eventually Roman blinked at the elder two and turned his full attention to Virgil, carefully easing the younger and himself into a corner beside the desk. Once there he pulled Virgil into his lap and started running a hand through his hair, all the while whispering reassuring words to him.Soon Patton and Logan followed suit, the two of them setting down a few feet away to give the others some space. The two stayed mostly silent as they kept an eye on the others, the only noise between them being the occasional soft hum from Patton. Eventually the eldest started stealing glances at the logical side, trying to gauge the others feelings.After about the tenth or twelfth glance the bubbly side let out a relaxed sigh and leaned over to rest his head on Logan’s shoulder. This made the logical side flinch, his face going slightly red as he was taken off guard by the action.The logical side cleared his throat as he attempted to hide his face, “W-What are you trying to do Patton?”“I’m getting comfortable Teach’” Patton whispered, just loud enough for Logan to hear, “That and I’m trying to lighten the mood a little.”A slight smile made its way to Logan’s face at that, “Well then you’re doing a good job.”Patton giggled slightly and snuggled closer, eventually going back to humming softly as he relaxed.“Hey Lo’?” Patton asked as he lifted his head up slightly.“Mmhm?”“What were you going to say earlier?”Logan frowned slightly and sighed, “I was hoping you wouldn’t bring up that until later.”The bubbly side flashed him a knowing smile and held up the album, essentially pulling it out of thin air, “No better time then the present.”Logan rolled his eyes and turned away, seemingly trying to collect his thoughts. They stayed silent for awhile after, both just sitting and listening to everything happening around them. Eventually Logan shifted so he could see Patton easier.“One of the castle guards gave it to me after the assault,” Logan explained, briefly glancing over at Roman, “It was before we first met Roman, but just after we’d met Dr.Picani.”“Oh? Then one of us should have seen you get the album.”The logical side nodded, “You should have, yes, but you two were distracted by one of the servants that had been injured in the attack.”Logan readjusted his glasses, “More specifically Pranks who, if I’m not mistaken, was immediately won over by your limitless puns and Picani’s extensive knowledge of cartoons and other popular media.”The bubbly side hummed in approval, “I remember that, he’d looked so scared that I just had to do something to make him feel better!”“Mmm, Anyways it turns out that that guard was one of two assigned to Nostalgia before...”The logical side paused for a moment, “Before his execution...”- — — —— ————— —— — — - The logical side let out a frustrated sigh. They should have met up with the briar forces general ages ago, but the elder refused to stay on task. He kept insisting that he talk to everyone that they happened to come across, leaving Logan to wait for him in the halls.Eventually he heard someone approach from behind.“E-Excuse me sir”“What do you need,” Logan stated abruptly, his voice letting on that he was more than a little annoyed.He didn’t even turn to face his questioner, opting instead to keep his eyes on the elder that was currently trying to cheer up a child.“U-Um, I-I was wondering if you happened to be one of the resistance leaders....” the man forced out, seemingly uncertain of his own words.Logan let out another frustrated sigh before turning to face him. Almost immediately he became wary of the man. He was a guard and a high ranking one at that, though obviously not important enough to be killed on sight.“Yes, in fact I am,” the logical side replied, pushing up his glasses as he glared at the guard, “And I’ll tell you right now any attempt on my life will not go unchallenged.”The guard threw up his hands in defence, “T-That’s not why I was asking!”Before Logan even got the chance to ask the guard pulled out a very familiar album. Immediately he grabbed it and flipped it to the very back page. Right where it was supposed to be was the familiar signature of the former resistance leader, Nostalgia.“How?!” The logical side hissed, flashing the album away before the Prominent could turn around and see it.The guard took a deep breath, obviously shaken by the logical sides reaction, “I was given the task of guarding the previous leader before his execution.”“Lets just say meeting him gave me a whole new perspective on the Dragon Witch,” he said, a look of disgust crossing his face as he did.“That still doesn’t quite answer my question...” Logan said his eyes narrowed.“I gained his trust in the few days he was here, so when the time came for his execution to be carried he asked me to take care of it for him,” the guard explained.His face fell as he spoke, “He told me just before he was taken away that there was two young boys he was leaving behind, even gave me detailed descriptions of them, and said that they would one day carry the resistance to victory.”“He told me that if I was still alive after that day to find the leaders and give this album to them,” the guard continued, his voice wavering slightly, “He said that if he couldn’t be there for you he could at least leave you with something to remember him by.”Logan’s expression went dark, almost becoming unreadable. A look of concern crossed the guard’s face and he reached out to try and comfort him.As if on cue Patton appeared beside Logan, frightening the guard.“What’s happening Lo’?”“Ah Patton!” The logical side exclaimed, suddenly acting as if nothing had happened, “Good to see you’re finally done with your ‘Important Business’.”“Oh come on Lo’, it’s not like Roman has anywhere else to be right now,” The bubbly side said with a giggle.“You don’t know that,” Logan stated, pushing up his glasses, “So let’s not keep him waiting any longer.”“Oh alright,” Patton said as Logan began to drag him away, “Goodbye random guard!”The guard responded with a wave, to stunned to do anything else as the young sides disappeared down the hallway.- — — —— ————— —— — — - “So that’s why you two were talking!” Patton exclaimed happily, “I’d thought it was strange that you were talking to one of the guards.”Roman let out a soft hum, “I’m surprised you were even able to hide from Patton that easily.”“Of course you were listening...” The logical side muttered.He cleared his throat, “it was a lot easier to hide things from Patton back then, since there was so much more he needed to focus on. It wasn’t until everything calmed down that he started getting nosy.” “Why’d you bring it out here in the first place?” The elder asked, brushing off the accidental insult.“I felt uneasy leaving it in the mind palace while we’re out here,” Logan explained, “I’ve had to move it a few times because of the Dark Sides, So I didn’t want to risk them finding it while we’re away.”“They have been coming by a lot more recently,” Roman said with a laugh, “In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve stepped in to run the kingdom while we’re away.”“Are they even be capable of running a kingdom?” Logan asked, giving the Royal a questioning look.Roman laughed at the question, “Of course they are! In fact most of them are more capable then myself!”A smirk found its way into his face, “I’m actually counting on them to knock some sense into those snobby nobles while they’re at it!”Patton suppressed a laugh at the remark before changing the subject, “How’s Virgil doing?”“Ah, he passed out awhile... a... go...”The Royal suddenly went silent, his eyes going wide with fear.“Roman? What’s wrong?” The bubbly side asked, concerned for the Royal.Slowly Roman raised his arm and pointed to the door.The elders quickly turned to face the door and their expressions quickly changed to mirror the Royal’s.Standing there, frozen in shock, were Talyn and Joan. A bit further down the hall something fell to the floor as someone, probably Thomas, realized what was happening.Before they even had a chance to react Thomas was behind them, covering Talyn’s mouth with one hand and doing the same to Joan with the other. Immediately the two began to struggle.“Please, Please, Please~ don’t freakout,” Thomas pleaded, ignoring his friends muffled protests, “I’ll explain everything once the others leave, but I need you two to keep quite until then!”They both calmed down slightly and gave him skeptical glares.“Please? I promise I’ll explain everything I know,” The host begged.After a few more seconds of glaring both gave him a solid nod and he let out a shaky breath as he released them.“You better keep your word Thomas,” Joan said jabbing a finger at the terrified sides, “‘Cause this? This should not be possible!”Thomas’s shoulder’s slumped as he ushered his friends out of the room, giving his sides an apologetic look as he closed the door, “I know Joan, I‘m sorry.”With that the four sides were left alone again, confused and even more scared then when they first hid in the room, wondering how much worse this day could get.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

A low groan escaped Virgil as he forced his eyes open. Why was it so bright? The office lights weren’t that strong, and he could have sworn they were off when he passed out.He let out another, louder, groan as he shifted and within seconds the light was blocked by a dark shadow.“How are you feeling Virgil?”The anxious side mumbled something unintelligible as he let his eyes focus on the figure above him. It took a moment for his mind to register them but once it did his eyes went wide with surprise. Within seconds the anxious side was scrambling away from the figure, his mind reeling as he finally recognized Roman. The Royal looked slightly hurt by the action but it was quickly forgotten as he caught the anxious side’s expression. Roman got ready to move as Virgil started scanning the room, his eyes wide with a mix of shock and fear as he looked around. He watched as the anxious side’s gaze moved from him to Patton and Logan, then to Thomas before finally....Virgil froze as his gaze landed on Joan and Talyn. The colour drained from the anxious side’s face as his breathing sped up, his whole body shaking with fear. Almost Immediately Roman grabbed ahold of the terrified side and pulled him close, both hands on his shoulders.“Hey, Look at me Virg’, Look at me,” The Royal demanded, trying to keep Virgil’s focus on him , “Everything’s Alright.”“Joan and Talyn found us while cleaning up, so we had to explain everything to them,” Roman explained, his grip tightening slightly.Virgil calmed down slightly, though his voice was still a bit shaky, “E-Everything?”Roman made a pointed glance at the others, “Everything.”Virgil kept his locked eyes with Roman, an unspoken question passing between them. The Royal shook his head slightly in response and Virgil let out a shaky breath. As Virgil began to calm down everyone turned their attention to Thomas.“So you’re ‘Totally not freaking out about this’, ‘Everything is under control’,” Joan stated sarcastically, flashing the Host a skeptical glare, “That did not look like someone with everything under control.”Thomas flinched, “I may have stretched the truth a bit...”A look of disappointment crossed Patton’s face at the statement.“... But I am doing better than when they first showed up!”Talyn shook their head in disappointment, a worried look on their face, “Better doesn’t mean okay Thomas.”The Host’s shoulders sagged in defeat, “I’m sorry, it’s just...”He let out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand through his hair, “I don’t know what to do!”“They don’t know what’s going on, I don’t know what’s going on,” Thomas stated, “I mean I have no idea if it was just an accident or if we’re all in serious danger!”Thomas looked up at everyone tears in his eyes, “I just.... I don’t know what to do.”The room went silent as Thomas tried to calm himself down, everyone unsure of what to do. Suddenly Talyn got up and moved in front Thomas, their expression unreadable. Without warning they lunged forward and pulled him into a hug, completely surprising him. Joan immediately followed suit, getting in close to try and comfort both the host and a now teary eyed Talyn.“Why didn’t you just say something idiot!” They scolded through their tears, “We could have been here to help from the beginning!”“I-I know, l-I’m sorry.”Joan hugged him tighter, “Stop apologizing already, it’s getting old really fast.”“I’m sorry.”The sides let out a collective sigh of relief as Thomas let go, many of their own worries slipping away as their host opened up to his friends. Eventually Thomas forced his friends away to wipe his face.Joan flashed Thomas a worried, yet playful, smile, “No more secrets?”Thomas nodded, “No more secrets.”A look of relief crossed Patton’s face at that and he smiled at the three friends, taking a quick glance the time, “Now that everything’s been settled how about we have dinner?”“Oh! Is it that late already?” The host exclaimed, “I didn’t notice.”Logan let out a slight huff and smiled, “It’s alright Thomas, none of us minded the wait.”“Though it is about time we ate,” the logical side continued making a pointed glance at Virgil, “Since the four of us had to skip lunch.”“Right...” Thomas said a guilty look on his face, “uh... does pizza sound good to you guys?”Virgil smirked at that, a playful glint in his eyes, “Do you even need to ask?”“Pizza it is then!” Thomas exclaimed as he pulled out his phone.He turned to his friends as he punched in the number, “Are you two gonna be staying longer or...”Joan smirked at him, “You think we’re just gonna leave after all that?”“I just wanted to make sure,” Thomas replied throwing his hands up in defence, “You two hadn’t said if you had plans tonight or not.”“Nah, we don’t have any plans,” Talyn said with a smile.“Besides Id like to hear more about the mind palace from you four,” Joan added a curious look in their eyes, “What you guys were saying earlier got me interested.”Virgil gave Roman a confused look and the Royal flashed him a guilty smile.“Logan was talking about the album earlier and made a comment about the Dark Sides,” The Royal explained, an embarrassed blush dusting his cheeks, “I made some comments of my own and may, or may not have forgotten to keep my voice down.”“In his defence,” Logan quickly added, “All of us were being louder than we should have been.”Virgil gave them all a blank look, “Didn’t you three manage to hide two separate insurgencies for nearly ten years?”Roman’s face went an even deeper shade of red at the comment, “Well Y-!”He quickly snapped his mouth shut and turned away, stopping himself mid sentence. Virgil smirked, “I what?”“Never mind,” The Royal answered, “It was a stupid comeback.”“If you’re all done talking,” Thomas suddenly called out, his hand covering his phone, “Can I start taking orders for pizza?”— —— —— —— —About an hour or two later the group were all locked in a deep discussion about the inner working of Thomas’ mind palace, mostly ignoring the now empty pizza boxes littered across the coffee table.“Let me get this straight,” Joan said their gaze focused on the sides, “There’s hundreds of ‘people’ in the mind palace, and they each represent different emotions and personality traits?” Logan nodded, a pleased look on his face, “Correct.”Joan gestured to the four of them, “And you guys happen to represent Thomas’ most prominent traits which means you’ve got insane abilities.”“Correct again.”Joan leaned forward slightly, “To top it all off Roman is the one in charge of everything, meaning he’s the one making sure Thomas’ mind runs smoothly.”“Officially yes, I am the one in charge of everything,” Roman said with a nod, “However it is virtually impossible for me to take care of things on my own, so Patton and Logan help out as ‘unofficial’ rulers.”“Don’t forget the Dark Sides,” Patton added, “They help out too!”A look of shock crossed Thomas and his friends faces. “You Let The Dark Sides Help?!” Joan exclaimed.“From time to time, yes,” Logan stated, ”Unfortunately nothing would get done if we didn’t.”“But they’re the Dark Sides,” Talyn said, just as shocked as Joan, “Wouldn’t you want to keep them contained or something?”“That’s what we all thought at first,” Logan said making a pointed glance at Roman, “How ever a certain someone insisted they be allowed to roam freely around the kingdom and castle.”Roman rolled his eyes, “They deserve that freedom just as much as the rest of us do.”“Besides,” The Royal continued, pointing at Virgil, “If we imprisoned, or ‘contained them’, you’d have to take me and Virg’ with them.”“Wait, WHAT!?” Thomas yelled nearly falling off the couch, “You’re both Dark Sides?!”“Ah well...yes, but no?” Roman explained, an embarrassed look on his face, “I mean, we lived with them in the Briar Forests for most of our lives but I wasn’t formed there and as far as I know Virgil wasn’t either.”Roman flashed the group a slight smile, “So we‘re technically Dark Sides, just not by birth.”A look of confusion crossed Virgil’s face at the statement but it only appeared for a moment, just long enough for Roman to take notice. The Royal didn’t get the chance to say anything though, as their Host immediately started asking questions.“Is there anyone else like that?” Thomas asked his head tilting slightly to the side, a curious look in his eyes.The Royal thought for a moment, “I guess it’s the same for Picani, Remy, and most of the others we rescued.”“Oh! I didn’t know Picani was a side too!” The Host exclaimed in excitement.“I’m not surprised,” Patton chimed in with a smile, “He‘s your empathic side and believe it or not he’s a fairly active one too.““How come I never knew about him then?”“Unlike the rest of us he prefers to keep his presence hidden, mostly because he doesn’t want to be constantly bothering you throughout the day,” The Elder explained.Roman nodded in agreement, “Him and Alex both prefer to work at a distance in order to stay out of your way.”Talyn spoke up at that, “Who’s Alex?”The elders turned to Roman with blank stares while Virgil rolled his eyes at him.“You can’t just name drop and expect them to know who you’re talking about,” The youngest stated, “I mean, you hadn’t even told them about Picani and you’re expecting them to know Alex? Really?”Roman rubbed the back of his neck a red tint returning to his cheeks, “My bad...”Virgil sighed and shook his head, an amused smile on his lips, “Just try and remember next time.”The anxious side turned to Thomas and his friends.“Alex supposedly represents your integrity,” The anxious side explained, “But that role is usually taken care of by Patton, though most of the time he does it unintentionally.”“Since his actual job is usually taken care of he’s become more of a protective side, spending his time worrying about you, and your friends wellbeing,” He continued, Joan gave him a confused look, “So he’s you mixed with Patton?”The anxious side turned to the elder for a moment then back to Joan with a shrug, “Basically.”Joan nodded in understanding and Thomas spoke up again, turning back to Roman, “Can we back up a bit? You mentioned there were others you ‘rescued’?”“Right!” The Royal exclaimed remembering his earlier statement, “Including Remy, Picani and Alex there were five people me and the Dark Sides broke out of camps and outposts during the Dragon Witch’s reign.”“Of course there were many others but they were the first ones we ever rescued,” Roman added, “and they were also the ones that encouraged us to continue.”Thomas stared at him in disbelief, “So you just causally went around breaking people out of what were essentially internment camps?”Roman laughed, “well minus the casual bit, Yes.”The three friends looked on in awe. Eventually Talyn spoke, directing their question at the elders, “Did you two do anything like that?” “Not really?” Patton answered, “I mean sure we did make some... interesting decisions, but nothing too crazy.”Thomas gave him a questioning look, “what kind of decisions?”The elder began to look nervous, “Oh you know, a few unplanned attacks on camps here, some night raids there.”Logan eyed Patton for a moment, debating something, then let out a loud sigh. “There was the time we nearly blew up the mines,” the logical side began, “Then there’s the time we poisoned half of the Dragon Witch’s army, the time we set an outpost on fire while still inside, the time you played Marco Polo in the middle of battle, the creation of Patton-Cake, the game of Hide n’ Seek while we were running for our lives, the multiple forest fires, and let’s not forget the ‘Game’ of Freeze Tag you started when we-““That’s Enough Lo’!” Patton suddenly screeched, cutting him off, “I Think They Understand!”The group began to laugh as a light pink dusted Patton’s cheeks. The elder buried his head in his hands as Logan began to comfort him.“Did you really have to do that Lo’?”Logan smiled slightly, “Of course, they might as well know everything we did, good or bad.”The logical side chuckled, “Besides, I have to admit that those are some of my favourite moments to remember.”A smile returned to Patton’s face and the bubbly side straightened himself. His smile widened a bit more as he leaned over to hug Logan tightly, earning an amused huff from him and a few quiet squeals from the others. Eventually Patton let go and the logical side quickly straightened out his clothes.Thomas let out a slight giggle, “So it sounds like you two were quite busy back then.”“Actually, we were mostly inactive for the first half of the rebellion,” Logan said with a shake of his head, “We only took up arms after the old leader... well after he was executed.” The group stayed silent as a grim look appeared on Logan’s face, “Up until then we hadn’t even know there was a rebellion happening, let alone the fact that our mentor and guardian was the one in charge of it.”“Nostalgia.... he’d been so worried about what would happen to us if he was caught that he neglected his own safety,” Patton’s shoulders slumped as he spoke, “In the end they used us as bait to lure him in. He saved us, but for us to get away he had to let himself get caught.”“His execution happened a few weeks later,” Logan added, his fists tightly clenched, “They made it a grand spectacle, inviting soldiers of every rank from across the kingdom just to watch him die, they even held a Grand Ball afterwards to celebrate.”The logical side was shaking at this point and his words were practically dripping with hate. Without a word Patton put a hand on his shoulder, immediately calming him down. The elder flashed him a sad smile and turned back to the group.“When the news finally reached us we broke,” Patton said with a slight shiver, “I was a sobbing mess and Logan... he completely shut down for awhile; wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t speak.”Patton shook his head slightly before continuing, “Once we’d pulled ourselves together we decided to pick up where Nostalgia left off; freeing the people of the mines.”“We started off small, clearing out the more remote camps and cutting off access to others with staged cave ins,” Logan started again, much calmer than before, “Before long we had a whole new group of rebels backing us and things just escalated from there.”The room went silent for a moment as the group stared at the elders in shock, their words taking a moment to set in.Joan leaned back slightly, their expression a mix of awe and shock, “I never would have guessed the two of you had gone through stuff like that.”“I mean, you two are so upbeat all the time,” they explained, “Not to mention how naive you two can be sometimes.”Patton tilted his head slightly in confusion and Logan sighed.With a blank look on his face the logical side turned to the confused elder, “Adultery.”“Ohhhh- That,” Patton replied suddenly understanding Joan’s statement.He thought for a moment and giggled slightly, “I guess that would confuse some people.”Now it was the others turn to be confused as the elder giggled again. “I’ve been using words wrong on purpose,” The elder admitted with a smile, “I started doing it to Lo’ to try and make him smile; I only continued ‘cause I loved your reactions when I started using ‘Adultery’ instead of ‘Adulthood’.”Roman looked at the elder in disbelief, though his focus quickly turned to Logan as he began to laugh.“I have to admit your initial reactions were quite amusing,” Logan said a playful smirk on his face, “Though I have to say your reactions to my blatant misuse of slang terms is far more entertaining.”“YOU’VE BEEN DOING THAT ON PURPOSE!?” Roman screeched, exasperated, “I THOUGHT YOU WERE TWO WERE GENUINELY CLUELESS!”Logan’s smirk grew wider at the Royal’s response, “This is the exact reason we continued.”The elders began to laugh as Roman continued to screech, mostly making unintelligible sounds of anger at the fact that he was so easily tricked. Suddenly Logan’s laughter stopped and a look of confusion crossed his face as he pulled out his phone. A loud sigh of disappointment escaped him once he looked at the screen.He turned to the Host and his friends as he slid it back into his pocket, “I believe we should wrap up our conversation for the time being, as it’s apparently gotten quite late.”Thomas gave him a confused look, “What do you mean?”“Well if you look outside you’ll see that it’s gotten dark out,” The logical side explained pointing to the kitchen window, “And if you check the time you’ll see it’s nearly ten o’clock.”Thomas and his friends turned around to check and sure enough it was pitch dark out, the orange glow of the street lights the only thing allowing them to see.Joan pulled out his phone in disbelief, “Dang, he’s right.”They turned to Talyn, “We should‘ve left awhile ago.”“Sorry ‘bout that kiddo’s,” Patton replied as Thomas’ friends started gathering their things, “Guess we got a bit carried away.”“Nah, it’s fine,” Joan replied brushing off the apology.“Yeah, there’s no need to apologize,” Talyn added, “It was fun hearing about the mind palace.”“Besides,” Joan continued as they pulled on their jacket, “There’s obviously a lot more for us to learn from you guys.”They turned to Thomas’ with a massive grin on their face, “Which means we’ll definitely be doing this again.”“Hopefully next time we’ll be a bit more prepared,” Thomas replied with a smile.Talyn giggled, “Hopefully!”The two friends pulled on their shoes and waved to the sides.“See ya’ later Thomas!” The two called.“’Bye!” Thomas called back.He watched for a moment as the door closed behind them, then turned to his sides.“So...”Logan held up a hand to stop him. “Whatever you want to discuss, please leave it till tomorrow,” the logical side said quietly, his gaze briefly landing on Virgil who had somehow managed to fall asleep again, “For now I think we all need our rest.”Thomas looked at Virgil then at the other three and sighed before nodding, “Yeah alright, I’ll get to working cleaning up then.”Patton immediately shot to his feet.“No you’re not,” the Elder said as he ushered Thomas towards the stairs, “You’re heading straight to bed like the rest of us!”“But-“ The host began to protest.“No but’s,“ Patton said as he pushed Thomas up the stairs, “We can clean things up in the morning.”After a few more minutes of protest the Host finally conceded and continued willingly up the stairs, Patton following right behind him.Logan smiled and shook his head before getting up.He turned to Roman, “Will you need help getting Virgil up to your room?”The Royal looked down at the anxious side who had unconsciously curled up in his lap. Roman smiled softly and brushed Virgil’s bangs away from his face, “I’ll be fine, he’s not too heavy.”Logan nodded and headed for the stairs, “Then I’ll leave you to it.”Roman watched as the logical side started up the stairs, “Goodnight Logan!”Logan smiled back at the Royal, “Goodnight to you as well.”With that the logical side disappeared upstairs leaving Roman alone with Virgil. He brushed the younger’s hair back again as he let out a soft groan, “You really haven’t changed have you?”The anxious side drew closer in response, his lips curling up into a smile. Roman smiled back for a moment but it quickly changed into a frown.“All this talk about the past...At this rate I’m gonna let something slip...” The Royal leaned back slightly as his mind began to wander.“... I wonder if Deciet knows we’re missing yet?” He muttered, his eyes narrowing slightly, “I haven’t been out to confront him in a while so he might have gotten curious.”He frowned, “... I wonder if he’s worried about us?”He let his mind wander for a few more moments before letting out a long sigh. He waited a few more seconds before carefully pushing Virgil off his lap so he could stand. Once up the Royal gently picked up the younger side.His smile returned as the anxious side melted into his arms, “Why can’t you be like this all the time?” With one last look around Roman began making his way upstairs with Virgil, marking the end of a chaotic day; One they all hoped wouldn’t be repeated anytime soon.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The next couple of weeks were relatively calm for the group, something they were all thankful for. Thomas went back to working on videos with Joan, Talyn, and even Camden, after explaining everything of course. The four sides managed to settle back into their daily routines as well, with some minor changes.Logan spent his most of his time researching as usual, though he had a more concrete goal this time. He spent hours online searching for hosts who had gone through a similar situation, sudden disappearances in the area, rumors of people seemingly in two places at once, anything that could lead to a potential solution.Meanwhile Patton kept the house (mostly) tidy and made sure everyone was eating properly, paying special attention to Logan with how distracted he got with his research. Roman and Virgil pitched in where they could, but ended up spending most of their time helping Thomas with scripts and filming.Of course with three of them all working on the same tasks they ran out of things too do pretty quickly. This wasn’t much of a problem for the Eldest as he always had Netflix and the internet to scour through, but for the younger two the quiet moments were torture.“UUUUUGGGGHHH,” Roman whined as he hung off the bed, “Theres nothing to do!”Virgil rolled his eyes as he flipped the page of his book, “Why don’t you watch a movie?”The Royal let out a huff, “I don’t want to watch a movie right now.”Virgil sighed, “Then I’m out of ideas.”The two went silent for a moment.“Aren’t you bored too?”“Of course I am Princy,” the anxious side replied as he turned another page, “Why do you think I’m reading?”Roman lifted himself up slightly to see the faded gold lettering of Virgil’s book, “Because you want to learn more about yourself?”Virgil glanced at the Royal with an annoyed look on his face, before kicking him and sending him sliding off the bed with a surprised yelp. The anxious side snickered as Roman attempted to right himself and get off the floor.The Royal stuck his tongue out as Virgil smirked, “Very funny Sunshine.”“But seriously,” he continued as he pulled himself back onto the bed, “There has to be something we can do.”Virgil closed the book and stared at the roof, letting out a slight hum as he did. Eventually he turned his attention to the window. It was a beautiful day outside. The sun was shining, leaves were starting to fall, and it was just a bit chilly out; a picture perfect fall day.The anxious side stared out the window for a moment longer, his mind almost screaming for him to go and enjoy such a beautiful day.He continued to stare longingly out the window.“We could go out for a while.”Virgil’s eyes went wide as he realized what he’d just suggested. The anxious side quickly turned to face Roman, expecting him to be furious, only to find the Royal lost in thought as well.“... It is a really nice day outside,” Roman admitted.Virgil felt his heart stop at the Royal’s words, and he immediately started to backpedal.“B-But we’d have to sneak past the others!” The anxious side exclaimed, desperately trying to convince him otherwise, “A-And we’re way too easy to recognize right now!”That statement got Roman thinking again and the anxious side realized his words had the opposite effect of what he’d intended.“I could teleport us outside,” The Royal explained getting up and heading to the window, “The neighbourhood isn’t usually busy this time of day, so there’s very little risk of someone seeing us and freaking out.”Despite what his mind was screaming at him, Virgil continued, “What about getting back in?” Roman narrowed his eyes, “I should have enough energy to teleport us again by the time we get back.”“if Not then it’ll probably be fine for us to walk through the front door,” The Royal added with a shrug.The anxious side stared at him in disbelief, “But then the others will find out!”“They’ll know we’re gone the moment Patton calls for us,” Roman replied, “Besides, once they catch us I can just lie and say I dragged you along against your will.”He flashed him a smile, “I’ve done it enough times for them to believe me.”Virgil just stared at Roman in shock, his earlier fears somehow forgotten. He couldn’t believe how nonchalant the Royal was being about everything. Eventually the anxious side pushed himself off the bed.“Ok, but if everything goes to plan there’s still the problem of us being recognized.”Roman stopped to think again before turning to his dresser. He opened and closed a few drawers before finally pulling out a red and white varsity jacket. He turned to Virgil with cheeky grin, “You got anything else to wear?”The anxious side looked at the jacket then back at Roman.A slight smile appeared on his face as he finally pushed his fears to the back of his mind, “I might...”A bit of searching later and the two sides had their new outfits together. Roman had chosen the varsity jacket along with a plain black t-shirt and some jeans while Virgil had grabbed a dark purple jacket, a My Chemical Romance t-shirt and a pair of black jeans.“Ready to go?” The Royal asked as he adjusted his jacket.“Almost,” Virgil replied as he looked himself over in the mirror, “Just gotta do one more thing...”Roman gave him a confused look as the anxious side pulled his makeup kit out of his dresser, then from there fished out a small package of makeup wipes.“My eyeshadow is a dead giveaway for most people,” Virgil explained briefly glancing at the Royal, seeing him nod in agreement, “Besides if we’re gonna be out in public I want to at least try to look normal.”The anxious side took a moment and carefully wiped away his makeup, making sure to remove all of it. Virgil looked himself over again once he’d finished.“That should be good.”He turned to Roman with a smile, then gave him a confused look when he saw his stunned expression.Virgil tilted his head slightly, “Something wrong?”Roman stayed silent for a moment before shaking his head, “Ah! N-No, it’s nothing.”The anxious side gave him a skeptical look as Roman began to fidget.“We should Ah... we should get going!” The Royal suddenly exclaimed, “You know, before the others find out.”Virgil stared at him for a moment, still a bit skeptical, then shrugged.“Well you’re the one getting us outside, so do your thing!”Roman nodded, slightly relieved, and stepped forward, grabbing ahold of Virgil’s wrist. He took a deep breath and flashed Virgil a nervous smile, “Let’s hope this works!”Virgil’s eyes went wide with concern, “What do you m-“The anxious side didn’t get a chance to finish as everything quickly blurred around them, almost immediately reforming into the familiar scene of the street.The anxious side swore loudly before spinning around to scan their new surroundings, eventually stopping to check himself over as well. Once he was sure everything was intact the anxious side turned to Roman, slightly angry, and found him hunched over.Virgil gave him a worried look and held out his hand, “You alright?” Roman nodded and let the anxious side help him up, “Y-Yeah... It’s just been awhile since I’ve teleported with someone else...”“That why you were so nervous?”Roman nodded again as he checked himself over, “I wasn’t sure if I could still do it, especially since we’re outside of the Mind Palace.”He looked around for a moment then turned back to Virgil.“So....,” The Royal continued, rubbing the back of his neck, “What do you want to do?”Virgil gave him a blank look, “Uhh.... I thought you had something in mind?”The two stared at each other for awhile, both with the same blank expression on their faces. Eventually Virgil pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a frustrated sigh.“We went through all that trouble and neither of us has any plans.”Roman let out a nervous chuckle as he scratched his cheek, “I probably should have thought this through a bit more...”“That would‘ve been a smart idea idiot,” The anxious side replied with a sigh.He paused for a moment to think, then walked past the Royal; giving him a light hit to the head as he did.“Ow! What the- Hey!”“Don’t start Princy!” The anxious side called over his shoulder, “You deserved it!”He kept walking, “Now hurry up before I leave you behind!”Roman sulked for a moment before running after Virgil.“So you managed to think of something?” “Kinda...” The anxious side answered as he counted the houses, “You’ll see in a moment.”They walked a bit further before Virgil turned onto a seemingly random driveway.Roman’s eyes went wide, “What are you doing?!” The anxious side smiled back at him as he rung the doorbell, “Finally introducing you to some friends.”Within seconds the door flew open, revealing a young brunette in a baggy ocean patterned t-shirt and boxers.He stared at them for a moment surprised, then smiled.“Virgil! I didn’t know you were coming over today!”“I didn’t either,” The anxious side replied pointing down the driveway, “Me an’ Princy here made some impromptu plans to head out but...”Lennox gave him an exasperated smile, “But you didn’t plan what you‘d actually do once you’d left, right?”Virgil smiled at Roman as he walked up beside him, “Bingo.”The brunette let out an amused chuckle and moved aside to let them in, “Well come on in and make yourselves at home.”Virgil paused for a moment and looked around, noticing that none of the lights were on.“Was it a bad time for us to come over?” The anxious side asked as he kicked off his shoes.“Nah,” Lennox replied as he slid past, “We’ve been up for awhile.”Lennox smiled, “We just didn’t want to get out of bed.”Virgil smiled and gave him a questioning look, “You didn’t want to, or Xaivion wouldn’t let you?”Lennox paused for a moment a faint blush dusting his cheeks, “Both.”Virgil snickered at his response and the brunette rolled his eyes.“Anyways you two just get comfortable for now,” He continued, making his way upstairs, “I’ll get Xaivion up and dressed, then we can discuss some plans.”Virgil nodded in response and turned to Roman, finding him with a very confused look on his face.He opened and closed his mouth a few times.Eventually the Royal managed to get his words out, “So that was...”“Lennox.” The anxious side casually replied as he headed for the couch.“The friend you keep talking to, got it,” Roman continued as he followed him, “And this is his house?”Virgil sank into the couch, “Him and Xaivion’s, yeah.”The Royal looked around suddenly noticing how many paintings there were around the room, “Okay...” He went silent for a moment, losing himself in one of the more prominent ones, before bringing himself back.“So you’re pretty familiar with this place then,” Roman continued glancing briefly at the anxious side.Virgil thought for a moment and let out a soft hum, “Yeah, I guess it’s kinda like a second home at this point.”The two went silent again and Roman started to fidget. He glanced back at Virgil again, but quickly turned away when the anxious side noticed his gaze. When the anxious side didn’t turn away the Royal felt a faint blush make its way onto his face. Hopefully Virgil’s friends wouldn’t take too long to get ready

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Twenty minutes.The two were left alone in an awkward silence for twenty minutes, so by the time Lennox returned Virgil felt ready to strangle someone.“Sorry!” Lennox exclaimed as he rushed down the stairs, “I didn’t think it’d be that hard to get Xaivion up.”Xaivion followed close behind in much less of a rush, a smug look on his face.Virgil glared at him, “Was it really necessary to fight him over a shirt?”The brunette smiled,”Of course! It’s no fun if I make things easy!”“Besides I thought you’d like to spend a bit more time alone with your friend~” Xaivion continued, flashing the anxious side the smuggest grin he could manage.Lennox started to panic as the anxious side bristled, jumping to his feet, “Motherf-!”“FATHER!” Everyone froze and turned to see Roman with an embarrassed, but worried, expression on his face. Virgil stared at him, shocked, before suddenly bursting out laughing.“R-Really?!” The anxious side forced out between his laughing fits, “Of all things you could blurt out, why that?!”The Royal’s face went bright red.”I-I Don’t Know!” He exclaimed in embarrassment, “I Just Said The First Thing That Came To Mind!”Virgil kept laughing which made Roman smile, despite his embarrassment.Xaivion smiled as Virgil slowly began to calm down, “Does this mean you’ve calmed down?”The anxious side wiped at his face and responded, to Lennox’s dismay, by flashing him his middle finger.Xaivion rolled his eyes, “I’ll take that as a yes.” He moved past Lennox and plopped down onto the couch, “Anyways, what’s this I’ve heard about a hangout?”Virgil glared at him for a moment, then sighed, “Long story short, Ro’ and I snuck out but didn’t make any plans.”He sat down again and rubbed the back of his neck, “And since you guys keep saying you wanna hangout, I figured I’d see if you were up to it today.”The brunette’s looked at each other, smiles growing on their faces.“Well, we’d planned to meet Perry for lunch today,” Lennox started, watching as Virgil’s face fell, “But! If you’re alright with joining us we‘re more than happy to have you tag along.”“And I already know Perry will be fine with it,” Xaivion quickly added, “After all he’s been eager to talk to you!”The anxious side smiled, then realized something and turned to Roman, “Well?”Roman blinked at him in surprise. He looked at the two brunette’s, then to Virgil and back again. Eventually he shrugged. “If you’re alright with it then so am I.”Roman couldn’t help but smile as Virgil’s face lit up with excitement.“Then it’s settled!” Xaivion exclaimed as he stood up, “We’ll head downtown for a bit then meet with Perry at noon!”Lennox smiled, quickly following suit, “Lets get going then! We’ve got a bus to catch!”Roman and Virgil got up as well and the Royal flashed them a confused look, “Do you not have a vehicle?”Lennox’s face went red as he pulled on his shoes, “We used to but, ah...” “Lennox crashed it the same week we got it,” Xaivion explained nonchalantly as he pulled on a leather jacket, “Once we got it fixed I took it out and got hit by a semi.”The Royal went wide eyed as Xaivion shrugged, “After that we decided it was best to stick with public transit. Less of a hazard for everyone involved.”Roman stared in shock as Virgil rolled his eyes, unfazed by the comments, “You guys are a mess.”“At least we’re not dead yet!” Xaivion joked.Virgil smiled, “Keyword, ‘Yet’.”Lennox cleared his throat, an embarrassed and slightly annoyed look on his face, “Hah, hah funny. Now come on!”“Alright, Alright, we’re coming,” Xaivion said with a laugh.He ruffled the brunette’s hair as he ran out the door, “Race you there!!”Lennox was dazed for a moment but quickly started after his friend, “No fair You Cheater!”Roman turned to Virgil utterly confused, “Are they always like this?”The anxious side shrugged as he locked the door, “You’ll get used to it.”He gave him a playful pat on the back as they went after the brunette’s, “Now c’mon before we get left behind!”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~“Ooo! You should try this one Virg’!”The brunette pulled out another shirt and held it up for the anxious side.Virgil rolled his eyes in response, “Dude I’ve already told you that’s not my style.”He jabbed a thumb at Roman who was standing a bit away with Xaivion, “Try getting Princy to wear it.”Hearing his nickname the Royal leaned forward slightly to see what they were talking about. He laughed once he saw the shirt.“No way! That’s something Logan would wear not me!”Lennox pouted slightly as he pulled out another shirt, “How about this then?”The anxious side looked it over.“I dunno...” He mumbled, glancing over at Roman, “Its not something I’d usually wear.”The Royal moved over for a closer look and hummed in approval.“I think it suits you,” he replied with a smile.“Really?”, Virgil looked from him to the shirt, “hmm, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try it.”Lennox pumped his fist in victory before dragging Virgil further down the isle, “Alright! Let’s try and find some other things!”Roman chuckled as Virgil let out some half hearted protests before turning back to Xaivion.The brunette smirked. “I’m impressed,” he said as Roman walked back over to him, “That’s the tenth shirt you’ve convinced him to try today!”The Royal blushed slightly at the comment, “You’ve been keeping track?”There was a playful glint in Xaivion’s eye as he pushed himself away from the wall, “I’ve been keeping track of a lot of things.”“Like how close you are two,” The brunette pointed out, “I expected you two to be bickering almost constantly, but so far you’ve been easily keeping up casual conversation.”Roman rubbed the back of his neck, his blush growing, “I didn’t notice.”“Well I have,” Xaivion commented.His smirk grew wider, “I’ve also noticed that you two have been nigh inseparable.”Roman bristled his face going bright red, “No we haven’t!”“Oh yes you have!” The brunette countered, “You’ve been following him around like a lost puppy!”He laughed, “Though I can’t blame you since you have a crush on him!”Roman froze. Within seconds he’d grabbed hold of the brunette and dragged him down one of the far isles, Well away from the other two.His eyes were wide with panic as he scanned the aisle, “How?!?”The brunette snickered again.“You really haven’t tried to hide it.”His smirk turned into a soft smile, “Besides, I’ve been around long enough to know the signs”Roman blinked at him and turned away with a frown, his face still bright red with embarrassment.“I thought I was hiding it pretty well...” he muttered.Xaivion let out an amused huff. “There are some things you just can’t hide, no matter how hard you try.”The two went silent for a moment as they listened for Virgil and Lennox.“How long have you liked him?”Roman winced slightly at the question.“...Not that long really...” He replied, his expression dark.Xaivion gave him a skeptical look, “Really? ‘Cause it looks to me like you’ve been hiding it for at least a few years.”The Royal tensed and turned away, going completely silent.Xaivion tilted his head slightly, curious about the Royal’s reaction, “O-kay... how about this then-“The brunette raised an eyebrow, “-How did you two meet?”Roman‘s expression grew darker, “We met after I defeated the Dra-““I meant the first time.”Roman’s eyes narrowed, “That is the first time we met.”The brunette shook his head, “That’s the first time Virgil remembers meeting you, and he’s already told us that story.” Xaivion was starting to look annoyed, “I’m asking about the first time you remember meeting him.”“But that is-!”“Look,” Xaivion interjected,“If you don’t want to tell me then just say it already.”“‘Cause the more you lie and dance around the question the more suspicious I get,” He added with a glare.“I-“Roman paused and bit his lip, turning away as he thought.Eventually he sighed.“It... it was just after Deceit found me” Roman explained, refusing to meet the brunette’s eyes, “He’d left me alone for a bit at his place as he got the village doctor. I still had an adrenaline rush going so I got bored pretty quickly and decided to look around. However in the process....” - — — —— ————— —— — — -The young side groaned in frustration as he sat back down, angrily glaring at the chair currently stuck around his leg. All he’d wanted was a closer look at the chandelier.He briefly glanced at the mess he’d caused, his anger dissipating slightly as guilt started to set in. The Snake had saved his life and what had he done in return? He’d tipped his table over, took out most of the chairs, knocked a bunch of photos off the wall and made a general mess of the kitchen. His shoulders sagged in defeat and he decided it was best to wait for Deceit to get back and help him.This didn’t last long as he started to get impatient again; so with a bit of effort the young side pulled himself to his feet and started pulling on the chair again.His frustration only grew as he struggled, eventually reaching its peak as he screeched, “Come on! Get off!”“What on earth are you doing?”The young side froze, the color draining from his face. Slowly he turned towards the voice, his heart racing, only to see a young boy standing in the doorway.The young sides fear and anger quickly turned to curiously as he looked the boy over. He looked almost identical to himself, the only difference being his dark purple t-shirt, and he was covered in mud and leaves.The boy looked him up and down before glaring at him, moving into a defensive stance, “I don’t know you.”The young side began to panic.“I-I’m not a burglar!” He blurted out, eyes wide with fear, “D-Deciet told me to wait for him here!”The boy blinked at him after hearing Deciet’s name, “Oh, he’s back?”The boy looked him over again then lowered his guard, before looking around at the mess. He glanced at the young side again, his gaze softening as he took in the situation.With a loud sigh the boy made his way over to him.“Stand still,” the boy ordered as he knelt down, getting a solid grip on the chair.Carefully the young boy began to move and twist the chair making sure the young side stayed still. Eventually he stopped moving and held the chair at an awkward angle.He glanced up briefly, “Try moving now.”The young side nodded and easily slipped out of the chair, making sure to take a few steps back so the boy could put it down.He let out a relived sigh and stood up, “What’s your name.”The young side blinked at him.“Oh ah, it’s Creativity.”The boy nodded and gestured to the mess, “Okay then Creativity help me fix this mess.”Creativity nodded and the two got to work, starting with the table before tackling the rest of the mess.Once they got to the pictures the young side paused, picking one up with a confused look. Just from a glance he could tell they’d it had taken more than enough force from the fall to damage it, but nothing was broken keeping the picture inside safe.He started looking around in surprise once he noticed. None of the frames had broken, in fact he could see now that despite the fall everything was still completely intact save for a few minor dents.The young boy noticed his shocked expression and let out an amused huff.“Deceit accident proofed everything,” He explained as he started putting the pictures back, “He got tired of fixing broken frames everyday.”Creativity frowned, “You guys fight a lot?”The boy nodded his head, “The others can get a bit rowdy.”He grabbed the last picture from creativity, “Though Deceit usually kicks them out once things get physical.”The boy hung up the final picture and stepped back to examine the room, giving a nod of approval, “Alright.”He looked down at himself and frowned, as if he only just realized how dirty he was.“I’m going to go wash up before Deciet gets back and you,” He turned and pointed at Creativity, “Don’t destroy the place again.”The young side nodded as the boy started to disappear into another room.“Ah- Wait!” The young side suddenly exclaimed, remembering something, “You never told me your name.”The boy stopped, thinking for a moment. He was silent for a long time, then turned slightly to face the young side a soft smile on his face.“I’ll tell you once Deciet gets back,” he finally responded, “But you have to promise not to tell him you saw me, Okay?”The young side gave him a determined smile, “I promise not to tell Deceit that I saw you!”The boy flashed him a relived smile, “Thank you.”With that he disappeared into the next room leaving Creativity on his own again. He smiled, his face bright with excitement, as he went to sit down. He couldn’t wait for Deceit to get back. - — — —— ————— —— — — -Xaivion smiled brightly as the Royal finished talking, “Aw, that was a really nice story!”He tilted his head slightly, “Why didn’t you want to tell me?”Roman flashed him a sad smile.“It’s a nice memory to recall...” The Royal admitted, his smile quickly fading, “But it always brings up a bunch of unpleasant ones when I do.”The brunette noticed his pained expression and gave him a concerned look.Roman closed his eyes, “... though It hurts to remember a lot of things, those memories are the most painful.”He clenched his fists, “All because of Him.”Xaivion stood still for a moment and watched as the Royal started to shake, tears rolling down his cheeks. Eventually he moved to comfort him, reaching out to put a hand on his shoulder.“Hey! Where’d you guys go?”The brunette jumped and quickly pulled away, surprised by Lennox’s sudden exclamation, and he was equally surprised by how quickly Roman’s happy demeanor returned.The Royal smiled brightly as the other two rounded the corner, “We were just looking at a few things, don’t worry.”Virgil rolled his eyes, a slight smile on his face, “Well we’re ready to check out so if you want something hurry up.”Roman let out an amused huff, “I’m good.”His smile widened as he remembered something, “Oh! How’d that shirt work out?”“It worked surprisingly well actually...”The two sides disappeared down another aisle happily chatting away leaving Lennox alone with a shocked Xaivion.Xaivion stared blankly down the aisle as Lennox gave him a confused look, “Did something happen with you two?”Xaivion blinked, still a bit dazed, “Huh? Oh uh... I’m not sure?”He shook his head.“Know what? I’ll tell you when we get home,” The brunette said with a sigh, “For now we should go help those two pay.”Lennox let out an annoyed huff but smiled as he grabbed Xaivion’s hand, “Alright, but I’m expecting every last detail once we’re there!”The two brunettes started after the others, blushing and smiling as they held hands.“Don’t worry, I won’t leave anything out.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Virgil moved closer to Roman as they pushed their way into the crowded restaurant. The waiting area was so packed there was barely any room left to move, and there was no way he was letting himself get separated from Roman in this mess.Someone jostled Virgil as they tried to get more space, making him panic. On instinct he reached through the crowd and grabbed the hem of Roman’s jacket; holding onto it like a life line.Roman glanced back, a soft, sad smile flashing on his face for a second, before pretending not to notice Virgil; focusing instead on catching up to Lennox and Xaivion.Eventually, after enough shoving and apologies, he managed to spot the brunette’s in the main dining area chatting away with the hostess as they scanned the crowd, looking for them. Roman waved as Lennox finally spotted them, giving him a thumbs up as he called them over.Grabbing Virgil by the wrist, Roman made a final push and broke through the crowd, flashing the two brunette’s an apologetic smile as they finally joined them.“Sorry for the wait,” He apologized, “It was a bit crowded.”Xaivion smirked, “Crowded is an understatement.”Lennox snickered at the comment, then smiled at the hostess, “These are the two we were waiting for!”She smiled back, “Then please, let me show you to your table.”Xaivion nodded, “Lead the way.”With that the hostess started off into the dining area, Lennox and Xaivion following close behind. Roman hung back for a moment and turned to Virgil once they were mostly out of earshot.“You can hold my hand if you want.”The anxious side jumped, “W-W-What?!”The Royal rubbed his neck, a noticeable blush on his cheeks, “I just thought it’d be more comforting than clinging to my jacket.”He glanced back as Virgil looked down at his hands, finally noticing the jacket balled up in his fist.“O-Oh!” Virgil exclaimed as he immediately let go, “I-I’m s-sorry, I-I didn’t-“Roman ruffled the younger’s hair, “There’s no need to apologize, I didn’t mind.”He held out his hand, “Well? We should catch up.”The anxious side looked down at Roman’s hand, then at his own and back again.“Y-Yeah..”The Royal smiled as Virgil took his hand, before scanning the restaurant, “Now, where did they get too..”He quickly spotted them at the far end of the dining area, heading towards the patio. With one last look at Virgil, Roman took off after them, easily weaving between the tables.They just barely managed to catch up to the others before they entered the patio.Xaivion acknowledged them with a nod as Lennox chatted away with the hostess.“-Honestly, I’ve never seen it so swamped before,” The Hostess explained with an exasperated sigh, “Even the holidays aren’t this bad!”Lennox nodded, “And to think, when we started here there was barely enough patrons to keep it running.”The hostess giggled, “Yeah! After you two and the current owner showed up business exploded!”“I’d almost say it’s thanks to you that we’re so popular now!” She added, stopping in front of a large table.“Here’s your table!” She said, motioning for them to sit as she handed out the menus, “I’ll have someone come by in a bit to take your orders.”Lennox smiled at her, “Thanks Dana!”“No problem- Oh!” She had turned to leave, but stopped in her tracks, “Actually I have a question for you!”Lennox gave her a confused look as she continued, “Is this everyone? ‘Cause I saw your reservation was made for eight.”“Ah right!” The brunette exclaimed, “We’re still waiting for Perry!”“That’s it?”“Well he’s bringing his friend, so that makes two,” Lennox explained.The hostess still looked confused, “That still leaves two seats.”“Well we hadn’t decided when the reservation was made but, Ah, we didn’t end up inviting the last two...” Xaivion told her, “For, reasons...”The hostess gave them a skeptical look, but shrugged when she realized she wasn’t getting anything else from them.“Alright, well I’ll send your friends over once they show up,” She finally said, smiling again, “In the meantime I’ll let you go over the menus.”With that she went back into the restaurant, waving goodbye as she left. Xaivion waved back, a soft smile on his face as he turned to Lennox. The brunette didn’t notice as he was deep in the menu, weighing his options. Xaivion just shook his head and turned to the sides, both giving each other awkward glances as they went over their options.He let out a faint hum as he watched them. Eventually he grabbed Virgil’s menu and tipped it down slightly, making him yelp in surprise.“You should give this a try,” The brunette said tapping one of burgers, “It’s one of the best dishes here, not to mention it’s the chefs favorite one to make.”Virgil looked it over for a moment.“... I guess I can give it a try,” he looked up briefly then flipped to the drinks section, “Um... Anything here you’d recommend?”Virgil passed him the menu and Xaivion looked it over again, “Hmm...”“I’d say... maybe one of the lemonade’s,” The brunette replied tapping the menu again, “Other than that I’d say just get a soda.”Roman glanced over at that, “A Lemonade does sound good right now!”He flashed Virgil a reassuring smile, watching as the anxious side started to relax. Virgil nodded in agreement, “Yeah... a lemonade does sound good.”Roman smiled again, then turned to Xaivion as he went back to his own menu, “So, you two work here?”The brunette hummed slightly, “Yep! though we’ve had the past few months off, for obvious reasons.”He glanced at Virgil briefly and Roman flashed him a knowing smile, “Right.”An awkward silence fell over the table at that, everyone unsure of what to talk about. It stayed like that for awhile, until Roman cleared his throat.“So uh... who’s this Perry that you keep mentioning?”Lennox finally looked up from his menu at that, “Oh! Perry’s our younger brother!”“Your younger brother,” Xaivion added with a sigh, “We might‘ve all come from the same person, but we’re not all ‘Siblings’.”Lennox let out a nervous laugh, “Right...”The table went silent again and Roman frowned, “Difficult topic, huh?”Xaivion let out an amused huff, “You have no idea!”“I think I understand more than you think I do,” Roman replied with a sad smile.“Anyways, speaking of Perry,” Virgil chimed in, trying to change the subject, “Where is he?”As if on cue, a voice started calling out to them from the main dining area.“Lennox, Xaivion, Over Here!!”All four of them paused and turned towards the voice. There next to one of the waiters was another brunette that looked almost identical to Lennox, the only differences being his bright pastel clothes and slightly muscular build.Lennox’s eyes lit up once he spotted him.“Perry!! You made it!!”Perry let out a bubbly laugh as he walked up with the waiter, “Sorry about being late!”He pointed to someone behind him, “We had a bit of an accident that we needed to fix before heading out.”A young blonde woman stepped out from behind Perry, an embarrassed smile on her face.“I may or may not have knocked over a few paint cans as we were leaving,” She said getting a raised eyebrow from Perry, “I also may or may not have forgotten that we’d made plans today.”Perry smiled and ruffled her hair slightly, “That’s why you’ve got me!”The two laughed slightly and sat down, Perry beside Lennox and the woman beside Roman so they were sitting opposite each other. The waiter only shook his head, smiling as he pulled out his notepad, “Do you know what drinks you’d all like?”Lennox looked at Perry and got a nod of approval.Lennox turned to the waiter and smiled, “Actually I think we’re ready to order our meals!”Virgil and Roman turned to the newcomers, confused.Perry let out a hearty laugh at their reaction, “Don’t worry, we come here often.”The waiter smiled at them, “I’ll assume you want the usual then?”Perry nodded, “Yep! Two house specials, one with a spiked tea and the other with a Coke.”The waiter nodded, turning to Xaivion and Lennox, “Another house special and spiked tea?”Lennox smiled, “Yeah!”Xaivion passed the waiter their menus, “Don’t forget the pasta with a sprite for me.”“You know I won’t!”Finally he turned to Roman and Virgil, “And what can I get for you two?”Virgil stared at him for a moment, “Uh.. the um...”Roman put a hand on Virgil’s shoulder and showed the waiter the menu, pointing out what Xaivion showed them earlier, “Two of these please.”The waiter looked at the menu and smiled, “Ah, the chef’s special! Good choice!”He quickly wrote down the order, “And to drink?”“Two plain lemonades please,” Roman replied, handing over the last menus.“Of course!” The waiter looked around the table once more, “I’ll have your drinks out in just a moment!”Lennox called after him as he left, “Thank you!” The waiter responded with another smile and slipped back into the main part of the restaurant, leaving the group alone again.Once he was out of sight Roman’s attention quickly turned to the blonde, immediately noting her striking blue eyes and her choice of clothing.She noticed his gaze and gave him a confused smile, “Do I have something on my face?”Roman jumped, “Oh!! No, No! I just find your outfit a bit odd for this time of year!”She gave him an even more confused look before glancing down with a yelp. Her face went bright red for a moment, before she burst out laughing.“Oh my god, I’m such a mess!!” She exclaimed, looking herself over, “I completely forgot to change!”She kept laughing as she grabbed her hair looking it over, “I’ve even got paint in my hair!!”Perry rolled his eyes and Virgil leaned forward slightly to look at her as she tried to pull some of the dried paint out of her hair.He gave her a nervous smile, “Well that’s one way to make a first impression right?”She turned to him and smiled, “I guess it is!”Her eyes went wide as she suddenly realized something, “Oh! I actually haven’t met you two before have I?”Virgil nodded and she smiled again, “Guess I should introduce myself then!”“I’m Carla Navrot, Perry’s girlfriend!” She said with another smile, “It’s nice to meet you both!” “It’s nice to meet you too Carla,” Roman answered, smiling back, “My name is Roman.”He leaned back slightly so she could see Virgil better, “And this little storm cloud is Virgil.”“Nice to me- wait, HEY!”Virgil hissed at Roman and the Royal chuckled, ruffling his hair.“Hey, I’m just trying to get you to lighten up!”Virgil huffed, a slight smile on his face, “Sure you are Prince under-arm stink.”Roman flashed him a big grin as everyone started to giggle, “Looks like it’s working.”They all giggled for a moment longer before calming down and going silent again. Eventually Xaivion glanced over at Carla.He looked at her hand and raised an eyebrow, “Still hiding your mark huh?”Her bright expression darkened a bit as she covered her right hand, “... One can never be too careful.”Roman gave her a confused look, “What mark?”Carla bit her lip and thought for a moment, looking around to make sure no one else was watching them. Eventually she removed her hand and to Roman‘s surprise there was a small cream colored rose there, just barely visible against her pale skin. There were a few pale green vines surrounding it but he didn’t get a good look at them as Carla quickly covered her hand again.Roman stared at her in awe, “That’s so cool! Is it a tattoo?”She shook her head and showed her hand again, revealing that the mark had disappeared.“It’s... a bit of a long story,” She admitted, noticing Roman’s confusion, “And one I’d rather not talk about in public.”Virgil nudged Roman slightly once he noticed his expression, “I know the short version, I can tell you later if you want.”“Alright,“ Roman said with a sigh, “Just don’t put it off for days again.”The anxious side nodded and Lennox smiled, “How about we turn the mood around with a bit of good news!”Everyone perked up at that.Virgil smirked, “Oh? Are you finally gonna tell us what you’ve been hiding all day?”Lennox’s smile grew wider and Xaivion’s expression went soft, “I guess it is a good time isn’t it? since everyone’s here.”Xaivion turned to the group and held up his right hand showing off a simple checkerboard pattern ring, “Me and Lennox got engaged!”Everyone gasped, completely stunned.Perry looked at them in awe, “No way!”Lennox was blushing like crazy as held up his hand showing off a matching ring, “Yes way!”Roman’s face shone with happiness, “Oh my goodness!! Congratulations you two!”Virgil sat up and smiled, “Yeah, Congrats! That’s awesome!!”“When did it happen?” Carla asked, her eyes bright with excitement.“Two weeks ago actually!” Lennox replied.Carla almost jumped out of her seat, “Oo- Ooo-!! Tell us what happened! Tell us what happened!!Lennox quickly started the story of what happened, explaining everything in extreme detail. He only paused briefly when their food and drinks arrived, and again when they got their bill.Perry hugged the two lovebirds as they all grabbed their things and got up to leave.“I still can’t believe it!” He exclaimed with a laugh, “I always knew you two were close, but I never imagined that one day you’d get hitched!”Xaivion laughed as well, “We’re always full of surprises I guess!”They continued to laugh and chat as they all headed for the door.Virgil grabbed Roman’s hand and held him back slightly, surprising him.The anxious side gave him an expectant look, “Well?”Roman looked up at the group, then back at Virgil with a smile, “It’s definitely not what I was expecting today, but it’s been nice.”“So you’re having fun?”“Of course I’m having fun, Sunshine,” Roman replied as he squeezed Virgil’s hand, “Are you?”Virgil looked at his friends, a soft smile on his face, “Yeah...”Without another word they caught up with the others, listening to their playful banter as they prepared to push through the crowd again. Thankfully while they were eating the crowd had mostly dispersed, making it much easier to get through. Of course Roman still managed to run into someone just as they got out the door.“Oh! I’m sorry sir-“The Royal’s voice caught in his throat as he realized who he’d run into. Right in front of him, his eyes wide with shock, was Thomas, his friends right behind him.His grip on Virgil’s hand tightened as he froze, unsure of what to do.Thomas blinked at him, “Roman?! Virgil?! Wha-?!”Before he had a chance to finish Carla cut him off with a shout, “RUN!!!”Just like that the six of them took off at full sprint, disappearing around the corner in an attempt to keep Thomas from following. Once they were far enough away they slowed down to catch their breath.Xaivion was the first to recover, “That.. Ha... could have gone better...”Lennox looked around at everyone, his gaze quickly landing on Roman and a hunched over Virgil, “You guys... Alright?”After a moment Roman nodded, straightening himself out, “Yeah... Yeah! I think we’re go-“Out of nowhere Virgil started to laugh. It started as a slight chuckle, but quickly grew into a full blow laughing fit.Roman gave him a concerned look, “...Virgil? Are you alright?”He kept laughing for a moment before calming down and going completely silent.Roman moved closer, “Virgil?”“...My mind’s racing and I’m so panicked I feel ready to puke.”The anxious side pushed himself up, “But....”Virgil met Roman’s gaze with a beaming smile, giving the Royal a deep blush.“I think this is the most fun I’ve had in a long time!!”There was a collective sigh of relief as Virgil took Roman’s hand again, still a bit breathless.Carla looked them over and sighed again, “I guess this means we’d better get you two home soon.”The two sides looked at each other, then back at Carla.Roman smiled, a playful glint in his eyes, “I think we can stay out for a bit longer...”Perry rubbed the back of his neck thinking for a moment.Eventually he shrugged, “Eh, why not!“Him and Carla started down the street, motioning for the other to follow, “We’ve got some errands to run if you guys don’t mind tagging along?”Roman and Virgil started after them, with Lennox and Xaivion not far behind.“Not at all.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“Thanks for the ride Perry!”Perry flashed Roman a smile as him and Virgil got out, “No problem dude! Honestly it was nice getting to know you!”Roman returned his smile, “It was nice getting to know you too!”He glanced over his shoulder to check on Virgil and watched as he said goodbye to Lennox and Xaivion.“Honestly it’s good to know Virgil’s got so many people looking out for him,” The Royal commented, a soft smile on his face, “It’s helped ease a lot of my fears.”Perry let out a slight laugh, “Thats good!”He gazed at the three brunette’s with a fond smile, “I know we’re not the greatest people out there, but I’m glad our little dysfunctional family has been able to help in some way.”“You’ve done more than enough to for me, and I’ll be forever grateful for it,” Roman replied with another smile.Perry let out another laugh and ruffled Roman’s hair.“H-hey!”Perry smiled at him, “You’re too nice for your own good.”Roman shook his head and fixed his hair before grabbing him and Virgil’s bags.Roman closed the door as Perry glanced at Carla, who had managed to pass out during the drive, “I should probably get her home...”Roman looked back at Virgil again as his friends went inside, “And I should be getting him home...”They both went silent for a moment.Perry turned to Roman one more time and flashed him a worried smile, “...Good luck with your host.”“Thanks,” Roman‘s smile slowly disappeared, “We’re gonna need it...”Perry nodded and rolled up his window, giving the Royal one final wave before pulling out of the driveway. He waited until the van disappeared around the corner before finally turning to face Virgil.The two stared at each other across the driveway, not saying a word. Eventually Roman sighed.“Well? We can’t just stand here all night...”Virgil shoved his hands into his pockets, “We could though...”Roman just shook his head.He walked up to Virgil and ruffled his hair, “Come on Doom an’ Gloom, you know we have to face them eventually.”Virgil pulled away, his brows furrowed.“Hey, it’ll be alright,” Roman said softly, trying to reassure the anxious side, “Like I said earlier, I’ll take all the blame. You don’t have to worry.”Virgil still didn’t move, staying completely still. Roman waited and eventually the anxious side gave a slight nod.“Alright...” Virgil whispered.Roman smiled softly and ruffled his hair again before starting back down the driveway. Virgil followed slowly behind him, almost dragging his feet on the ground.After a few steps Roman stopped and shook his head again. Without a word he grabbed the anxious side and pulled him onto his back.Virgil’s eyes were wide with shock, “W-W-What are You Doing!?!”Roman didn’t answer, he just started walking again.“Didn’t you hear me!?” Virgil demanded, a slight growl in his voice, “What the hell are you-!”“Just let me do this... please.”He’d spoken so softly that it caught Virgil off guard, making him stop. The anxious side tensed up with worry, he’d never heard the Royal sound so defeated.It was like something had broken him.Virgil frowned, his worry written all over his face, “Is... everything alright?”He felt Roman’s grip tighten as the Royal turned to smile at him, bringing back his usual happy demeanor, “Of course! I’m just a bit tired, nothing a good nights sleep can’t fix.”Virgil’s frown deepened, unsatisfied with the answer, though he stayed silent. He didn’t have the energy to force Roman to talk right.He let out a final annoyed huff and wrapped his arms around Roman’s neck, “...Sure...”The two went quiet again, not saying a word until they reached the edge of Thomas’ driveway.Slowly Roman let Virgil down.“Are you ready?”Virgil gave a slight nod and Roman flashed him a nervous smile, “Well, here we go then.”They could hear the panicked shouting before they even opened the door.“How Are We Supposed To Know Where They Are!?!” Logan yelled, clearly upset, “We Didn’t Know They Were Gone Until Three Hours Ago!!”Thomas looked like he was on the verge of a breakdown, “I-I Don’t Know! I Just- I Don’t Know!!!”“Please, Both of you need to calm down!!” Patton pleaded, clearly worried, “Yelling isn’t going to solve anything!”“Uh...I guess this is a good time to say hi?”Everyone immediately turned to Roman and Virgil their worry quickly turning to relief and then anger.Logan’s face was red as he turned on the Royal.He marched over and grabbed Roman by the collar of his shirt, “WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING!?!?!”“I’m sorry! I-“ Virgil shut the door and pushed Logan off of Roman, “Leave him out of this, It was my idea not his!”Logan froze in shock, “Your idea..?”Virgil let out a shaky breath, trying to calm his nerves, “Yeah...”He let out a shaky sigh, “It was a nice day out and I was tired of sitting inside with nothing to do, so I convinced Princy to sneak out with me.”“You could have told us you were going out,” Patton said, his voice stern as he moved forward.Virgil tried to keep his voice level, “If we’d said anything you wouldn’t have let us out.”It was Thomas’ turn to speak up, “And who were those people you were with?”Virgil looked back at Roman for a moment, noting his wide eyed stare, before continuing, “My friends.”“Huh..?”“Look, this isn’t the first time I’ve snuck out okay?” The anxious side admitted, “I’m used to the Mind Palace and being able to come and go when I want.”“It’s... unnerving, being so close to everyone for so long, I can’t get used to it.”He shook his head and met Thomas’ gaze, “So yeah, I’ve made some friends, yeah we hung out today, yeah I convinced Roman to join us and yeah I made the stupid decision to not tell you guys we were leaving.”His eyes narrowed slightly, “My bad.”A heavy silence filled the room, no one daring to say a word.Eventually Patton stepped forward.Without warning he pulled Virgil into a hug, making the anxious side flinch.“Oh kiddo, you should have told us sooner!”“Sorry Pat...” he mumbled into the elders shoulder.Logan let out an exasperated sigh and turned to Roman, “Did you even try to stop him?”The Royal rubbed his neck and turned away, “He’s not the only one with a bit of cabin fever...”Thomas shook his head, “Well then you should both be happy to know that thanks to your stunt today, all my friends know about our situation.”Roman cringed and Thomas just shook his head and continued, “And we’ve decided to make an announcement video to inform the fans as well.”Virgil started to panic slightly, “A-Are you sure that’s a good idea?”The Host shrugged, “There’s not much else we can do.”“This clearly isn’t going to fix itself and Logan hasn’t had any luck finding answers.”Logan nodded in agreement, “I’ve had a few leads, but unfortunately they’ve all lead to dead ends.”“By letting everyone know we have a greater chance of getting answers,” Thomas continued, glancing pointedly at Virgil, “And there won’t be mass hysteria if any of you are caught outside.”Virgil went silent and turned away, so Roman stepped in to change the subject.”So then... when will planing start?”Thomas rubbed his temples, letting out a heavy sigh in the process, “I don’t know, Eventually?”Patton put a hand on Thomas’ shoulder and flashed him a tired smile, “We can discuss it in the morning.”He turned to the other three, “For now I think we all need to get some sleep.”Logan glared at the younger sides again before letting out a defeated huff and backing down, “Fine...”Virgil’s voice was soft as he spoke again, “...Does this mean we can go?”Patton let out a slight sigh, “Yes, you can.”Virgil rushed past at that, quickly disappearing up the stairs.Roman looked at the others in surprise for a moment before hurrying past as well.“Uh- Goodnight everyone!” He called out as he ran.Patton let out a disappointed sigh, “Night Roman..”The Royal hurried down the hall and burst into their shared room, making sure to lock the door behind him.He let out a loud sigh and dropped unceremoniously onto the bed, landing right beside Virgil who was already sitting there.“That could’ve gone better...”Virgil was shaking slightly, not saying a word.“.... You didn’t have to take the blame Virgil.”“I know.”Roman turned over to face him, a worried look on his face, “I was fully prepared to-““I Know! I Just-“The anxious side’s voice went soft as he met Roman gaze, “...I didn’t want you to lie for my sake, especially not to them”Roman’s expression went dark for a second, but he quickly put a smile back on.“Well there’s nothing I can do about it now.”Roman shook his head and got back up,“C’mon, let’s get ready for bed.”Virgil stared at him for a moment as he started to change, before nodding and doing the same.Within minutes the lights were off and they were huddled under the covers, buried in the mountain of pillows.“G’night Ro’,” Virgil muttered as he drifted off.Roman smiled as he began to drift off as well, “Goodnight Sunshine.” - — — —— ————— —— — — -“He’s gonna kill me.”Creativity gave Anxiety a worried glance as he continued to repeat himself.The anxious side was hugging himself tightly as he talked, “I’ll be locked in my room, he’s gonna beat me and I’ll never see the light of day again.”Creativity wanted to stop and comfort him so badly, but the four of them had to keep moving.The young side looked back at their new companions, Sleep and Emile, to make sure they were still keeping up.Emile clung to his book bag, keeping it close to his chest so it didn’t snag on any stray branches, “Are you sure this is the right way?”Creativity nodded, trying to hide his worry for their sake, “Like we said it’s really deep in the forest so there’s no way they’ll find us.”“He’s gonna kill me, he’s gonna kill me.”Sleep frowned, adjusting his sunglasses, “Are you sure this’ll be alright?”He pointed to Anxiety and Creativity frowned as well, “Cause he doesn’t seem convinced.”“I-I don’t know,” the young side admitted.“W-Will we have to go back?” Emile whimpered, “I-I don’t wanna go back...”“No! You won’t have to go back!” Creativity said flashing him a reassuring smile.The lights of the village started to become visible through the trees and Anxiety’s muttering grew louder and faster.Creativity kept his gaze forward as he felt his panic rising, “I’ll think of something I know it!”He finally spotted the house through the trees and he could see Deceit looking for them, calling out for him and Anxiety.“...After all lying is just like acting, right?” - — — —— ————— —— — — -Roman woke with a start, bolting upright as his heart tried to beat out of his chest.He forced himself to calm down as he realized where he was.“... Dammit,” he muttered as he pushed his hair out of his face, “That wasn’t even one of the worst ones...”He took a few deep breaths and glanced down at Virgil to make sure he was still asleep.The Royal felt his heart rate begin to slow as he watched the slight rise and fall of the anxious sides chest.Once his breathing was back to normal he let out a soft sigh and with a bit of effort, he slipped out of bed.As quietly as he could, Roman snuck out of the room and down the hall to the bathroom. He didn’t bother closing the door and turned on the light to stare at himself in the mirror.The Royal let out a shaky sigh as he began to cry, quietly sobbing to himself as he let the memories he tried so hard to bury replay in his head.It was times like this that he wished He had taken his memories too.

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Patton let out a silent yawn as he slowly forced his eyes open, the light of day beginning to show itself through the pale blue curtains. He shifted slightly to look at the time and got a loud groan from Logan in response.letting out a soft sigh the elder patted the logical sides head, “C’mon Lo’, it’s time to get up.”Logan groaned again and his grip on the elder tightened, “...Five m’re minutes...”Patton rolled his eyes and checked the time again, “Alright, but you have to let me out first.”The logical side let out an annoyed huff and obliged, relaxing his grip on the elder and letting him climb out of bed.Once he was up Patton stretched and looked around the room. As usual the logical sides bed was a mess, a side effect of his late night bed hoping. With a shake of his head the elder got to work making it presentable, before making one final check on Logan and gathering his clothes.Like usual the elder headed straight for the bathroom, however this time he was surprised to find the lights on and the door wide open.He peeked through the doorway, confused.“Hello? Someone in there?”Patton knocked lightly on the open door and stepped inside, “Hello~?”There was a slight moan from the bathtub, “... Wha...? Oh...”“Roman?”The Royal let out a defeated sigh as he started to processes where he was, “... Hi Pat...”Patton put his clothes on the counter and kneeled beside the tub, “What are you doing in the bathtub? Is everything alright?”“It’s fine, everything’s fine!” Roman replied trying his best to sound upbeat, “Everything’s..... everything’s great...”The elder gave him a questioning look, “So you decided to sleep in the tub?”Roman groaned, rubbing his temples, “Actually I don’t think I slept at all....”Patton frowned, “Roman...”“Don’t, just don’t,” The Royal exclaimed pulling himself up, “I don’t need a lecture right now.”Roman climbed past Patton and the elder moved in front of him, trying to keep him from leaving, “Ro’ you know if there’s anything you need to talk about I’m here for you.”The Royal gave him a blank stare before pushing past, “... Talking won’t fix things this time.”He stood frozen for a moment, watching Roman disappear into his room, before continuing his morning routine. By the time he returned to his room Logan was up and waiting for him.Within seconds the logical side could tell something was off.“You took longer than usual. What happened?”Patton moved to sit in front of him, “I found Roman passed out in the bathtub.”“That’s worrisome, Was he alright?”The elder paused for a moment as Logan took the towel and began drying his hair, “Mmm... physically he was fine, but something was definitely wrong.”“He wouldn’t tell me what though...”Logan finished with the elders hair, “I can find out what’s bothering him.”“Lo’ we’re not having this discussion again,” Patton said sternly taking the towel back, “We are not forcing anything out of them.”“They are obviously hiding things from us, if you’d just give me a few minutes-““I’m not blind Logan,“ Patton added cutting him off, “But I’m also not about to destroy their trust in us.”“Trust can be regained.”“Never completely, you know that.”“Well what if they won’t tell us?! We cant just leave the Dark Sides in charge for that long! Do you know how that’ll effect Thomas?!”“Whatever happens won’t be as bad as losing his Anxiety and Creativity because you know what those two will do if we break them!”The logical side turned away and shut his mouth, signaling to Patton that he’d backed him into a corner.“In time they’ll tell us what’s going on, until then we need to have faith that the Dark Sides can keep things under control.”The logical side stayed silent for a moment, thinking things over before getting up.“Fine,” Logan said as he headed for the door, “But I hope you know what you’re doing.”With that Logan left the room, leaving Patton alone with his thoughts.His grip on the towel tightened.He hated to admit it but Logan was right, they needed to get back into the mind palace as soon as possible.The Dark Sides were more than capable of keeping things running, after all they’d proven themselves on multiple occasions, but at the same time they didn’t have the same knowledge of the Mind Palace the rest of them did. Sure they could mange for a bit on their own, but problems were definitely starting to pile up and soon they’d all be feeling their effects.However there was also still the problem of Roman and Virgil. Yes, they needed to know whatever it was they were hiding but they were at their breaking point; if Logan forced anything out of them they’d snap and he didn’t want to find out what happens when they do.Patton’s head started to spin and he felt himself start to panic, this was too much to handle on his own.He quickly shook his head to clear his mind and forced himself to take deep breaths, using the tricks Virgil had taught him.After a few moments the elder started to feel slightly better, “One thing at a time Pat’, one thing at a time.”With a bit of effort he pulled himself to his feet and straightened his clothes doing one final check of the room. Satisfied, and now mostly calm, he headed downstairs.The others would be up soon and he needed to start on breakfast!~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~

The room was oddly quiet as Patton finished cleaning up the dishes, the shuffling of papers the only other noise in the room.Thankfully the others had managed to put everything aside for a moment to work on the announcement plans.The elder glanced over his shoulder, flashing them all a worried look.The tension from before was still there though, hidden just below the surface.As Logan finished reorganizing the notes spread out across the table, Thomas sighed.“Okay, let’s go over this one more time.”“About a month ago you four were dragged out of my Mind Palace without warning,” the host stated getting nods from the others, “Since then we’ve been searching for answers, but all we’ve found are dead ends.”He locked eyes with Virgil, “The main reason for the announcement is so you can all go out without problems, but we’re also hoping someone out there will have the answers we’re looking for.”The anxious side looked away and gave a slight nod as the Host leaned back in his seat.“Anything else we need to add?”Logan shook his head skimming over the notes one final time, “Everything seems to be in order”He glanced up at the younger two sides, “... That is, unless you two have something to add?”Virgil bristled and Roman shifted uncomfortably in his seat.“Nope, we’ve got nothing!” Roman replied, forcing a smile.Logan’s gaze turned harsh and he looked ready to snap at them, however a stern look kept him quiet as Patton chimed in.“Mind if I take a look kiddo?” The elder asked, finally joining the conversation.“Of course not,” Thomas replied grabbing the notes from Logan, “This involves all of us so I’d love to hear your opinion too.”The elder flashed him a smile as he took the notes, quickly skimming over them a few times.“Hmm...”“Is something wrong?”“Ah! Nothing major.” Patton said with a smile, “There’s a few little things here and there that need changed but other than that I’d say we’re good!”Thomas leaned over the counter to get a better look at the notes, “What do you mean?”“Well for starters there’s a few things that can be added right here, and you missed a few details here...”The others kept quiet as Thomas and Patton went over everything again, revising things as they went along, occasionally chiming in when the two asked questions.Finally after almost another hour Patton stepped back with a smile as he looked proudly at what was now a finalized script.Thomas flashed him a relived smile, “That’s one thing out of the way...”The host gathered the lose pages, ”Now, who’s ready to start filming?”

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Filming and editing went off without a hitch, in fact everything went so smoothly they managed to finish filming by late afternoon; though editing took a bit since they had a lot of clips to find and add in. Within the next two days they had the video ready for upload, sending it out the moment it was ready.'STATUS UPDATE: Sanders Sides OVERLOAD' quickly picked up steam among Thomas' viewers, even grabbing the attention of people who wouldn't usually watch his videos. As usual it started with his opening animation. "WHAT IS UP EVERYBODY!!!" Thomas exclaimed happily, doing his trademark intro. There was a jump cut and then Thomas was kneeling in front of the camera blocking most of its view."I'll jump right into things." he said as he pushed back his bangs."I know most of you have noticed the sudden burst of Sanders Sides related content. From my shorts and compilations-." The screen started flashing through some of his recent shorts with his Sides. "To posts on Twitter and Instagram-“ a few of said posts popping on screen as he spoke, "and as the most observant of you have pointed out; my Sides have even shown up in the background of my Vlogs." The screen started flashing scenes from his more recent vlogs. Logan in the background pulling Patton down behind the kitchen counter, Patton and Roman watching from the stairs, a panicked Roman diving over the couch, and Patton poking his head around a corner before being grabbed by Virgil were just a handful of the clips shown before it switched back to Thomas."Well, we figured it was about time to fill you all in on what's going on!”With that Thomas backed away from the camera to reveal Patton, Logan, Roman, and Virgil all sitting behind him. "For those who don’t know them, I’d like to introduce you to my Sides. Meet my morality, Patton." "Hey Kiddo's!" "My logic, Logan." "Pleasure to meet you." "My creativity, Roman." "Greetings Loyal Fanders!" "And my anxiety Virgil." "'Sup." Thomas gestured to each one as they spoke then sat down in the middle between Patton and Virgil. "Each of them represent a different part of myself and my personality.”He looked around at the four of them, “As you can probably guess they’re not really supposed to be here...”Thomas' expression turned serious, "None of us are sure why, or how, but about a month ago my sides were all dragged out of my mind.”“Which is completely unprecedented,” Logan chimed in.Thomas nodded in agreement, “Usually I have to call them out in order for them to appear. Even then I normally only call for one or two at a time unless we’re working on a video.”“On top of that they generally can’t stay out for very long without completely draining my energy.”“This,” The host continued gesturing to his Sides, “Is nothing like anything that’s happened before.” “Unfortunately that also means we’ve had no luck figuring out how to get back,” Logan said with frustrated sigh.“Hence the sudden increase of Sanders Sides content,” Thomas continued, giving him a sympathetic smile."Even though we are dealing with a minor crisis we will still want to make content for all of you,” Roman added getting a nod of agreement from Patton. "We’d never want to disappoint you Kiddo's!!" "Aren't we always disappointments?" Virgil mumbled.Roman gave him a worried look and ruffled his hair slightly, getting an annoyed look from the anxious side.Thomas just tried to ignore them and continued, "Things aren't great for us right now, but I figured it was about time to let you all know.”Thomas said with a slight smile, "Even if we didn't clear up much I hope this gives everyone an idea of what's going on." Thomas waved to the camera.“Until next time, take it easy guys, gals, and non binary pals. PEACEOUT!!" With that the video jumped to the usual end card, leaving everyone to wonder what would happen next.~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Thomas made sure everyone was up early the morning after he uploaded the announcement video, though not everyone was happy about it.“What’s with the early wake up call?” Virgil growled as he stomped down the stairs, obviously annoyed, “Somethings wrong with the video isn’t? I told you we should have triple checked it.”Thomas rolled his eyes not bothering to look up from his laptop, “Good morning to you too.”Virgil glared at him and the host chuckled, “Nothing’s wrong with the video Virgil, that’s not why I wanted everyone up.”Roman let out a loud yawn as he followed behind Virgil, “Why did you want us up then?”The host smiled, “It’s a surprise!”“I hate surprises.”Thomas rolled his eyes again, ”Just humor me, please?”Virgil growled slightly “...Fine.”Thomas just shook his head as the anxious side stalked over to the couch and curled in on himself, pulling his hood up in the process. Roman flashed him a knowing smile as joined him, giving the anxious side a playful nudge as he sat down.“What’s up with you today Storm Cloud?”“You know I hate waking up early,” the anxious side scoffed.Roman sighed, “I know you don’t, but this isn’t just your usual early morning grumpiness. What’s wrong?”Virgil gave Thomas a worried glance, “Nothing’s Wrong Princy.”The Royal looked at the host then back at Virgil, something clicking in his head as he realized what was going on, “Ohhh...”They both went quiet for a moment as they thought about what to do.Suddenly Virgil pulled out his phone and headphones, turning himself slightly so Roman could see his screen easier, but instead of putting on music or a video he opened his notes app and started typing.“I had a nightmare last night”Roman’s eyes went wide and on reflex he grabbed Virgil’s free hand, giving it a light squeeze.The anxious side kept typing.“It’s alright, I get them all the time. It’s no big deal.”Roman’s grip tightened and his eyes narrowed as he shook his head slightly.Virgil looked away and bit his lip.He felt Roman squeeze his hand again, as if asking him to talk about it. The anxious side closed his eyes and thought for a second before letting out a shaky breath.He started typing again, “... it was dark, almost pitch black, and I was running through a forest. I was being chased by something, I think, and there were people running beside me.”“I could hear their heavy breathing and some of them kept yelling encouragement, saying we were almost there, almost safe,” he continued, his hand shaking slightly, “I couldn’t really see their faces and their voices seemed familiar but I was too focused on running to really care.”“Eventually I tripped, my foot caught in the roots of a tree and I looked back to see a black wave rushing through the trees towards me,” The anxious side had started crying at this point, “Just before it reached me I heard two people scream out my name and there was a bright flash of red and an eerie yellow then... there was nothing.”“It kept repeating every time I tried to go back to sleep,” Virgil finished, looking back at Roman with fear in his eyes.Without warning Roman pulled him into a hug, making him drop his phone.He could tell Thomas was giving them a weird look, but all he could focus on was Roman’s voice.“I’m sorry Virgil, I’m so sorry...”The anxious side was confused by his words but he melted into the Royal’s arms anyways, desperate for his warmth and comfort as he tried to stop his shaking.It was around that point that Patton and Logan came downstairs.Patton immediately rushed over once he spotted the younger two huddled together, “Is everything alright kiddos!?”Roman nodded as Virgil tried to hide his face in his shoulder, “Yeah... we just had a bit of a rough night is all...”Patton’s expression softened and he patted the anxious sides head, “Oh kiddos...“He knelt down so he was eye level with them “...Do you want to talk about it?”Roman shook his head as Virgil wiped at his face.“I-I’ll be fine...” Virgil mumbled.“If you say so kiddo.”Patton ruffled the younger sides hair again as he stood up, “But if you need to talk, let me know alright? I’m always ready to listen.”He glanced at Roman as him and Virgil unwrapped from each other, “That goes for you too.”Roman nodded and Patton smiled.He turned around to Logan, noticing his annoyed expression as the logical side cleared his throat.“Might I ask what you wanted us up for Thomas?”The host flashed him an uneasy smile, “I wanted to take you all out for breakfast!”“Afterwards I figured we could go for a walk around town,” He continued, closing his laptop as he stood up, “Since we’ve let everyone know what’s happening I thought it might be a good way to ease everyone’s nerves.”Patton clapped his hands, “That’s a great idea Thomas!”“I’m glad you think so Pat!”The elder smiled as Thomas looked around the room, “Well? Are you guys ready or do you need a few more minutes?”“I’m ready,” Logan answered with a nodRoman and Virgil locked eyes for a moment, “Uhhh, I think we’re good too.”“Alright!” Thomas exclaimed, rushing to grab his keys, “Then lets go get some breakfast!”

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Sanders Sides Story Finished Chapter 21: Family OutingVirgil felt uneasy the moment they all got out of the car and It didn’t take long to figure out why.All round the parking lot people were stopping to stare at them in surprise, it wasn’t everyday you’d get to see a group of identical people walking around after all. Even though he knew why they were starring the anxious side couldn’t keep his thoughts from racing.What if they were being watched by the people hunting them? What if they were just acting surprised to get their guard down? What if-“-Earth to Virgil!,” Roman said snapping him back to reality, “Hello~? Are you still with us?”The anxious side shook his head, “Y-Yeah... Yeah! Sorry! I was spacing out...”Roman looked around, trying to figure out what was wrong, and finally noticed all the stares they were getting. He flashed Virgil a reassuring smile and grabbed his hand.“It’s alright Storm Cloud, I’ll keep everyone safe like I promised. Just stick close and let me know if anything’s off okay?”The anxious side nodded, trying to hide the slight blush that started to form on his cheeks.Roman’s smile grew slightly and he ruffled Virgil’s hair, “Let’s catch up to the others.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Once they got to their table Virgil seemed to calm down a bit more as they weren’t getting as many stares. In fact everyone seemed a lot calmer, and happier once they were sat down.Patton was back to his usual bubbly self, Thomas was smiling more than usual, even Logan finally seemed to relax as they settled in. The meal helped boost their moods further as it was delicious and their waiter was amazing too.After such a great meal everyone was full of energy, especially the elder. Once they got downtown they couldn’t keep him still for more than a few seconds. One moment they’d be casually walking among the crowds and the next they’d be sprinting down the street after Patton, trying not to lose sight of him.The elders endless energy wasn’t the only thing they had to deal with either. They were easy to pick out from a crowd so a few local fans recognized them as they ran around. Some helped them coral the energetic elder, others got into discussions with Logan and Virgil, and a few started impromptu duets with Roman; however the first thing all of them asked when they came up to the group was how they were holding up.Everyone was worried after the announcement after all.Eventually, after spending the afternoon running all around town, the five of them ended up at one of the parks Thomas frequented for videos. Like earlier Patton kept running off, but thankfully the park wasn’t that busy so it was a bit easier to keep track of him.After circling around a few times Virgil slumped back onto an empty park bench, Roman not far behind. Both of them were completely exhausted.The anxious side sighed, “I didn’t realize Pat could run that fast...”“I know!” The Royal complained loudly, “You’d think all this running around would have tired him out by now!”Virgil looked at him with a raised eyebrow, “Are you sure we’re talking about the same person?”Roman just rolled his eyes and let himself relax, watching as Logan and Thomas chased Patton around the field. Even though Logan and Thomas seemed annoyed with the elder, Roman could tell they were all having fun.Virgil stared at them as well, pulling his coat tighter around his shoulders, “... It’s getting colder.”“Mmm, it is almost winter,” The Royal leaned back to stare at the sky, “But At least the weathers been fairly nice lately.”“Yeah...” Virgil mumbled looking up as well, shivering slightly.They went silent and listened to the rustling of leaves as a light breeze passed through the trees.“Hey Roman?”“What’s up Sunshine?” Roman asked looking over.“Have we...” The anxious side paused for a moment, a look of confusion crossing his face, “Have we done something like this before?”Roman felt his heart start to race, “What do you mean?”“I-I dunno, it’s just... something about this feels so familiar,” Virgil explained looking down at his hands, “It’s like it’s on the tip of my tongue but I just can’t quite place it.”“I-I’m sure it’s nothing,” The Royal quickly replied, trying to deflect the situation, “Probably just some déjà vu or something.”The anxious sides shoulders slumped, “You’re probably right...”Roman immediately felt guilty, but he didn’t get the chance to try and comfort the anxious side as their attention was drawn by a loud yelp from Thomas. Without another word they jumped to their feet and rushed over.“Is Everything Alright?!?” Virgil exclaimed in a panic.“I’m fine! I’m fine!” The host quickly reassured them, turning to the young man he’d run over, “The better question is are you alright?”The young man muttered something under his breath, “Y-Yeah, I’ll be fine! Just got a few scratches, nothing major!”The second he looked up Virgil and Roman did a double take.“Lennox!?”Lennox’s eyes went wide, “Virgil?! And Roman?!”The anxious side helped Lennox to his feet, “What are you doing here?”“I could ask you guys the same thing!” The brunette replied dusting himself off with a smile.Thomas, Patton and Logan looked at them in confusion. “Who are you exactly?” Logan said looking Lennox over, “Because I don’t believe we’ve ever met.”Lennox looked embarrassed, “Ah right, introductions...”“I’m Lennox Dayton,” He answered, holding out his hand, “One of Virgil’s friends.”He smiled nervously as Logan cautiously shook his hand, “Pleased to meet you.”“Oh! No wonder you seemed familiar!” Thomas exclaimed, “You were with them at the restaurant the other day!”“Yeah... sorry about that by the way,” Lennox said with a sheepish grin, “Virgil told me what happened after we all ran off.”Thomas shrugged, “What’s done is done, besides I would have had to tell them sooner or later.”“Anyways!” Roman chimed in, “What are doing out here by yourself?”“Oh! I’m not by myself! Xaivion’s here too!” The brunette explained, “We were just waiting in the parking lot for Perry cause him and Carla invited us for dinner.”Virgil looked at him in confusion, “Then why are you over here?”“A-Ah well you see... u-umm...”“Lennox!!!”Another brunette suddenly ran up to the group with a big smile, throwing his arms around Lennox.“X-Xaivion!” Lennox quickly pulled away to look at his fiancée, “Oh my- You’re bleeding! What did they do to you!?”Xaivion wiped his face, looked at his hand, and shrugged, “Eh its just a bloody nose, it’ll heal.”It was at that moment that Xaivion realized they weren’t alone.He stared blankly at the sides and host as they stared back, “Uhhhhh... Hi?”Logan let out a loud sigh, “Another one of your friends I presume?”“Uh... Yeah, this is Xaivion,” Virgil said introducing him, “Xaivion this is Thomas, Patton and Logan.”Xaivion rubbed his neck, “Nice you finally meet you I guess?”Patton flashed him an awkward smile, “It’s nice to meet you too but ah... do you mind if I ask what happened?”“It’s fine, just a bit of a disagreement with a soon to be in-law,” Xaivion quickly replied, “But don’t worry, we got things worked out.”Lennox stared at him in disbelief, “Okay one, they’re our brothers; and two, did you really manage to talk some sense into them?!”“For the last time they’re your brothers not mine,” The brunette rolled his eye, “And yeah, kinda; Though Orrin helped out quite a bit.”“Orrin... helped?”Xaivion waved his hand dismissively, “We can talk about it later.”“Speaking of which,” He turned around and gave a thumbs up to someone down the path, “We should get going.”Lennox turned around as well and stared in shock, “Wait, when did Perry get here!?”“He pulled up just as the others left.”“Oh...” Lennox turned back to Virgil with a worried smile, “I guess we’ll have to talk to later then?”“I guess,” The anxious side said with a shrug, “It was nice seeing you at least.”“Yeah!” Lennox replied with a smile, “And it was nice to finally meet the rest of you!”Logan nodded and Patton flashed them a smile, “Same to you!”“Have a good evening you guys!” Xaivion replied with a wave.“You Too!” Virgil called after them as they headed back towards the parking lot, “Try Not To Get Into Anymore Fights Tonight!!”Xaivion laughed, “Not Making Any Promises!!”Once they were out of earshot Patton let out a slight chuckle.“They seemed... interesting.”“Yeah, they’re a weird pair” Virgil said rolling his eyes, “But did you really think any friends of mine would be normal?”“Hey, give yourself a bit more credit,” Roman chuckled putting a hand on his shoulder.The anxious side scoffed at him, but didn’t try to pull away. He stared into the distance as the wind started to pick up again, his shaking getting worse.Something was off, but not with their surroundings.Roma noticed the change immediately, “Are you feeling alright Virgil?”Virgil slowly shook his head and pulled his jacket tighter around his shoulders.After a moment the anxious side turned to Thomas, “I’m sorry but, can we go home? I... something‘s wrong.”The host blinked in confusion for a moment before looking around the group, “Uh, sure. Are you all ready to leave?”Logan glanced up at the darkening sky and nodded, “It is about time we headed home...”Patton nodded in agreement, “I’m ready to go if you all are!”Thomas looked around one more time, “Alright since everyone’s ready...”Patton beamed, “Race you to the car!!”“Patton no- PATTON!!”Logan let out a frustrated scream as the elder ran off again. Within seconds him and Thomas were chasing after the bubbly elder again, leaving Roman and Virgil behind.Roman sighed and shook his head, watching the three of them disappear into the distance. His attention was eventually drawn back to Virgil as he felt a tug on his sleeve. The anxious side was desperately clinging to his arm, shaking like a leaf. Roman carefully loosened the anxious sides grip and grabbed his hand, flashing him a reassuring, yet worried, smile when he looked up.“Come on Sunshine, let’s get you home.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Roman started to panic the moment Virgil fell asleep. The anxious side was still shaking and his breaths started coming fast and shallow, never a good sign.Without wasting a second Roman pressed his hand to the shivering sides forehead, his eyes going wide. He swore under his breath, immediately drawing Patton’s attention.“What’s wrong?”The Royal pulled his hand away and worked on pulling Virgil’s jacket off “He’s burning up.”Patton’s eyes went wide as Roman swore again.“Roman!” The elder scolded on reflex, “language!”Roman glared at him briefly but quickly turned his attention back to Virgil, “I can’t believe I didn’t notice sooner.”Logan leaned forward and gave him a confused look, “It’s a fever, you can’t predict things like that. Besides he was perfectly fine earlier.”“That’s just it, he wasn’t fine. If I’d just remembered the signs...”“What on earth are you talking about?”Roman bit his tongue, barely resisting the urge to scream. Now wasn’t the time to be revealing secrets, not when Virgil needed him.Logan glared angrily at Roman as he purposely avoided his eyes, “Again with the silent treatment?“Roman continued to ignore him which only made the logical side angrier.“When will you stop with all the bloody secrets!?” He finally snapped, “We all know you’re hiding things from us, why won’t you both just spit it out already!?”“Logan! Now is not the time!”The logical side turned on the elder, “Then when is the time!?”“Logan-““Will all of you just stop for one minute!!”Everyone turned to Thomas, immediately going silent.“Yes, we do need to stop with all the secrecy,” The host announced, “However right now we need to worry about Virgil. Once he’s better then we can talk, until then no more fighting got it?”The three sides nodded in unison.“Good. Now please, can you all keep quiet until we get home? I need a moment to breath...”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~The moment Thomas unlocked the door Roman rushed Virgil up to their room. With a bit of effort he managed to change the anxious side into his pajamas and tuck him in, making sure to check his temperature again before heading back downstairs.Patton was the only one that looked up when he came down.“How’s he doing?”The Royal shook his head as he headed for the kitchen, “It’s hard to tell but I think his fevers getting worse.”Patton frowned and turned to Thomas, “You have a thermometer in the bathroom right?”“Maybe? You’d have to check.”“I’ll see if I can find it.”“Grab one of the facecloths while you’re there please!” Roman called after him.“Got it!”The Royal continued searching through the cupboards until he finally found what he was looking for.He got a few confused glances from Thomas as he began to fill a large bowl with water.“A cool damp cloth can help keep a fever manageable,” Roman explained without looking up.Thomas nodded and looked away again just as Patton returned, thermometer, facecloth and bottle of Advil in hand.Roman quickly took the items from him, “Thanks Pat, I was just about to ask if you could grab the pills as well.”“No problem kiddo.”The elder gave him a concerned look, “Do you want me to come with you?”The Royal quickly shook his head, grabbing the bowl from the sink, “I‘ve got things from here.”He flashed him a tired smile, “If I need help I’ll call for you.”The Royal just barely made it to the bottom of the stairs before Patton called out, “Roman wait-““Yes?”“I just... want to ask something before you leave.”He waited as Patton took a deep breath.“Did we do something?,” He asked, his voice filled with concern, “I mean since we first met you’ve changed a lot but you’ve been acting... Different, lately. Is it something we did?”Roman paused for a moment, looking down at the bowl with a frown, and then scoffed at himself.“You do realize I never actually changed right?,” The Royal replied quietly, turning to the elder with a sad smile, “The only thing that changed is that I got really good at acting.”He quickly turned back to the stairs but still managed to catch the elder’s heartbroken expression, “... I’ll be in my room if you need me.”With that the Royal rushed back to his room, making sure he didn’t spill anything on his way there, and locked the door behind himself. He started taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm his sudden nerves.“He needs you right now,” The Royal muttered to himself, “He needs you.”After a few more deep breaths he turned his full attention to Virgil, sitting him up slightly. This earned him a groan from the sleeping side.He grabbed the thermometer, “Just hold on Virgil, I’ll put you down in a moment.”Once it got a reading he let out a sigh of relief. 37.8°C, not great but not deadly either. He laid Virgil down again and got the facecloth ready, making sure to wring it out so it wasn’t dripping water everywhere.The sleeping side let out another groan when the cool cloth met his warm skin, but he began to relax after getting used to it.Roman smiled slightly as he pushed Virgil’s bangs back, “That feels much better doesn’t it?”He continued to play with his hair as he leaned forward, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek, “Rest well sunshine, I’ll be by your side when you wake.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~When Virgil woke the first thing he saw was Roman leaning over him.The anxious let out a low groan as the Royal flashed him a tired smile.“Good morning Virgil, how are you feeling?”“Like I was run over by a truck,” the anxious side croaked, “What happened?”“You passed out in the car,” Roman explained changing out the facecloth again, “And you’ve had a pretty bad fever the past day or so.”“You have got to be kidd-“ The anxious side cut himself off, bolting upright, “Wait, what do you mean past day?!”“You slept through most of yesterday,” The Royal calmly explained, reassuring him, “You did wake up a few times but you were completely out of it, I’m not surprised that you don’t remember anything.”“Geez... it’s really that bad?”“It was, thankfully your fevers been dropping pretty fast. Speaking of which...”He turned to grab the thermometer, “It’s about time I took your temperature again.”Virgil looked at the thermometer and groaned, “Seriously, now?”“It’ll only take a minute.”The anxious side let out an annoyed huff, but let him stick the thermometer in his mouth. Roman just smiled at him and waited in silence until it registered his temperature.He ruffled the younger sides hair, “Just like I thought, it’s almost back to normal!”“Good,” Virgil huffed, “The sooner this is over the better.”“It’s not that bad.”Virgil let out another groan in response and Roman just rolled his eyes at him. The anxious side opened his mouth to continue complaining, but was cut off by a soft knock at the door.“Can I come in kiddo?”Roman thought for a moment before getting up, “Give me a moment!”Virgil watched as he made his way over to the door, giving him a confused look when he heard the soft click of the lock.Roman only opened the door slightly, “What’s up Pat?”The elder smiled and held up a tray, “I made breakfast.”“Perfect timing,” Roman relaxed and stepped aside, letting the elder into the room, “Virgil just woke up.”“Oh!”Patton quickly made his way over to the bed, setting the tray down on a dresser before checking on Virgil, “How’re you feeling kiddo?”“Terrible.”Patton frowned and Roman quickly reassured him, “His fevers gone way down.”“That’s good!”“It is.”Roman looked at the tray that Patton had brought in, curious.“Are those... breakfast sandwiches?”The elder froze for a moment, “... do you not like them?”“What? Oh no, no! It’s just been awhile since I’ve had them!”Roman turned away slightly embarrassed, “You know, since the nobles see that kinda thing as ‘Peasant food’...”Virgil blinked at him in surprise, “Wait... the nobles decided what you ate for breakfast?”The Royal let out a deep sigh, “And lunch, and dinner and.. well I think you get the idea.”“Can’t you just make your own meals?”“I haven’t had the time too,” Roman replied with a shrug, “it’s not that big of a deal though.”Patton sat down on the end of the bed and passed Virgil a plate, “It must be quite the change then, getting to chose what you eat.”Roman moved back to Virgil’s side, “A very welcome one!”Patton let out a light hearted chuckle as the younger two started eating, “That’s good!”The elder went silent as they continued eating, taking the chance to look around the room. After getting a good look at everything he let himself fall back onto the mattress.“Ahh~ Your guys’ bed is so soft...” He commented with a soft sigh, “I could lay here forever!”Virgil kicked his shoulder from under the covers, “That’s why we don’t let you in here!”They all chuckled at that, before going silent again. Slowly the silence began to change from comfortable to awkward as a sudden tension filled the air. Eventually Virgil couldn’t take it and put down his plate with a heavy sigh.“Okay spit it out, what’s going on?”Patton sat up again as Roman put his plate to the side, the two of them locking eyes for a moment. Virgil waited as an unspoken question passed between them, eventually ending with a defeated sigh from Roman.“...They know.”Virgil went pale, “What?”Roman sighed again.“They know we’re hiding things and they want answers,” The Royal explained looking him in the eyes.“A-Ah...”The anxious side went quite for a moment as he tried to calm his now racing thoughts. Eventually he managed a few shaky breaths and turned to Patton.“H-How long?”The elder hung his head, “I knew from the start, it took Logan a few days to put the pieces together.”Virgil nodded slowly, “A-And Thomas?”“I don’t know when he figured it out, but I’d say fairly recently...”Virgil nodded again and Roman moved to comfort him, “Are you alright Sunshine?”“N-Not even close,” The anxious side admitted as Roman pulled him close, “But I knew this would happen eventually...”Roman hummed softly in response, “That doesn’t make it any easier...”“...Not in the slightest.”Roman started rubbing the anxious sides back as he buried his face in his chest, shaking slightly. Patton looked on with worry and eventually reached over to join the hug for a brief moment.When he finally pulled away he patted the youngest’s head, “.... I’ll leave you two alone for now, just let us know when you’re ready kiddo.”Virgil held Roman tighter in response. Without another word the elder gathered all their used dishes and headed for the door.Before leaving he turned back one final time.“I’m sorry for not doing more to help...”Roman flashed him a reassuring smile, “You’ve done more than enough for us.”Virgil nodded briefly peeking over the Royal’s shoulder, tears in his eyes, “T-Thank you... Dad.”Patton felt tears prick at his eyes, a feeling of helplessness washing over him.“Anytime Kiddo.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The two of them stood at the top of the stairs watching for any movement below. Neither wanted to take the first step. Eventually Roman glanced over at Virgil, squeezing his hand tighter, “You ready Sunshine?”The anxious sides eyes were wide with panic, “Nope.”The Royal sighed, “... Let’s get this over with.”As expected the others were waiting for them in the living room, though not exactly patiently. Logan was pacing just below the stairs, Thomas was playing on his phone and Patton was humming quietly to himself as he kept an eye on the stairs; making the elder the first to spot them.He didn’t say a word as they made their way down, instead choosing to flash them a reassuring smile. Once they were halfway down he nudged their host, dragging his attention away from his phone.It took Thomas a moment but eventually he spotted Roman and Virgil, letting out a relieved sigh once he did. Unfortunately he didn’t get a chance to say anything to them as Logan finally noticed them.“It’s about time.”Patton frowned at him, “Not now Lo’, please.”The logical side glared at him in response, so he responded in kind; glaring back with a far more intense gaze.“Sit.”Everyone shivered, unnerved by his change of tone, but thankfully it did the trick. Without another word Logan sat down next to him, earning a sigh from Patton as he let himself relax again.He smiled at the younger two, motioning for them to sit, “Go ahead, we’re all ready.”Virgil nodded and looked at Roman who flashed him a nervous smile. They quickly made themselves comfortable, well as comfortable as they could be in this situation, while staying as close to each other as possible.Once they were settled Virgil took a deep breath and closed his eyes.“I-I’ll... I’ll start with the easy part,” He stuttered, “I... I-I’m the one who brought everyone o-out of the Mind Palace.”He waited for their reactions, heart pounding in his ears, but there was nothing. When he opened his eyes he realized the only one that was shocked was Thomas.The anxious side stared wide eyed at the elders, “Y-You’re not surprised?”Patton smiled again, “Like I said earlier I knew from the start.”Roman tightened his grip on Virgil, turning to the logical side, “What about you?”“It wasn’t hard to figure out, after all he didn’t hide the fact that he was awake when we were dragged out.”“So this whole time Virgil could have just let you back into the Mind Palace?” Thomas finally managed to ask.The anxious side nodded, “T-That brings us to the hard part...”He took a few more deep breaths, “I-It’s too d-dangerous for us to go back right now.”Logan narrowed his eyes, making the younger side flinch, “Explain.”“T-There’s a group t-that’s been hunting us,” The anxious side said, his voice slowly getting quieter, “I-I can’t remember when t-they started exactly, b-but they’ve been after u-us for at least half a year.”Virgil watched the color drain from their faces, almost immediately being overwhelmed by guilt.Thomas was starting to panic, “W-What do you mean they’ve been hunting us?”Virgil tried to speak, but his voice failed him; thankfully Roman noticed and took over.“He means they want us dead,” the Royal answered plainly.“I’m still missing a few details myself,” He continued, pulling the anxious side closer, “But apparently this group has been looking for a specific host for years, unfortunately they’re idiots and haven’t realized they killed that host ages ago.”“... S-So we’re just collateral damage?”Roman nodded and Logan’s eyes lit up as he thought of something.“How exactly do you know all of this?”“Remember the two we ran into the other day, Lennox and Xaivion?” Roman replied getting nods from the others, “They’re the ones who told Virgil, and in turn he told me.”The logical side seemed skeptical, “And how do they know about this group?”“B-Because the person they’re h-hunting was a friend of their host,” Virgil answered, finding his voice again.Thomas’s jaw dropped “They’re Sides?!”“They were, y-years ago...” The anxious side shook his head, “B-But we don’t need to get into that right now.” “Their h-hosts friend had a mark on her right hand, a cream colored rose,” he held up his hand, tracing out the mark on the back, “Apparently p-people with that mark are a threat to this group so they’re doing e-everything they can to get rid of them.”“Wait a second,” Roman looked down at Virgil, “Carla had that mark on her hand.”Virgil nodded, “T-That’s because Carla was one of her sides, f-for some reason the mark passed to them when she died.”“So...” Logan interjected, “There’s a group hunting hosts that killed their target years ago, leaving two sets of sides running around. Now years later we’re caught in the crossfire and the only reason we know this is because those rouge sides have been keeping you informed, am I correct?”Virgil nodded and Logan continued, “How are you so sure that this is all true?”“B-Because I’ve been fighting them off every single night for months!” The anxious side exclaimed, “There was one, t-then two, then ten! N-Nothing I did could stop them!!”He buried his head in his hands, “So I Ran! Every Single Night For The First Month I Forced Them Out And Slept On Thomas’ Floor!! After The Second It Was No Longer Safe To Go Back In The Morning So I Went Out And Ran Into Lennox!!” “They Didn’t Even Know I Was A Side Until The End Of Month Three!!! And It Took Another Two Before They Even Tired To Explain Everything!!!” The anxious side cried.Patton resisted the urge to rush over and hug the younger side, “Why didn’t you tell us sooner Kiddo? We could have done something to help!”“That’s Why I Didn’t Tell You!” He cried in frustration, “You Could Have Done Something, Sure, But There Was A Greater Chance Of You All Getting Yourselves Killed And That’s What I’ve Been Trying To Avoid!!”Logan tried to speak but Virgil quickly cut him off.“I’m not saying you guys aren’t strong, I know that’s far from the truth, but I couldn’t even touch them let alone hurt them!” The anxious side was on his feet now, practically screaming at them, “Hell I watched Remus take a swing at them once and his mace phased right through them! They didn’t even flinch for gods sake!!”“T-They want us dead,” He calmed down again, hugging himself tight as Roman pulled him back to the couch, “I-I wasn’t a-about to give them an easy target.”The room went quiet as Virgil’s words sunk in, the gravity of the situation hitting them all hard.Eventually Thomas looked up, his eyes wide with fear, “... Is there anything we can do?”Virgil closed his eyes as everyone turned to him. They were already too deep to turn back now.“C-Carla and Lennox have been working on a plan,” The anxious side admitted, “I asked t-them to keep me mostly in the dark, b-but I know they’ve been working with people who have fought these guys in the past.”“This is news to me!” Roman exclaimed, staring at him in shock, “How long have they been working on it?”“F-From the moment they found out about Carla, s-so just under a month I-I think. T-They only told me a-about it recently.”The logical side started rubbing his temples, letting out a heavy sigh, “How close are they to executing this plan?”“I-I‘m not sure...” Virgil answered, shaking his head, “L-Like I said, I asked them to keep me in the dark.”Patton glanced at Logan, a determined gleam in his eyes, “So there might be some time to prepare....”The elder turned back to Virgil, “Would it be possible for us to get in contact with your friends before this plan is set into action?”Virgil’s eyes went wide as he realized what Patton was asking, “A-Are you sure? We’d be putting T-Thomas in danger....”“From what you told us he’s already in danger, besides we might as well hear what they’re plan is.”Roman put a hand on Virgil’s shoulder, “I’m with Patton on this. It’s our duty to protect Thomas, If that means we end up in the center of the action then so be it.”The anxious side turned away, “I h-had a feeling that’s what you’d say....”He bit his lip as he thought for a moment, eventually giving in and pulling out his phone.“A-Alright, I’ll call them just... be ready for a-anything.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~“That’s... definitely a plan...”Lennox sighed, turning to the Royal, “Look we never said anything about it being good, okay?”“We haven’t exactly had a lot to work with either...” Perry added.“That’s alright,” Patton smiled nervously, “I’m positive we can make it work.”Xaivion raised an eyebrow, “So you’re all in then?”The sides all turned to each other, then to Thomas.The one eyed brunette pushed himself off the wall he was leaning on, “You can say no, none of us will be offended if you do.”Logan shook his head, “Oh no, we’re not worried about ourselves. We all- Well... Patton, Roman and myself have years of experience in battle.”He gestured to Thomas who happened to be lost in thought, “It’s Thomas we’re worried about.”Xaivion cringed, “Ah...”“... I say go for it.”Everyone turned to Thomas, surprised.“It’s... terrifying to think about, the fact that I could die in the fight,” The host explained, “But the idea of doing nothing and being a sitting target... that scares me more.”“Are you absolutely sure Thomas?” Roman asked, giving him a worried look, “We could see if there’s another way.”“... There is one other option.”Perry immediately whipped around to face Carla, “No, we’ve discussed this and I already told you that’s not an option.”“All they’re looking for is the mark! If I give myself up then they’ll stop!” She protested, “Besides you’ll still have Cara so it’s not going to be a problem in the long run!”“No, No! Stop that! I wont let you throw away your life! I only just found you again!”Lennox bit his lip as they fought, an idea forming in his head.He tried to bring the conversation back, “You mentioned you had experience in battle, care to elaborate?”Logan blinked at him, “Ah, yes. Years ago Thomas’ mind palace was taken over by a being known as the Dragon Witch, after which the four of us formed. We formed two separate insurgencies and eventually managed to take her down.”“Actually It was me and the Others that took her down, hence the whole ‘prince’ thing,” Roman quickly added, “Logan and Patton took over the bulk of our forces to hold off her army.”Perry and Carla had stopped fighting, now paying full attention on the conversation. Both of them looked worried.Lennox mirrored their worry, “She had an army?”“Yeah, It was massive! A handful of them were residents of the Mind Palace, but the rest weren’t. Thankfully when Roman killed her that part of the army went with her!” Patton explained.Xaivion stepped forward, his expression dark, “... You mean they disintegrated right?”“Right-! wait...” Patton’s eyes went wide as him and the others stared at Xaivion in shock, “How did you...?”“That’s a whole ‘nother can of worms that you don’t wanna get into right now” He replied shaking his head, “All you need to know is that Carla’s idea won’t work, at least in your case.”Thomas buried his head in his hands, muttering to himself, “...Thanks for getting my hopes up.”Roman threw up his hands in defeat, “So we’re back to square one! Great!”Patton chimed in again, a hint of desperation in his voice, “I’m sure we can still think of-“Thomas let out a heavy sigh, cutting him off, “No, Patton. No more brainstorming.”“I want to go with the first plan,” He locked eyes with Lennox, “It’s enough of a plan to work with, and there’s still time to change things if we need to.”Lennox nodded slowly, “... Alright, then it’s settled.”“We’ll get ahold of you once we finish getting things set up on our end,” he got up and held out his hand, “However if you’ve changed your mind by then let us know, okay?”Thomas stared at him, already starting to doubt his choice, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Patton smiling at him, the other three right beside him. It wasn’t hard to see that they were all nervous but there was also a hint of determination in their eyes, even Virgil looked ready for anything.The host relaxed a bit, taking a deep breath.“Alright,” He finally stood up, taking Lennox’s hand, “I’ll be counting on you then.”“We’ll try not to let you down.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Roman let out a frustrated sigh as he stared at the ceiling, absent mindedly running a hand through Virgil’s hair as the anxious side laid on his chest. Eventually he glanced down at the sleeping side.He looked so peaceful.A slight pang of jealousy hit him as he watched Virgil’s chest rise and fall. After that morning it almost seemed unfair that he could sleep so easily. The Royal turned back to the ceiling, letting his thoughts wander. He almost let out a chuckle as one of Virgil’s comments popped into his head, making him think of his brother.He could just imagine the look of disappointment on his face when his mace didn’t connect, and then he frowned as he realized how scared him and the others must have been when they realized what they were up against.He let out another frustrated sigh, letting his hand slip out of Virgil’s hair to rest at the small of his back. The anxious side stretched out in response, throwing his arm across Roman’s chest.The Royal smiled slightly, “God you’re so precious...”He let out a silent yawn as he finally felt his eyelids grow heavy.“... Sweet dreams, Sunshine.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~The scream rang out through the whole house, easily waking everyone. Within moments Thomas was up and in the hallway as Patton and Logan burst out of their room.Thomas stared wild eyed as Patton ran down the hall, “What was that!?”Logan pulled down the hood of his onesie as they both rushed after him, “Considering where it came from? Most likely Virgil!”The three of them burst into the room together, expecting the worse, only to find Virgil with Roman in his lap. The Royal was sobbing uncontrollably, clinging to Virgil like a lifeline.Patton didn’t waste any time, immediately jumping onto the bed to try and comfort him, “What happened?! Are either of you hurt?!”“He had a nightmare,” Virgil quickly explained, stroking Roman’s hair as he did, “A real bad one. He still hasn’t completely come to his senses.”“Oh Kiddo, it’s okay,” The elder began to rub circles on Roman’s back, glancing up briefly at Virgil, “Shh, you’re gonna be okay we’re all here now.”Roman didn’t seem to register his words, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”He let out a loud sob, his grip on Virgil tightening, “It was all my fault....”Patton glanced up at Virgil again, his eyes wide. “You expect me to know what he’s talking about?!” The anxious side quietly hissed.“I-I don’t know! Maybe?” The elder shook his head, turning his focus back to Roman, “Shh, you’ve done nothing wrong Ro’, Everything is okay!”Virgil looked up at the others as Patton continued talking to Roman, desperation in his eyes.Logan let out a heavy sigh as Thomas rushed to join the others, “You know I can’t deal with emotions.”“Uhhh.... You could turn on the lights?”“True,” The logical side flicked on the lights, “Anything else?”Thomas’ eyes lit up at that, “Tea! Make some tea and bring it up, that should help!”“Anything specific?”“Whatever you feel like, just make it quick!”“Understood.”With that the logical side took off, leaving the sobbing Royal to the others; thankfully by the time he got back they’d managed to bring him to his senses.Patton smiled brightly at Logan as he carried in a tray, carefully balancing five steaming mugs. “You’re back!”The logical side flashed him a subtle smile, “I see Roman has finally calmed down.”The Royal let out a sad laugh as he hugged himself tight, “You could say that...”Virgil pulled Roman into another hug as Logan set the tray in the middle of the bed, him and the others giving the Royal worried looks.Hoping to lighten the mood Patton grabbed one of the mugs, “What kind of tea did you make Lo’?”“Sleepytime classic, herbal tea,” the logical side replied, handing out the other mugs, “I figured it suited the situation best.”Thomas took a sip and let out a sigh, “I can feel myself relaxing already!”“Yeah, good choice Logan,” Virgil agreed, taking a sip as well.He eyed Roman nervously as the Royal cradled his mug. Eventually he let out a heavy sigh.“I’m sorry for waking everyone,” Roman cringed slightly, “I know you’re all exhausted...”“You don’t have to apologize kiddo!”Virgil put a hand on Roman’s shoulder, “Yeah, Pat’s right. These things happen.”“But it shouldn’t!” He groaned, “Not this often...”“...What do you mean kiddo?”He sighed again, “I have recurring nightmares.”“They show up about three or four times a month, sometimes more, sometimes less,” the Royal explained, “And they always follow a cycle, it’s never the same one twice in a row.”“Would you like to talk about them more?” Logan asked with a raised eyebrow, “We might be able to help you find the root of the problem.”Roman scoffed at him, “I already know what the root of the problem is...”Everyone stared at him as he bit his lip, thinking.“When me and Remus split,” He finally admitted, “My nightmare tonight was of the day me and Remus split.”“Was this one of your usual nightmares?”“No, those ones are less...” The Royal shivered, “Gruesome...”He turned his gaze back to his mug, “I was thinking about what Virgil had said, about seeing his mace go through the guys after us, and it just sorta... spiraled from there.”Patton turned to Logan, then back to Roman, “It must have been pretty horrible for you to scream like that...”“It was, in fact I can’t even begin to describe how excruciating it was...” Roman shivered again, “Just thinking about how close we were to dying that day gives me chills.”He began to smile fondly, finally taking a sip from his mug, “... But I’m glad that it happened, because I got Remus out of it.”Thomas stared at him in confusion, “I thought you hated him?”“I think he’s an insufferable brat and there are days I want nothing more than to punch him in the face,” The Royal admitted, “But I cant bring myself to truly hate him.”“It’s the same with the other ‘Dark Sides’. We grew up together and even though we don’t always see eye to eye, I still care about them.”“I agree with Princy,” Virgil chimed in, “They aren’t always the nicest and they can be a pain to deal with, but they genuinely just want to help.”Logan let out an annoyed huff, “They could certainly do a better job of showing it! All I’ve ever seen them do is make a mess of the palace with their endless pranks!”“They do pull a lot of pranks,” Patton laughed slightly, “It seems like every other morning we’d wake up to the nobles screaming about one thing or another!”Roman blinked at him, “Wait a second... have you really not noticed?”“Noticed what kiddo?”His face lit up as he looked around at everyone’s confused faces, “Oh my word you haven’t...”“They’ve been doing that on purpose! If the nobles aren’t constantly distracted nothing gets done, which harms Thomas in the long run!” The Royal started to laugh, “I’ve been giving them their targets for years! I can’t believe none of you noticed!”“SO YOU’RE THE REASON THEY KEEP MESSING WITH THE LIBRARY!!”“As much as I’d love to take credit for that, no I’m not. I only send them after the nobles, everything else is their own doing.”He shrugged, flashing the Logical side a knowing smirk, “Besides, they have free reign of the place so my hands are tied when it comes to enforcing the rules in their case!”“THAT’S BECAUSE YOU- AAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!!” Logan began to tear at his hair, “You. Are. INFURIATING!!!!”Roman smirked again, “I get that a lot.”Thomas started to chuckle, ruffling Roman’s hair, “Glad to see you’re starting to do better.”“It’s hard to stay scared when I’m around you dorks!”“Oh?” Virgil began to smirk, “Guess that means I need to step up my game!”Roman smiled fondly at him, elbowing him gently, “You can try! Nothing you do can scare me anymore Sunshine!”“That’s a bold statement coming from you Princy.”The Royal feigned offensive, which sent everyone into a laughing fit; they even got a few chuckles out of Logan despite his anger. Once they eventually calmed down they started to chat, finishing off their rapidly cooling tea, and before they knew it they were waking up the next morning to sunlight streaming through the curtains.Patton was the first side to untangle himself from the sheets, letting out a yawn as he stretched.He giggled as he watched the others curl closer together, “Looks like the tea worked!”The three sides groaned in response and the elder just rolled his eyes, ignoring them for a moment as he searched for his glasses. Once he had them he threw open the curtains, earning more groans from Roman and Logan along with a hiss from Virgil.The hiss threw him off for a moment but he recovered once he realized it was just Virgil, angry about the light now shining in his eyes.The anxious side attempted to pull the covers over his face, “Close. The. Curtains.”“No can do kiddo, it’s time for everyone to get up.””You don’t even know what time it is,” Virgil hissed back.The elder rolled his eyes again and began looking for a clock, eventually grabbing the nearest phone when he couldn’t find one.“It’s almost eleven thirty.”“Don’t believe you.”“C’mon guys! I know we were up late but if you don’t get up now your whole sleep schedule will be thrown off!”Virgil and Logan glared at him as he let out an exasperated sigh.“Please just get-“A pillow suddenly came out of nowhere, hitting him dead in the face and cutting him off.The logical and anxious side stared in surprise for a moment before turning back to see Roman, another pillow already aimed at the elder.“We’re taking ten more minutes, so unless you’re coming back to bed please get out.”Patton blinked at him, his expression softening, “Alright, but only ten; after that you are all getting up.”Roman gave him a thumbs up and rolled over, burying his face in his pillow. Virgil followed suit, wrapping his arms around Roman while Logan curled in on himself.Patton just shook his head and proceeded to clean up their mess from last night, gathering their scattered mugs and the tray. He also gathered everyone’s phones, along with Logan’s glasses, and moved them to the desk before heading out.After that the elder went about his usual routine; Shower, get dressed, make him and Logan’s beds, etc. He also stopped to check Thomas’ room and unsurprisingly it was empty, as well as a complete mess. After taking a few minutes to tidy up Thomas’s room Patton finally made his way downstairs, spotting a note on the table as he carried all the mugs to the kitchen. Dropping the tray in the kitchen he checked the note. “Going out with friends, be back later - Thomas”He smiled, “I had a feeling that’s where you were...”The elder let out another sigh as he made his way back to the kitchen, opening the blinds and window to let in some fresh air. For a moment he just stood there, listening as a cool breeze blew in.It was so peaceful.Eventually he stepped back from the window, and with a clap of his hands he changed into an apron, “Alright.”“Time to get to work.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Thomas stayed out way longer than he’d planned. He was just having so much fun with his friends that he hadn’t noticed how late it’d gotten. By the time he’d dropped everyone off the sun had almost set, and he was more than ready for a goodnight’s rest.However as he pulled into his driveway he noticed an unfamiliar figure coming down the sidewalk towards him. There was a sinking feeling in his chest as they came closer so he quickly pulled out his phone, sending out a group text to his sides.“Get to the driveway, I might be in trouble.”He waited for the delivered tag to appear before grabbing his keys. With a few deep breaths he finally stepped out to face the stranger, “Um... Can I help you?”The figure, who he could now see was a man, flashed him a wicked grin, “Yes actually, you can.”Without warning he swung at Thomas, barely missing him as the Host dodged backwards. He took another swing, again just barely missing him, but this time Thomas tripped. He hit the ground hard, barely getting the chance to catch his breath before the man got to him. Within seconds the host was winded as the man kicked him in the stomach, forcing him onto his back.The man continued to smile as he stepped onto Thomas’ chest to keep him from getting away, and without breaking eye contact he pulled something out of his jacket. He paused for a moment, seemingly taking joy in the look of terror on Thomas’ face as the host quickly realized what the object was.The man’s smile grew and contorted until he no longer looked human, “YoU CaN DiE FoR Me!”Thomas heart began to race and he squeezed his eyes shut, knowing there was no way out. He waited for the shot, bis life flashing before his eyes, but it never came. Instead he heard the sound of metal hitting concrete and felt a warm liquid drip onto his chest.Slowly opening his eyes the Host was greeted by a wide eyed stare from his attacker, and a shadowy spike sticking out of his chest. The man coughed, spraying a viscous black liquid as he turned around.“You-“Before the man had a chance to finish his body went limp, quickly dissolving into a thick black smoke. When it cleared all that remained was the spike, covered in the black liquid. Before Thomas even had a chance to fully react to what happened Virgil appeared, pulling him to his feet. With a snap of his fingers the spike disappeared, just as Roman came running out of the house.“Oh God!! Thomas-!!”Virgil immediately turned on him, “We Need To Get Inside NOW!!”The Royal took one look at the scene in front of him and jumped into action, quickly helping them both inside. Logan and Patton were waiting for them by the door, both clearly shaken.“I’m so sorry!! we were watching a movie and we didn’t see your message right away and-!”“Calm down Patton! Breathe!” Thomas immediately ran over to hug him, wincing as he pulled him tight, “It’s okay now, Virgil saved me!”Roman stared at the anxious side, “What happened?”“He was going to shoot Thomas so I-“ Virgil looked at his hands, shaking, “I-I killed h-him...”His eyes went wide as the situation finally hit him, “Oh god I just- I just-!”A loud, frantic knock at the door made everyone jump, sending them back onto high alert. All of them were prepared to fight, until the knocker started to speak.“Virgil!! Oh God, Please Be In There!!”The anxious side ripped open the door to see his friends terrified faces, “Lennox!!”Lennox rushed forward to hug him as Xaivion came in behind him, “Thank God You’re Alright!!”Thomas pulled away from Patton, looking between the two brunettes, “Why are you two here?”Xaivion held up a phone, Thomas’ text clearly displayed on screen, “We were with Virgil when he got this, and we weren’t about to just ignore someone in danger.”The one eyed brunette winced once he saw the black stains on Thomas’ shirt, “And it looks like it was a good thing we came too. Are you alright?”“I-... I’m a bit shaken, and I’ve definitely got some scrapes, but I don’t think anything’s broken. H-Hopefully...”“As long as there’s nothing major we can check you later,” Xaivion replied, looking around the room, “For now we need to get you out of here.”“What? Why??”He pointed at Thomas’ shirt, “You were attacked, that’s black blood and I’m gonna assume your attacker turned to smoke.”Both Thomas and Virgil nodded. “Then that means IPZ’s on the move,” He explained, “Which means we need to get you out of here before anymore members show up.”Logan gave him a skeptical look, “And where exactly do you expect us to go? We can’t go to any of Thomas’ friends places, and I doubt your home would be a good alternative.”Lennox passed Virgil to Roman, “Carla’s place. Xaivion called her and Perry on our way here, they should only be a few minutes out.”He had a solemn look on his face, “You should grab anything you might need before they get here. We won’t be letting you come back until everything is over.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~“Ow Ow OW!!”Xaivion let out a frustrated sigh, “For the love of- Stop squirming! You’re only making this more difficult!”“I’m sorry!” Thomas cried as Xaivion continued to clean his wounds, “It just- OW!! Really Stings!!”“Well it’d be over sooner if you’d Stop Moving!!”Thomas flinched, pulling away from the brunette again.“GAAAAHH!!!” With a frustrated cry Xaivion threw down the cloth he was using, “OKAY THATS IT, I’M DONE!!!”Everyone watched in silence as he stomped out of the room, fuming. Once he was gone Lennox let out a relived sigh and moved to take over.Thomas refused to look at him, guilt written all over his face, “I’m sorry...”Lennox shook his head and began to work, being far gentler than Xaivion, “You’ve got nothing to apologize for, if anything he should be the one apologizing.”“We’re all on edge right now,” He paused for a second when Thomas winced, “... and unfortunately he’s learned to use anger to deal with stress.”“That doesn’t sound healthy...” Patton chimed in from across the room.Lennox shook his head, “I know, so I’ve been helping him learn other ways to deal with it. He has been making progress-“An angry scream echoed down the hallway.“... Slowly.”He started bandaging Thomas’ wounds, “How are the rest of you doing?”Patton looked around the room. Roman was on one of the couches trying to comfort Virgil as the anxious side stared into the distance and Logan was pacing by the window, muttering to himself.“Things could be better?”The Royal scoffed, rubbing circles on Virgil’s back, “That’s an understatement.”“It sure is...” Lennox sighed.The brunette sat back, “Are they too tight?”Thomas tested his movement, flexing his arms slightly, and shook his head.“Thank you.”Lennox flashed him a tried smile as he started picking up all the medical supplies, “No problem- oh”He paused as Perry poked his head around the corner, a worried smile on his face, “What’s wrong?”“Is ah... Is Xaivion alright? He won’t stop screaming...”“He’ll be fine, he’s just stressed.”“Are you sure-“Carla’s voice rang out from the kitchen, “Perry! He Just Jumped Into The Pool!!” Perry flashed Lennox a sheepish grin as the brunette let out a heavy sigh.“Let me put everything away...”Lennox turned back to Thomas as Perry disappeared down the hall, “Try and get some rest alright?”He looked around the room, “All of you.”Patton gave him a tried smile, “We’ll try.”With that Lennox disappeared after Perry, leaving the sides and host alone in the living room. They were all silent for awhile, Logan’s muttering and the occasional yell from the backyard the only sounds to be heard.Eventually Thomas’ gaze started to wander around the room, following the vines delicately painted on the walls. He got bored of that after a bit so he turned his attention to the few paintings, sculptures and vases scattered around the room.“I see you’re admiring my work.”Thomas jumped slightly, turning to see Carla leaning against the doorway.“Don’t worry, I only just got off the phone,” She sat down beside him on the couch, “I haven’t been watching you.”“A-Ah...” Thomas turned back to one of the paintings, “So... you made these?”“Yep! All the art you see in this house was made by me!”She pointed at the walls, a proud look on her face, “That was my latest project, just finished it last week.”Thomas stared in awe, “You did it all by yourself?”She nodded, “Perry helped with cleanup and set up, but the painting was all me.”“I’ve been wanting to do something like this ever since I bought the place, and now that it’s finally done I couldn’t be happier!” She smiled wide, “I’d even go as far as saying it’s one of my best works yet!”“... How are you so calm?”Carla turned to Virgil, confused.“Thomas was attacked, I killed someone, and now they know where we are!!” He snapped, “So how the hell are you so calm!?!”Virgil glared at her as she took a moment to think, “Well!?!”“Would you rather I be freaking out like Xaivion?” She sighed, “Look, internally I’m freaking the fuck out. People could die tonight, and that’s terrifying to think about.”She held up her hand, showing off her mark, “But because of this I’ve seen, heard, and dealt with far worse. So yeah, I’m staying calm, Why? cause one of us has to.”At that moment Perry walked in, Lennox and a soaking wet Xaivion right behind him. He went to sit beside her, ruffling her hair as he passed.“That was a bit harsh don’t you think?”She shrugged, ignoring the mess he’d made of her hair, “Maybe, but I’m not wrong am I?”Perry shook his head in response, “How’d the call go.”Carla’s expression went dark, “Right... the call...”She turned her gaze to the floor, “... We’re on our own.”Everyone stared at her in disbelief.Xaivion looked like he was about to strangle someone, “YOU’VE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!!! THEY WON’T SEND EVEN A SINGLE PERSON TO HELP!?!”“It’s not that they won’t, it’s that they can’t,” Carla frowned, “We aren’t they only people Iron Poison are going after tonight.”“DAMMIT!!”Xaivion slammed his fist against the doorframe, “What the hell are we supposed to do then!?!”Logan finally stopped pacing, his eyes lighting up as an idea hit him.“Is there anyone in town that you could contact?”Perry shook his head, “None of our other friends are involved in all this supernatural stuff, the only people I can really think of are-““André and Orrin.”Perry and Xaivion turned to Lennox, “We can call André and Orrin, they don’t live that far from here.”Perry stood up, his expression serious, “Are you absolutely sure? Its only been a few days since-““I don’t care,” Lennox stated loudly, “We need people; so whatever happens, happens.”“... I’ll give them a call.”As Perry left the room again Logan turned to Virgil, “How many people can you bring out of the Mind Palace?”“A-As far as I know there’s no limit... Why?”Logan smiled slightly as Patton and Roman’s eyes went wide with realization.“The Dark Sides!!” “The Others!!”Thomas’ eyes lit up, “That’s right! Virgil if you can bring everyone out, that’d be a huge boost to our numbers!!”The anxious sides eyes went wide, “I never thought of that...”A look of concern suddenly crossed Patton’s face, “Wait, will they actually be willing to help?”“Of course! Most of them are always up for a fight so I’m positive that they’ll help!” Roman exclaimed, jumping to his feet, “The only problem will be getting them all together!”Logan cleared his throat, bringing everyone’s attention back to him.“Well?” He adjusted his glasses, “What are we waiting for? Lets go round up the Dark Sides.”He turned to Virgil, “Will you do the honors?”The anxious side nodded, uncurling himself. He started taking deep breaths to calm his nerves as shadows started to gather around his feet, a faint purple glow starting to surround him and the others. Just before disappearing he turned to their host with a worried smile.“Stay safe Thomas.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

As the purple glow began to fade the familiar walls of the castle came into view, bathed in the light of a full moon. They had appeared in the hall just outside of Roman’s room, the last place Virgil had been before leaving.They all started to relax, distracted by the beautiful night sky, before remembering what they were there for.Patton let out a sigh as he looked around, “So... I guess we should split up and start looking?”Logan nodded, “That would be the best course of-“Before he could finish a laugh rang out from somewhere deep within the castle, drawing everyone’s attention.Roman started to smile, “I don’t think that’ll be necessary, I know where they are.”The other three sides looked at each other and shrugged.“Lead the way Princy.”With a nod Roman started down the hall, the others right behind him. Eventually he turned down a narrow side hall leading them deeper into the castle. The farther they went the faster Roman got and the more uneasy Patton and Logan became.Unlike the younger two they stayed in the more inhabited spaces of the castle, straying away from the darker unexplored corridors like most of the residents. However even in the dark there were obvious signs of recent traffic. Dark hand prints smeared on the wall, recently lit candles here and there, scrapes and dents left from various weapons, it was hard to fully grasp everything as they all raced after the Royal. Slowly the marks started showing up more and they began coming across lit candles, all with varying colors of flame, and the laughter from earlier became louder and clearer.Finally they came to a large set of doors, marked by years of fighting. Without a moment of hesitation Roman threw them open, a beaming smile on his face.“Guess who’s back!!”Everyone in the room immediately stopped in their tracks, which created quite the scene.Remus and another man were on a table, mid duel, while Remy laid sprawled out on a couch, his head resting in Picani’s lap. Meanwhile in a corner away from the action three others were playing a game of cards.All their eyes lit up with joy once they recognized the Royal.“Roman!!”Remus dropped his mace and tackled Roman to the floor, squeezing him tight, “You bastard! Where The Hell Have You Been?!?”Roman let out a slight laugh, “It’s a long story!”“Well you scared the shit out of us when you disappeared!!”“I missed you too trash man,” He gave Remus a solid Pat on the back, “Now can you let me go before you suffocate me?”The Duke thought for a moment, “Hmm... How bout no?”Roman surged up, pushing him off, “You rat!”The both began to laugh as the others started to gather around.“Glad to see you’re all alright,” Remy said, helping the brothers to their feet, “We were really starting to worry.”“I could say the same,” Logan commented, looking around, “I’m shocked that the castle is still standing.”“Oi! We aren’t that bad nerd!” The man Remus has been fighting snapped, “If anything we managed to improve some things around here while you were gone!!”Picani quickly stepped in, “Whoa! Calm down, Regan! Now’s not the time to fight!”The impulsive side crossed his arms, pouting, “... He started it.”The logical side turned away, “... I was only being honest.”“Where have you all been anyways? You didn’t leave any notes or anything!” One of the other younger sides asked, peeking through the small crowd.Another young side poked their head through the crowd, smiling, “Yeah! What happened! What happened!”“Whoa there! Alex, Idris you two need to calm down!” Picani pulled them both back a bit so they weren’t all crowding around the door, “We need to give them some space.”“Sorry Picani...”The final side finally came forward, carrying the deck of cards they’d just been using. He flashed the younger two a fond smile and flashed the cards away.“It’s okay you two, just learn for next time alright?”“Yes Omid!”Omid smiled again and turned to Roman, “So~ about what happened...”“Right...” Roman glanced back at Virgil, “Well long story short, Virgil dragged us out of Thomas’ mind to keep us safe and now Thomas is in danger.”He gestured to Patton, Logan and Virgil, “We needed more help so we came to get you guys.”Everyone stared in surprise except for Remus, he was fuming.“Thomas is in danger? It’s those shadow bastards isn’t?!”Virgil nodded, “If you’re talking about the guys that keep showing up at night, then yeah.” “I knew they weren’t just nightmares!!” He let out a frustrated screech then flashed Roman a sadistic grin, “You don’t know how badly I’ve wanted to bash their bloody heads in since they first stepped foot in the castle!!”Roman smirked, “I’ll assume that means you’re going to help?”The Duke was bouncing with excitement, “Why are you even asking?! Of course it’s a yes!!”He glanced at the others, “And how about the rest of you?”“Girl do you really think we’d give up the chance to beat the crap out of someone?”Roman shrugged, “Just wanted to make sure.”Remus grabbed his mace and started swinging it around, “What are we waiting for!? Let’s Go!!”“Whoa! Pump the brakes Remus!” The Royal said with a laugh, “We’ve gotta grab the others too!”Omid’s eyes lit up, “Were getting the others too?”Remy started to smirk, “Ooo~ This is gonna be fun~”“They’ll never know what hit them!” Regan started to cheer.Patton looked around in surprise, “You sure seem excited about this...”Picani squealed, “Of course! It’ll be just like old times!”“Roman, Vir-“The happy mood quickly disappeared as his hand flew to his mouth, forcing it shut and cutting him off before he could finish. The same thing quickly happened to the others too as a very faint yellow glow surrounded their hands.After a moment of initial shock, Remy walked up and smacked the empathetic side on the head. When Picani looked up at him the sassy side pulled down his sunglasses so he could see his eyes. Even though he couldn’t speak it was obvious that he was trying to call Picani an idiot.Virgil stepped back, terror in his eyes, “W-What’s going on?“Patton stared on in shock, “I-I don’t know, but It almost looks like-““Deciet.”The other three main sides turned to Roman, seeing his expression go dark.“I... I always wondered why none of you had said anything,” He clenched his fists, “.... When did he force you to keep quiet?”Thet all turned away, a mix of guilt and sadness on their faces.“Dammit!”Without thinking Roman punched the wall, scaring everyone and leaving a decently sized dent behind.“I should have known!”Patton stepped forward, putting a hand on Roman’s shoulder, “Ro’... what’s going on?”He turned around, looking past the elder to focus on Virgil. The same mix of guilt and sadness was on his face, with an added hint of anger.He pushed Patton off, ignoring his question as he turned back to the now mute sides, “Are the others in the forest?”He got multiple nods in response.“Good,” He turned around and began marching back the way they came, “Cause we’re about to pay them a visit.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~A masked figure was waiting at the edge of the village, as if he anticipated their arrival. “You’re back,” The man pushed himself off the tree he’d been leaning against, “And angry.”“Where is he Fokai.”Fokai looked around the group, realizing what was going on, then nodded towards one of the houses closest to the trees, “In his garden.”“Thank you.”Roman quickly stomped off as Patton and Logan called after him, Virgil not far behind.“Roman please just tell us what’s going on!”“Or anyone!” Logan added, clearly frustrated, “Any answers would be appreciated at this point!”Roman didn’t seem to hear them as he threw open the garden gates, “DECIET!!”The scaled side didn’t even look up from what he was doing, “Oh Roman it’s so wonderful to see you.”“Don’t play coy, you know why I’m here.”Deciet sighed, dusting himself off as he stood up, “Of course I do, it’s always the same thing. I do wish you’d just let it go alre-“He froze when he saw the others, a hint of panic in his eyes. Quickly regaining his composure he cleared his throat, “I... see you brought friends this time.”“Yes I did.”Roman glanced back at the others, “We were going to ask for everyone’s help protecting Thomas, as he’s currently in danger, however I‘ve just been made aware of another matter.”“Namely the fact that you’ve been keeping everyone from talking about our past.”“Dammit I thought I caught him in time...” The scaled side muttered.“I can’t believe you!!” Roman yelled, “You’re seriously that desperate to keep the truth hidden from him?!”“I’m not the only one at fault here!” Deciet snapped back, “You could have said anything you wanted at anytime Roman,”The Royal narrowed his eyes, “You know exactly why I didn’t you slimy bastard.”Deciet turned away, a guilty look on his face, “We aren’t doing this in the garden.”“I know the deal by now,” Roman turned around and stomped out, the others right on his heels.All of the dark sides were now forming a circle in the center of the village surrounding Roman and Deceit as they took defensive stances.Virgil whipped his head around in fear and confusion, “Can Someone Please Tell Us What The Hell Is Going On?!?”He felt a hand on his shoulder, gently pulling him back towards the edge of the circle. Looking up he saw one of the younger dark sides, Malo, leading him towards Patton and Logan.“Don’t worry,” Malo flashed him a sad smile, “You’re about to find out.”Deceit snapped his fingers, making his cane appear, “Who’s turn is it again?”“I went first last time,” Roman replied, making his katana appear, “And even if I hadn’t it’d be best if you went first.”Deciet frowned, letting out a heavy sigh, “... If I win I want you to leave immediately.”Patton, Logan and Virgil stared in shock as Roman spoke next.“And if I win you have to give Virgil back his memories. All of them.”The second his words sunk in, Virgil exploded with rage, “WHAT!?!”“YOU TOOK MY MEMORIES!?! YOU BASTARD!!!” he started to scream as Remy and Remus grabbed him, barely able to hold him back, “LET ME GO!! IM GONNA BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF HIM!!!”Roman turned to him, looking like he was about to cry as the anxious side continued to scream angrily. After a moment he waved his hand, creating a barrier that blocked him and Deceit off from the others.“I’m sorry Virgil, you have every right to be angry,” the Royal turned back to Deceit, “But right now this fight is mine, not yours.”Deciet’s eyes began to glow, “Enough stalling, let’s get this over with.”A faint red glow surrounded Roman, as he wiped his eyes, “Let’s.”Almost immediately Deceit vanished, reappearing behind Roman. The Royal didn’t seem the least bit fazed though as he easily blocked the attack. This continued for awhile, both of them seemingly predicting each other’s moves as the others watched in awe.By that point they’d let go of Virgil, leaving him to pound helplessly against the barrier, “DAMMIT PRICNY!!! LET ME THROUGH!!”Patton began to reach for him but quickly stopped himself as his mind began to race. Eventually he turned to Logan, his eyes wide as a realization hit him.“He was talking about Virgil and Deceit.”“What?”Patton’s eyes went wide, “Do you remember when I brought Roman into our room to talk? He said there was a rift between him and the dark sides that words couldn’t mend, and then he kept going on about a He saying that all he wanted was answers from them.”Logan stared at him confused, “Your point is?”“My point is he was never talking about the darks sides as a whole, he was talking about Virgil!” The elder pointed to the fight in front of them, “Which means the He that he kept mentioning was Deceit!”Without pausing he turned to the others nearby, “How many times have they fought each other?”The three non-mute sides all looked between each other, then at the others. They all looked worried, but eventually the masked side stepped forward.“I can’t give you an exact count, we unfortunately lost track a few years ago,” He answered with a shake of his head, “However I can tell you they started fighting the day we left the castle, just after the war.”Virgil had stopped pounding at this point, his focus turning to their conversation, “The day we... that was over ten years ago!”“Why the hell would he fight for my memories for over ten years?!” He exclaimed in confusion, “He hated me!!”The masked side tilted his head as Virgil continued, “Anytime I visited the castle he would disappear and he only returned after I left!!”He began to scream again, “And when I moved in he refused to speak to me or make eye contact when I was around, it wasn’t until I caught him limping towards his room that he actually started talking to me!! Even then it took another year before he started talking to me during the day!!” Fokai didn’t respond as the anxious stared at him, his eyes going wide as the pieces finally started falling into place.“No way... He really was fighting....” Virgil turned back to the fight, “But... why? Why wouldn’t he-?!”He didn’t get the chance to finish his thought as the moment he turned around Roman was sent flying into the barrier, sending a loud crack echoing through the forest as parts of it shattered.Everyone watched in horror as the Royal fell to the ground, his body going limp for a moment.Immediately Virgil tried to run to his side, only to be stopped by the dark sides again.“ROMAN NO!!” The anxious side struggled against them in vain, “DAMMIT LET ME GET TO HIM!!”Slowly the Royal pulled himself to his feet, clutching his arm. He turned to flash Virgil a reassuring smile, “I’m alright Sunshine, see? I can keeping going!”“You... You Bloody Idiot!!” Deceit charged at Roman, just barely missing the Royal as he dodged to the side.He began to swing wildly, forcing Roman back to the center, before landing another hit that sent him flying again. Like before Roman eventually pulled himself to his feet, which just seemed to make Deceit angrier.“Why... Why won’t you just give up!! You’ve failed time and time again, but you refuse to stay down!! Why!?!”“Because I made Virgil a promise, so no matter what I refuse to leave his side!!”Deceits expression went dark, “... That’s it? You took him from me... because of a promise?”Roman lowered his weapon slightly, “What...?”“I did everything I could for him!!” The scaled side finally snapped, “He was happy here, Safe here, then you showed up and all of a sudden he wanted to leave!!!““I should have... I Should Have Never Brought You To Village!!!”Roman stared wide eyed at him for a moment, before scoffing at him, “You... you’re joking right? Have You Seriously Been That Blind?!?!”“I didn’t do shit!” He snapped back, “In the beginning I would’ve gladly spent my whole life here, ignoring all the horrors outside our happy village!!”He pointed to Virgil, who was staring wide eyed at the scene in front of him, “And He didn’t want to leave either!!“All he really wanted was to go outside and explore the world he saw through his window! Things only escalated after he found the camps!! He wanted to end the suffering he saw, the only reason I joined him was because I was worried he’d get himself killed!!”Deceit was fuming now, his face red with anger, “You liar!!! You said yourself that it was your idea to raid the camps!!!”Roman started getting angrier as well, “Because he was fucking terrified of what you’d do when you found out what he’d done!!!”“Shut Up Traitor!!!”“No, You Shut Up For Once You Slimy Bastard!!!” “When we rescued Picani and Remy he rambled on and on about how screwed he was,” Roman started to tear up, “He was a sobbing mess when you found us because He Was Terrified Of What You’d Do!!!”His voice started to waver, “That’s why... That’s why I didn’t hesitate when you asked what happened, why I claimed responsibility for everything then and after, so you wouldn’t hurt him for wanting to save people.”Deceit started backing away, shaking his head as he fought back tears, “L-Liar- LIAR!!!! I WOULD NEVER DO ANYTHING TO HURT HIM!!!!“YOU TOOK HIS MEMORIES TWICE YOU BASTARD!!!! YOU CAN’T CALL THAT NOTHING!!!!”Deceit froze, “H-How... How did you....?!”Roman finally let his tears fall, “Because He Told Me!!! He heard you tell the others about it the day you found him and it wasn’t hard to see you were scared of something!!”The clearing went silent as Deceit started to shake.“You- You don’t know anything...”Roman’s voice wavered again, “Oh~ho really? Now you’re going to try and justify everything?!?”“SHUT UP!!! IT WAS FOR HIS OWN GOOD!!!!”“HIS OWN GOOD?!?!” Roman was seething at this point, “TAKING EVERYTHING FROM HIM AND REFUSING TO LET HIM CONTROL HIS OWN ABILITIES WAS FOR HIS OWN GOOD?!?!?Deceit started grabbing at his hair, “YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND, HE WOULD HAVE KILLED HIMSELF AND THOMAS IF I HADN’T!!!!!”“USING WHAT?! THE POWERS THAT HE SHOWED ME AND EVERYONE ELSE TIME AND TIME AGAIN THAT HE HAD FULL CONTROL OVER?!?!”Deceit was shaking in fear, tears streaming down his face, “I- I-!”“‘For His Own Good’ -BULLSHIT!!!” The Royal pointed an accusatory finger at him,“YOU WERE SCARED OF WHAT HE COULD DO SO YOU LOCKED HIM AWAY!!! AND LOOK AT WHERE THAT GOT YOU!!!!”Roman pointed to Virgil again, Patton and Logan now at his side, “HE ENDED UP SO SCARED OF YOU THAT HE TIRED TO LEAVE NOT ONCE, BUT TWICE!!!! NOW YOUR SITTING HERE SAYING THAT IM THE REASON HE LEFT?!?!”He was shaking now as Deceit stood frozen in fear, “Maybe you could have convinced me the first time, maybe, but you’d be better off trying to blame Patton this time instead of me!!!.”“I ignored him and avoided him for years, I did everything besides outright attacking him in order to keep him away!! The only reason we’re friends now is because he’s so damn persistent and he finally broke me!!” Roman’s eyes were red and his cheeks were stained with tears, “So here we are! I’m somehow the bad guy that stole Virgil away from poor ole innocent you!!”Deceit didn’t respond right away, instead letting a silence fall over the village as tears streamed down his face. Eventually he started to laugh, a sad, mocking tone“So what? You want me to admit I’m wrong and that’s it? You’re more selfish th-““That’s not what this is about Janus!!” The Royal screamed, “None of this was ever about me!! It was about you and Virgil and everyone else!!”He started to sob as the last of his composure disappeared, “It was only ever about all of you...”The scaled sides fear turned to shock as Roman dropped his katana, “I never wanted to prove myself or get an apology out of you, I gave up that hope years ago, I just wanted you to be happy again.”The Royal finally fell to his knees, sobbing, “I just wanted everyone to be happy again...”He curled in on himself, clutching his chest as he sobbed uncontrollably, “...I don’t care what it takes anymore, please, just give him back his memories....I’m begging you....”He continued to sob as the scaled side slowly began to walk towards him, a slight limp to his step. Eventually he stopped a few feet away, his expression dark. Roman braced himself, expecting the worst, only to hear him snap his fingers.Before he had a chance to process what happened Patton and Logan started to panic, along with some of the other sides. He quickly turned in their direction, immediately noticing Virgil laying limp in their arms.Ignoring the burning pain from his injuries he rushed over, pulling the anxious side close, “VIRGIL!!”“... He’ll wake up in a few minutes...“Roman’s eyes went wide and he turned back to the scaled side, “Did you...?”“Don’t give me that look,” he hissed, “Just take him and leave.”“Janus-““Did I Fucking Stutter?” The deceitful side turned to glare at him, “LEAVE!!”Roman started to tear up again as Patton pulled him to his feet, the others helping Logan get Virgil onto his back. For a moment he refused to budge, his gaze locked on Deceit.A soft smile began to form on his lips, “Thank you...”With that he finally stopped resisting, letting Patton carry him off into the trees after the others, leaving Deceit alone in the clearing.Once he was sure they were gone the scaled side fell to the ground in tears, shaking and weeping as he let his emotions take over. There he stayed, reflecting on his mistakes as all his walls, all his lies, finally crumbled around him.The full moon illuminated him fully as he weeped, and despite everything he couldn’t help but think what a beautiful night it was.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The group walked in silence as they made their way back out of the forest. Some were still trying to process what happened, namely Patton and Logan; others were still under the oath of silence. The few dark sides that weren’t mute just didn’t seem interested in starting a conversation.Eventually Patton started glancing around at the group, unsettled by the silence. Finally he thought of a way to break it.“Soooo... De’s name is Janus?”Roman blinked at him, surprised by the sudden question, before smiling, “Fitting right?”“Yeah...“ The elder smiled back, “It must have been tough though, once Remus came around.”Fokai slowed down slightly to match the elders pace, taking interest in the conversation, “Remus was the least of his worries.”He pointed at Malo, Regan and another young side, “Those three were messing with him long before the twins came around.”The young side shrugged, adjusting his face mask, “He chose the name, he should have seen it coming.”“I wasn’t just referring to his name Griffin.”Logan flashed Fokai an amused smile as Griffin shrugged again, “Considering some of their past antics I can only imagine what they put you through”Malo let out a guilty laugh, “Yeah... We did not go easy on them...”“Speak for yourself! I was always on my best behavior!” Regan suddenly chimed in, a proud look on his face.Fokai started counting on his fingers, “Created a make-shift trampoline and attempted to jump off the roof, tried to fit down the chimney, twice, spent an entire day hiding in a tree because you ‘Wanted to live with the squirrels’. And that’s just an example of one week.”The impulsive side went red with embarrassment as Fokai chuckled, “Also, it’s good to see the gags are wearing off.”Remy let out an annoyed sigh as Remus started screaming, “God damn! I wish he wasn’t so bloody trigger happy!”Picani looked away, his face full of guilt “I’m sorry Remy...”The sassy side ruffled Picani’s hair, “Don’t apologize E’, we were bound to slip up eventually. ‘Sides things turned out alright in the end.”Patton’s eyes lit up for a moment, “Speaking of which, can I ask you all something?” Remy glanced over his shoulder and smirked, “Ask away.”“Why wasn’t Roman affected like the rest of you?”The sassy side thought for a moment, “You know, I’m actually not sure...”“’Cause he wasn’t around when Jan’ set up the oath,” Griffin answered suddenly, “Think he was out doing prince things or something.”His answer seemed to confuse the elder, so Fokai decided to step in again.“Janus can mute someone under one of two conditions,” the masked side explained, “They are trying to tell Thomas something he doesn’t want to know or they took an oath of silence, willingly or not.”He turned back to the others, “In our case it was the latter.”Hearing that Patton turned to Roman, wide eyed, “So you could have told us everything from the beginning ?”The Royal sighed, “Yes, I could have.”“Then why didn’t you?! We could have helped!!”“I wanted answers, not his head on a plate,” Roman replied bluntly.“We wouldn’t have gone that far!”“Well I know that now,” The Royal rolled his eyes, “But after your original reaction to our group I wasn’t about to risk it, and by the time we got to know each other I was in way to deep.”Logan raised an eyebrow, “What about Virgil? This was about his memories after all.”“You saw his reaction, he was ready to rip Janus’ head off!”“And I would have if he hadn’t stopped me.”Everyone immediately froze and turned to see Virgil, awake and smiling.He tapped Logan with his foot, “Mind putting me down?”“Oh, of course not! I would have let you down sooner had I known you were awake!”“It’s alright,” The anxious side said as slid off Logan’s back, “I only just woke up.”Once he was on his feet the anxious side stretched, then glanced at Roman. The Royal seemed on edge, a complete change from only a few seconds earlier. Virgil continued to stare, making Roman increasingly uncomfortable.Eventually he pushed himself off Patton and flashed Virgil an uncertain smile, “G-Good to see you’re awake! How are you feeling?”The anxious side still didn’t say anything, instead choosing to walk up to the Royal. After a few more seconds of awkward silence Virgil slapped him, earning audible gasps from the others. It took Roman a moment to register what happened, eventually turning back to Virgil in disbelief.Without warning the anxious side pulled him into a hug, “You’re an idiot, you know that right?”Roman slowly relaxed into his embrace, a wide smile on his face as he began to cry again, “.... You never let me forget.”“What’s with the tears Princy?” Virgil smirked as he pulled back to wipe them away, “You really hate me that much?”Roman laughed and pulled him back into the hug, “God, I missed you so badly.”Tears stared to prick at Virgil’s eyes, “I missed you too Roman.”They stayed in each other’s arms for a while longer, basking in their shared warmth, until Remus jumped them. Within seconds the three of them were in a pile on the ground, smiling and laughing.The Duke was practically smothering them with how tight his grip was, “You’re back! Our great storm is finally back!!”“Dude! Get off!” Virgil laughed, half heartily pushing on him, “We need to breathe!”Roman tried to help, but he quickly gave up and started waving at the others, “A little help here?”Malo and Remy ran over and pried Remus off them, bringing all three sides back to their feet. As they dusted themselves off Patton stepped forward, a nervous look on his face.“Does this mean you’ve got your memories back?”Virgil gave him a confused look, then quickly flashed him a reassuring smile, “Yep, they’re all back.”He glanced at Roman, “All the good and the bad.”The elder let out a relived sigh as Logan stepped forward, a curious look on his face.“I know this is quite sudden, but since you have your memories back I have a question to ask,” The logical side tilted his head slightly, “What caused Deceit to take your memories? Was it a specific event that set it off?”“Ah....” The anxious side thought for a moment, “Well the first time was an accident, I don’t really blame him for that one, the second time... He was scared.”“Of what?”“Me, the future, the thought of losing us and the life he tried to build for us, there’s not really one set answer,” Virgil replied with a shrug.“He panicked and took the first action he could think of,” Roman said with a sad smile.“Exactly,” Virgil gave him the same look, “And honestly? I’m not mad at him. I’m disappointed that he didn’t own up to his mistake, sure, but not mad.”He turned back to Patton and Logan, “People make stupid decisions when they’re scared.”Logan glanced at Patton, nodding in understanding, “True.”The bubbly elder looked around, slightly confused, “But why was he so scared of you specifically? Why not the others?”The anxious side blinked at him, “You know how you can turn into a giant frog monster?”“Yes.”“Imagine that, but worse and mixed with Janus’ multiple arm situation.”Patton’s eyes went wide, “A M-Massive S-S-Spider?!”Virgil looked at the others, getting nods from all of them, “Kinda...”“I can show you if you want?”The elder glanced at Logan who responded with a slight shrug.“It would be best if we saw his other form now, we wouldn’t want any surprises later.”“True...”Patton thought about it for a moment.He nodded, “Alright kiddo... but only for a few seconds!”Virgil nodded as the others backed away, “Okay. Brace yourselves.”The elders watched in awe as a purple glow began to surround Virgil, lighting up the forest as he took slow, deep breaths.Their awe quickly disappeared though as the world around them started to change. The forest grew darker and thicker, the foliage taking on ominous shapes, as large storm clouds blocked out the sky. Eventually shadows began pouring out from every direction, attaching themselves to the youngest side and blocking him from view.When they finally began to dissipate both elders had to resist the urge to scream.Standing in a pool of shadows was Virgil, but not quite him. He was taller, just enough to be unsettling, and he had a large set of spider legs protruding from his back. From the elbow down his arms were pitch black and his fingers were now tipped with dark claws.But what truly drew their attention were his eyes. There were more of them now, making eight in total, and they had changed color. The whites had gone black and his iris’ were a pure, glowing purple, his pupils barely visible amongst the glow.After a moment Patton’s instincts won out and he began to scream, desperately clinging to Logan who was completely frozen in fear.The anxious side sighed, a slight echo to his voice, “And that’s enough of that.”With a snap of his fingers everything went back to normal, leaving both elders shaken and confused.It took a few minutes, but eventually Patton began to pry himself off of Logan.“I-I-I c-can see w-why Deciet w-would be s-s-scared...!”Logan cleared his throat as he began to recover as well, “Y-Yes, that was... not what I was expecting.”“No one does,” Remy threw an arm around Virgil’s shoulder, “Which is what made him our ace in the hole!”Virgil smirked and brushed his arm off, “I wasn’t that important!”“If it wasn’t for you, half of us wouldn’t be here right now,” Roman replied giving him a fond smile, “I’d say that makes you pretty important.”The anxious side blushed slightly, and Roman pulled him into another hug. Everyone was smiling and excited, their earlier energy finally starting to return, until Fokai cleared his throat.”Shouldn’t we be getting back to the castle?”Roman’s eyes went wide, “Oh God Thomas!! I Completely Forgot, We Have To Get Back!!”Virgil smirked again, “No need to panic Princy, I got this.”He pulled away from Roman as his eyes began to glow again, while the ground around them grew dark.Virgil looked around at everyone, making sure they were all there, “Hold tight everyone!” “This is gonna be a bumpy ride!”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lennox paced around nervously, occasionally stopping to glance at Thomas. At first the others tried to ignore him but after awhile his unease started to spread.As Lennox finished yet another lap Xaivion let out a heavy sigh.“You need to chill Hun, everything’s gonna be fine.”“But they should be back by now!” The brunette countered.“They’re probably just having trouble finding everyone, there’s no need to get so worked up about it.”“But-!”Without warning Xaivion grabbed Lennox by the wrist and pulled him close.“Look at me. Everything is going to be fine, okay?” The one eyed brunette cupped his fiancé’s cheek, “Just breathe.”Lennox did as he was told; taking slow, deep breaths to calm himself. After a moment Xaivion gave him a fond smile.“Better?”“A little...”“Good,” Xaivion kissed his forehead, “Now don’t worry anymore, I’m sure they’ll be here any minute-“As if on cue Virgil’s voice rang out from just above Thomas, clear and panicked.“OH SHIT- THOMAS, LOOK OUT!!!”“What-? GAAAHHH!!!”The host barely reacted in time as a large screaming pile of people came crashing to the ground. Everyone stared in shock as the newcomers slowly untangled themselves, reorienting themselves after their surprise entrance.Remus was the first to fully recover, almost immediately starting to cheer, “That. Was. AWESOME!!! Let’s Do It Again!!”“I would prefer not!” Logan exclaimed, pulling Patton out of the pile and helping him to his feet, “That was not a pleasant experience!”Fokai sighed as Regan, Malo and Griffin attempted to climb off him, “Yes, a more dignified entrance would have been nice.”“Hey I told you guys it was gonna be rough!” Virgil shouted, his voice slightly muffled beneath Roman and Remy, “Be glad I was able to get us even semi-close to the ground!”Roman let out a lighthearted chuckle as he pulled himself to his feet, “I thought you’d have better control than this stormcloud!”“Are you kidding? This is what, the fourth time I’ve done this with other people? Plus this is my first time forcing out a group!” He let the Royal help him up, “You’re lucky we ended up even remotely close to the ground!”Roman thought for a moment and laughed, “Okay yeah, you do have a point.”Virgil rolled his eyes and brushed himself off, finally turning to Lennox and the others.“Sorry for taking so long, some things came up while we were in the mind palace.”Lennox let out a relived sigh, “A heads up would have been nice, we were getting really worried!”Xaivion smirked and ruffled Lennox’s hair, “You mean you were getting worried.”The brunette turned bright red and tried to ignore his smug fiancée.“A-Anyways, it looks like you brought quite the group with you!”“Yeah! There’s what... Nine or ten more people with you?” Carla whistled as she counted all the newcomers, “Like Damn! I didn’t think you’d be bringing so many!”Remus turned to her with a sadistic grin, “Well surprise! We’re here and ready to party!!”Some of the others started to cheer excitedly and Virgil couldn’t help but grin. It was nice seeing them all excited again. Unfortunately he was quickly snapped back to reality as Patton began to tug on his sleeve, getting him, Roman and Logan’s attention.“Ah, Kiddo’s?” The elder half whispered as he pointed at Thomas, “I think we broke him...”Logan gave him a confused look, “What do you mean Patton-“The logical side stopped himself once he noticed their host’s blank stare, “...Never mind, I believe I’ve answered my own question.”“There’s so many....”Virgil cringed, “Oo right... We probably should have told you how many we’d be bringing out.”“Probably...” Thomas replied.“I mean... You guys kept saying there were others, but I never thought you meant this many!” He looked around the group, slowly snapping out of his shocked state, “Seriously! Out of everything I was prepared for, I never expected this!”“Sorry Kiddo...”“It’s alright Pat,” The host sighed and rubbed his neck, “At least I recognize a few...“He turned to the group again, confused, “But why haven’t I heard about the rest of you?”Remy smirked at him, finally stepping into the conversation, “Not all of us are talkers and the rest don’t need to talk to you to do our jobs, so we don’t.“That made Thomas even more confused, “But... wouldn’t it make things easier if we talked with each other?”“When you’re tryin’ to sleep do you want to hear me chatting away or do you want some peace and quiet?” The sassy side pointed to Regan, “How about when you’re out shopping, you want someone constantly telling you to grab everything in sight?”“HEY!!!”Fokai managed to grab Regan by the collar before the younger side charged at Remy, “Don’t. He was giving examples, that’s all.”“THEN WHY THE HELL’D HE CHOOSE ME!?!”The masked side sighed, “This is why.”Remy tried not to smile as Regan struggled to break free, “It just makes things easier for everyone if we stay out of your way.”“I guess... Still, it would’ve been nice to get to know all of you before now.”Patton clapped his hands, grabbing everyone’s attention, “Well it’s better late than never, right? So let’s introduce you to everyone!”He turned to Remy and Picani, “Why don’t you two start? Since Thomas already knows a bit about you.”“You got it Padré.”The sassy side gave a slight wave, “Names Remy, obviously, and I represent Sleep. I keep track of your dreams, nightmares, sleep states, etc, etc. I also keep an eye on the link between your conscious and sub-conscious.”“Ah! guess I’m next!” Picani smiled, “My name is Dr. Picani, but you can just call me Picani if you want. I represent your sense of empathy, meaning I help you relate to others and sympathize with them!”Thomas nodded and smiled so Remy glanced at the others.The sassy side flashed them all a smirk, “Now, which of you wanna go next?”Idris started jumping around in excitement, “Oo! Oo! I do! I do!”“My names Idris and I’m your motivation!! I make you wanna do things!!”Omid threw and arm around Idris’ shoulder as he finished, a wide grin on his face, “And I’m Omid, your optimism! I try to keep you looking for the bright side of things!”Omid pulled another young side close, “And this here is Alex, your integrity!”Alex gave a slight wave, “Uh, hi?”Thomas’s face lit up, “Oh, you’re Alex! The others already told me a bit about you!”“Oh, Really? What did they say?”“Just that Patton usually takes care of your role so you spend your time worrying about me and my friends instead.”“Ah... yeah...” Alex let out a self deprecating laugh, “I’m pretty useless....”Idris turned to him, shocked, “Hey! We’ll have none of that from you! You’re just as important as the rest of us!”“We wouldn’t be our happy little trio without you!” Omid added ruffling his hair.Malo came up behind him and gave him a hug, “The only thing you’re useless at... is being useless you wonderful being!!”The young side smiled, “Thanks guys.”Malo gave him another squeeze and let go, “Any time Alex!”He turned to Thomas, “And since I’m up here.. Hi! The name’s Malo!”“I’m also known as misleading compliment,” The upbeat side flashed him a sheepish grin, “Unlike the others I’m not really considered a side, I’m more of an.... idea rather than a part of your personality.”“But I’ve been around these guys for as long as any of us can remember, so I’ve become a sort of honorary side,” he continued with a shrug.“You mean it’s too late to get rid of you!” Regan sneered, earning him a slap from Fokai.Malo smiled at him in return, doing finger guns in his direction, “That’s also true!”Fokai shook his head, “Don’t encourage him.”Malo flashed him a mischievous grin, “But that’s my specialty!”The masked side let out a drawn out sigh and turned to Thomas.“My name is Fokai, I’m your facade,” He said with a bow, “My role is self explanatory, I’m the mask you use to hide your true self. Generally I’m only needed when you’re acting.”He gestured to the younger side beside him, “This is Regan, your-““IMPLUSES!!”Fokai flinched as Regan screamed into his ear, “... Exactly.”“He’s a bit... energetic as you can see, but he can occasionally be reasonable.”Fokai glanced at Regan as the young side stuck his tongue out at him, “Emphasize on occasionally.”Regan proceeded to flip off the older side, who was clearly resisting the urge to strangle him, so Griffin stepped in between them.He didn’t even react as Regan started using him as a shield, continuing to taunt Fokai as he hid.“Griffin, your confidence,” The cloaked side stated plainly, “Don’t think I need to explain what I do.”Thomas looked Griffin over, confused, “But I thought Roman was in charge of my confidence?”The cloaked side nearly choked as he held back a laugh, “Are you kidding me? Where’d that idea come from?”“He’s always so confident and forward, I assumed-“Roman cringed so Griffin cut Thomas off, “Nah, it’s always been my job. I’ll get help when I’m feeling off but otherwise it’s all me.”“Oh- Well it’s nice to meet you!” Thomas looked around the group again with a smile, “All of you!”Fokai bowed slightly as the others returned their hosts smile, “Same to you Thomas.”“Now then...” The masked side turned to Carla and the five brunettes beside her, finally addressing them, “Would you mind introducing them to us?”“Oh ah, well-“Xaivion immediately stepped in and started pointing at everyone.“I’m Xaivion, this is my fiancé Lennox, those three are his younger brothers André, Orrin and Perry and the blond one is Perry’s girlfriend Carla. We know Thomas through Virgil and vise versa.”Malo’s face lit up, “You managed to become friends with Virgil?! That’s awesome!!”Virgil pulled Malo into a headlock, “Hey! Don’t act like it’s some great achievement to befriend me!”“But you’re such an amazing person!” The young side replied with a laugh, “It’s an honour to be your friend!”The anxious side smiled and ruffled his hair, “You little rascal.”Fokai let out a slight chuckle, his attention still mostly on Xaivion, “Are you going to tell us anything more than that?”The one eyed brunette stared at him for a moment, then let out an exhausted sigh, “...I really don’t wanna explain everything for a third time today.”“Understandable, we can hear about everything later.” Xaivion blinked at him, surprised.“Huh, that’s not the response I was expecting.”Fokai shrugged, “Thomas is in danger, that’s all we need to know. Anything else is extra information that we don’t need right now.”“Hey, sorry to interrupt but... is there a reason Deceit isn’t here?”The excitement immediately died down as everyone turned back to Thomas, an awkward silence replacing it. All of the sides were visibly uncomfortable as their host gave them a confused look.“... Did I say something wrong?”“You didn’t say anything wrong Thomas,” Virgil shuffled his feet slightly, “It’s just... Well he’s...”The anxious side sighed, “He needed a moment to breathe.”“What do you mean?”“It’s a long story...”“Then it’s going to have to wait,” Carla walked past the group, her expression suddenly serious, “Because we’ve got company.”As they followed her gaze everyone immediately went tense. At the far side of the clearing a group, no an army, had started pouring out of the trees. Even though they were a couple thousand feet away everyone could feel their malicious intent.Roman began to smirk as the others started pulling out weapons, getting into position by instinct, but it quickly faded as he spotted someone in the approaching crowd. Someone all too familiar.“There’s no way...”He pointed towards the figure, “H-Hey guys? Please tell me I’m seeing things....”As everyone turned to what he was pointing at the other sides began to freeze.“My word, It cant be!”“B-But you- She!”“Goddamnit, Of course she’s one of them.”Carla glanced over her shoulder, flashing them a questioning look, “You recognize that woman? The one leading them?”Roman tried hard to swallow the lump forming in his throat, “The Dragon Witch. She... She took over Thomas’ mindscape when he was a child...”Lennox cringed, his voice barely louder than a whisper, “I knew there was another reason...”Before anyone had a chance to ask more questions the army was on them, leaving only a couple dozen feet between them.“My oh my~” The Dragon Witch laughed, “All the little rebels, lined up in a neat row just for me~ You’re so thoughtful!”“How are you here?” Roman’s knuckles went white as his grip on his sword tightened, “You- You’re apart of Thomas’ imagination and I- I killed you... Right?”She smirked as she saw the fear in his eyes, “You really thought I was just a part of some child’s imagination? Oh you poor thing, You’re far stupider than I imagined~!”“This is coming from the woman who was outsmarted by a handful of children for most of her reign,” Virgil taunted, not about to stand by as she went after Roman.A pair of wings sprouted from her back as her temper flared, “You Insolent LITTLE-“The Witch quickly regained her composure, hiding her wings again.“I- Will admit that I was... impressed... with how you outsmarted my soldiers, but you were no match for myself!” She tried her best to seem unimpressed, “I only pretended to be hurt so you’d think you‘d won, that way I could make my exit without suspicion!”The group relaxed their stances, all of them giving her varying looks of disbelief. Many of her soldiers did the same, obviously not believing her.Remus even had a bit of disgust on his face, “And I thought Dee was a bad liar...”“ANYWAYS,” The Dragon Witch was barely holding back her anger, “I see your host is doing quite well. I guess I didn’t leave as lasting of an impression as I’d hoped.”Thomas took a step back, tensing up again, “What do you mean?”“Oh it was nothing... I just split your creativity, messed with your moral compass, heavily edited most of the things you’d learned over the years, almost destroyed your sense of self in order to make you a soulless puppet.”She feigned indifference but she was clearly proud of her actions, “You know, simple things.”Logan glared at her as Thomas turned pale, “Yes, it was quite the impossible task you left us.”“Clearly it wasn’t impossible enough.”“But the past is the past,” she flashed them a devious grin, “And I’d like to talk about the present.”She held out her hand.“Join us.”Thomas’ eyes went wide, “W-What?!”“Is my offer really that much of a shock~? You’re a powerful host, and a popular influencer as well. We’re always looking for people like you. Besides, that was my original goal all those years ago.”She glanced at Carla and the others, “I’ll even extend my offer to your little friends here~”Xaivion immediately snapped at her, “Oh Hell No!! Not After The Shit You IPZ Bastards Have Pulled!!”Him, Lennox and the others got back into defensive stances and the Dragon Witch clicked her tongue, clearly annoyed.“A pity. At least I’ll enjoy killing you.”She turned back to Thomas, who was now being shielded by the four main sides.“Well? What’s your answer?”“I-I...”All the different possibilities flashed through his head, the good, the bad, all the pros and cons of every choice he could make. And then thoughts of his friends and family popped into his head.It wasn’t hard to imagine their devastated faces, hearing the news of his untimely demise, but he could also see their reactions to him joining the people that were trying so hard to kill him.Giving in and joining such a ruthless group would surely mean he’d have to hurt innocent people, and he knew they would hear about it eventually. Their faces full of disappointment, disgust, pain and hate flashed through his head.The host cringed at the thought.Finally He looked around at his sides. They were scared, he was too, but not a single one let it show. All of them were ready to fight to the bitter end, just to keep him safe.Even Carla, Lennox and the others looked like they were prepared to fight to the end.Thomas chuckled at himself. Why on earth did he even consider his options? There was only ever one true choice for him.“My answer... is no.”The Dragon Witch staggered back slightly, “W-What? You’re turning down my offer?! Then that means... You- You think you can beat me?!?”She began to tremble in anger, her form changing in response. Scaly claws sprouted from her hands as her wings reappeared, lifting her into the air.She roared from her new place in the sky, her voice echoing into the night.“You Will Pay For Your Ignorance!! Everyone, ATTACK!!!”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The door closed with a heavy thud, the sound echoing through the empty village. With a shaky sigh Janus wiped at his eyes in order to stop any tears threatening to fall down his face. He was a bit too rough though so his sleeve caught on his scales, making him flinch and let out a hiss of pain. That quiet sound was enough to draw the attention of something flying above him and soon branches began to crack as it dived towards the path.Once it landed he looked up, only to see a beautiful winged woman standing a few feet down the path. She had a joking smile on her face, but her eyes showed that she was worried.“I was wondering where you’d run off to Snake Boy~”Janus barely reacted to her, “Oh... Violet... I didn’t hear you arrive....”The Dragon Witch’s expression turned soft once she got a good look at his face, “I could see the fight from my tower.... What happened little one?”“Roman returned to confront me....” the deceitful side wiped at his eyes again, a bit more careful this time, “Everything came out this time... from both of us...“In the end... he won.”“You mean he finally beat some sense into you.”“You... knew?”“That you were completely in the wrong? Of course!” She tsked as she walked forward, gently booping Janus on the nose, “But why prove a point to someone that already agrees with you?”The deceitful side turned away, blushing with embarrassment, which made Violet chuckle.“I knew there was nothing I could do. It was your choice to make, and even if I tired I wouldn’t have been able to influence it; only they could.”“After all,” She smiled again, her eyes bright as she remembered simpler times, “You’ve always had a soft spot for younglings, even when you were one yourself.”Janus blushed harder, but he couldn’t help but laugh at the comment.“One of the many things I picked up from you, I suppose.”“And one of the few I’m proud of.”The Dragon Witch took Janus’ hat and ruffled his hair, earning a yelp of protest from him. With another smile she handed the hat back and started walking backwards down the path.“What now?”“Well, our Host is in danger,” the deceitful side explained as he fixed his hair, “So I’ll assume the others will definitely not need some help.”Violet glanced over his shoulder at the small cottage, “Will they be joining us?”“....”She sighed, “They’re still as stubborn as ever I see...”Violet went silent for a moment then gave Janus a questioning look, “Soooo~ where are we headed then?”“The Palace.”Violet’s eyes lit up with excitement, “Ooo~! I haven’t been there for years!”Janus smiled as she changed forms, taking on her full Dragon Witch appearance. The witch glanced back as she proudly spread her wings and motioned for him to climb on.“I haven’t been by in a few years myself, so I’d say this is the perfect time for a visit.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~“ROMAN, DUCK!!”The Royal barely had time to get down before a mace went flying over his head, obliterating someone behind him. He quickly got back on his feet to face Remus as the Duke retrieved his weapon.“DUDE GIVE ME MORE WARNING NEXT TIME!!”“YOU HAD PLENTY OF WARNING BROTHER!!! ALSO THAT GAL WAS ABOUT TO SHOVE A SWORD THROUGH YOUR SKULL!!!”Roman could barely hear Remus’ explanation over the fighting, but he yelled out a quick thanks anyways before turning to the next soldier.They’d been doing alright so far. Thomas was holding his own thanks to the elders and a shield Roman managed to toss him mid fight. Remus and Virgil were also sticking close to their host, for obvious reasons, so they had all angles covered; although they had lost Remus and Logan in the crowd a few times.As for the others; Regan, Malo and Idris had split off early on, managing to tear through the front lines with Perry and André. Meanwhile Lennox and Xaivion had followed them from above, giving them some cover fire as they hopped around on top of the crowds.In the back Alex and Omid had teamed up with Orrin to keep the Dragon Witch occupied. They were hiding in the trees, with a bit of help from Fokai, and even got some help from Remy as him, Picani and Fokai slipped through the horde.The only two that were unaccounted for were Griffin and Carla. Both had disappeared into the crowd early on. The only reason anyone knew they were still alive was the gunshots, chains, petal tornados and explosions that occasionally sprung up in the distance.Another soldier fell to Roman’s blade, leaving it drenched in black blood. He readjusted his grip on it and cringed slightly. Even though everything was going smoothly he could tell he was running out of energy, and fast.During his brief pause five more soldiers tried to jump him, only to find themselves impaled on shadowy spikes.“How are you holding up Princy?”Roman let himself relax for a moment as Virgil extended the wall of spikes into a circle, giving them both a moment to breathe.“Things could be better, but I’ve still got some fight in me.”The anxious side gave him a worried look, “I can leave the walls up if you need a break.”Roman shook his head, “No, I can’t risk Thomas getting hurt while I’m resting.”He flashed Virgil a bright smile, “Thank you for the offer though Sunshine.”Virgil gave him a worried smiled back, then noticed some of the spikes begin to crack.“I’ll drop the wall for now,” he stated, raising his hand, “But the second I see you struggling I’m putting it back up.”Roman nodded and took a deep breath.“I’m ready.”“3... 2... 1!”The spikes retreated into the shadows, putting them back into the center of the action.“Be Careful Roman!”Roman smiled again as he watched Virgil disappear into the crowd, “You As Well Virgil!”With that he threw himself right back into the fight. Surely they only had to hold out a little while longer.~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Janus smiled sadly as he climbed off the Dragon Witch’s back, His eyes glued to the castle walls. And how could they not be? It was gorgeous. The gleaming white walls, the rainbow accents, the shining red roofs, the carefully crafted stained glass windows. It was truly a palace fit for a fairytale ending, and a far cry from the domain of terror he remembered.Violet followed his gaze as she changed forms again, “It’s hard to believe this used to be that imposters hideout.”“It’s far more...”She smiled fondly, “Welcoming.”“He’s improved so much in so little time...” Tears threatened to fall again as Janus though about all the time he’d wasted, “I don’t wish I had been there to see it all...”Violet patted his shoulder, “There, there~ You still have a chance to make up for lost time little one.”“Right,” Janus pulled himself together, his attention turning to the soldiers now gathering at the castle gate, “There’s other things I need to focus on right now.”With the Dragon Witch at his side they approached the crowd, predictably being met with drawn swords.“Halt! Take another step and be prepared to meet our blades!”“My, my, such a harsh welcome,” Janus feigned curiosity, tipping his head slightly, “I thought Prince Roman allowed the ‘Dark Sides’ to come and go as they please?”“Usually that is the case, however this is an exception,” the leader pointed their blade at Violet, “As I refuse to believe the Prince would allow an ally of the Dragon Witch to roam freely!”Janus turned to Violet, then the soldiers and back again before realizing what they meant.He let out a heavy sigh, “Ah... I’d almost forgotten about that...”The deceitful side closed his eyes for a moment, thinking through his options, before letting out another sigh.He looked up at the beautiful, stained glass windows lining the hallways, “Looks like I have another thing I need to apologize for...”The Dragon Witch followed his gaze and smirked as she realized what his plan was, “It’s a shame, but they can always be replaced~”“What on earth-“Before they had a chance to finish Violet spread her wings and grabbed Janus by the arm, whisking both of them into the air. Within seconds the two of them were crashing through the nearest window, sending the whole castle into a panic.“What now Snake Boy~?” Janus glanced around the hallway, getting his bearings just as guards rounded the corner.“Now, We run.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Bloody, bruised and tired, Roman could barely tell the difference between friend and foe anymore.How long had they been fighting? How many soldiers had he taken down? He didn’t know and he couldn’t spare the energy to care anymore; it took all he had just to keep himself standing.The Royal glanced back briefly as he dodged another attack. He wasn’t the only one in bad shape either.Physically exhausted, emotionally exhausted, broken bones, broken weapons, missing and torn clothes; the list of problems kept growing the more chances he had to look at everyone. Although, the fact that they had to regroup in the first place was alarming enough on its own.It was plain to see, they were losing.Roman quietly cursed himself as he barely parried another attack. Now wasn’t the time to think, he had to fight.Fight, fight, fight-!“ROMAN!!!”The Royal blinked in surprise as his vision was suddenly blocked by shadowy spikes, making him stumble back slightly. Thankfully Virgil appeared right behind him, steadying him before he could fall.But when had he gotten there? A few seconds ago he was on the other side of the fight with Patton.Dazed, Roman looked past Virgil, becoming even more confused when he spotted the elder. It took Patton at least a few minutes to transform, so how was he already in his frog form?“Oh god- PICANI!! I NEED YOU NOW!!”Virgil’s scream drew the Royal back to what was happening, but also gave him more questions. Neither of them were hurt so why-?Roman suddenly felt something warm and wet running down his chest, sending a chill down his spine. Slowly he looked down; to see three massive bleeding claw marks quickly soaking what was left of his shirt.“H-How...?”Roman’s legs suddenly gave out as his body became aware of what happened, barely giving Virgil a chance to stop him from hitting the ground.“Roman... oh god, Roman!”“I’m here what-“ Dr.Picani gasped, all colour draining from his face once he saw what happened. He quickly got on his knees and held his hands over the wounds, “I-It’s okay! I can fix this!”As the doctors hands began to glow a pale pink Roman looked up at Virgil. He was shaking, tears pricking at his eyes; however Roman couldn’t tell if it was because he was scared, or angry.“What’s with that face Stormcloud?” The Royal reached up to wipe away Virgil’s tears, accidentally smearing blood on his cheek, “It’s just a scratch, nothing to worry about.”Virgil held Roman’s hand to his cheek, not saying a word. It was at that moment Roman noticed something. Besides the blood he’d smeared on Virgil’s cheek, he didn’t have a single scratch or speck of dirt on him.In fact the anxious side didn’t even seem tired, despite fighting just as long and hard as everyone else.“...Stormcloud?”Without warning Virgil stood up, leaving Roman and Picani on the ground. With a snap of his fingers the shadowy walls disappeared, leaving them vulnerable for a moment, before getting replaced by a glowing purple bubble.As Roman started in wonder at the simple shield shadows started pooling around Virgil’s feet.“I want everyone inside this shield immediately,” the anxious sides voice began to echo as he talked, “And not a single person leaves until they’re fully healed and rested.”He glanced back at Picani, his eyes now pitch black, “Understood?”The doctor quickly nodded his head.“Good.”The shadows finally engulfed the anxious side, completing his transformation as thunder rang out in the distance.He growled and flexed his claws, “Because I’m not holding back anymore.”With a roar he jumped out of the protective bubble and landed on a surprised soldier, ripping them apart with his hands while his new spider limbs tore into anyone unfortunate enough to be standing next to him.Picani stared in shocked horror, and Roman in awe, as the anxious side tore into soldier after soldier; eventually getting over his fear long enough to do as he was told.At first, no one understood what he was trying to do; but as the other ‘Dark Sides’ realized what was happening they quickly did as they were told. Thomas and the others however took a bit more convincing, though most of them went along with things after they saw Virgil.As the last few stragglers stumbled into the bubble Logan started looking at it with concern.“Is it truly a good idea for us to gather here? Shields like this are quite fragile, once it breaks we’ll be in trouble.”Lennox stared out at the carnage Virgil was leaving behind him, “You don’t have to worry about it breaking. This bubble isn’t going anywhere.”“Did you not hear what I just said? This type of shield is-““Fragile, I know; but that’s because they constantly need energy to keep them stable. The stronger you make it the more energy it takes,” the brunette continued to watch Virgil, “And he won’t be running out anytime soon.”“How can you be certain?”“Because anxiety feeds off of uncertainty, ‘what if’s’, stress, fear. There’s no shortage of that right now.”Roman looked Lennox over as Picani finished closing his wounds. Just like Virgil he seemed fine, no injuries, no fatigue.Carefully Roman sat up, ignoring Picani’s attempts to keep him still, “Hey Lennox.... I don’t think you ever said what side you used to be.”“... I was actually two sides.”“I was our host’s Creativity,” The brunette finally turned around revealing that one of his eyes had gone pitch black, “... and his anxiety.”Xaivion came up beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. Lennox didn’t look at him, instead turning back to Virgil.The one eyed brunette sighed.“Don’t get yourself killed alright?“Shadows began to form around Lennox’s right arm, while an array of weapons gathered around his left, “I’ll try my best.”With that Lennox burst forth from the bubble and ran towards the nearest soldiers, taking them out within seconds. Right before their bodies fully disintegrated he used them as stepping stones to get above the crowds, continuing his assault from above.Orrin, André and Perry all stared in disbelief as their brother wrecked havoc on the soldiers.“Holy Shit...” André slowly turned to Xaivion, “When did-? How did-? What?!?”Xaivion smirked as he took off his jacket, “He’s always been able to do that.”André shivered when the one-eyed brunette turned to glare at him, “Be grateful he had the restraint to never use it on you.”Roman started looking Xaivion over with a questioning stare, quickly spotting some rapidly healing scrapes on his hands.“What were you?”Xaivion took off his engagement ring, checking it over, “I’m not quite sure how to explain it.... Every horrible thought, memory, action.... I was the accumulation of all of them.” “So I guess the best answer is, nothing good,” He shrugged, “Or Lust, that could also be an accurate answer.”The Royal gave him a confused look, “Then how are you healing?”“Oh! If that’s what you wanted to know you should’ve stared with it.”Xaivion pointed over his shoulder, “I’ve got Mustache Man to thank for that. His mind is a complete cesspool of nasty, it’s honestly a bit concerning.”“I should have gue-“Roman paused when he saw his brother, shirtless, shoeless and his pants almost completely destroyed.“DUDE!!! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU!?!?”The Duke looked down at himself and shrugged, feigning ignorance, “Dunno, Some guys probably tore it all off while we were fighting.”Logan cleared his throat, “Actually, only his pants were ripped by the soldiers. He threw his shoes at someone’s head and took off his shirt because it got in the way of his tentacles.”“Boo~! You’re no fun!”Roman let out an exasperated sigh when something clicked in his head.“Wait- How do you know what happened Logan?”“Well I just so happened-“Patton jumped in with a knowing smile as he finished changing back from his frog form, “He’s been following Remus!”The logical side went beat red as he let out an unintelligible sound.“I-I WAS NOT!!“Oh so then you weren’t staring at his bare chest, face bright red, when that guy smashed his shield over your head? Or when that girl took out your knees? Or when-““PATTON!!!”The bubbly elder grinned and giggled, whispering something about payback to the flustered side as Roman went wide eyed.“You’ve been eyeing up my brother!?!” He turned to Patton, “And You’re Okay With That!?!”Patton tilted his head, “Why wouldn’t I be?”“Why?! Because you two are dating, That’s why!!““I never said we were dating!” Patton blinked in confusion, turning to a still blushing Logan, “Did you say that?”Logan groaned, “You constantly cling to me, we hold hands, for gods sake we‘ve shared a bed for most of our lives! Of course people think we’re dating!”“Eh? But that’s what we’ve always done, even when we were little! How does that relate to dating?!”The logical side buried his face in his hands, “I will never understand how you are so smart, yet so utterly oblivious...”All the others proceeded to stare at the elders as Logan tried to explain everything to Patton, slowly making himself more flustered as he talked.When he finally finished Remus looked him over, a tiny spark of hope in his eyes.“Sooo~ You’re single?”“YES IM SINGLE!! CAN WE PLEASE MOVE ON!?!”Remus did a small fist pump and Roman‘s jaw dropped.“Seriously?!? Logan?!?”The Duke flashed him a mischievous smirk, “I can still take Virgil you know~”“Touch him and I’ll slit your throat.”“Then don’t judge my tastes bitch.”The twins proceeded to growl at each other which lead to everyone else finally relaxing as they spit harmless insults at each other. Laughter and jokes quickly began to fly and pretty soon everyone grew oblivious to the carnage outside their little bubble.At least until they heard the screech.Turning back to the fight they found most of the army decimated, opening up the clearing again, however what drew most people’s attention was the massive spider-like creature standing over Lennox.Whatever, or more likely whoever, it was was desperately trying to keep itself between the half conscious brunette and the Dragon Witch, the latter now in her full dragon form. And clearly the Witch was enjoying herself.She effortlessly weaved her way through the spiders attacks, mocking it as she did, while also urging the last of her army forward to block the creatures escape. Thankfully the spider could see what she was up too, and having gotten the others attention it let out another near deafening screech.In response to its cry a corridor of shadowy spikes emerged from the ground, creating a clear path from it to the shield.Again it let out another screech, only this time a voice could barely be made out amongst its echos.“XAIVION HURRY!!!”Without a second of hesitation the one eyed brunette threw his ring and jacket to the ground and raced down the corridor. As he picked up speed his form began to waver, parts of his body seemingly melting as he took on a monstrous appearance.Either he didn’t notice the changes or he didn’t care as he finally reached his fiancé’s side, carefully scooping him into his arms. With a quick look at the spider he turned back down the corridor, arriving at the shield just as the shadowy spikes collapsed around him.Picani quickly got to work on Lennox as the everyone started asking Xaivion questions. Everyone but Roman that is, as the Royal’s eyes were glued to the fight.He couldn’t see Virgil. Everywhere he looked there was no sign of the anxious side, and no matter how hard he tried his gaze kept getting drawn to the massive spider. Something about it seemed familiar but he didn’t know why, until...“VIRGIL!!!”The Dragon Witch managed to land a decent hit on the creature, ripping off part of its body and taking a couple of legs with it. Instead of bloody organs or muscles the tear revealed a terrified Virgil inside the creature.The anxious quickly began to call on the shadows at his feet, trying to reverse the damage, but in his hurry he didn’t notice the Dragon Witch coming in for another attack.Unable to react in time Virgil and what was left of the creature were carried into the sky, distorted cries of pain ringing out amongst thunder as the Witch’s claws dug into him.She let out a roar of triumph as she dragged him into the sky.“Finally!! You, child, have been a thorn in my side FOR TOO LONG!!”She appeared to sneer as she looked down at the glowing bubble, which was finally starting to falter, “Now to kill two birds with one stone!”She took aim at the shield, getting ready to smash Virgil into it as Roman watched helplessly.“NO!! VIRGIL!!!”“Though it is a pity~” The witch cooed, “You and your host would have been wonderful additions to our cause~ IF ONLY YOU WEREN’T SO BLOODY STUBBORN!!!”With that she sent Virgil flying full force towards them.Roman sank to his knees as everyone began to brace themselves as best they could, most of them gathering under a makeshift canopy of thorns and chains thrown together by Carla and Griffin as Patton rushed to transform again.It was over. He didn’t have the strength left to create anything to save him...They.... lost.The others started calling Roman’s name, begging him to join them, but he ignored them; his eyes glued to Virgil as he plummeted helplessly to the ground. He just couldn’t find the will to stand again.Finally he closed his eyes and started to cry, unable to watch any longer.“I’m sorry... I’m so sorry...”Roman felt movement beside him and braced himself to be pulled back under the canopy, instead he felt a tail carefully wrap around him.“Giving up sssso easily? That’ssss not like you, little knight.”Roman opened his eyes and looked up at the massive snake now protecting him.“... Janus?”The deceitful side glanced down, flashing him the closest thing he could to a smile, “Ssssorry we’re late.”Glowing threads began to gather above them, forming a net right in Virgil’s path, “Though it lookssss like that wassss a good thing.”As the anxious side landed safely in the net Roman gave Janus a confused look.“We?”“Me,” he flicked his gaze back to Virgil just as Violet swooped in to grab him, “And her.”The Dragon Witch carefully placed Virgil near the canopy before walking to Janus’ side, “Nice catch Snake Boi~”“Ssssame to you Violet.”A roar drew their attention back to the air as the other Dragon Witch(?) began to scream.“EVERY FUCKING TIME!!! WHY WONT YOU BRATS JUST ROLL OVER AND DIE ALREADY!?!?!”Violet sneered at her, “Oh I’m sorry, are we annoying you~?“The Dragon Witch(?) let out another frustrated roar and dived at them only for Violet to meet her halfway, unleashing a blast of fire right in her face. The screeching continued as they clashed and eventually Roman managed to tear his eyes away long enough to give Janus a look of confusion.“Later,” Janus lowered his head and flicked his tounge, “For now, Do you think you‘ve got one more good hit left in you?”The Royal looked back at the others, a wave of relief washing over him as he saw Malo and Omid helping Virgil sit up. He was dazed, but the moment his eyes met Roman’s he smiled.He turned back to Janus and closed his eyes, taking a few deep breaths as he held out his hand. With a bit of effort he managed to make his katana appear again.Roman let out a relived sigh, then smirked.“Just tell me where to aim.”Janus nodded then lowered his head further, “Climb on.”Once Roman was secure Janus slithered after the two Dragon Witches, trying to position himself underneath them.“Once we’ve got a clear sssshot I’ll launch you up to Violet! I think you can figure thingssss out from there!”Roman looked up again with worry, “But they’re identical! How can you be sure you’re aiming for the right one?!”The deceitful side slipped to the side, dodging a rouge fireball, “Not assss identical assss you think!”His eyes flashed yellow for a moment and suddenly what seemed like thousands of voices screamed out in unison.“NOOOOOO!!! MY ILLUSION!!! MY BEAUTIFUL ILLUSION!!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?!?!?!”Roman looked back up at the witches and saw they weren’t so identical anymore. Obviously their basic forms were still similar; but while one looked like the Dragon Witch he knew, the other was a hellish red mass. The red mass, now outed as an obvious fake, was flapping about erratically as It’s chorus of voices cried and wailed with pure anger.“ITSNOTFAIRITSNOTFAIRITSNOTFAIR!! ITS!! NOT!! FAIR!!!!!”Roman cringed as the fake witch lost its remaining composure, “Well, that makes things a lot easier!”“That’ssss good,” Glowing threads began to surround Roman as Janus started to coil himself “Becausssse I’ve got the opening I wassss looking for!!!”Roman gripped his sword tighter.“Good luck Little Knight!!!”Using all his strength Janus launched himself into the air, almost losing Roman thanks to the force of the jump. Just when it seemed like they weren’t going to reach a snap echoed across the clearing, and suddenly Roman was far above the dueling dragons.At first both seemed to ignore him, which initially worried the now free falling Royal, but just as he fell past, Violet dived underneath him catching him right in the center of her back.Roman let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.Violet let out a lighthearted laugh, “Don’t worry, I knew you were there! I wasn’t going to let you fall!”She dived again as the fake witch let out another blast of fire.“Now you’ve probably guessed by now but normal methods can’t kill that thing!” Violet soared back up and raked her claws across the fakes back, “Going for the heart will only incapacitate it for a moment, you have to do more to finish it off!”The fake let out a distorted screech of anger as Roman nodded. He watched them fight for a moment longer as he tried to form a plan.“Alright! I think I’m ready! Get me onto it’s back!!”The Dragon Witch dived at it again, but at the last second she flipped herself over instead of attacking, letting Roman land on its back safely. He grimaced as he sunk into its skin upon impact, its flesh oozing blood at the slightest touch.He tightened his grip on the fake as it began to wail in surprise and fear, desperately trying to shake him off.“GET OFF!! GET OFF ME YOU DISGUSTING CHILD!! I REFUSE TO LOOSE TO SOMEONE LIKE YOU!!!”The Royal did his best to ignore its cry’s. He looked at the ground below them, Janus and Patton keeping the last of the soldiers away from the canopy, the pink glow of Dr. Picani’s healing powers, and finally the faint purple glow of Virgil as he let his transformation fully fade.Seeing that purple glow made him remember something, something so simple he was surprised he remembered it at all. Did he have the strength to do it? And more importantly, Would he still be able to pull it off after so long?Roman glanced at his sword and smiled.“If going for your heart isn’t enough,” He raised his katana high, surrounding it with a brilliant red glow, “I’ll just have to take out everything at once!!”As Roman’s blade sank into It’s spine the imposters screams began to echo through the night, momentarily deafening everyone nearby. “NOOOOOOO!!!” The red glow quickly began to spread throughout its body as it continued its futile struggle against the Royal.“I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE BEAUTIFUL, POWERFUL, INVINCIBLE!!! YOU SAID ID FINALLY BE PERFECT!!” Its cry’s grew weaker as the glow fully enveloped it, “YOU PROMISED ME THE WORLD DAMMIT!!! YOU’RE NO BETTER THAN ALL THE OTHER BASTARDS THAT LIED TO ME!!”Roman’s knuckles started to go white with how hard he was gripping his sword, “I don’t know what you’re going on about...”The creatures tail and feet started to disintegrate as Roman’s sword began to fade, turning into beautiful flowers, leaves and petals that slowly began to drift to the ground.“But at least your death will be beautiful.”Roman looked up at its face, silhouetted against the moon as it suddenly stopped screaming. It was hard to tell but he was certain it was crying as it saw what it was becoming.As the flowers reached its face the creature turned to him and smiled, “Maybe... you weren’t so bad after all... kid...”Finally the flowers and petals overtook the last of its body taking Roman’s sword with it. Without anything solid keeping him up the Royal began to fall through the cloud of color, smiling up at the moon as he did.“Finally, it’s all over.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

As he passed through the cloud of petals Roman felt himself land on something hard and smooth.“That was a risky move there Prince.”“Heh... well you said normal methods wouldn’t work.”Violet chuckled, “That I did, That I did...”She began to straighten herself out, about to return to the ground, “Make sure to hold on tight, don’t want you falling off now~”“Um, about that...” Roman laughed nervously as he tried to flex his fingers, only able to make the slightest movement, “I’m kinda unable to move at the moment... seems that trick is still a bit much for my body to handle.”“Oh dear....” Violet went quiet for a moment, then sighed, “Well I’ll be as careful as I can then, but don’t blame me if you end up hitting the ground.”Roman laughed again, more lighthearted this time, “Don’t worry, this is my own fault. Thank you for catching me at least.”“You’re welcome little prince~”She slowly began to descend, trying her best to kept her back straight, and Roman started to hear cheering from below. He smiled as they got closer to the ground, his friends cheers growing louder the closer they got.Finally with a soft thud the Dragon Witch touched down, almost immediately being greeted by Jauns.“Violet! Are you alright?! Is Roman Alright?!”“Calm down little one~” with a giggle she leaned down to nuzzle him, getting a soft hiss in return, “I’m fine. Only a few scratches to deal with.”She looked back at the Royal, still laying face up on her back, “He’s doing alright too, though I believe he needs some help getting down.”Virgil ran up behind Janus, his face full of worry, “What Do You Mean?!?”Roman quickly called out in response,“Don’t Panic Stormcloud! I just went a little overboard, that’s all!”The anxious side glanced up at the petals dispersing themselves throughout the clearing and let out a heavy sigh as he realized what happened.“Right... Right, I forgot about that... kinda assumed you’d be strong enough to handle it at this point.”Janus gave him a curious look but decided against asking anything for now.The deceitful side turned back to Violet “Would you mind lowering yourself a bit more? Just so it’s easier to get Roman down.”The Dragon Witch did as she was asked and soon Roman felt the familiar tug of Janus’ strings as they carefully lifted him up off and off her back. When he finally felt the soft scratch of grass against his fingers a quiet sigh escaped him.“Aw~ Was I that uncomfortable?”“No! No, I’m just glad it’s all finally over.” He quickly explained as Virgil helped him sit up, “Thomas is safe, Virgil’s back, and everyone made it out of this mess alive.”“But most of all, I’m glad to see you,” He attempted to look at Janus, who had backed away slightly, “After everything that happened, I assumed you weren’t going to come.”The deceitful side tried to seem indifferent about the situation, “Thomas was in trouble so of course I showed up.”“And... well...”His shoulders fell as a look of guilt crossed his face, “I was worried about you. I... went way too far earlier. I wasn’t certain you could handle a big fight having taken such a beating...”“Wait, was that why you were late?!” Thomas suddenly blurted out, “We were in danger and you two decided that was a good time for a brawl?!”Janus winced at the comment, glancing down at Roman and Virgil, “You didn’t tell him?”Virgil shook his head “Didn’t get a chance to.”“Besides it’s better if we’re all around to explain,” Roman added.“Right...” Janus turned away again, trying to compose himself, “You’re right. This is best.”After a long pause he finally turned back to Thomas.“I’m not sure if you knew but Virgil had amnesia up until a few hours ago and I... I was the cause.”The deceitful side slowly walked up to their host as he explained.“Many years ago, in a moment of panic, I took his memories and being the stubborn idiot that I am, I refused to give them back.”Janus smiled sadly, “Thankfully Roman is just as stubborn as I am and finally beat some sense into me, which is why Virgil has them back now.”Thomas’ eyes were wide as he instinctively began to back away, “Deceit T-That’s...”“Janus. It’s... Janus,” he hung his head in shame, “And that’s... it’s not the only horrible thing that I’ve done either...”“There’s so many things I’ve done and refused to acknowledge, so many terrible things, it would take days to list everything so I won’t. Not now at least.”Janus paused for a moment, taking a shaky breath.“I don’t expect to be forgiven either, but you deserve to know the truth.”“After all, my actions not only hurt them,” he briefly glanced back at Roman and Virgil, “but you as well.”Thomas was shaking slightly, “I- You-“He suddenly squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself to stop and calm down“You know what? You’re right, We can talk another day.”“All of this,” he gestured to Violet as she changed into her human form, “And especially that, have been more than I wanted to handle today!”“Um, speaking of which...” Patton quietly butted in to the conversation, “Would anyone like to explain what’s going on with her?”“Ah... Well that’s-““Violet, the real Dragon Witch,” She bowed slightly, a mischievous sparkle in her eyes, “Pleased to finally meet you~”The elder blinked in surprise while Janus sighed, “The real Dragon Witch?”“Yes... Violet here is the Dragon Witch that was created in Thomas’ imagination,” Janus quickly explained, “The one you all know and fought was just something else that snuck into the mind palace using her identity as a disguise.”Logan glared at Janus, “And how, might I ask, do you know each other?”The deceitful side shuffled his feet awkwardly, “She ah... took care of me when I was younger...”Logan’s gaze softened and Patton’s face lit up with glee, “So she’s your-““Mother?” Violet giggled as she stole Janus’ hat, resting her chin on his head, “Correct!”“Interesting...” Logan looked her over for a moment, beginning to notice a slight resemblance between the two, “I’m surprised we didn’t learn of your relation sooner.”“Well I’m sure he would have loved to introduce me,” Janus let out an annoyed hiss as Violet continued to mess with him, “But quite a few people wanted my head, and I rather like where it currently is!”“Understandable.”Violet suddenly let go of Janus, her eyes lifting up again, “But now that everything’s been sorted out I can come out of hiding and finally spend time with my grandchildren!”Logan’s face went blank and Janus’ went beet red, “I’m sorry, your what?”“My grandchildren! Creativity and Anxiety!”Janus snapped at her, though there wasn’t any real anger in his voice, “Violet, how many times do I have to tell you they’re not my kids! I just looked after them when they were younger!”“Oh really?” The dragon witch gave him a mischievous smirk, “Because I distinctly remember you making multiple promises to them back then.... I believe it was a little something about a visit with Grandma once the war was over~”The deceitful side began to stumble over his words and Virgil and Remus gave each other a playful glance.Virgil leaned back slightly, “Oh yeah, I remember you making those promises Dad~”“Don’t-““We were all so excited to finally meet Grandma, Daddy~” Remus added“No! Stop it-!”Roman picked up on what they were doing and joined in, “Yeah Dad~ You used to tell us all kinds of stories, how could we not want to meet our Grandma?”“I said stop!”The three of them replied in unison, “Stop what Dad~?”“GAAAAHHHH!!!”The three of them laughed like crazy as Janus buried his face in his hands, desperately trying to hide his embarrassment. Violet, of course, laughed along with them.“God, I love you kids already!”As they began to calm down she looked back at the rest of the group, “but I think that’s enough messing around for tonight, you all look like you could use a good nights rest.”Remy let out a half hearted chuckle as he struggled to keep Emile on his feet, “Wonder what could have given you that impression?”There were a few other chuckles at the comment, but no one disagreed with Violet.“Alright,” With a bit of effort Virgil scooped Roman into his arms, “Just give me a sec and I’ll-“ Something suddenly clicked in his head and he turned to Violet and Janus.“Hey, just one more quick question for you two, how the hell did you get out here?”Janus gave him a confused look, his face still a bit flushed from earlier, “We went through the portal you used. The one in Roman’s room.”The anxious side paused for a moment, giving him a blank stare, “Oh good... another thing to deal with.”He let out a heavy sigh.“Ah, I’ll deal with it later,” Virgil’s eyes began to glow as ground around him and the other sides grew dark, “We need to get home first anyways.”Roman smiled at him from his arms, “Try to put us on the ground this time.”The anxious side rolled his eyes, “Yeah, yeah...”As the others began to sink out around him he turned to Thomas.“Hey Thomas?”“Yeah Virgil?”He slowly started to sink into the shadows, a slight smirk on his face.“Turn off your phone when you get home, you’ve already been up long enough tonight.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Janus hadn’t lied about the portal in Roman’s room, though it was still quite the shock appearing in his ornate room instead of the briar forest. However it was far more of a shock that they were met by the royal guard, their weapons at the ready.Almost immediately the guards surrounded Violet and Janus, ready to take their heads. Thankfully with some quick thinking, a bit of explaining, and a few harsh orders from Roman the soldiers relented. For now.Finally allowed to leave as the guards dispersed, everyone went their separate ways.Patton helped Remy and Emile into his room as they were too exhausted to go much further; Logan disappeared into his, either unaware or unbothered as Remus snuck in behind him; and the others disappeared down the hallway, showing Janus and Violet to the guest rooms, under the watchful eye of the head guard of course.This left Virgil in the middle of the hallway, still holding Roman.Taking a moment to listen to the echoing voices, the anxious side glanced back into Roman’s room. Unfortunately due to the portals location he couldn’t get Roman to his own bed so he decided on the next best option.The Royal knew exactly what was happening when Virgil walked towards his door.“Aw, can’t stand to be away from me can you?”Virgil rolled his eyes, “Would you prefer to sleep in the slowly growing mass of darkness? Because I can still put you there.”“I was joking sunshine,” Roman’s expression was soft, “I’m more than okay with spending the night with you.”The anxious side didn’t bother trying to change himself or Roman out of their destroyed clothes, opting to tuck the Royal in and flop down beside him instead.As he buried his face in his pillow, Virgil let out a heavy groan, “God I’ve fucking missed this.”Roman chuckled slightly, “it is nice to finally be home.”“But more importantly,” he turned his head as much as he could, just barely able to see Virgil from the corner of his eye, “I’m glad you’re back.”Virgil turned to Roman with a smile, “You and me both, Princy.”The two of them continued to stare at each other, basking in the warmth and tenderness of each other’s gaze as they began to drift off. Suddenly, as if remembering something, Virgil looked wide awake.Within seconds the anxious side had moved so his face was hovering inches above Roman’s, surprising the Royal. He searched Roman’s eyes for a moment, looking for any sigh that he was uncomfortable, before closing the gap and drawing him into a kiss.It was brief, slow and uncertain, but it was warm; and Roman savored every second. All too soon it was over and Virgil pulled away, a deep blush on his cheeks.Roman spoke softly, processing what happened, “That was sudden.”“S-Sorry, I just remembered a promise I made you.”“A promise...”Roman thought for a second then his eyes lit up as he remembered.“That’s right! You promised me a kiss if we won the battle against the Dragon Witch!”Virgil buried his face in Roman chest, trying not to laugh, “Oh my god, you completely forgot!”“Hey, give me a break! There was a lot going on back then!”“I know, I know!”The anxious side shook his head and snuggled in next to Roman, resting his head on his chest.“I just think it’s funny...” he let out a content hum as his exhaustion finally won.“... Sunshine?”“Mmm..?”“I love you.”Roman couldn’t look down at his face, but he knew Virgil was smiling.“Love you too.... Princy.”~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Thomas woke up confused the next morning to the smell of fresh pancakes hanging in the air.Slightly groggy he managed to drag himself out of bed, into the hallway and towards the stairs. As he got closer to the the smell of pancakes grew stronger, and so did the sound of laughter.Rubbing the sleep from his eyes the host stumbled partway down the stairs before stopping to stare at his sides gathered in the living room.“What-?”Roman looked up from his spot in Virgil’s lap, smiling, “Good morning Thomathy!”Logan briefly glanced away from the kitchen, “its eleven Roman.”“Close enough.”“Hi Thomas!” Patton peeked his head out from the kitchen, holding a bowl, “We’re still working on breakfast so there’s no need to rush, take your time waking up!”“HEY PATTON! THINK FAST!!”The elder quickly whipped around, using the bowl to shield his face as a ball of batter came flying at him. Thomas could hear Remus’ gleeful cackling as Patton flashed him a triumphant smile.Thomas couldn’t see him, but he could hear Janus lecturing the intrusive side, “Remus! Would you stop playing with the batter?! We’re going to run out!”Remus let out another maniacal laugh, “Don’t be such a worry-wart Dee! I made sure we’ve got extra to play with!”“Then this kitchen better not be sparkling clean when we’re done with it!!”“Oh? So you want me to light it on fire?”“You know what I mean you Rat!”As the two Dark sides continued to bicker Thomas made his way into the living room to sit beside Virgil and Roman.“So....”The anxious side slid his headphones off one ear, not looking up from his phone, “Don’t worry, nothings gone wrong. We just wanted to hang out for a bit.”He stopped scrolling for a moment and showed his phone to Roman, getting a snicker out of the Royal.“Plus I wanted to test out a few things.”“Like what?”Virgil went back to scrolling, “Well apparently along with forcing people out of the mind palace, I can make portals so they can come and go as they please.”“I made one by accident in my rush to get me an’ Roman out back at the start of everything,” he shrugged, “Luckily everyone was smart enough not to mess with a random swirling mass of darkness.”“That’s... great.”Thomas looked around the room, “So where is this ‘portal’?”“Oh there’s nothing physical on this end, just in the mind palace. We just have to sink out if we wanna go back.”“Huh....”Thomas looked around at everyone again. Roman and Virgil tangled together on the couch, Logan paying half attention to his book, Janus, Patton and (mostly) Remus making a complete mess of the kitchen.The host let out an amused huff, “You know, I don’t think I’d mind this being a regular occurrence.”Virgil and Roman gave each other knowing glances.“Well then-“Virgil smiled wide.“Welcome to your new normal.”