Sanders Holiday Gift Exchange

Welcome to the 2025 Sanders Sides Gift Exchange! Take a look around. Check pinned post for more details! Header credit: @stardustlogan

[sanderssidesgiftxchange]

🎄❄️ Secret Santa 2025❄️ 🎄

Assignments: October 26th - November 1st

Check In 1: November 9th - November 15th

Check In 2: November 23rd - November 29th

Posting Assignments: November 30th - December 6th

Posting Dates: December 17th - January 5th

Mod: @d4rk3stn1ght

[failing-at-failing]

@sleepy-nova-tea Here is your belated drawing for the gift exchange!! I hope you enjoy the little intrulogical road trip! Remus has his feet out the window because i used to do that during car trips because I would insist on painting my nails during the trip! We actually got pulled over one time because that nail polish smell was so strong

[sanderssidesgiftxchange]

Hello ! I just remembered this event happened and I wasn't sure if all the gifts for the year had been submitted ?

Not just yet! We are waiting on one gift, as far as I know. I have reached out to the gifter, but if I don't hear back soon I'll be making the gift myself as it should have been done before now!

[just-some-gt-trash]

Theres a world outside my door, I don't know it anymore.

Summary: Virgil has spent his entire life dreading the moment he would meet his soulmate. Not because he didn’t want to, but because it would mean experiencing his very own groundhog day. Having to live the same day over and over again until he found the person who triggered it was Virgil’s personal nightmare, and he just so happened to get stuck on the day before Christmas.

CW: Some blink and you’ll miss it spicy connotations, non sexual partial nudity (Let me know if you find anything else)

AN: Hellooooow, here I am pitch hitting for @sanderssidesgiftxchange !

This is my gift for @pokemontrainerfromgallifrey

I hope you enjoy it, and I apologize for the slight delay. I definetly enjoyed writing it!

Virgil was getting better at turning off the alarm on his phone as soon as he woke up. His friends had warned him about using one of his favorite songs to wake up everyday, saying Virgil would end up hating it, they were right. Helena was officially ruined for him, but not because it reminded him of that awful groggy feeling that came with being woken up, but because it meant Virgil was still stuck in a freaking time loop.

No matter how many times Virgil changed the song for his alarm, it was still the same the next day, just like the rest of the events that would follow him getting out of bed. That meant the fire alarm would go off in three, two, one.

The fire alarm started beeping, followed by the panicked screams of his older brother.

“No, no no. Biscuits- stop” Virgil mumbled under his breath as Patton screamed along, as if he had memorized the lines from his favorite movie.

It didn’t take long for Virgil’s room to be flooded by the oh so familiar smell of burnt cookies, and Virgil could only try and think of the takeout food he hated the least by now so he could suggest it for dinner.

Virgil got up from bed and walked over to his desk, where a purple notebook sat on top of his laptop. For whatever reason, maybe to have some mercy on humans, the universe allowed each person to keep notes during the time loop. Virgil had been going full detective mode for the last couple of days, repeated day or whatever.

Keeping track of how many times Virgil had been living in the same day was only making him dread it even more, so he stopped counting and focused on writing the names of every person he met who turned out to not be his soulmate. With how many strangers he had talked to, Virgil felt like his social anxiety would be gone with a few more repetitions.

Flipping through the notebook, Virgil stopped at a fresh page to write five more names and next to each name, he wrote some recognizable features of each person. At least Virgil was getting out of this with a whole new set of skills. Small talk and face recognition? Who knew Virgil was capable of learning social skills.

Virgil closed the notebook and opened his curtains just in time to see the Christmas lights adorning the town’s center light up.

Oh yeah, the origin of all of Virgil’s problems, the Christmas market.

Of course Virgil would randomly bump into his soulmate on the day and place where the most people would be there. That was just his luck.

Virgil had done everything his friends had told him to do. Don’t panic, -or at least keep it minimal- retrace your steps and hope your soulmate does it too. Well, that clearly hadn’t worked. Either Virgil took a wrong step on that very first day of the loop, or his soulmate was dumb enough to do something entirely different.

Whatever the case, Virgil needed to get down there and start his search of the day.

After getting dressed, and packing an extra set of clothes in his backpack in case he got hot chocolate dumped on him for the fifth time; Virgil finally got out of his room to grab something to eat and update his brother on the situation, again.

Patton had already taken care of the fire alarm, and he tried do hide the tray of carbon black cookies behind him as Virgil walked into the kitchen.

“Virge! Good morning. I-I hope I didn’t wake you up or anything.” Patton glanced back at the mess he left with an awkward smile. “D-Dinner is all under control, no need to-”

Virgil put his hand up to stop Patton’s rambling. “Time loop. Please don’t try to cook anything else or we’re going to need a new oven when I finally get to tomorrow.”

Patton’s face changed between a million different emotions as he did his best to process Virgil’s words, and still tried to complain as Virgil walked over to the fridge. “How long-”

“I stopped counting.” Virgil answered before his brother could even finish asking. “I’m just grabbing some coffee and a sandwich before heading out.”

Patton walked closer to Virgil, giving him a pitiful but sympathetic smile. “Hey, I’m sure you’ll find them soon. You just have to be patient and persevering”

“Patient and persevering.” Virgil spoke at the same time as Patton. He was trying not to dump his frustrations on his brother, but it was hard to do when Patton threw the same reassuring words at him every morning. “Thanks Pat, I promise I’ll remember it.”

“Am I really that-”

“Predictable?” Virgil couldn’t help but smirk at Patton’s defeated face as he closed the fridge. At least he got some sort of fun out of this. “No, but I’ve heard it all before.” Virgil walked over to the coffee machine and took a thermos from the cupboard.

Patton sighed. “Would you like me to go with you? I guess we have to buy something for dinner if I’m not cooking.”

Virgil has said yes in the past, but somehow they always end up running into Janus, Patton’s boyfriend, who panicked about his gift last minute and had to go out and find something better. Having the lovebirds accompany him wasn’t that much of a burden, but Virgil could use a repeat without the extra drama today.

“I got this Pat.” Virgil reassured his brother as he poured himself some coffee. “Why don’t you order some takeout? Whatever you choose, I’ve already eaten it at least twice.” Food was the least of Virgil’s problems, so he would leave that choice to someone who probably wouldn’t remember it in the morning.

“Alrighty.” Patton waited until Virgil had closed his flask to give his little brother a bear hug. “Good luck finding your soulmate Virge.”

Virgil couldn’t help but smile and return the hug. This was one of the weird events of his day that he wouldn't get tired of no matter how many times he had to repeat it. “I’ll see you at dinner, and I promise to tell you everything tomorrow.” If tomorrow ever came.

With his breakfast ready, Virgil walked out of their apartment and headed over to the market. Most of the vendors had just arrived and were setting up their merchandise, so Virgil decided to take out his notebook and start going over everyone he already interacted with.

As he went over his list, Virgil started lamenting some of the relationships he would have to start all over again after this is all over. Of all the people he’d met, there had been a couple of them who Virgil actually hoped they were his soulmate. It would be nice to at least having them in his life as friends.

Holly, the girl who dresses in pastels and fluffy skirts even if it’s winter? She would get along with Patton, maybe even teach him how to bake too. Rory, the guy helping his grandpa who sells carved wood? He has great music taste. Logan, Virgil’s college classmate who- wait what?

Virgil looked up from his notebook, looking for Logan among the people walking towards the market. What was he doing here? And how had Virgil never seen him before?

Virgil put his notebook back into his backpack and started following Logan. They weren’t friends or anything, but they shared multiple classes so they were well acquainted with each other. That was back in New York, but Virgil was in his hometown for the holidays.

This was a small town; if Logan lived here before moving out for college just like Virgil did, he would know. Something was going on, and if it didn’t lead Virgil to his soulmate, at least it would keep him busy for the day.

“Logan!” Virgil called out for the shorter guy once he managed to get closer.

Logan turned around in confusion, his face barely changing when he saw who was calling out his name. “Virgil?”

Virgil stopped once he was right in front of Logan, taking a moment to catch his breath. “What are you doing here?”

“I-” Logan was clearly taken aback by Virgil’s question. The repetitions had made Virgil more comfortable with going straight to the point with his conversations, something he didn’t used to do back at school. “I’m here with my boyfriend’s family”

Huh. Virgil was barely even listening to Logan’s questions as he tried to think about his morning. Had he done something different today? Virgil was pretty sure he walked out to the market around the same time he always did. Had he really just missed Logan’s presence all this time?

Logan snapped his fingers in front of Virgil’s face, causing him to snap out of his thoughts and even take a step back as the action startled him.

“Sorry, uh…” Virgil tried to reply to whatever Logan had told him before, but he definitely didn't hear anything so he had no answer to give at all.

“I was asking you why you were also here.”

Virgil clicked his tongue .”Right. I grew up here and I’m staying with my brother for the holidays.”

Logan hummed, crossing his arms as the cold temperature seemed to catch onto him. “I was unaware you weren’t from New York. It’s a lovely town.”

“Yeah, lovely small.” Virgil had felt trapped his entire childhood, living as the misconception everyone had about him. He couldn’t just change schools and have a fresh start when everyone knew everyone. Of course that had to change the moment Virgil left, and the moment he had to find one specific person. “Who’s your boyfriend? Odds are we went to school together.”

“I don’t think so.” Virgil was starting to feel a bit guilty for stopping Logan and forcing him to talk with him, since it seemed his classmate was starting to freeze the more they stood still. “We’re on a road trip with his family but their van broke down. So now we’re stuck here, instead of the beach enjoying the sunny and warm weather.”

Virgil couldn’t help but let out a dry chuckle at Logan’s annoyance. “I take it you don’t like snow”

Logan sighed, and almost glared at the steam coming out of his mouth. “I did not mean to be that obvious about it.”

“Why are you out here so early then?” Virgil asked as he too crossed his arms. “Don’t get me wrong, some of the stands have great food but it’s nothing worth freezing over”

“My boyfriend’s brother was supposed to look for a bottle of wine for out dinner tonight, but he was and I quote: ‘Too emotionally exhausted to get out of the hotel today’” Logan made air quotes as he spoke, quickly returning to his previous position to try and keep warm.

Virgil chuckled once again. “Brother in laws, am I right? Mine is just as dramatic as yours sounds.”

Virgil had more than once gotten stuck in between one of Janus’s antics, more than he would have liked. However, Janus had never forced him to walk outside in the snow, so maybe Logan’s situation was worse.

Logan actually half smiled at Virgil’s comment. “To be honest, I’m glad his drama made me come out here. I’ve been wanting to take a look at the market, but I’ve been procrastinating it at the thought of actually being outside.”

“Well, you found the right person. I know this market like the palm of my hand by now.” Was Virgil supposed to be looking for his soulmate? Yes, but this was already way more entertaining than most of his repetitions. Screw it, he could always keep going with the search tomorrow. “I’ll show you where they sell the best wine.”

“Thank you, Virgil. I really appreciate it.”

“Don’t mention it.”

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

Logan had successfully secured a great wine for dinner with his in-laws, as Virgil insisted on calling them, and was also starting to get used to the cold weather. He wasn’t in such a rush to get back to the hotel anymore, so Virgil decided to show him around.

It had been decided this was the perfect opportunity to look for a Christmas present for Logan’s boyfriend, and Virgil was glad he could focus on someone else’ love life for a change.

If whatever he had with his soulmate could even be called a love life.

Virgil was being extra careful when walking so he wouldn’t accidentally bump into someone he didn’t know, or make eye contact with them. The last thing Virgil wanted was indirectly meet his soulmate and end this loop without knowing who they were. If he had to go through all this trouble it should at least be for something.

“You really are well familiarized with the market Virgil.” Logan commented after swallowing the bite he had taken out of his crepe. “I know there were a massive amount of stands, but I would have never been able to go through them all on my own, let alone the best ones.”

Virgil shrugged as he took a sip from his coffee. “They’re the best ones to my standards, and there’s still a few I haven’t gotten to try out yet. If I find anything else that’s worth it I will definitely let you know.”

“Are the vendors still coming tomorrow? I was under the impression they wouldn’t work on Christmas”

Right. Virgil may not have the chance to explore the market again after ending the time loop, at least not to this extent. “Some of them stay open. I’m sure we can still find a couple of surprises.”

Logan was about to reply but he stopped as a specific stand came into view. Logan stood there for a second, as if he was analyzing something. “Uhm, have you tried the roasted chestnuts from this stand?”

Virgil looked over and nodded. “That’s the only stand I’ve found that sells them. My brother loves them so I’ve bought some for him before, why?”

“My boyfriend’s brother wanted some, or at least he mentioned them in his overly dramatic rant. I guess he knew a Christmas market would sell them or something.”

Virgil could hear a bit of doubt on Logan’s voice, but the explanation he came up with was actually quite believable. Roasted chestnuts were a classic for the holidays, even if their market only seemed to have them on one stand. “We can buy some for him if you want. I’ll even get a bag for Patt.”

Why not? They’ll be gone in the morning anyway.

“Alright.” Logan agreed and walked closer to the stand. “Perhaps this will get him out of his funk or whatever he wants to call it.”

With the roasted chestnuts acquired, Virgil and Logan continued with their search for Logan’s boyfriend’s present. “Is he normally this hard to shop for?”

“If I’m being honest, he does most of the gift giving in our relationship.” Logan couldn’t help but blush as he confessed. “I am very open about my interests, which may be why most of the people who know me give me more than adequate gifts. Rem is… also quite expressive with what he likes, at least with me, but I can’t exactly give him anything regarding a true crime podcast or something of the sort.”

Logan sighed, glancing at the different stands as they walked by. “I want to give him something… personal? I suppose. We’re with his family and I want them to know that I know their son. It is an overly sappy thought, but he has altered my perception on relationships.”

Virgil chuckled. “I wouldn’t know anything about that.” Virgil looked to the side as he kept drinking from his coffee. “How about a wood burning ornament thing? Does he have any pets or something?”

Logan looked over at the stand Virgil was referring to, and immediately snorted at the thought. “That depends on who you ask.” He looked back at Virgil and kept explaining due to his confused face. “He has a pet rock and carries it everywhere. If it wasn’t obviously illogical, I would say he loves that thing more than me.”

“Well,” Virgil stepped aside so Logan could walk over to the pyrography stand, “I’d say you found your personal gift.”

Logan hummed, actually considering Virgil’s suggestion. He had thought about it as a joke at first, but this was actually the type of peculiar gift his boyfriend would absolutely adore. “Alright. I’ll go ask that vendor to burn the picture of a rock on a piece of wood.”

Virgil hissed, looking away from Logan for a moment. “Yeah, when you put it that way-” When Virgil looked back at his friend, Logan was already heading towards the stand. “Oh wait- you were serious.”

Virgil couldn’t believe he actually managed to give someone good advice for a change. One thing was for sure, if he wanted to keep this relationship with Logan back at school, they were going to have to have a conversation about Logan’s way of speaking. Virgil never thought he would ask someone to use tone indicators in real life.

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

It was more than clear by now that Virgil had left his soulmate business behind, at least for today, but it became even clearer when Virgil somehow found himself at Logan’s hotel room. In hindsight, it will be a shame that Logan won’t remember any of this tomorrow. Maybe Virgil could “accidentally” run into him again, maybe he could even let Logan help with Virgil’s search somehow.

“Rem! I’m back!” Logan opened the room’s door for Virgil, and stepped aside so he could walk in first.

“I’ll be right out!” A voice called from what Virgil guessed was the bathroom.

Virgil hoped he wouldn’t take long, since he had drunk a lot more coffee and hot chocolate than usual and desperately needed to pee.

“I brought a friend with me.” Logan called out, closing the door behind him. “I hope you won’t mind him staying with us for a little bit”

Some clattering noises could be heard from the bathroom, and there were some seconds of silence before Logan’s boyfriend spoke again. “Then it’ll take a bit more to get out!”

Virgil sighed, too preoccupied with his own bladder to even begin to unpack whatever that could have implied. “I think I’ll head back down to the lobby.”

“Actually, this room is adjoined with Remus’s brother’s. I am sure he wont mind you using his bathroom.” Logan left his shopping bag on the bedside table and gestured towards yet another door in the room.

Virgil didn’t want to walk back down to the first floor, so he would happily accept Logan’s offer. “Thank you.”

Virgil left his backpack on the floor next to the hotel’s bed before walking over to the door that joined both rooms. He knocked on it and waited for a response, but nothing came from the other side. Virgil looked back at Logan as he knocked again, still no response.

“Rem!” Logan called for his boyfriend again.

“Yeah?”

“Do you know if Roman is in his room?”

There was a moment of silence, most likely Remus thinking, before he answered the question. “Maybe? He went down to eat something but I don’t know if he came back!”

Great, Virgil was starting to get desperate now. “Do you mind if I go in either way?” He asked Logan.

“Go ahead.”

With Logan’s permission, Virgil opened the door and walked into the adjoined room.

Virgil wasn’t going to snoop or anything, all he wanted was to pee anyways, but he couldn’t help but take a quick look around to spot the bathroom door.

It did seem like there was no one in the room, so that was a good start. This… Roman? Yeah Virgil was pretty sure that was his name; this Roman guy had left his suitcase open on the bed. Virgil could briefly see a variety of disorganized clothes in it along with some self care products and a red notebook before turning over to where the bathroom was.

Get in, do your thing and get out. Simple. Easy. Piece of cake.

Virgil let the door close behind him as he walked towards the bathroom. He reached for the doorknob only for it to move away from his hand as the door opened.

On the other side of the door stood who Virgil could only guess was the famous Roman, with a towel wrapped around his waist… and nothing else.

Both guys stood there for a moment, looking at each other in shock.

Virgil wished his body reacted faster than his mind did, since it felt like it took hours of him standing there staring at this half naked stranger for him to turn away in embarrassment. Virgil could practically feel the heat coming from his cheeks as he covered his eyes.

“I-I’m sorry… I-” Virgil tried to speak, but it felt like his lips were frozen. He didn’t even know what Roman was doing since he was looking away, and that was somehow worse than looking at him in the eye. “L-Logan he… I wanted to- uhm- use the bathroom and he said I could come here a-and…”

Virgil peaked at Roman through in between his fingers, trying to decipher whatever he could see of his face to know if he was achieving something or just making a further fool of himself. “We thought you were out… sorry.”

More awkward silence… why not?

“You know what? I’ll just go back to the other room.” Virgil was quick to say, already stepping backwards to flee. “I’m sure Rem is done and-”

Roman let out a dry chuckle and Virgil almost fainted. Was this guy laughing at him?

“You don’t want to go into that bathroom if Remus was just in there.” Roman stepped aside so Virgil could walk in. “I was already done anyways, go ahead.”

Virgil uncovered his eyes, though he was definitely still blushing. Now that he could see Roman better, Virgil was quick to decide that stupid smirk was pissing him off, even if Roman’s face was also flushed. Whatever, Virgil got a free pass out of this situation and he would take it without complaints. “Thanks.”

Virgil went into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. He leaned against the wood for a moment, trying to process whatever the heck just happened. It didn’t take long for his bladder to remind him what was the purpose of invading someone’s room in the first place, and Virgil decided to leave overthinking for after dinner.

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

By the time Virgil was done, which wasn’t that long anyways, Roman wasn’t in the room anymore. Guess he was just as eager to flee as Virgil was.

The suitcase was still open on top of the bed, but Virgil could definitely tell there were a bunch of articles of clothing missing, so Roman was definitely out for sure this time.

Virgil felt like he could breathe again. This was definitely the most eventful repetition so far, and for once Virgil was glad he got to redo this day. He would most likely never have to interact with Roman ever again.

That incident prompted Virgil to head back home, it wasn’t that early anymore anyways and he could help Patton with some quick side dish or something before dinner. Of course, he didn’t leave before saying goodbye to Logan first, and actually getting to meet the famous Remus. Virgil wished them a merry Christmas Eve and walked out of the hotel as quickly as he could.

The rest of Virgil’s day went by smoothly. How could it not? Considering how it started- Whatever, Virgil definitely didn’t almost burn the pasta thinking about the incident.

Virgil definitely didn’t spend half of dinner internally dying of shame, even with Patton’s reassurance of a better repetition tomorrow.

And Virgil definitely wasn’t laying awake on his bed reliving the moment in his mind over and over again. Was it too late to live in his apartment for the rest of time? Maybe the universe would get tired of Virgil not taking action and end the time loop out of pity.

Virgil looked over at the purple notebook on his desk. How could something that would have no impact on his life cause him so much anxiety? Tomorrow Virgil would wake up, hate Helena a little bit more, and keep scouting the market in hopes of finding his soulmate. He could leave this embarrassment behind for good.

After changing the song on his alarm, secretly hoping he wouldn’t have to listen to it tomorrow, Virgil was finally able to stop thinking and fall asleep.

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

Virgil was getting better at turning off the alarm on his phone as soon as he woke up… but this time he managed to stop himself before tapping the button on his phone’s screen.

This wasn’t Helena.

This was A little faster. A different song… the one he had randomly chosen the night before.

Virgil almost got to the chorus of the song before reacting. He picked up his phone and turned off the alarm, his lock screen coming into view.

December 25th.

The time loop was over.

That could only mean… no.

Surely the universe didn’t hate him that much.

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

”What do you mean you don’t allow visits on Christmas?”

Virgil had spent most of his Christmas morning panicking over the fact that apparently Roman was his soulmate. The same Roman that Virgil saw half naked the first time -second time technically- they met. He had finally decided to walk his ass over to the hotel and face this guy to try and find the truth.

The only other two alternatives Virgil had come up with was either he bumped into his soulmate in the market without noticing, again; or Remus was actually his soulmate, which would cause a lot more trouble considering Logan was already in a relationship with hin and Virgil didn’t want to think about breaking them apart.

Virgil was sticking to the Roman theory for now. If only the receptionist would let him into the hotel room to confirm it.

“I’m sorry sir. We need out guest to let us know before hand of any visits since we’re short staffed for today.” The receptionist explained, only getting more on Virgil’s nerves. “I don’t have your name on my list.”

“No but see, I wanted to surprise my friends while they’re in town.” Virgil tried to come up with an excuse, something that will hopefully tug on this woman’s heartstrings enough for her to ignore the rules. “They don’t know I’m here, and we haven’t spent Christmas together in so long. Please, it’ll just be for a moment and then we’ll head out.”

“There is nothing I can do, sir”

Virgil huffed, accepting defeat. “So much for Christmas spirit.” He mumbled before turning away from the hotel’s front desk. What kind of stupid rule was that anyways?

Lost in his thoughts, and too busy mumbling rude replies he didn’t want the receptionist to hear, Virgil bumped straight into the chest of someone who was just walking into the lobby. Trying to get away from yet another embarrassing encounter, Virgil stepped back a little too quickly and lost his balance; almost falling backwarts on the floor.

Almost, because the person he crashed with caught him before he fell. “We need to stop meeting like this”

It took a moment for Virgil to be able to recognize Roman’s face, considering a red scarf was covering half his face and the last time Virgil saw him… nope, not the time to overthink that again. “Yeah…”

Roman helped Virgil back to his feet, and he could almost see a smile slipping out from the edges of Roman’s scarf. A smile that, unlike the smirk from yesterday, Virgil didn’t completely hate.

“I was looking for you.” Roman said before Virgil had the chance to speak.

Virgil still couldn’t believe this was happening to him. “You were?”

Roman nodded. “I mean, I was.” Roman took the edge of his scarf and started pulling it off, his gloves following soon after. “I ran out as soon as I figured it out and it took more time than I’m willing to admit to realize I knew nothing about you.”

Virgil would have interrupted but, luckily for Roman’s rant, he was struggling to formulate words as he tried to process what the other was saying.

“Then I remembered you mentioned Logan yesterday, and I came back to ask him about you.” Roman stuck his gloves in his jacket’s pockets and let out a long sigh. “But finding you here is even better.”

Virgil stayed silent again, until he realized Roman had stopped telling his part of the story. “Why?” Was everything that came out of Virgil’s mouth.

Roman’s smile only grew wider. “Because the universe has a weird idea of what meeting someone means. I didn’t even get your name yesterday and that was enough to end this damn time loop?”

“So you’re my..” That could only mean Virgil’s first theory was correct. It didn’t make it any easier to say. “We’re…”

“Soulmates?” Roman was kind enough to finish Virgil’s sentence. “I’d say so, considering you were the only new person I met yesterday.”

A large part of yesterday’s embarrassment was still present today, because the universe hated Virgil that much and actually made that repetition count. But another part of it was replaced with pure amusement.

Of all the ways Virgil could have met his soulmate, it had to be the most jarring way possible. An encounter that would follow Virgil for the rest of his life, a cruel joke from the universe. It was hilarious, all things considered.

So Virgil started laughing. It wasn’t a laugh that everyone who came into the lobby could clearly hear, Virgil was still had enough anxiety left in his body to be self conscious about his volume, but Roman could definitely hear him laughing.

“You know what? Sure.” Virgil managed to say between laughs. “Of course I couldn’t have a normal soulmate meeting.”

Roman had a confused face at first, but Virgil actually managed to infect him with some of his laughter. “Tell me about it. I was hoping to have a couple of dates before being half naked with my soulmate.”

“Gross,” Virgil couldn’t help but nudge Roman’s shoulder for that comment. “It’ll definitely take you more than a couple of dates to get to that point again.” Still, Virgil couldn’t help but play along with Roman.

“Oh, I almost forgot.” Virgil took off his backpack and reached into one of the small pockets on the front to get a plastic bag out, a plastic bag filled with roaster chestnuts. “I accidentally kept these yesterday, Logan bought them for you,” Virgil handed Roman the bag as he explained. “Merry Christmas, I guess.”

Roman took the bag, looking fondly at it. “The best I ever tasted. These alone were almost enough to convince me not to take a break yesterday.”

Now it made sense why Virgil had never seen Logan before, Roman must have been going out for the wine in his place every other day. “What? You were giving up on me so easily?”

“Never, but even I needed some time away from soulmate hunting.”

“I get the feeling.” Honestly, wasn’t that what Virgil was doing yesterday? “Good thing you did, or I would have never ran into Logan, and then you.”

Roman looked back up at Virgil, his cheeks flushing ever so slightly. “Yeah. Thanks for the gift by the way, even if you technically didn’t buy them.”

Virgil chuckled. “Bold complaint for someone who didn’t get me anything.”

Roman made an offended face for a second, before smiling again and chuckling alongside Virgil. “May I at least know your name first?”

“Hmm… I don’t know” Virgil hummed and acted as if he was thinking. “I think I’m starting to like the mystery in all this.”

“You can’t possibly ask for mystery when I was wearing a towel when we met.”

“Touché.” Virgil found himself smiling as well. It was just so easy to mess with this guy, affectionately of course. Virgil felt like all his worries had melted away the moment the conversation started flowing. Soulmates had that effect on people, apparently.

Virgil took off one of his gloves and extended his hand to Roman. “I’m Virgil.”

Roman didn’t hesitate before grabbing Virgil’s hand and shaking it. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Virgil.”

“Don’t you mean a relief?”

“Yeah, that too.”

Roman didn’t let go of Virgil’s hand, and neither did he. They were more then okay staying like that for a while. After all the time they were forced to spend looking for each other, now ti seemed like they had all the time of the world. The universe dictated they were right for each other after all, how could Virgil complain?

Not like he wanted to. Even with the less than ideal start, and with how little they knew each other, Virgil was glad someone like Roman was his soulmate.

[authorgirl0131]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Sanders Sides (Web Series), SCP Foundation Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Deceit | Janus Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders Characters: Deceit | Janus Sanders, Logic | Logan Sanders Additional Tags: Enemies to Lovers, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Inspired by SCP Foundation, Alternate Universe - SCP Foundation Fusion, Gift Exchange, Gift Fic, Supernatural Elements Summary:

Logan has been working at the SCP Foundation for over ten years and the longest-standing and worst thorn in his side has proven to be SCP 076, also known as Janus.

Until a series of unexpected developments change everything he thought he knew about the entity

@icecoldflames Happy (late) holidays! @sanderssidesgiftxchange

[moonmelodyforthesunshine]

Movie Marathon

For @authorgirl0131 for @sanderssidesgiftxchange

Summary: Patton invites Janus and Remus to a Christmas movie night

Tags: Janus, Patton, Remus, fluff, Christmas

Relationships: mild moceit, famILY

As the holiday season rolled closer, the Others prepared for their annual gift exchange. The common area had been decorated with multicolored tinsel. The purple in it still felt new. The tree had also been covered in color-coded baubles. Light blue ornaments crowded one section of the tree, while dark blue ones were scattered about the branches. Bright red and gold pieces sparkled between them. Around the bottom and middle were small purple and black ornaments. The few spider-shaped ones were tucked in the deep crevices between branches.

The kitchen, and therefore the living room, was filled with the scent of freshly baked cookies. A big tray of them sat on the counter top, waiting for their movie night. Patton had made them that morning in preparation for it with the help of his famILY.

He was currently walking through the dark corridor that led to the subconscious. Janus and Remus lived at the end of it, or what seemed to be the end. Patton had volunteered to invite them to the party.

After what felt like ages of walking in the dark twisty hallway, Patton walked into another living room. It could've been any other room, except for the obvious outline of a couch. Patton followed the wall to something that wanted to be stairs. Very carefully, he went upstairs.

At the top were two doors: one green and one yellow? But it could've been green or blue. He decided to knock on that door.

A minute or so passed before the door opened. Janus appeared, face neutral.

"Hello, Patton. What brings you here?"

"Hi, Janus! I wanted to invite you (and Remus) to the Christmas movie night!"

Janus smiled slightly. "Did the others tell you to invite us?"

"No, we agreed that you should join us this year. It wouldn't be a party without you two."

"Of course you would say that."

"Come on, Janus! I made sugar cookies."

He sighed. "Fine, we'll join you. But I make no promises beyond that."

"Yes!" Patton pumped his fist. "This night is gonna be awesome! See you later!"

Patton rushed back to his room, finding the way back much shorter.

Janus closed his door, a smile creeping onto his face once it was shut.

"Ooh, Patton wants us to join them?" Remus squirmed from under the bed to see Janus' quickly fading smile. "And you obviously want to go."

A pause.

"Oh! You like him!"

Deceit moved to silence him.

"You like Pa-"

"It would do you well to hold your- did you try to lick me?"

Remus' answer was muffled by the gloved hand over his mouth.

"We both know that, if I did have affection for him, it would not be recieved well. You best not spread rumors, got it?"

At 6:10pm, Janus glided into the common area, appearing like a shadow through mist.

Remus also appeared, but more like a jack-in-the-box.

"Janus! You made it!" Patton sprung up from the couch, barely missing the coffee table.

"Yes, we did. Thank you so much for inviting us." Janus smiled coyly.

"Fashionably late as usual," Logan muttered from his place on the couch.

Roman and Virgil hardly looked in their direction but rather watched the screen, tensing slightly. The opening credits for Elf were rolling, snowflakes and penguins running around.

"Well, take a seat, have a cookie, and most importantly, have fun!" Patton returned to his seat on the floor.

Janus chose to sit next to Logan on the couch. He was close enough to touch Patton, not that he wanted to do so. He could see Patton's eyes twinkle in the darkness from the light of the TV. Not that it was pretty or beautiful. Just a fact.

Remus had decided that the best place to sit was right next to Virgil, therefore behind Patton, with his feet in the air. Patton and Virgil shifted away from him in opposite directions.

Janus could feel the heat radiating from Patton.

The movie played, being paused frequently for someone to point out an error or an odd detail.

"People don't believe in Santa anymore?! Tell me it's not true," Patton said, looking around for an answer.

"It's not true," Janus replied coolly. "Millions of children still believe that a fat, bearded man breaks into their house to leave gifts for them."

"10 AM, Santa's coming to town."

"Santa!" They all said in unison.

As Finch kicked Buddy into the wall, Remus cheered, almost kicking Virgil.

"Tear his ear off! Go for the ankles! The ankles! Finch is so strong; I wish he'd bend me over like that," he shouted, smiling like crazy.

Everyone looked at him, disgusted. Patton moved to cover his ears. The moment passed quickly though, leaving when Finch and Buddy did.

"You better watch out," Jovie started singing.

"You better not cry," Patton joined her.

"You better not pout. I'm telling you why, " Roman and Remus came in, singing loudly, fighting each other's voice to be the best.

"Santa Claus is coming to town," Logan sang monotonously.

"He sees you when your sleeping

He knows when you're awake," Janus slowly cresendoed into the song, blurring when he had joined in.

"He knows when you've been bad or good

So be good for goodness sake!"

They sang together until the song faded out. Some voices dropped out in the middle, only to come back at the end. The twins got louder and louder, until Janus glared at Remus and Virgil tapped Roman on the shoulder.

The movie's credits rolled. Logan got up to turn the lights on, while Roman grabbed the remote to find another movie. Remus stretched his arms out, pushing Patton closer to Janus. Which would have been awful if Patton hadn't stood up at that moment to go make coffee and hot cocoa for everyone that wanted it.

Remus grinned widely. "Poor Patton! He has to make all those drinks by himself. Someone should go help him," he said. It was almost conversational.

Janus sighed after no one left to assist Patton and left to check on him.

"Hey, Janus! Do you need anything? A coffee, maybe?" Patton smiled at him.

"Thank you for the offer, but I'll pass. I actually came to help you," Janus explained.

"Oh, thank you. That's very kind of you." He pulled two packets of hot cocoa mix from the cabinet and set them next to the milk he had already taken out.

Janus searched the counter for mugs. "Do you need mugs for the drinks?"

Patton followed his gaze. "Yeah, could you pull out… 3 mugs? Oh, and go get Logan's cup?"

"Of course," Janus said, going back to the living room to grab Logan's now empty tumbler from the coffee table. As he was going to leave, Remus gave him a very obvious thumbs up.

Back in the kitchen, he found the cabinet full of mugs and chose three plain white cups. Janus then leaned on the counter next to the stove, watching Patton stir the chocolatey liquid.

"Tell me, Patton. How is everyone in your family unit doing," Janus asked sweetly.

"Alright, I think. Virgil and Roman are upset with me for letting you join us. Logan's indifferent, but you know how he is." Patton turned to face Janus. "How are you and Remus doing?"

"We're doing perfectly fine. We have this agreement currently; the details are unimportant. Just know that it keeps Remus contained enough." He smirked as he added, "you're welcome."

"Oh, uh, thank you! I have noticed he's not around as often." Patton moved to start making coffee. It wasn't a new sight, but seeing it when he was allowed to felt different. Familiar but warmer than the many times before. Instead of observing to take his place, he was watching to appriciate the movement. The exagerated gestures, the bounce in his step, the quiet tune he hummed.

By the time Patton had finished setting up the coffee maker, Janus had realized he was staring and calmly composed himself.

"Do you have any plans for Christmas?" Patton leaned on the counter to face Janus.

"Not at the moment." He had planned to watch Die Hard with Remus at his insistance, but that could happen at any time.

"We're going to do a Secret Santa again. I was hoping you would join us." Patton's eyes lit up, hopeful.

"I suppose I have nothing better to do." Janus smirked as Patton grinned brightly.

"Perfect! We'll draw names at the end of the night." He picked up the pot to pour the hot cocoa. "You're staying, right?"

"We might as well. We came all this way to join you." Janus grabbed the two mugs as Patton filled the others with coffee.

"Yay! I wonder if Roman's picked out the next movie yet-"

"That movie's boring! We should watch Krampus!" Remus interjected.

"That's a horror movie! The classics are much better!" Roman argued back.

"But we've seen those hundreds of times, you know, the REASON they're classics. We should see something new and interesting."

"I suggest we head in there before something is lit on fire," Janus said.

"Agreed!"

The two of them went into the living room, distributed drinks, convinced Remus to cooperate somehow, and watched Frosty the Snowman. The perfect movie night.

[naminethewriter]

Your Place With Us

Chapter Two: Rescue

Second chapter of my gift for @prince-rowan-of-the-forest written for the @sanderssidesgiftxchange! Enjoy!

Masterpost | Ao3 | Previous | Next

Summary: Virgil’s father has always had his problems with him, he was just too compassionate for a pirate. So, to toughen him up, his father decides to leave him on a deserted island and check if he’s still alive in a few months. Unbeknownst to him, however, there is a curious merman watching and a sea god below the waves that might just change Virgil’s life…

Content Warnings: Fainting, Injury, Divine Blessings, Snake Mention

~~*~~

Roman would never disobey Janus. His God. His partner.

And technically he didn't?

He had been careful every time he returned to the surface, kept his distance and hid himself between the rocks jutting out of the water that surrounded most of the island.

He just… hadn't actually decreased his visits to the surface as he had first planned. In fact, he'd been going more.

Now, he had waited several cycles before going back! He had been patient, kept Janus company and did his duties as his acolyte, it was just… the temple got overwhelming at times. Janus had a lot of devotees scattered across the oceans who traveled to his temple to worship him and leave offerings. And that meant a lot of unfamiliar people coming and going at any point of a cycle, which was often exhausting to Roman.

Going to the surface to clear his head had been his escape ever since he joined the order under Janus and since the God had taken a special interest in him, he had felt even safer doing so.

It wasn't like Janus was watching him constantly, he simply kept a kind of tether on him and his surroundings just to be sure he wasn't in danger.

So, he had been cautious not to get too close. But the first time he saw the human again? Something happened.

Maybe it was the closer proximity (he was still far away, but last time he had been even more cautious because of the ship) or maybe it was because the human looked more put together, unbound and cleaner than before, but something about his appearance struck a chord in Roman that he couldn't quite explain.

It must've been some sort of attraction but it was different from how he felt about Janus. Of course, that was hardly a fair comparison to begin with - a God and a human were not on the same level. The first time he had seen Janus, he had been enchanted by the divine glow around him, he instantly wanted to touch his golden scales, comb his flowing hair and worship him forever. He would never do any of that except for the worship without the Gods permission, of course, but it was suddenly a need on the same level as he needed to eat and breathe.

With the human, though? He could feel his heart starting to beat faster as he watched him run his fingers through his dark hair. The human had also lost the clothing covering his chest at some point and while he was skinnier than Roman, he seemed to have more muscles than him ⸺ Roman was an acolyte, not a guard, so he didn't need to work out his body that much, as long as he could swim fast, he was fine.

The human's appearance had flustered him. And he couldn't explain why.

So, truly, he was only going to the surface to figure out this mystery! Once he did that, there was no reason to return until the human left for good!

Nodding to himself, Roman broke through the surface of the water once again, hidden, of course, by some rocks. He waited for a few moments to make sure the splashing of his appearance didn't draw attention and gets him caught, before peeking around the edge.

He froze.

The human was right there, on the beach. He stood there, staring at his arm with an expression Roman couldn't quite make out enough to read from this distance but looked different from how he'd seen the human so far, except for… except for when he had first arrived on the island.

There was something unsettling about it.

Then the human started swaying before falling over. It was not the fast way Roman had seen humans fall over before when the had been hit with the noisy weapons Janus had told him to be especially wary of since they could hit you quickly from a large distance away, he just tumbled over, landing on his side. He didn't move for a moment before pushing himself onto his back, lifting his arm one more time before letting it fall back into the sand.

He didn't move again.

Roman waited with baited breath, but nothing happened.

Did he fall asleep? But it was the middle of the light cycle! The sun was shining strongly from the sky, he couldn't fall asleep like that! Even as a creature of the water, Roman knew that staying in the sun too long could have very bad effects!

Roman waited even longer but he couldn't shake the feeling of worry in his chest.

He decided to get closer. It was risky but he couldn't stand doing nothing anymore!

Slowly, he moved from rock to rock, swimming as quietly as he could and keeping an eye on the human all the way.

Still, no movement.

Roman stopped when he saw that the human's chest was still rising and falling, but not steadily and only very shallowly. Something was definitely wrong.

He needed to make a decision now: protect himself like Janus would want him to and swim away, or get to the human and check on him directly like his heart wanted him to do so desperately.

His heart won out.

Still keeping a distance, Roman approached the shore. The human didn't so much as twitch. Once he reached the shallows, Roman activated a blessing he had only used once or twice before, purely out of curiosity and only by himself.

He made his tail transform into human legs.

Immediately, he felt Janus' attention shift to him more intensely. He didn't stop Roman, but his worry about why he would do this was palpable. Roman couldn't really communicate back, so he just had to trust that his partner would trust him in turn.

Controlling appendages that he wasn't used to wasn't easy, but Roman clumsily made his way over to the human, who still hadn't moved more than the few, unsteady breaths he was taking.

Roman sat down next to him, unsure of what to do. Carefully, he touched the human's shoulder with a finger, pulling his hand back immediately after. No change. A more firm touch. Still nothing. Roman grew bolder and shook him a bit. A weak groan but nothing else. His eyes were closed, his mouth open a bit, raspy breaths escaping his lips.

"Hey, can you hear me?" Roman asked as a last resort, another of his blessings would translate it into whatever language the human knew, but no reaction again.

Maybe Roman didn't know much about humans, but he knew this one was in a bad condition right now.

Then he remembered the way he'd been clutching his arm before falling over. Roman would need to lean over him to take a closer look but by now he was pretty sure the human was in no condition to do anything to him anyway.

Carefully, Roman leaned over his torso, grabbing the human's arm and inspecting it.

It didn't take him long to find out the issue.

Two deep marks were standing out on the human's skin, the surrounding flesh having turned an ugly purple.

It seemed venom from fish and whatever creature carried it on this island wasn't too dissimilar.

The human was on the edge of death.

Roman panicked.

As an acolyte of a God, he had some semblance of healing powers, but not so much to fight this level of venom nor did he know if it would even work on land!

Still he gave it a shot and got a bit of power to accumulate on his fingertips but it fizzled out quickly.

There was nothing Roman could do.

…Except call on his God.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and prayed.

Janus, please hear me! The human is wounded and will die. Is there anything I can do to help him?

It took but a moment for his partner's voice to echo in his head.

My love, why would you interfere with him in the first place? If his time has come then so be it.

I… I don't quite know. I just don't want to watch him die, I suppose.

Dear loving, caring Roman. You know I adore your empathy for others but he is not one of our kind. You don't know what will happen if he awakens and finds you there with him.

I won't stay, let me help him and I will return to you immediately.

But why should I help him if he only poses trouble for my people? You and everyone else devoted to me are my priority over some human, love.

I know and I don't have a good reason, I just don't want him to die, Jan. Please?

There was a moment of pause in which Roman waited with baited breath on Janus' response.

…It will not be without cost, Roman.

For me, him or you?

Him. He is human. I am not meant to touch him.

Will it change him?

…Not quite. And I suppose it will be temporary. Still, he might not take it well.

Can't you just tell me?

I could, but I won't. You are making a decision here, Roman. You will need to carry the weight one way or another. If you want me to meddle with a human, I need you to be sure, no matter the consequences.

Roman could feel himself trembling. Janus was right. This was his call to make.

He looked at the human's face again and made his decision.

Please, help him. I'll bear whatever follows.

Very well. Place your hands on his chest and close your eyes.

Roman did as instructed. Soon, he felt a warm energy gather in his chest and then rush out through his arms, straight into the human.

And behind his closed eyes, he could see a flash of light.

[edupunkn00b]

Hanahaki was meant to be a fictional disease. But once Logan began coughing up flowers in the colors of his three secret loves, he came to the only logical conclusion.

Purple, yellow, and green pansies. Photo by Pawel Andrzejczak via Unsplash.

Chapters: 2/2 Fandom: Sanders Sides (Web Series) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Dark Creativity | Remus “The Duke” Sanders/Deceit | Janus Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Dark Creativity | Remus “The Duke” Sanders/Deceit | Janus Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders Characters: Logic | Logan Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus “The Duke” Sanders, Creativity | Roman “Princey” Sanders, (briefly) Additional Tags: Hanahaki Disease, Canon Universe, mostly - Freeform, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Happy Ending, Pining, Mutual Pining, because of course the Dork Sides love him‚ too, He’s One of Them Summary:

Hanahaki was meant to be a fictional disease. But once Logan began coughing up flowers in the colors of his three secret loves, he came to the only logical conclusion.

Written for @xokushiko​ for the @sandersidesgiftxchange. Your wish of Logan with Hanahaki in a flower field got me thinking and… well, I hope you enjoy!

[sanderssidesgiftxchange]

Reminder for all! All gifts must be posted by the 5th! If you don't get your gift by the 5th please reach out to me and I will get things sorted!

[starlocked01]

your warm heart will chase the chill away

AO3 Link

Summary: Janus panics and agrees to meet his long term internet friend in person over the holidays. He desperately tries to cover up the years of lies and omissions about his life while quickly falling for the angelically-sweet man showing him through a winter wonderland. Patton has never been more excited than when his online bestie agreed to come visit for Christmas! Despite his real life best friend's initial misgivings, and several surprises along the way, he's more than ready to welcome the merging of his online life and real world experiences. Logan doesn't want his boyfriend to kill himself trying to survive a wintry Midwestern holiday, despite Janus' clear lack of forethought. Remus is convinced Janus is actually a 40 year old AI generated serial killer. What could go wrong? Characters: Janus, Patton, Remus, Logan (and maybe Roman and Virgil?) Relationships: Intrulomoceit! With a good dash of all the respective interconnected dynamics Content Warnings: Mild Swearing, Remus has some intrusive thoughts

Written for the ever lovely @edupunkn00b for the @sanderssidesgiftxchange Secret Santa exchange! Thank you so much for everything you always give our community, I hope this serves as a token of appreciation for all your hard work and the joy you bring Fanders all year long 💛💙💚🩵 title is a lyric from "Slow Dancing in the Snow" which is always the go to choir song I think of when I think of wintertime romance

[naminethewriter]

Your Place With Us

Chapter One: Abandoned

Hello, hello! I am once again participating in the @sanderssidesgiftxchange! And I just so happen to get lucky enough to write for my friend @prince-rowan-of-the-forest! I hope you enjoy this mix and match of your three wishes 😉

Masterpost | Ao3 | Next

Summary: Virgil's father has always had his problems with him, he was just too compassionate for a pirate. So, to toughen him up, his father decides to leave him on a deserted island and check if he's still alive in a few months. Unbeknownst to him, however, there is a curious merman watching and a sea god below the waves that might just change Virgil's life...

Content Warnings: Abusive Father (to his adult child but still), Abandonment, stranded on a deserted island

~~*~~

Virgil hit the sand face first. Of course, his father wouldn’t start being gentle now.

“There you are, boy!” the man hollered, towering over him as Virgil struggled to get his bound hands beneath himself and push out of the coarse sand. “An island all to yourself! Better be grateful, I could’ve set you out at a small settlement instead; they would’ve forced you to work until you collapse! Here you can be alone to think over what you’ve done wrong.”

As if he didn’t know already. His father made no secret of the things he disliked about Virgil. The straw that broke the camel’s back this time was another repetition of Virgil’s most annoying trait: his empathy for others and refusal to kill if he doesn’t have to.

“You’re gonna stay here and either survive or die, I don’t care which at this point. I’ll come to check on you in like a few months? Or whenever we happen to be close by. And I expect you to learn something specific by the end of this, Virgil. You know what I mean, don’t you?”

Virgil had just managed to push himself back on his knees when his father grabbed his chin forcefully and turned his head up, so he was looking right at him.

“Tell me, son.” He spit out the word like it was poison. “What is it you’re supposed to learn?”

“Care about myself first, then about my allies and stop there,” Virgil pressed out, the grip his father had on his face making it hard for him to speak clearly.

“Right you are! A pirate should be selfish. It’s yourself against the world! Expect everyone to stab you in the back and be prepared to do so first!” He leaned close, his rotten breath fanning over Virgil’s nose and almost making him gag. “And you better have that set in your tiny, stupid brain by the time I come back or I’m gonna run you through with a sword myself.” With that, he pushed Virgil back into the sand before pulling out a dagger and throwing it at his chest. “A little present for you! Maybe you can make it more than a day with that. Goodbye Virgil, I don’t expect we’ll see each other again.”

He stalked away, back to the rowboat they had arrived in, truly leaving Virgil alone in a miserable situation. Virgil watched him push offshore and start the row back, then turned to the dagger. He inspected it only to find that it was dull. Of course. The ropes would take hours to be cut with it; he would be better off searching for a broken shell or a sharp rock.

‘Better not waste time,’ he thought. ‘I’m losing light and I should be out of the bounds before the sun sets.’

Virgil looked at the rowboat one last time. It had almost reached the ship that used to be his home. The place he’d grown up on most of his childhood. Filled with people who despised him. Lead by his father.

He wasn’t going to miss it, but what were the chances of him surviving here until they either came back, or he found another way off the island?

Virgil shook his head. Thinking about it wouldn’t help. He should focus on getting his hands free and then find water, food and shelter. He took a deep breath and set out.

~~*~~

Roman liked going to the surface. Of course, his home was beautiful, and it wasn’t like he wanted to live on land or anything, but it was nice to go up and see what was going on in a world so different from the one he knew.

This time though, he hadn’t witnessed something nice. He had watched the ship sail by, watched the smaller ship get set into the water and then swim to the island, the closest piece of land to his home under the waves. Janus made sure that humans didn’t settle there for long, but he didn’t stop all visitors from coming near, that would be suspicious he said.

Anyway, from a safe distance and away from the big ship, Roman had watched the two humans leave the smaller ship and the bigger of the two shove the smaller one onto the ground. It looked like anything but a fun conversation. Then the bigger one had left, leaving the other behind, who looked back at the bigger ship with a kind of sad expression? He was too far away for Roman to tell properly.

What he could see though, were the bound hands of the left behind human. A prisoner then? But he didn’t look like a bad guy, skinny and dirty with no weapon but the one the bigger human had thrown at him. Roman wondered what had happened between them as he watched the smaller ship being attached to the bigger one again and the left behind human start walking further inland.

He should tell Janus about this.

It was a shorter trip than Roman had hoped, but considering a human was now apparently staying on the island, he should spend less time on the surface anyway. So, he dove back under the waves and quickly swam back home. The deeper he went, the less light followed him, but he had Janus’ protection, so his eyes adjusted to the lower light without issue.

The route back was familiar, so it felt like no time at all passed until he reached Janus’ temple, his home. He greeted the other acolytes and devotees as he swam past, confident that he could locate Janus without much trouble.

And he was proven right as he arrived at the crystal chamber, the most sacred place in the temple and the place Janus spent most of his time. His God was seated on his throne in the middle of the cavern, the light of the crystal making him glow even more ethereal than usual. His long, golden tail was spread through the room, touching all the sacred crystals, letting his powers flow between each and as such keep them all safe.

Roman opened his mouth to speak, but Janus beat him to it.

“Roman, my love. You’re back early.” His eyes that had been closed before were now fixed on Roman, an intense gaze that he still wasn’t used to even after all the years he served him and the few he had become more intimate with him.

“Yes. There’s something I wanted to talk with you about,” Roman explained, carefully swimming closer and settling at the base of Janus’ throne, his head leaning against his tail. Janus hummed approvingly and started combing through his hair.

“I can only imagine that it has something to do with the ship that just passed by.”

“It does. They left a tied-up human on the island. I didn’t get too close of course, but he didn’t seem like a bad person to me.”

“I sssssee,” Janus sighed, his hand leaving Roman’s hair and instead he was pulled into Janus’ lap. “You are a kind soul, Roman, but humans are unpredictable. They care not for each other like we do, at least not most of the time. There could be a lot of reasons why he was left there, but either way, I hope you stay away from him. Humans are not to be trusted.” He pressed a kiss to Roman’s forehead, and he melted against Janus’ chest, basking in his affection.

“I know not to get close, I’m not stupid.”

“Yes, that is what I was implying,” Janus said dryly, but Roman ignored him.

“I’m just a bit curious, that’s all. If I go up to see him, I’ll keep my distance and make sure he doesn’t see me.”

“That’s my smart knight,” Janus chuckled, this time pressing his lips against Roman’s directly. “I will sink the island and any humans within a thousand miles if something were to happen to you.”

“You cannot just throw the ocean into chaos for me,” Roman laughed, a bit embarrassed.

“Watch me,” Janus bit back, grinning. “Anyway, you’ll stay with me a while, won’t you?”

“If my God demands it, I will not object.”

“Oh, sssssshut up,” Janus hissed, flicking Roman’s nose lightly, causing him to giggle. “Just let me hold you.”

“Gladly.”

[icecoldflames]

Back Together Again (Sanders Sides)

This is a fic written for @infinitesimaldna for the @sanderssidesgiftxchange!

I tried to incorporate all three of your wishes—Creativitwins content, Roman and Virgil interaction, and the twins speak Spanish—although the last one I found rather difficult to include without it feeling out of place.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy!

Summary: Morbid Myth—a pop rock band consisting of Roman, Remus, and Virgil—had just started making a name for itself until, suddenly, the band broke up, damaging Roman and Remus' twin bond. Two years later, a perfect opportunity presents itself for the band to get back together, and Roman is certain he can get Remus on board.

Word Count: 4,996

AO3 Link

Chapter 1

Ping.

Roman reached for his phone on his bedside table to see who sent emails at nine in the evening on a Friday night. The brightness of the screen momentarily flash-banged him but, once his eyes adjusted, he furrowed his brow at the subject line.

Orange Blossom Music Fest

He was surprised to recognize the event—it was one of Florida’s bigger music festivals, held at the end of the summer which aimed to spotlight mostly local talent. He had gone once as a spectator with Remus and Virgil just before high school. He clicked the notification and was brought to the full email.

I know the band doesn’t do too many performances anymore, the email read. It was from the organizers of the event. Apparently, another band suddenly couldn’t make it, and they wondered if Morbid Myth could take their spot. 

Roman turned off his phone without reading past the first paragraph, sending his room back into darkness. Across the hallway, he could hear the whispers of Remus listening to his rock music.

He was reminded of all the times Remus would turn his music on blast, so much so that Roman would yell and bang at the wall for him to turn it down. Maybe his twin finally learned some house manners while Roman had been away at university, or the family conversation that evening had put him in a mood.

Roman wouldn’t be surprised; he wasn’t feeling like his usual self either. He squeezed his eyes shut to push away the memory from that evening of his parents sitting him and Remus down on the sofa, their faces so serious that his first thought was that Abuela had passed away.

That wasn’t the case. Their mom was sick.

“Cancer,” she had said. “Luckily, they caught it quite early.”

Remus, who was always in movement—whose report cards always consisted of something along the lines of “he’s an energetic student but needs to learn to sit still when given instructions,” who broke more pencils than he used by tapping them against surfaces—had sat as still as a statue, not even breathing.

That was the only lucky thing about the diagnosis. That it was highly treatable with chemotherapy.

Roman had sensed Remus’ worry, because he had the same one. It had been a while since they’d been able to read each other’s mind; the last time it had happened was probably before the band split. Before their relationship became strained. A part of him was comforted by knowing what his twin was thinking, that they were on the same page for something as important as this.

Money. That was the worry. While they hadn’t grown up in poverty, it wasn’t as though there was an excess of it laying around. A high school band teacher and a landscaper weren’t exactly rolling in it. Out-of-state summer vacations were incredibly rare, and they’d only been to Disney World once, for their twelfth birthdays. 

Both Roman and Remus helped as much as possible by slipping them money when they weren’t looking (twenties in jean pockets, fives in the couch cushions, a little extra here and there to save their parents’ pride), but they were still only students with part-time jobs.

Roman did have some savings in his bank account that he'd been contemplating using to buy a new electric guitar, but that would have to take a backseat now.

Roman and Remus had glanced at one another, on the fuzzy couch in their living room.

I’ll take out student loans, Roman thought. He would figure out how to give his parents the excess money once it was done. Better to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission.

Remus had jutted his chin down in silent agreement.

The gesture felt like an olive branch in their long-standing cold war with one another. It wouldn’t fix anything, but it was a start.

~~~

Even though they were technically identical twins, it was fairly easy to tell Roman and Remus apart. Almost as soon as Remus was born (two minutes after Roman), he was plagued with various different sicknesses. While Roman was able to go home a couple days after the birth, Remus had to stay there for months to be carefully watched by doctors and nurses. And, even after Remus was finally brought home, he was shuttled to and from the hospital often as he managed to get every and any disease a baby might have.

Because of the constant sickness, Remus had a slightly paler colour to him. It wasn’t noticeable to strangers or passers-by, or even to some friends, but if one really looked, Roman’s golden-brown skin was a couple hues warmer than Remus’. Their builds were also marginally different. Roman’s broader shoulders and larger build were in contrast with Remus’ slimmer look; even when they looked at each other’s shadows, it was clear who was who.

That wasn’t the only effect of Remus being constantly in and out of the hospital. He’d had some pretty serious sicknesses and, despite their parents only talking in hushed whispers after bedtime, Roman would sometimes sneak out of his room and listen as they worried that Remus would die.

So, Remus was always doted on. And, even when he got sick less and less as he grew, everyone seemed to be waiting for the other shoe to drop. But it never came. It wasn’t as though he was perfect now; when September hit and they went back to school, Remus was always down for a good two weeks. He was a magnet for disease, but it wasn’t deadly, just incredibly irksome.

Looking back, it made sense, of course. However, being a young child, it still felt incredibly unfair. Why was Remus allowed to get little dollar store gifts after a surgery and not him? Why did Remus have special food only he could eat while Roman was having microwave nachos for supper?

By the time Roman grew up and understood Remus’ situation (and his parents’ lack of resources to logistically treat them both equally), he had accepted it. However, it didn’t make it hurt any less.

~~~

When Roman woke up, it was strangely quiet in the house. After managing to roll himself out of bed, he found Remus and his best friend, Virgil, in the living room watching Monster House over bowls of cereal.

“Oh! Hey,” Virgil greeted, glancing back at him for a moment before bringing his attention back to the TV.

Remus kept his eyes glued to the screen.

So, they were back to the cold shoulder.

Roman made his way to the kitchen off to the side. “Hi,” he said. He poured himself some cereal and milk and sat himself at the dining table, listening as the movie wrapped up.

At the credits, Remus stood and stretched. “Lillian should be here in five minutes, then we can go.”

Roman furrowed his brows at the name of one of the kids who did piano lessons with their mom. “Lillian?” he repeated. Their parents were visiting Abuela and weren’t supposed to be back until after lunch.

Remus shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ve taken on some of mom’s piano students.”

“Since when?” Roman’s voice was louder than he intended. “I didn’t know that.”

“Oh, I guess no one told you.” Remus coolly strode off in the direction of the little music room where their mom did her lessons and had its own door to the outside.

Virgil turned off the TV and brought his empty bowl and spoon to the sink.

Roman never knew what Virgil was thinking. Virgil was Remus’ friend first, ever since elementary school, and Roman had mostly stayed away, understanding the silent agreement that, because they shared the same DNA, they were not meant to share the same friends.

However, after they formed Morbid Myth, Virgil became as much Roman’s friend as Remus’. Their friendship fractured when the band broke apart and Virgil, understandably, took Remus’ side.

Now, the most interaction they had was liking each other’s Instagram posts.

“Guess what?” Roman said with a little chuckle, pulling out his phone.

“Hmm?”

“Orange Blossom Music Fest is apparently short on acts and asked Morbid Myth to play.” He opened the email again, this time skimming the rest of the email.

Virgil’s eyebrows drew down, sitting down across Roman. He stretched his arms across the table and let out a jaw-cracking yawn. “They must be desperate.”

Roman's eyes caught at the end of the email, where the organizers listed how much the group would be paid. “Oh my God! We need to do it.” He turned his screen towards Virgil whose eyes bulged.

“Wow, they must be seriously desperate.” Virgil straightened back up, and he bit his lip in thought.

The amount wasn’t so crazy that it would alleviate all, or even most, of the doctor and chemotherapy appointments his mom would be needing, but it wasn’t exactly a number to sniff at. And then, if Morbid Myth continued performing in other places, everything would add up.

It seemed like a miracle landing right in his lap.

Slowly, and choosing his words very carefully, Virgil said, “I wouldn’t be opposed to getting the band back together—I had a great time playing with the both of you, don’t get me wrong—but I’m not exactly the one who needs to be convinced.”

Roman winced. “But if it’s to help our mom, surely he’d agree to it.”

Virgil's lips pursed, and it looked like he was about to say something more but stopped himself. “You should talk to Remus about it.”

“You think he won’t.” It wasn’t a question.

“I didn’t say that,” Virgil said, quick and forceful, but he slowed to continue, “I just think that…the breakup happened two years ago. A lot of time has passed, and perhaps some talking would do the two of you good.”

Roman frowned, a sense of foreboding building in him.

Chapter 2

The next morning, Remus was already gone by the time Roman awoke. Maybe his twin knew that Roman wanted to have a serious talk and was making himself scarce. Or, what was more likely, Remus still had a life here in their hometown since he decided to stay and attend the University of Florida.

After almost two decades living under the same roof and going to the same schools, Roman and Remus finally split when they choose to attend different universities. Even though they were both coming upon their fourth and final year of their respective degrees—a Bachelor of Music in Music Education for Remus and a Bachelor of Arts in English with a creative writing specialization for Roman—Roman was only just getting used to living away from his twin.

And it wasn't as though he even left the state; he was attending Florida State University, a mere two and a half hours away. But, despite their current rocky relationship, Roman would catch himself watching a movie and turning to try to find Remus to tell him something or accommodating Remus' awful food palate when grocery shopping.

"Think he's got his shift at the library," his dad replied when Roman asked for Remus' whereabouts.

"He works at the library?" Roman exclaimed. Of all the jobs his brother might have, a library was not one he would have guessed.

His dad nodded, glasses perched on his nose as he completed the NYT crossword on his phone with his index finger; Roman had showed him how over Christmas break. "Got the job, what?" He squinted at the wall as he thought. "February, I believe?" He looked back down at the screen, rubbing his chin. "What's a thirteen-letter word that means small or tiny?"

~~~

Morbid Myth started out as something casual during ninth grade—something Roman and Remus did in their spare time. They'd been surrounded by music from a young age, being taught piano by their mom before they even started Kindergarten. As they grew older, they broadened their horizons and started "claiming" instruments that would be solely their own. Remus started learning how to play the drums and French horn, and Roman took guitar and trumpet.

They'd recently re-watched the movie School of Rock, and it was Roman's idea to start a two-person band. They began with covers of any genre with Remus on the drum kit and Roman singing while trying to pluck out notes on the electric guitar he'd decided to pick up that year.

Virgil was a natural addition. He'd been Remus' friend since Virgil moved to Florida in the third grade and already knew a little bit of the bass guitar. He fit in seamlessly. With him, their trio was complete. They settled on a genre: pop rock. Their sound was stronger, fuller.

Their first argument as a band was over what their band's name should be. All sorts of names were thrown out; they even asked their parents for ideas. The general vibe was already agreed upon—something to do with mythology since their names revolved around the subject. Remus liked Mythic Maniacs. Roman wanted Messy Myth.

Roman and Remus tried to get Virgil on their respective side. Bribery was involved (baking treats, promising the title of godfather, doing embarrassing acts at school, and more).

Virgil staunchly refused to take a side, wheedling both Roman and Remus to agree with each other. It almost seemed like the band would fall apart before it could truly even form, but then Virgil finally proposed Morbid Myth.

Both Roman and Remus agreed: it was perfect.

They performed at their school's end-of-year talent show, and they were an absolute hit. Their classmates loved them. Their teachers loved them. They signed up for a state-wide youth band competition the next year and won.

It felt like absolutely nothing could go wrong. So many possibilities lay ahead of them. It was an exciting time.

~~~

The library was a fifteen-minute walk away and, when Roman stepped inside, he instantly heard children in fits of giggles. The lady behind the front desk gave him a wave as Roman moved deeper into the building, following the sound of laughter.

He stepped between some shelves so Remus wouldn't spot him quite yet, peering through the books to see his twin brother reading a picture book, a dozen or so children seated around him, completely enrapt.

"The white rabbit was so grateful to have found his carrots," Remus read, his voice animated and bright, eyebrows lifted. The book was resting on his lap, leaning against his stomach, and both his hands were in movement, making specific gestures. "He hopped all the way home to share them with his family. The end." Remus lifted both hands, the back facing out, before flipping them to show his palms.

Roman silently watched as the kids dispersed, a couple staying behind to talk to Remus who had as much enthusiasm as he did while reading, giving the children all his focus. Roman hadn't imagined Remus in a library—he was always so loud and rambunctious—but now he didn't know why he had thought such a thing in the first place. His twin looked at ease in this setting; after all, he was hoping to become a music teacher with his degree. Why wouldn't he try to get experience with children at a library?

As if Remus could sense something off, his eyes slid over to where Roman was standing behind a shelf. His eyebrows only furrowed slightly, and he finished his conversation with the children before striding over to Roman.

"What are you doing here?" Remus said, voice low, a bit of bite to it.

"When did you learn ASL?" Roman asked.

Remus' jaw visibly clenched, and his shoulders lifted and dropped by a centimetre. "Halfway through first year."

"Wait, really?" They had still been close at that point. Not physically, of course, but the band had still been together until the end of that school year, and they'd been doing some gigs over the weekend until then.

Remus didn't say anything.

"That's…that's cool," Roman said after a moment. "I mean it, Remus," he added when he saw his brother's sceptical look.

Remus narrowed his eyes further and crossed his arms. "Why are you here?"

Roman pulled out his phone and showed Remus the email from Orange Blossom Music Fest. "They want Morbid Myth to play." He scrolled to show his brother how much they were willing to pay them, not explaining further because he knew Remus understood, how this would help their mom. "Virgil said he'd be willing to do it."

"Did he?" Remus' gaze slid up from the phone screen back to Roman, voice quiet and rough, dark eyes cloudy.

Roman nodded, feeling a prickling at the back of his neck. He didn't know what was wrong, but he knew this conversation wasn't going how he imagined it. Where Remus instantly agreed, where the band got back together, where they continued booking gigs after Orange Blossom, where they were able to pay for their mom's chemo appointments in full, and she made a speedy recovery. Happily Ever After. The End.

He knew Remus wanted to help their mom as much as possible, so it was clear there was something else, whatever Virgil had hinted at the day before, that was holding him back.

"What is it?" Roman asked, annoyance rising in him. Couldn't Remus see how important this was? Whatever was on his mind could surely be ignored for the time being in favour of doing something that would be a net positive. "I thought you liked playing with Morbid Myth."

Remus pressed his lips together and blew out a short breath of air. "I'm not doing this here, right now," he muttered.

"What's 'this'?"

Remus jabbed a finger at Roman's chest. "I'm not having this conversation now, here, with you. I'm working, Roman." He spun and stalked off. Although, as he disappeared around the aisle, he muttered, "I get off at lunch. I guess I'll talk to you then."

Roman found himself stewing in his thoughts on the walk back home. He wondered if the music festival would accept Morbid Myth with a different drummer. But he knew they probably wouldn't, and it also wouldn't feel the same. The magic of Morbid Myth was that they were siblings, twins, and best friends. They grew up together, argued and fought, but always made up. There was a sort of specialness of having that kind of bond.

That's how it was supposed to go, anyway.

But their last argument that broke apart the band was still unresolved, a string that Roman was intent on pulling on as soon as Remus returned home.

Chapter 3

As a band, Roman and Remus were the ones who butt heads, and Virgil usually was the peacekeeper. They'd always bickered—how they should enunciate a word, when to breathe, what tempo they should play at—but they always resolved it, someway, somehow.

The end of Morbid Myth was not an explosive finale. In Roman's perspective, there was nothing that had set it off. One evening, at the end of their practice, Remus had simply said, "I don't want to be in the band anymore."

That was it.

Roman was rightfully angry when Remus didn't elaborate, but Remus simply walked back to his bedroom and locked the door. And, when Roman turned to Virgil for any explanation, Virgil had just shrugged and said, "I'm sorry."

Not, "Let's just keep playing" or "Let him cool off"—the common phrases Virgil said when Remus stomped off in anger during their fights—just "I'm sorry." This was premeditated. Something Virgil and Remus had discussed beforehand. Without him.

Roman had a test that Monday, so he had to go later that evening to drive back to Tallahassee.

And that was it. The end of Morbid Myth. Five years of an upward trajectory cut down in a single evening. No explanation from Remus, and Virgil refused to say anything, no matter how many times Roman asked or texted or called.

~~~

The house was quiet with Roman returned. He found himself making his way to the music room where Remus' drum kit sat in the corner. When he neared it, he saw that it was coated in dust. His brows furrowed at the sight. He assumed Remus still played the drums, even after Morbid Myth disbanded; he'd loved the drums, the constant movement of it, the way it was the heartbeat of every song.

Roman grabbed a dishcloth from the kitchen before returning to the music room and gently wiping the dust off the drum kit. There were no drumsticks anywhere near, which Roman found strange, but he didn't think too much of it. When their band was still together, Remus had gone through many drumsticks by simply leaving them places and forgetting where. If they were going to get the band back together, they'd need to get a new pair (or five), and Roman made a mental note about it.

When the drum kit was dust-less, he moved to his electric guitar on its stand. It was a fire truck red with a golden pickguard, and it was his baby; he'd used his portion of the money they earned as a band to buy it senior year, a graduation present for himself.

He plugged his guitar into the amp, sat at the piano bench, and started strumming a couple chords, humming along a little.

He loved the idea of getting back on the stage, playing music. With lights so bright it was impossible to see the crowd, music thrumming through his veins, the cheering and clapping and whopping. But it wasn't just that. It was the friendship, the mind-boggling fact that he was making money from playing music and singing songs with his best friends.

And then, suddenly, he didn't have that anymore. He made new friends, of course, in university. But Remus and Virgil—Morbid Myth—there was something special about the three of them together that Roman deeply missed. A part of him ached every time he played the electric guitar without Remus' unrelenting beat behind him, without the buzzing thrums of Virgil's notes, without their voices mixing with his own.

His fingers gradually began playing "Amor Eterno," his dad's favourite song—one he had requested he and Remus learn long before they started their two-person band. Their dad was a soft-spoken kind of type, happy to stay at home but could deal with outings as long as his wife was at his side. He wasn't a big talker, but sometimes when he was in the mood, he would pull out the acoustic guitar and sing songs from his childhood. His voice was quiet, much like him, but that didn't mean it wasn't strong and filled with deep emotion.

"Amor Eterno" was a song about loss and grief and longing, and it was perhaps not well-suited to the electric guitar, but it was the instrument in his hands, and Roman couldn't be bothered to go to the living room to pick up his dad's acoustic one.

Roman didn't hear the front door open and close, just felt the presence of Remus in the house, almost like a ghost.

He was at the last chorus when Remus' voice quietly wove in with his own, standing in the doorway, arms crossed defensively, fingers thrumming against his forearm, although his face showed no signs of his previous anger.

Cómo quisiera que tú vivieras [How I wish that you still lived]

Y que tus ojitos jamás se hubieran cerrado nunca [For your loving eyes to never ever have closed]

Y estar mirando [And to be looking at them]

Amor eterno e inolvidable [Eternal love and unforgettable]

Tarde o temprano, estaremos juntos para seguir amándonos [Sooner or later, I will be with you to continue loving each other]

When the last note of the outro rang out, Roman slowly put his guitar back on the stand. Remus pulled the seat of his drum kit close and sat down across from him. They stared at each other for a second.

Remus slowly took a deep breath, foot tap-tap-tapping against the flooring. Then, in a little voice Roman hadn't heard from him before, he said, "I'm losing my hearing."

Roman's spine instantly straightened. "What? Since when?"

Remus' Adam's apple bobbed. "End of senior year. My tinnitus slowly started getting worse around that time." He sounded so unlike himself, more like their soft-spoken dad, and it scared Roman.

"And I'm just learning about this now?" Anger, sharp and painful, bloomed in Roman's chest, but he quickly stamped it down. This wasn't the time to start an argument; there was still more to the story that Remus had to tell him. Roman needed the full picture—needed to understand why his twin brother had hidden this from him for three years. Roman composed himself and, in a softer tone, said, "Remus, why?"

Remus stared at him, eyes searching Roman's face. "You don't remember?"

"Remember what?" Roman asked, trying to recall anything. "I know we always fought about you wearing hearing protection."

It was one of their recurring arguments, and it was one where Virgil actually took Roman's side instead of standing blissfully in the middle. It was dangerous to be playing their gigs with loudspeakers without any sort of ear plugs to dull the sound. But Remus hated it, hated how blunted their sound was with ear protection. "I want to hear the true and raw version of us," he always said.

They constantly fought about it, but Remus was immovable. And Roman couldn't force him to wear them if he really didn't want to.

"You seriously don't remember?" Remus asked again. "Junior year. We were performing at the summer festival here in town; it was big for us. There would be hundreds of people watching us. During practice, we fought about hearing protection again, but I think the heat really got to both of us, and it escalated more than usual."

Roman had a vague recollection of this. Not of the argument itself, but the festival, and the nerves, and the heatwave.

"You got so fed up with me that you stomped out of the room, and as you did, you said, 'Don’t come crying to me when you go deaf.'"

The words hung heavy in the air. Roman's throat felt dry, and he swallowed thickly. He truly didn't remember saying that.

"You came back an hour later with some lemonade dad made, and we continued practicing like nothing had happened."

"Remus—"

"—Wait, let me finish, okay?" Remus took a deep breath. "And I know you didn't really mean it—we were both so angry and tensions were high—but I was too proud to say anything when my hearing loss became more noticeable. It felt like…it felt as though I would be burdening everyone again if I told people. And letting you know that you were right," he said with a derisive snort. "And so I rationalized that simply ending the band without explanation was better than just telling you what was going on. I did tell Virgil, and he told me that I should tell you, but I disagreed, and he didn't push me anymore. I thought that being the bad guy was a better role to have than the sick, needy brother again."

His chin began to tremble, and Roman brought his brother in for a hug. They weren't a hugging type of siblings, but the moment seemed to call for it. Remus instantly collapsed against Roman's chest, and he could feel the rapid beating of his heart.

"And now mom's sick, too, and I—I just feel like I'll be an extra burden on top of everything."

"You aren't a burden, Remus," Roman said, instantly. His eyes stung from unshed tears. "And I'm sorry I said that. I'm sorry I made you feel like you couldn't tell me about your hearing loss."

Remus sniffed loudly and pulled away from Roman's arms. "I want to play at that festival. The three of us. For mom." His voice was more solid now, almost back to normal. "I'll wear hearing protection—maybe double up if I think it's still not enough. I'm sorry I was too much of a coward not to say anything before now. Morbid Myth could have still been playing if I did."

Roman only smiled. "Más vale tarde que nunca." It was one of their dad's favourite sayings. Better late than never.

Remus stood and glanced over at his drum kit. "I guess I'll have to buy new drumsticks, too."

"Where did they go? Did you lose them again?"

"I felt like I didn't deserve to play after I left the band, and I didn't want them to be laying around in case I felt the urge to. I gave them to a kid who frequents the library and started taking out tons of books on drums and drumming."

"You go buy a pair and text Virgil to come over. I'll run over to the store and get some concert earplugs and isolating headphones."

"What? No—they're expensive, Ro. I'll buy them when I go get the drumsticks."

"Let this be an early birthday gift," Roman said. He didn't need to buy a new electric guitar with his savings; the one he had was perfect. It was hard to imagine playing on stage with Morbid Myth without it. "I'm getting them. In exchange, you have to teach me ASL."

"Fine, it's a deal!" Remus exclaimed with a dramatic sigh, although he was grinning.

~~~

A couple months later, Roman, Remus, and Virgil stood on the man stage at Orange Blossom Music Fest, performing once again, their big reunion.

Roman's veins thrummed with anticipation, the sight of Virgil with his purple bass guitar and Remus with his drumsticks hovering over his kit making his heart nearly explode. It felt like a return home.

"Ready?" he asked them both, away from the microphone.

"Ready!"

[mentalmeyers]

give me shelter from the rain

Logic | Logan Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders

i was lucky enough to take part in the @sanderssidesgiftxchange this year, and wrote this little piece for @amyloveletter! i think i might return to it at some point to write a second chapter, because it was fun coming back to logicality after all these years!

Word Count: 1,867

Summary: Logan didn't need this, that's for certain. All he wanted was somewhere to hide from the rain, and now, he's signed himself up to volunteer at an animal shelter. All because he found a man attractive. Christ, he's never done anything like this before. But, first time for everything?

Fic below the cut, or read on AO3. (recommended. tumblr mobile app formatting my ENEMY)

reblogs appreciated <3

my logicality roots...

This was not something he needed, to be clear.

Logan needs a lot of things, he needs a coffee, and he needs to go home, and he needs to sit down with said coffee and read a book. He needs to figure out what to have for dinner, and he needs to go to bed.

What Logan doesn’t need, is for the heavens to open and a storm to rain down upon him whilst he’s not even a third of the way home. He also doesn’t need his umbrella to turn itself inside out, then promptly be blown out of his hands and into the road. He doesn’t need a car to then hit said umbrella, and he most certainly doesn’t need to be desperately seeking shelter under a faded red awning. He hadn’t bothered to read the white text on it, too preoccupied with wiping the water droplets from his glasses.

So here he is, freezing, already dripping wet, and with no viable way to make it home without drowning in the storm. He could venture out, catch a cold — or enter whatever building he’s standing outside of and wait around in the lobby for the rain to pass. In Logan’s (typically correct) opinion, the second option sounds much more preferable.

He extends a hand and clasps his fingers around the door handle, pushing it open. A bell above the door signals his arrival, and almost immediately he’s hit with the familiar scent of vague animal. He knows it rather well, he’d grown up in a household full of cats and dogs, a lizard at one memorable moment, and more than a few rabbits. As a child he’d been well accustomed to a home overrun by fur, but since moving out he’d resigned himself to a more pet-free life. Suffice to say, it’s been a while since he’s smelled something quite like this.

Logan glances up, staring down the entrance. If it can really be called that. It’s a drab beige room, the floor a stained concrete, with a row of chairs against the left wall, and lackluster, faded posters above them. They have photos of abandoned dogs, calls to action, phone numbers that beg for donations. And directly across from him, is a wooden desk, a rather bored looking young man situated behind it. He’s leaning his head in his hand, scrolling through his phone with the other, mouth working around a piece of chewing gum languidly. He barely even glances up when Logan enters, merely shoots him a courtesy eyebrow raise and goes straight back to his mobile.

Distantly, Logan can hear the distinctive sound of barking, dogs jumping in place. He’s beginning to understand, the fact of his reality dawning on him slowly, as the rain continues to pound off the pavement outside. He’s taken shelter in a literal shelter. An animal shelter.

“Hello?” The man behind the desk calls, and when Logan looks up, his eyebrow is raised curiously, leaning forward. His gaze leaves much to be desired, a disgusted sort of sneer painted across his features. “Are you just going to stand there, or did you come in for a reason?” He accompanies it with a roll of his eyes.

Logan, mildly startled and fairly put out by the unbidden rudeness, shakes himself slightly, water flying from his hair, fringe flopping to stick to his forehead. He takes a step forward, leaving a small puddle in his wake. He ventures up to the desk, and places his palms atop it, clearing his throat. “I was just hoping to-”

The man’s eyes never leave his own, still frowning, still creased up. Like he thinks Logan is gross or something. In his right hand, gloved, Logan notes, he picks up a pen and prods at Logan’s knuckles until he removes his hands from the table. “Are you the new volunteer?” He looks Logan up and down, cutting him off rather suddenly. “You’re late,” he scoffs, twirling the pen in his fingers.

Then his chair scrapes along the ground, and Logan finds himself floundering to clarify. “No, I’m just-”

The man scoffs again, running gloved fingers through his hair as he stands, “you are late. You were meant to be here an hour ago!” He rolls his eyes again, “let me get Patton, he’s showing you around today.” He trails off, and Logan opens his mouth to respond, a final desperate plea to clear up the situation, “be nice to him. And didn’t we say wear comfortable clothing? Jesus Christ, it’s not a job interview. It’s scooping dog shit,” the man holds up a finger to indicate the conversation is over and slips out the door behind him. When it cracks open, the flooding of dogs barking fills the room, abruptly muffled again when it slams shut.

Logan shrinks back, huffing out a breath. Great. Okay, wonderful. It’s all going to be fine. Despite this — incredibly rude — receptionist type man disregarding him completely, it’ll be okay. Because whoever Patton is will venture out here, and hopefully be a lot kinder, and Logan will be granted the opportunity to express the miscommunication, and explain his simple desire for somewhere to sit until the rain dies down a bit. It can all be solved with perfectly reasonable logic, and there’s no feasible reason for anything to stop that.

The door swings open, chipper on its hinges, animals still making a ruckus in the background. The man from before is not who emerges.

“Ah! Janus told me you were here! You must be our new volunteer! Remind me of your name again?” A bright voice rumbles through the room, and Logan freezes in place. The man before him this time is shorter, more stout in a way. He’s got a mop of curls, and similarly square glasses to Logan’s own. His smile is wide and welcoming and warm, cheeks rounded and dotted with constellations of freckles, positively sparkling. He settles his hands on his hips and gleams at Logan, shining from head to toe. His blue polo shirt is embroidered with the logo for the shelter, and coated with a fine dusting of different coloured furs, khaki trousers much the same.

“Um-” Oh god, oh no. Logan isn’t a stutterer, he isn’t a stumbler, he’s a clean-cut sort of guy. He’s generally irritated by those who try too hard to shine bright — the twins are quite enough of that in his life, Roman’s constant angling for the spotlight and Remus’ attempts to prolong the darkness — but this guy, Christ. He doesn’t even need to try. Glitter seems to radiate from his skin, a glowing aura that swims in Logan’s vision. His eyes sparkle behind his glasses, grin so warm and genuine that it makes Logan feel scared. “I’m- Logan. Logan, yes. Pleasure to meet you. Apologies for my late arrival, work kept me.”

He extends his hand, and the other gentleman, Patton he had been called, doesn’t shake it in return. Instead he grabs Logan’s hand and pulls him into a quick hug, patting his back once, twice, before releasing. “No bother at all, Logan! I’ll just take you through the back, we’ll walk through what we’ll be doing today. Are you a cat person or a dog person?”

Logan swallows harshly, suddenly aware of his tongue in his mouth and the dryness of his throat. “Ah- probably cats? I grew up around both.”

Patton laughs, and Logan feels the world turn beneath him. Lord, have mercy. “Well, you certainly need to like both to help out around here!” He beckons over his shoulder, gesturing for Logan to follow.

His feet carry him after Patton without his brain's input. Well, there goes his evening plans. Whatever Logan’s got himself into, he’s certain of one thing, it’ll be interesting. It’s not like him, not his usual move — to cast routine aside and give in to the spontaneous. In fact, his brain continues to scream at him, demanding he turn around, that he set the record straight. Generally, he likes the facts and figures to be laid out, logical and precise. And yet.

Oh, and yet…

Logan won’t deny he likes animals. He likes dogs, he likes cats. Overall, he’d say he has a soft spot for the older ones, the slower ones, the ones happy to curl up on the couch and rest in comfortable silence. If he were to get a pet, he’d almost certainly adopt an elderly one.

“We usually start volunteers off with some of our older residents, they tend to be better to ease into the process! You haven’t volunteered with animals before, have you?” Patton nudges open a door to the back office, the corridor they had headed down had several windows along it, each giving a glimpse into the section of the shelter actually housing the animals. Logan finds himself glancing through now, at rambunctious puppies leaping over each other.

“Oh, uh- I haven't, no. Sorry, did I require experience? Perhaps it’s best that I go, if that’s the case-” It’s a last ditch effort to escape, a war waged between the two sectors of Logan’s brain. Run, and stay. Flee, or give in. Shockingly, he finds himself rather inclined to stay. Perhaps it’s less a battle between the two hemispheres, and instead his heart versus his mind. Logan has never been one to listen to his heart, to the pounding in his chest, so maybe it’s about time he starts.

“No no, none required!” Patton giggles and welcomes Logan into the office. It’s a mismatched set of equipment, an ancient looking computer. There’s a lot of trinkets on the desk, much unlike the reception/lobby desk. “Here, come take a seat. We’ll get your information on file. I know, I know… We should already have it, but this damn computer…” Patton mutters as he squeezes around to the other side of the desk, struggling in the cramped space. “It has a real tendency to delete and corrupt files! As you might have guessed we don’t get the… most funding.” He tacks a sad laugh on the end and shrugs, smacking the side of the ancient PC with a closed fist, and it starts up with a loud whirring.

Logan hums with understanding, and Patton takes down his address and contact information, alongside his emergency contact ‘just in case!’ He thinks they’re done, ready to get started. Caught up watching Patton type into the old, clacking keyboard, Logan lets his mind drift. He’s not sure what this is going to entail. He’s not even sure why he’s let it go this far. He just wanted to hide from the rain for a bit! But he watches, with rapt attention, as Patton fixes his glasses and scrolls through the document, humming contentedly.

“Oh! Nearly forgot to get your name, silly me!” He positively lights up, turning to Logan with a grin so bright, it nearly knocks Logan from his chair.

He coughs into his fist, cheeks flushing, and hazards a soft smile back. “It’s Logan. Logan Sanders.”

And Patton’s smile widens, and he turns back to the computer, and Logan pauses to wonder what’s going to happen next.

Well, only time will tell.

-

i beg you to forgive how badly this is formatted. i am posting this from a bus on my phone. rip

[the-duke-of-nuts]

They groovin' and smoochin'

This is my gift to @icycove for the @sanderssidesgiftxchange I'm a simple man if I see "Logince or Intruality Dance AU" and have an excuse to make stuff of my beloveds I absolutely take it so you get ✨both✨(Hope you enjoy and Happy Holidays!)

[fandombead]

I'll Spare You the Eternity Alone

a Dukexiety Giftmas fic for @the-duke-of-nuts ! 💜💚

Summary: Some curses get tied to a person's soul. That wasn't even Remus's fault, though.

An entity inside of Remus wants to use him as a vessel to return magic to the natural world, at the cost of people's lives. It's a good thing there's still someone out there who isn't going to let him go without a fight.

WC: 5.6k || It’s on AO3!

Beta read by Ghostie! :D thank youu

@sanderssidesgiftxchange

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I’ll find you, I swear. Just wait for me.

Remus stumbled his way up the barren, jagged slopes for cover. The coarse black dirt and finer dust under his boots smelled strongly of hot iron and sulfur. In the distance, he could see many mounds lower than the one he was on smoldering against the purple haze that kept him from seeing very far. 

This place was as familiar to him as home. Not nearly as pleasant..also not by much.

The whole land looked like it had burned– little life remained in it except the poor souls trapped here. Just like him. Though none of them were interested in alliance with an all but condemned, cursed tiefling, and at this point? Remus wasn’t interested in them either. He had the help he needed already.

He ended up having to crawl as his traction failed. The hill was steeper the higher he climbed and he sunk half a foot in with every step. He did not need a fall with all the fallen needle-like obsidian pillars surrounding him. Though brittle, he knew for a fact they were sharp enough to make a good temporary weapon that’d run someone made of flesh through. It had saved him in deadly encounters of desperation before.

He stubbornly pushed and dragged himself to the ring of obsidian cover at the top. He knelt in relief before gathering some of the dust in his palms and focused on it. It sparked, and a virid flame burst to life. He gritted his teeth at the migraine that flared up angrily to stop him and quickly set it down on the ground. He blew the immediately wilting fire carefully to keep it going in the thick air. 

That was that done. He would make his last stand here, too tired to fight his way out like he had every other night for the majority of his life. He had no intention of ever coming back down. He’d be waiting up here, even if it felt pointless. But he’d promised he would. That wasn’t something he took lightly, but if he was gone before they showed up anyway, it wasn’t for being a damn cop-out. 

Please, just stay awake as long as you can. I’ll be there, Re.

It wasn’t that he didn’t believe them, or he wouldn’t have bothered getting this far. No…Remus just didn’t expect that they’d find him by the time they arrived.

He didn’t actually think he’d be getting out of this prison realm anymore. His own cursed pseudo-magic would be the end of him. 

…

Remus could see why people assumed that the ability to do magic would make life better. Had circumstances for his family been different, he knew he would have thought the same and envied those with the power. 

Sorcerers that tamed and honed their chosen style of magic had a leg up in society. 

Unlike wizards, who went to fancy old temples and worked shitty upkeep jobs for the privilege of memorizing verbal summon spells in dead languages, sorcerers had an innate connection to the world’s magic. Wizards had to make use of their limited discipline they had the most affinity for– a gamble based on your ancestors and where you were born and probably even what tea your mom was hooked on while she was pregnant. It was painfully calculated and slow to prevent the temporarily harnessed magic from turning on the caster. For their effort, they had access to a much broader use for magic, which came with the precision. They weren’t restricted to only what was naturally available. 

Sorcerers, meanwhile, if they were connected and persuasive enough, could call on just about any force of nature to do their bidding. If the natural world accepted and liked you, it was like a magic cheat code that could make a person quite powerful on pure luck. 

…the problem with being connected to nature, though, was the unforeseen ability for it to corrupt you back. 

Its intrinsic influence was incredibly subtle, and the exchange for allowing you to wield it could be steep if you were not careful.

Sorcery was far less predictable and much more volatile; you were at the mercy of how it wanted to interpret your request. You were just its clueless conduit, and you’d better hope what you reached out to was benevolent or, at least, liked you.

While a person with no inherent magic could ‘borrow’ from spirits that existed in every living thing, it was not to be mistaken that you were its master. Only fools would be arrogant enough to boast that they’d tamed anything as close to true anarchy as wild magic. You would not be forgiven for that mistake even once.

A particularly nerdy wizard might relate it to trophic levels of an ecosystem: the most pure and potent magic was found within the plants and soil and rock of their world. So by the time it got to People, you’d be pressed to find a half-decent healer for a papercut in the same town as you. Not to say that magic was a particularly rare skill…most people just did not bother with the effort it took to do it right. The “right” way being through careful study and sucking at it for decades of your life.

Remus’s family…his parents, thought they could get around it. They harnessed the magic of nature with the misguidance of a shady soothsayer. He wasn’t given a choice.

He and Roman were born with strong magic abilities not seen in humans, and rarely in tieflings, of which they had some heritage.

Two children who could bend nature and perform “miracles” before they even knew what the word meant. They’d learned quickly enough. And they’d naturally been skilled at commanding it. It’s what they were told they were born to do. They were “chosen”.

It was a curse.

He and Roman had each been condemned when their parents tried to tie them to natural magic for the power they’d wield. But they’d tied their souls to the kind of spirits who loathe what humans do with their magic, and it became very clear when they got older and the “good” years were fast over. 

They were only 8 when the headaches started. 

Roman had just casted their usual rain spell and then collapsed in pain. Remus found the same result shortly after. Then the nightmares that brought them to this purgatory close to hell, between the living plane and the dead. A plane that would happily have them transition permanently if they let it keep them too long.

They’d been terrified, only having each other until they managed to wake up, black tears falling from their eyes. That’s how they found out, in the hours they’d been trapped, about the consequences. The lives that had been taken while they were pulled under by exhaustion.

They were locked away in sleep. The entities broke free of every binding. 

They were taken far out of the town and away from most people they could reach…that had stemmed the carnage, but only just.

They were separated to try and weaken the influences feeding off of each other, but the twins fared much worse apart, both awake and asleep. It was decidedly the worst solution, when they were all each other had then.

And staying awake to prolong the inevitable only meant they’d be more tired when they got to the new plane, making escape all the harder. 

They had more or less been possessed by something that could not be reasoned with. It wasn’t a person or even creature-- just a planted entity that’s only goal was to return “stolen” magic to nature. It took some poor stooges it possessed for a joyride and killed other souls that contained enough to be worth the struggle. 

Remus was the only one still in the passenger seat, his body off committing mass atrocities while the ‘real’, conscious him was sub-conscious. His twin had found a sweet escape that Remus had to figure out on his own…a fiancé. Remus wasn’t sure if love really had much to do with it, or if it was some combination of Roman tripping and landing the most nerdy, obnoxiously obsessed wizard they’d ever met. He was pedantically methodical, and it just so happened their curse crossed right into the hairs of his hyperfixation. And determined Logan had been, at first from pure academic interest at solving a problem no wizard had yet. And then…something more, as Roman and him hit it off to the surprise of even them. 

And somewhere between the drive to save someone he loved and maybe the determination it spurred, Roman had been freed of the curse after 12 years.

It wasn’t that Roman hadn’t tried to make it work for Remus too– the spirits just hadn’t let him slide by so easily on his brother’s cape trail. He hadn’t expected as much, anyway, and he couldn’t blame Logan for something Remus clearly was the twin lacking. It was lightning in a bottle.

Remus’d had a good run, and made it to 25 years old by some series of freak accidents and luck. No fucking thanks to their alleged parents, either, prepared to cut their losses. Their hermeticistic uncle was the only reason they survived to adulthood at all. 

No one could say Remus hadn’t tried after that. But no amount of intervention from hired masters of Wizardry could unbind them. 

And hey, maybe that was for the better? The last remaining people who gave a shit about him– and he could count them on what was left of his cracked horn spikes– wouldn’t have to worry if he was alive or dead anymore…because they’d have that permanent answer and could just move on already. 

They could stop stressing him out by chasing after him, futilely trying to save him with their latest new solution that never worked when he just wanted them to stay away. Couldn’t he just do this one thing? He didn’t want to wake up one day and find out he— the parasite killed them.

He’d rather be dead than dealing with the shitty contagion part of his curse, but he had always been from a family of stubborn-ass tryhards.

On top of that, Remus wasn’t a fan of losing and he wasn’t going to give his sperm-donor the satisfaction of being right. 

And his body was his to fuck up, not some vindictive little parasite’s.

No, if Remus died, it would unfortunately have to be circumstantial and fitting in dramatic irony to the life he lived…and not because he just gave up. He just didn’t find (in time) what his brother had found…even if he hadn’t continued alone in true isolation for long. 

As the darkness pressed in at the edge of his vision, Remus grinned and resisted anyway, because he sure as hell wasn’t going quietly. 

And he swore if nothing else, he’d end it here before it ever hurt the last person still trying and able to save him. He wouldn’t continue being a puppet for others.

—-

Virgil walked quickly through the darkening middle plane, using his wicker staff as a walking stick to keep moving. The staff’s trapped lightning and the raven feathers he wore in his hair and off his belt would keep any influences away from curiously trying him, which while they were only small annoyances, they would slow him down. The sky never truly was night here, but the conditions of the darker plane only got more harsh the ”later” it became. The wind that was picking up would make it entirely impossible to find Remus in the dust storm, and Remus needed him, now.

The entity was pushing to take Remus’s body for good this time, and wouldn’t let him be conscious in their world ever again. But they could still stop it…he thought. Desperately hoped. It had to work this time, or he’d lose him forever…not after they’d tried so hard for this long. He refused for this to be how it ended.

The sorcerer saw the green fire and its white smoke and picked up the pace. He hated how hard he had to try to not draw attention to his presence…he wanted to fly and get there now. He might anyway, once he was sure he’d get up there before any Hostile could cut him off.

He flew the last stretch to the top of the hill in seconds. His webbed cape billowed out as he landed and went to Remus’s side. “Re? Eyes open if you can hear me.”

Virgil knew he sounded more stressed than he wanted to, but it worked– Remus squinted at him, not really reacting for a beat.

“Vee…heyy. You made it to…my funeral. Cool. I want to hear my sappy eulogy."

Virgil shook his head. “No. You will be free of this and keep living. Let me help you…I want you to survive this, Re.”

Virgil knelt down, moving slowly. He kept eye contact, making sure Remus did not close his own and more gently than anyone had in a long time, he cupped his face, running his thumbs over Remus’s rough jawline. He pulled Remus to him protectively. Remus allowed his face to rest against Virgil’s cool palms, and the sorcerer placed his forehead against his.

“Mm. Not much point in that, after being a terror to the land for over a decade.”

“Please…you’re good, Re. That isn’t something I say lightly.”

Remus scoffed weakly, turning his head even as it stayed pressed to Virgil’s. “I don’t care about if anyone thinks I’m ‘good’ or not. People are so ready to say someone like me deserves this curse just because of the shit my family did.”

Virgil frowned. “Those people don’t know you. You and Ro had nothing to do with their choices before you were even born.”

“Good luck telling the towns that. There are people still dead now that they mourn. Because I couldn’t keep control of my vessel.”

“That wasn’t you. You’ve been possessed, Re, you couldn’t just not sleep. A-And it’s no different from Roman, he and Lo found a new place to settle down and start fresh. They–”

“Oh, good to hear they’ve finally taken a hint. Only took them 4…5 years? They held out longer than I–” “They’re worried about you. And you need to help me and be just as worried, because they’re with you out there now, buying me time by distracting the body-snatcher.”

Remus tried to sit up, but Virgil easily stopped him.

“What. Those insane fucking–”

“Yeah, this’s how it feels to have a family hell-bent on caring for you. What did you expect? Not like I didn’t try to run them off, but those two are somehow reinforcing each other’s stubbornness when together. Match made in a fucking forge. They’re not going away just because you told them off, so help me save you and them by letting me kill this thing once and for all!”

Remus frowned, running a hand roughly through his hair. Great. And what would happen to them if this didn’t work?

“What are you going to try that’s any different?”

“I’m going to use souldrain to isolate it and then shock it back to the aether. It’s… going to feel like I’m ripping your soul out.”

“Eh, pretty sure love is just like that sometimes.”

Virgil squinted. “…focus. And anyway, it won’t…hurt. But being separated from your vessel is gonna make you feel like you’re dying. You won’t be and you’ll have to fight the urge to struggle against me…it’ll just make it take longer and I don’t want to make you feel that any more than necessary.”

Virgil pulled up his sleeves, breathing out to try and be as clear of mind as possible.

“I’m going to bind your soul to mine long enough to kill it, then put you right back in your body. Simple. Oh… you’re also likely going to lose your magic…since it’s always been wrapped up with the…thing in your body.”

“Uh huh, got it. You’ll steal my soul, we become soulmates, the bastard in my head dies. Also never be able to go to boring monastery magic school, fine by me. Speaking of, have you gotten your certificate from mage school to perform this level of transplant on me? Where’s the scalpel?”

Virgil sighed, smirking tightly. Remus had to be delirious right now, but he had enough pity to humor his fellow tiefling. “Never went. They don’t exactly accept the morbid talents for curriculum and I wasn’t interested in the weather. Don’t worry, though, I’m naturally gifted in this kind of thing…putting the soul back is new, but how hard could it be? Now lay down.”

 It was surely an improvement from a parasite crushing what made Remus him and killing everyone he knew from the contagion brewing in his lungs.

Virgil’s magic rumbled through Remus’s chest like a thunderstorm building inside him. His chest tingled with a growing static charge, anticipating a strike and it rocked through his heart. He swore it changed its beat to match the rattling in his ears and down his spine. He stayed grounded only from Virgil kneeling over him, pinning him to the cool, hard silt…maybe this would have been more enjoyable if he weren’t about to die.

“Don’t pull away. I have you,” Virgil’s voice reverberated in his skull even as Remus didn’t think he actually heard him speak. His mouth had moved, but the thunder and crackling purple light were quite distracting, sensorily. He was so focused on the light show dome building around him that he actually jumped when Virgil placed a hand on his face, glaring down at him. Remus wondered if he’d fucked up already, until he noticed his whole body was shaking.

“Fucking…let him go.”

Virgil put his other hand flat on Remus’s chest, and Remus would have made a comment about Virgil being so forward had the twisting motion of him making a fist not literally yanked the breath out of him.

Remus found he couldn’t move anymore, and something was latched onto the inside of him. And what was worse, it felt like something was very wrong about it being removed— as if Virgil were taking a part of his soul away. But he couldn’t hold onto it. He had to let it be taken from him. Virgil’s definition of pain must have been sorely misinformed. That felt like being crushed from the inside. His body thrashed involuntarily from the torment. Maybe it was better to stop. No more pain. No facing the people he’d been turned against…

“Sorry, I-I’m sorry– it’s not supposed to– just hang on to me. You don’t need it, Re. The magic…what that thing did. It’s not you. Trust me…y-you’ll still have a life without it…you’ll have your family– Ro and Janus and Logan too. Th-they’re worried about you…Ro regrets letting you leave alone. And you’ll have me. I’m not going anywhere. I see you. You won’t be alone again…not ever. Whatever that thing offered you o-or is putting in your head isn’t worth giving in to it! It’s lying to make you help it!! DON’T DO IT. Give it to me…! I swear I’m not leaving you here, you–you won’t just go back to that depressing little shack of a cabin. I won’t let you— I want to save you, but you have to let me.”

Virgil’s voice cracked from both the strain and fear of losing Remus now. “Please. Let me take you. It’s gonna be f-fine, you’ll be alright...”

‘I won’t let you go, Re!’

Remus forced his eyes to stay open as Roman, with the black tears in his eyes, reached out over Virgil’s shoulder. His voice echoed, overlapping with Virgil even though he knew it couldn’t be real. But it had been like this, 13 years ago. In a buried memory.

‘Don’t leave me…let us me save you.’

Remus stopped fighting the smoke in his lungs. It was hardly better than the sludge, but at least he could finally relax with no risk of a coughing fit unleashing a curse to those unfortunate enough to be nearest to him. 

He fully gave himself over to Virgil’s magic, allowing it in to change him, and to fight the intruder with full trust that Virgil would not hurt him. He did not know where that came from…he just knew. A new fear of being electrified from the inside came unbidden. It was exciting knowing his life was in this man’s hands now. And he gave it up to them.

For a moment, an eternity, Remus suddenly didn’t feel exhausted or in any pain. He was just existing in some space, and it was incredibly peaceful. It almost lulled him to turn his mind off and just float there in the pleasant relief. 

And then he was physically dropped back into being, with thoughts and a body that had been thoroughly abused and needed maintenance promptly.

“Re?? Remus, are you alright??”

“I…’m gonna lay down here now.”

The haze of orange blurred past him in slow motion and the singed peach fuzz on his neck ached as his soul tried to settle back into his body. Remus stared, shell-shocked, as Virgil’s form and the purple clouds around them in the purgatory plane flickered in his vision between bright splashes of blue magic against a softer blue sky over him. There were multiple faint, alarmed voices now that were too much to focus on any single one. His face hurt and his body felt like he’d gone diving in rocks, but that thankfully seemed to be the worst of it.

He had the passing thought that he felt dizzy, and his amazing, very hot sorcerer somehow read his mind.

Virgil lurched forward as Remus pitched hard to the side. He was disappointed that he didn’t get to see if Virgil caught him as he was out before he could tell.

——

Remus felt…warm. Not the same kind of warm that was finding himself outside in the sun when he woke up countless times before.

A soft but weighted sheet was over him, and his achy body— less pained than usual— was comfortably cradled.

Remus came to by a red-flame fire, under a boar-skin blanket. It was worrying. Had he died and gone to some good place as an apology for how shit his life had been? But then why did he still feel like shit? He was pretty sure the dead weren’t supposed to feel starving either unless that was the idea of the punishment. 

He was used to waking up on the floor of some poor villager’s home or in a ditch. He never woke up in a bed…not outside of times Uncle Janus had found them collapsed somewhere and moved them back to their beds when the entity retreated.

In his confusion, he hadn’t really acknowledged there was a person combing their fingers through his hair…a little too easily. It had been hopelessly tangled last he checked, which was daily as he pulled the slick white mop of it back and around his horns. He’d thought about shaving it to eliminate the hassle.

But it felt lighter, free of the dirt that perpetually stuck to it when he gave up doing more than a rinse in the stream. He felt clean, which. No complaints from him. Just the questions of who and or how.

He realized then that he wasn’t home. He was somewhere with a lot of potted plants hanging draped overhead, and a dome skylight showed a soft grey sky and the patter of rain. They were close to the roof…a loft bed, maybe? …those were some fucking giant mushrooms growing out of the far wall. Something that wafted up around them smelled amazingly savory, too. He wanted whatever it was in his mouth immediately. His stomach chose to enthusiastically agree.

Virgil leaned over into his direct vision, peering into purple eyes that now matched his own. He looked relieved. 

“Re?”

His voice was low and a familiar comfort. He wasn’t in that place anymore. He wasn’t even home.

“...Vi.”

Remus blinked sluggishly up at Virgil, who was the one holding him in this little wall nook. A little shiver ran through him and Virgil tugged the warm blanket up to Remus’s shoulders. He kinda just wanted to stay like this right now. It felt good and he wasn’t ready to be part of the world again yet.

Virgil smiled down at him, rubbing his thumb softly over Remus’s eyebrow in an adoring way. He had few interactions of anyone being soft with him. It usually didn’t last…but even once Virgil had seen him at his worst, he’d stayed. He’d been saved by this man.

“Hey. I hope you’re feeling better now?”

“...tir’d.”

“Ah, yeah, that…you crashed 2 days ago now. But you needed the sleep. It’s definitely too soon for you to be doing anything but resting.”

No arguments there. The air was comfortably cool around them, but he didn’t want to leave the blankets and this unreal bed for the foreseeable future. For all he was concerned, this was heaven. He leaned into Virgil’s hand against his face, hoping to encourage more of the hair petting.

Virgil obliged, chuckling weakly. “I’m…really glad you’re okay. Or-Or that you will be.” 

There was no rush to recover after 17 years of bullshit he had to put up with. He nodded agreeably, eyes already heavy and sleep tugging at him. He had the knee-jerk reaction to resist long enough to isolate himself…but he no longer had to leave. He was curse– and magic– free, thanks to the unorthodox magic Virgil knew. 

Remus was slow to process that Virgil was talking again, and clung to consciousness for a little longer.

“--was worried that…you might not…that-that I’d…”

Oh. Virgil was worrying. It took about all of Remus’s effort to drag his arm up to grab Virgil’s hand settled on his chest. He squeezed it with pitiful strength, but held Virgil’s gaze. “Saved me..’ll be fine. Rest.”

A shaky smile curled onto Virgil’s lips. He squeezed Remus’s hand back and brushed his bangs out of the way to press a kiss to his forehead. “...we’ll talk later, once you’ve caught up on sleep.”

“So in…17 years. Seems…excessive.”

Virgil looked exasperated, which was Remus’s goal– anything to change that sad expression like they’d failed and he had died. It was like Virgil still thought he’d somehow failed Remus, but Remus couldn’t puzzle out why.

Before he could begin speculating the worst, though, Virgil continued in that near-psychic way of reassuring he had. Remus was beginning to wonder if Virgil really did have a vague vibes read on his thoughts.

“Ro and Lo have stayed over the last 2 nights too. They’ll be glad to see you when you’re ready. My roommate is making lunch-slash-dinner for us. We don’t have to go down right now, though. You can stay up here and eat– We can take our time. And…maybe when you’re ready…we could talk about you staying, too. W-with us– me.”

Remus slowly grinned, even as his eyes fell shut without his permission. “Only…if we share ‘is bed. Remind me…kiss you later.”

While Virgil blushed, speechless, Remus hoped he’d get to say more soon. Maybe he’d be up in time to still get some of that food. He could get used to living like this.

----

Going outside and feeling the chilly winter air on his skin was sharply pleasant. He had finally graduated from being bedridden just in time for the first snow of the year. Patton and Logan had independently fussed at him to wear more than just a shirt and his sleeping shorts, so he’d added his mittens and some shoes.

Virgil followed him out with his hat and coat, though knew it would be a losing battle getting it on his boyfriend.

It felt strange, being outside and not feeling the tingle of magic reaching out through him to the forest around them. Asking him to do something, to reconnect it to its source. It was quiet, and he was just some tiefling guy wandering around in it. It was liberating, to be so ignored by everything around them and just able to exist. He’d never felt more a part of the world than he did now.

Remus raised his hand to command the snow to move to his whim, like second nature. It did nothing. He kicked a low pile of snow building up in the path and sent it splattering off across the icy pond. Virgil caught up to him and slid the wool hat onto his head, minding the horn holes.

“Wear your coat.”

“Don’t wanna, but I’ll gladly take that spider cloak off your hands if you wanna trade.”

Virgil sighed but surprised Remus when he actually took it off and tossed it around Remus’s shoulders. He adjusted it and clasped it over Remus’s broader shoulders. 

“You’ve only just gotten out of bed arrest, do you want to go back because you get sick?”

Remus snickered fondly, knocking Virgil’s horns softly. “Aww, but then I have an excuse to lay around all day with you.”

“We can do that without you sneezing all over me t-too.”

Remus considered getting Virgil to put on his coat despite and especially because of it being oversized on his smaller frame. But it was easier to just pull him in against his chest and share the big cloak around them both. So that’s what he did, arms resting around Virgil’s shoulders. He let out a content sigh, his breath making a little cloud in the cold air.

Virgil wiggled sheepishly before settling back against him tentatively, happy to steal his warmth.

They just stood there for a while listening to the wind blowing through the trees and the leaves that still clung on to them. Snow was very slowly blanketing the yard of their little sanctuary. Remus really wanted to lay in it for the full experience.

“Re...sorry you lost your magic. I had hoped to find a way you could keep it, but…it was just so bound up to that thing and I ran out of time.”

“Eh, I don’t miss the magic. Wasn’t really mine, and I think I’ve had enough of being ‘one with nature’ my whole life. Nature’s ruthless. I mean, I can be too, but she’s cold.”

Remus cackled as Virgil elbowed him. 

“Besides, now I have an excuse to bother you or Lo about what I want. Which is more snow.” 

“Sorry, not that powerful.”

“Sure you are, have you tried? This place needs to look like a winter wonderland by noon.”

“I’m not snowing us in for a 5-minute joke. We’re supposed to go to the festival tomorrow.”

“After that, then.”

Before Virgil could reply, though, he realized Remus had set him up for a trap. He let out a strangled cry as Remus fell back into the far too-shallow snow in their front yard, taking Virgil down with him. The coat he was holding went sideways as Virgil flailed uselessly.

“AA– Remus!”

“What? I broke your fall!”

“Are you crazy?! You are actually trying to get a concussion, we just dragged your ass back to life.”

Remus grinned up at him as Virgil squirmed around to face him, still on top of Remus with a pout, eyes narrowed for the effect. Remus lovingly brushed the snow off of Virgil’s white hair. 

“Aww, you’re cute when you’re pouting at me~”

“Then I’m about to be adorable,” Virgil deadpanned, arms folded across Remus’s chest as he settled there. “You could just ask if you want to cuddle.”

“Boring and basic. I got nauseous watching Ro sweep Logan off his feet yesterday, but I will not be out-done.”

“By dragging me down into the snow with you?”

Remus nodded enthusiastically, glad he got it. He reached over for his coat and draped it over Virgil’s back. “Mhm! Am I winning?”

Virgil cracked a smile, unable to keep up a straight face. “Yeah, sure. Careful, though, you’re bordering on cheesy romance territory.”

Remus shrugged, cupping Virgil’s face with his mittens, gazing at him with a dopey look. “I think we’ve passed the point of no return on that, so going all in.”

Virgil smiled, amused. "I'm see the family similarities."

"As long as I'm objectively hotter. Mustache."

"Yeah, dork."

Remus smiled as Virgil leaned down to assure him with a kiss, gentle and sending a pleasant electric tingle down his spine.

Virgil pressed his forehead to Remus's, and Remus felt the tingle of magic on Virgil's fingertips as they ran down his jaw to his collar. 

"You're the first person who's ever trusted my magic, you know. No one else would trust me with their life like that."

"I'd hand you my soul if you asked. You're the only reason I still have it."

Virgil looked touched, expression soft.

"...I-I want you to keep it...I'll make sure it stays right where it's supposed to be for a long time."

"I'm not going anywhere, little storm."

Remus intended to stay that way by Virgil's side for a long time, too. He pulled his savior down into the wet grass with him to kiss him again until they were breathless.

[sleepy-nova-tea]

Merry Christmas to @musical--llama ! I had you for the @sanderssidesgiftxchange ! One of your wishes this year was for wholesome creativetwins. So, I did my best and drew them enjoying hot cocoa together by the fire. I hope you enjoy and have a wonderful holiday season ! (Fun fact the snowman has a rainbow scarf and the other card is a rat that says Merry Ratmas)

[prince-rowan-of-the-forest]

Confidence Dipped in Ink

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Remus is intrigued by the terribly shy emo he notices in the corner at his brother's lastest party. When the same emo ends up being the one giving Remus his latest tattoo with far more confidence, he can't help but think he's struck gold.

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An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

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Warnings: None

Pairings: Dukexiety

Word Count: 4387, 5 Chapters

Notes:

For @starlocked01

This here would be my fic for the @sanderssidesgiftxchange this year!! It's got a few chapters but they should all be going up together, so don't worry about waiting for more <3

I went with the dukexiety in a tattoo and flower shop au wish, I believe it's my first time writing both, lmao. I really hope it's a fun read, I did enjoy writing it <33 It's a little crack-treated-seriously, so I hope that's still fun <3

You may have noticed that I'm not posting this on Tumblr like normal, and that's honestly because I have no spoons and I cannot bring myself to post 5 chapters on Tumblr as well as ao3. I'm probably going to do the same thing with the New Years event </3 Also unlike my other fics this one is avaliable to read on ao3 without an account since it's not also on here.

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Taglist:

@full-of-roman-angst-trash @your-local-random-dino @cutebisexualmess @glacierruler @roseianxiety @bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti @scalesfeathersnfur @oatmealdaydrea ms @littlerat2 @goldnskyart @virgeandhis-pocket-protector @amateurmasksmith @sleepy-nova-tea @queer-and-fearful (if anyone wants to be added, let me know!)