Warnings: Dark sides (but I might stop adding this warning, they’re in the whole series- I’ll always tag the characters though!), witchcraft and vampires, swearing, god it’s really pretty mild the warnings don’t represent that very well lmao
Patton was doodling kittens on the corner of the newspaper while his dads made lunch together in the kitchen. Logan smirked at his husband while Emile hugged him from behind. He poked his sides affectionately. “What can I do?”
“I think you’re good right there,” Logan said. He poked the grilled cheeses with a spatula before turning them over in the pan.
Emile cooed and kissed his neck. “You’re being sweet.”
“You’re being cute.” Logan shot back. Emile smiled and squeezed him tighter. He rested his chin on the vampire’s shoulder.
Patton watched them for a moment before returning to his drawing. He gave one of the cats a little witch hat and stared at it. He should really tell his dads about his powers. Patton tried not to groan at the thought. Yes, Logan was a vampire. Yes, they were both super cool and accepting. And yes, they deserve to know what’s going on. But the thought of telling anyone that he was a freaking witch just made Patton feel silly.
Patton chewed on his lip anxiously as the thought of Emile and Logan laughing at him swirled around his mind.
“Pumpkin?”
Patton’s head flicked up to see Emile looking at him, holding two plates with lunch. “Honey, are you okay? You totally spaced out on me.”
“I’m fine,” Patton said quickly. “Sorry.”
“No no, not at all,” Emile reassured. “It’s okay, sweetpea. Have some lunch.” He offered the plate again.
Patton took it from him with a small smile. “Thanks, Dad.”
Logan hovered his hand over Emile’s waist and guided them to the table. The small family sat down together and ate quietly. Logan had one hand on Emile’s back, as he often did. He looked over at Patton. “Have you talked to Remus today?”
Patton swallowed and tried to pretend he wasn’t blushing. “... Yeah. Why?”
Logan smirked and Emile hid a giggle behind his hand. “Ooh-ooh!” he smiled. “You’re blushing…”
“Shut up!”
Logan smiled and kept his eyes on his food. “Fine, fine. But I know that Remus is coming in tomorrow if you want to come to work with me.”
Patton did end up going to work with his dad, he’d only been to the shop a couple of times but it was really pretty and he did love it. Logan was sitting at the counter, reading something and hoping they had few customers. Roman was sitting on top of a table, flicking through a book of old looking illustrations.
In the back of the shop, Remus was adjusting the arrangements while Patton perched on a stool, watching. He watched one of the candles on a shelf, they were unlit, just sitting there.
Remus pulled back and studied his new arrangement. He looked around and caught sight of a book by Patton that needed to go somewhere. “Hey can I just grab this- thanks.” he leaned over Patton, their shoulders bumping together.
Patton’s breath hitched. They were so close, god he liked Remus so much. He bit his lip until Remus drew back and he relaxed.
“Holy shit, pancake did you do that?”
Patton looked up, “what?”
Remus pointed at the candles on the other side of the room. “They weren’t lit before.”
Patton swallowed. “Um… maybe. I’m not sure.”
Remus laughed, offering a high five. “Nice one! Can you do it again?”
“I’m not sure…”
“No no no! Doubt ruins it!” Remus grabbed Patton’s hands and squeezed them. “C’mon. Get rid of the bad vibes, Pancake. Only happy feelings are allowed!”
Patton smiled at Remus’s efforts. “Ree, my dad is in the next room.”
“Okay, fine.” Remus was still holding his hands. “When are you going to tell your dads you’re a witch?”
Patton laughed. “Yeah I’m not telling them.”
“Because they wouldn’t believe you?” questioned Remus.
Ha! My dad’s a fucking vampire. “No, I just don’t know if I’m ready to make it a whole thing yet.”
“Seems fair I guess.” Remus let Patton’s hands go and picked up a candle. “Make a wish, pancake.”
Patton raised his eyebrows. “It’s not my birthday.”
“Irrelevant.” Remus presented the candle to him. “Wish.”
Patton laughed and blew out the candle. I wish Remus liked me back.
Roman looked up at the sound of the door opening and broke into a grin. “Dee!”
Janus rolled his eyes. “Hi, love.” Dee was his middle name, and still the name Roman preferred to use because it used to make Janus grumpy. He walked over and kissed Roman. He set the coffee cup tray down on the table his husband was sitting on and rubbed his back. “What’re you working on?”
“Just looking through a book I forgot about.” Roman picked his coffee up and leaned against Janus, tucking himself against his side. “How’s our son?”
Janus kissed the witch’s hair. “They’re very wedding focused at the moment. Virgil was working at the counter, completely surrounded by binders and notes.”
Roman chuckled. “Poor things.”
“I don’t remember us being much better,” Janus thought back to their wedding. Roman had been beside himself with stress and Janus himself had slept a total of three hours the week before they got married.
Roman squeezed Janus’s hand. “We definitely were not.”
Janus looked around the shop and saw Logan. “Hello.”
“Good afternoon, Janus.”
“Coffee?”
Logan was by his side in a blur and took the cup. “Thank you.”
“Using your speed in the same shop as a clueless 14 year old seems foolish.” Janus pointed out.
“I can hear them. He’s distracted.” Logan sipped his drink. “They’re discussing werewolves.”
“What are they saying?”
Logan shook his head. “I’m not repeating it. It’s ridiculous.”
Janus smiled at Logan’s exhausted expression as he walked back to the counter and returned to his book. Janus rested his chin on his husband’s head. “I love coming in here.”
Roman looked up to kiss him. “I love you coming in here.”
Janus hugged him and looked over his shoulder. “Show me this book then. What’s it about?”
Logan watched the older couple talk from his spot by the counter, doing his best not to accidentally listen in on them. Roman and Janus were beautiful together, they were exactly who he wished he could be with Emile one day. That was, if he wasn’t immortal. Logan ran his hand through his hair as he thought about the promise he’d made to Emile the night he’d proposed.
Emile had tears on his cheeks, admiring his ring as he rubbed at his face, scrubbing the tears away. “I love you so much.” he smiled, throwing himself into Logan’s arms. He hid his face in the crook of Logan’s neck. “I want to be with you forever.”
Logan waited perhaps a moment too long before responding softly. “Forever with me… is quite a long time.”
“It’s what I want, Lo.” Emile said. “I want to be like you, to be together with you forever.”
“Is it really?”
“I need you to promise you’ll turn me.” Emile whispered. “Not now. But one day.”
“When?”
Emile cupped his face, pressing their foreheads together. “10 years.”
“10 years?”
“Promise me, Logan. No longer than 10 years.”
Logan pulled him closer. “Emile Picani.” He murmured. “I promise to turn you into a vampire, within the next 10 years, so we can spend the rest of our lives together.”
Logan leaned against the counter, sometimes he wished they could just be normal together. Just a normal couple who could raise their son and grow old and eventually die. But it was more complicated than that. Of course.
Logan looked over at the doorway where Patton was and listened in, wondering what they were up to. They’d moved on from werewolves to difference between warlocks and witches. They were both so fascinated by supernatural creatures, it almost made Logan nervous that Patton would spill his secret. He would never, Logan decided. He trusted his son.
Logan set his hand over the page of his book and studied his wedding band, the light from the candles around him reflected off the gold ring in shiny little shapes. He smiled at it slightly and picked his phone up, opening the contact with muscle memory alone.
“Hey, kitten.”
“Hi, honey!”
“Are you busy? I thought maybe you could stop by for lunch…”
Will Donkin is my country "Taiwan" football player
i thimk so he have great potential.
hope my country football team will can enter the competition 2022 FIFA World Cup
(dream~~)
Summary: Remus and Patton test his powers a little bit more, followed by some Remy and Virgil being soft.
Ship: Eventual Intruality, Sleepxiety, little bit of Lomile
Word Count: 1347
Warnings: Food mention, swearing, vampires and witches, Remus Sanders, I don’t know if there’s anything else
“Okay, so we know you grow flowers and open lockers and stuff. But I think if we just try to move a bunch with your mind, some cool shit might go down.”
Patton nodded. He was sitting cross legged on his bedroom floor while Remus did a handstand against the wall.
“So how do I start?” questioned Patton.
“Hmm… turn the light off?”
Patton fought back a shudder as he remembered when he’d accidentally blown out the lightbulb on his first day with Emile and Logan. “No… no, something else. Please.”
“Uh… move that cushion closer with your mind.”
“Can I do that?”
Remus scoffed. “We don’t know. That’s the fucking point, pancake.”
“Right.” Patton took a deep breath and focused on the cushion that had fallen off his bed. He held his breath for a couple of seconds before exhaling steadily and willing the cushion drag itself closer.
It took a couple of tries, and a lot of Remus listing cute things Patton did to encourage him before the cushion moved a couple of inches. Patton squealed and Remus came down from another handstand to push Patton to the floor in a hug.
They laughed from the carpet as they collapsed into a pile of hugs and celebrations. Patton found himself flat on the floor with Remus on top of him, grinning as the pair tried to catch their breath.
Patton watched Remus’s eyes. They were their usual glittering grey and Patton had trouble not getting lost in the bright smile that covered Remus’s face. Patton’s eyes flickered down to Remus’s lips for a second too long.
Remus pulled back away painfully slowly and sat on his heels. He cleared his throat. “Um… maybe I should go-”
“No.” Patton blushed as he realised how abrupt that sounded. “I um… you could stay for dinner?”
“Is that okay?”
“Definitely,” assured Patton. The witch felt his cheeks go even pinker but he did his best to ignore it. He crossed his legs and shuffled closer. “I want you to stay.”
Patton could’ve been imagining it but he could swear that Remus was getting a little pink as well.
“Good.” Remus said, his voice unusually soft. “I’d like to.”
They stared at each other again before Patton blinked and looked away. Just tell him you like him!
Patton almost scoffed out loud at the thought but instead he stood up. “I’m gonna tell my dad you’re staying for dinner.”
“Cool. I’ll come!”
They hopped down the stairs together and found Logan in the kitchen where he was looking through the fridge. “Hello, boys.”
“Hi, Papa.” Patton greeted. “Can Remus stay for dinner?”
“Of course. Just make sure his parents are aware too.” Logan pulled some things from the fridge. “I’m making pizza if you two want to help.”
Patton perked up and turned to look at Remus. “You want to? It’s fun.”
“Yeah, sounds cool.”
Patton beamed and dragged him over to wash their hands while Logan prepared the bases for them. They actually made the pies pretty quickly, and they were sitting at the counter, playing tic-tac-toe when they were startled by Emile greeting them suddenly.
Remus jumped and Patton nearly fell off his chair with a yelp. He heard something pop behind him.
Logan frowned. “The dining room lightbulb just blew out,” he muttered.
Emile stepped over to Patton. “Sorry, pumpkin. Did I give you a fright?”
Patton flushed. “Maybe.”
Emile kissed the top of his head, “sorry again.” He pulled back and went into the kitchen. “Hey, Remus.”
“Hi, Emile.”
Logan pulled Emile over by the waist and kissed him quickly. “Hi,” he murmured. He hugged him close. “How was work?”
“It was very good,” Emile grinned and Logan recognised it as his ‘patients made some amazing progress today that I can’t talk about but I’m very happy’ smile. The vampire rubbed his arms. “Good.”
After dinner, Remus had to go home. Patton walked him down the path to the gate before turning to fully face him. “We could hang out again tomorrow?”
“Obviously,” Remus grinned. “You moved a fucking pillow, pancake. With your motherfucking mind.”
Patton looked down at his feet with a blush. “I also broke a lightbulb. Again.”
“You’ve done that before?” Remus questioned. He looked so excited at the thought.
“When I first got here, yeah.” Patton shrugged, refusing to meet Remus’s gaze. He took a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter. I just need to try to figure out my abilities… without accidentally breaking lights. And opening lockers.”
Remus laughed. He tilted Patton’s chin up to meet his eyes and ran his thumb over Patton’s cheekbone. The witch froze and followed Remus’s movements, his lips quirked up in a faint smile as Remus swept some hair behind his ear.
“G’night, pancake.” Remus murmured. He turned on his heel and walked off down the street. He skipped into a cartwheel before continuing his walk.
Patton stood, staring at where he’d been standing. He swallowed and blinked himself back into reality. “Bye, Ree.” he whispered.
+++
Remy wiped down the counter as Virgil flipped the open sign over. “Are we done?”
“Almost, babe.”
Virgil waited (semi) patiently for Remy to finish cleaning before they linked hands and left together.
Remy lifted their arms up and got his fiance to twirl him around. He fell back into Virgil who simply scooped him up and set him on his feet steadily. The witch laughed, the sound of his voice echoing pleasantly off the damp pavement. It had rained that day and although it was clearer now, the street was littered with puddles. Virgil smiled fondly as Remy danced around him.
The street was empty, it was almost midnight and the small sliver of a moon wasn’t providing them with much light. The streetlights were glowing golden off the road below them, giving the couple just enough guidance to stay safe. Not that they needed much help.
Virgil looked around to check they were alone in the night before letting himself fully relax into Remy’s dancing.
“Dad thinks there’s another witch in town.” Remy said.
“Oh yeah? Who?”
“Dunno,” Remy pushed his sunglasses up and jumped into a puddle, causing a big splash. “He said that kid who works in his store smelt like he’d been near witchcraft.”
“But he’s not the witch?”
“Apparently not,” Remy spun around and leaped forward into a different puddle, he made an even bigger mess of his jeans and grinned triumphantly.
Virgil just sighed and opened his arms, letting Remy jump into them so he could carry him a little further. “You’re a menace to society.”
“You love me for it.”
Virgil kissed him with a low chuckle. “That I do.”
“Go hop in that puddle!”
“Nope.”
“Then let me down and I will.” Remy wriggled in his fiance’s arms.
Virgil smirked and tightened his arms around the trouble-making witch. He only laughed as Remy tried to escape. Remy squawked and poked Virgil’s cheek. “You’re mean!”
The vampire bared his fangs with a hiss and Remy pouted overdramatically and fell limp in Virgil’s arms. “Mean vampire.” he muttered.
Virgil kept walking, enjoying Remy’s whinging more than he probably should have. They were both quiet for a bit before Virgil spoke again. “So do you believe your dad?”
“About the witch thing?”
“Yeah.”
Remy hummed in thought. “I don’t really know. I mean I trust Dad but, like… who would it even be? This town isn’t that big, we know most of them.”
“I guess.” Virgil rubbed his thumb back and forth on Remy’s arm and watched him yawn. “We’re almost home, Rem.”
Remy closed his eyes and snuggled into the vampire’s chest. “Go fast.” he requested.
“Fast fast?”
“Fast fast.”
Virgil adjusted the sleepy witch and pulled him closer to his chest. “Alright, babe. Hold tight.”
He zipped down the street and reached their house in just over a minute. When he slowed to a halt, Remy was grinning like a toddler. “I love you.” He leaned up to kiss Virgil’s jaw. “And I love your superspeed.”
Summary: Patton and Remus test out Patton's hypothetical "powers" and Logan takes care of his sick husband.
Ship: Lomile, platonic (or is it!?!?!?!?) Intruality
Word Count: 1037
Warnings: Dark sides, Remus, vampires, witches
“I’ve seen you do it before!” Insisted Remus.
The friends were standing in the little park on their block. It was just some grass with a couple of daisy patches, a swingset, a small slide, a seesaw and one of those frog shaped spring things that toddlers sit on and wobble back and forth.
Patton sighed and collapsed onto the grass in a heap. “It was a coincidence!”
Remus shook his head. “No, no it wasn’t! Come on, Pat! You totally got this!”
“I don’t,” said Patton, his tone flat and exhausted. He rubbed his eyes, pushing his glasses up in the process and leaving them crooked. “I clearly don’t got this.”
“But-”
“No!” Patton huffed and hid his face in his hands. “Remus no. I can’t do this. I can’t make flowers grow. Or summon butterflies, or move things with my mind! I’m not a witch, Ree. I’m not special.” his voice was muffled by his palms but he was coherent enough.
Remus scoffed and plopped down next to him. “Pat.”
Patton didn’t move.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re not a witch.” Remus started, keeping his soft. “It really doesn’t. But hypothetically, if you were, I think it would be really cool if you learned to harness those hypothetical powers. I’m sorry I’m pushing you too far.”
Patton looked up.
“And you don’t need powers to be special. You’re already the most awesomest coolest person ever.”
Patton giggled and Remus lit up. “You’re like, really funny and smart and so super fantastic at drawing and stuff.”
Patton laughed some more and felt his cheeks flush a light shade of pink.
“And you make a mean pancake,” continued Remus. “I mean like, the greatest pancake I’ve ever had the pleasure of mashing up and sliding down my throat.”
“Gross,” mumbled Patton, giggling into his hands.
“I might have to call you Pancake from now on. It’s basically your name anyway. Patton, Patcake, Pancake! It works on all fronts!”
Patton laughed again, finally smiling fully once more.
Remus got to his feet and offered his hands. “Come on, Pat. We can stop now if you want.”
Patton took his outstretched hands and let Remus pull him up. Remus was still smiling brightly. “How do you feel now?”
Patton laughed. “I’m good. Thanks.”
Remus grinned. “Good. Because look behind you.”
The teenager furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as he turned around only to gasp. He stepped back in shock, bumping into Remus, who held his hips to keep him steady. “You did that, Pancake.”
Patton stared at the grass in front of them. It was thoroughly and absolutely coated in flowers. There was a little patch of green where Patton had been sitting but behind it was an explosion of little wild flowers, packed together so tightly it was difficult to see the grass underneath.
“Oh my god.”
Remus laughed triumphantly. He did a cartwheel over the brand new flowers and whooped. “You did it!”
Patton nodded faintly. “Oh my god.”
Remus laughed and bounced over to take Patton’s hands. “Pat you did it! You’re a witch! Of course, your powers are tied to your emotions! That makes so much sense!”
Patton smiled. “Thanks for helping me.”
“Of course!” Remus chirped. “And this is absolutely not the last time we’re doing this. Okay? We’re gonna make you the most powerful awesomest witch this world has ever seen!”
Patton grinned and jumped forward to hug Remus as tight as he could. “Oh my goodness!”
Remus hugged him right back, burying his nose in Patton’s hair. They stayed in each other’s arms for a moment longer before pulling back and sharing a quick smile.
“I should maybe get going.” Patton said abruptly.
“I’ll walk you home.”
+++
Emile coughed into his elbow again and fell back against the bed head with a stuffy moan.
Logan glanced up from his spot next to his husband. He tucked Emile under his arm and kissed the top of his head. “Are you feeling any better than this morning?”
Emile sighed and sniffed as he huddled into Logan’s side. “Not really. Ugh, I feel awful.”
Logan cupped Emile’s cheek and tilted his head up. “I’m sorry you’re sick.”
Emile kissed him before he burrowed down into the covers. “Don’ worry about it. Jus’ needa sleep it off…”
Logan hugged him closer and grabbed a book. “Close your eyes, kitten. Do you want me to read to you?”
Emile yawned. “Yes please,” he murmured.
Logan opened to his page in The Great Gatsby and began reading out loud in a soft voice Emile didn’t get to hear very often. His eyes fluttered closed immediately and he relaxed into his husband’s side.
Emile was just starting to doze off when the front door downstairs opened and closed. Logan paused in his reading and listened in to the movement downstairs. Patton bound past the doorway and halted, looking into his dads’ room, bouncing a little bit with excitement.
Logan set his book down and looked over at Patton. “I trust you had fun with Remus.”
Patton smiled and looked down at his feet, pink dusting his cheeks. “Yeah. It was fun. We went to the park.”
Emile blinked sluggishly and forced himself to sit up a bit more. “Hey, pumpkin.”
Patton gave him a small wave. “Hi, Dad.”
Emile yawned. “D’you have fun?”
“Yep! It was good.”
“Good, good…” Emile trailed off and coughed into his arm.
Logan ran his fingers through his husband’s hair and glanced up at Patton. “Have you eaten?”
“Yeah, I’m good. I was gonna go draw or something.”
“Have fun, honey.”
Emile coughed again, harder this time. Logan winced in sympathy and used one arm to prop Emile up as he took his glasses and laid them on the table next to him. “Get some rest, Emi.”
Emile moaned in discomfort. “Right. Yeah.”
Logan nestled down into the covers and wrapped the blankets tighter around his miserable husband. He pressed a soft kiss to his forehead and rested his cheek on his head. “Sweet dreams, kitten.”
“Love you,” Emile murmured. His voice was barely audible but he knew Logan would hear.
Logan smiled and gave him a gentle squeeze. “I love you too, dear.”
"Witches are just so much cooler than humans." Remus said, skipping ahead to do a cartwheel before bouncing on the balls of his feet as Patton caught up to him.
They were walking home after school, and of course, the subject of supernatural beings had come up again.
Patton hummed in agreement. "They are."
"And they have cool hats! And cats!" Remus grinned. "And cauldrons, wands, and cool huge leather books full of sick drawings! There’s heaps of stuff like that at the bookshop I work at."
Patton adjusted his bag straps. "What's the shop called?"
"The Witch's Corner." Remus hopped onto a small stone wall and kicked himself into a handstand before walking on his hands for a few feet.
Patton beamed and laughed at his best friend. His eyes sparkled and his stomach was aching from all the laughing but Remus, unphased, continued to babble on about cool witch stuff.
Remus bounced back to his feet and walked a couple steps ahead.
Patton sighed happily as he watched Remus talk before he saw a flash of blue and a tickle on his nose.
Remus glanced around and absolutely lit up. "Oh my god!" He grinned.
Patton blinked owlishly at the butterfly on his nose and blushed at the sight of Remus's bright smiling face.
Remus was positively vibrating with excitement. He swallowed a scream and stepped closer to Patton. "This is so cool! Patton there's a fucking butterfly on your fucking nose!"
Patton giggled and the butterfly took off again. Remus squealed. "Are you a witch!?"
Patton giggled and shrugged. "I might be," he winked. But it was an awkward wink with the eye that couldn't actually wink very well so it didn't really land as a wink so much as a pointed blink.
But Remus didn't care, he blinked pointedly in return. "You're so freaking awesome, Pat."
Patton's chest swelled with love and a bush next to them rustled as suddenly several flowers sprung out from the hidden buds.
They stared.
"What the fuck." Remus whispered. "Did you do that?"
"That's… that's not possible." Patton shook his head hurriedly and swallowed. "I, I can't just make stuff happen…" God. Who was he trying to convince?
Remus wiggled happily and danced about a circle. "My best friend's a witch! Everyone else can suck it! I got the coolest friend and they can't have him!"
Patton laughed. "I'm not…"
"You are!" insisted Remus.
Patton was quiet for a moment before he spoke, his voice soft and almost scared sounding. "Do you really believe in magic?"
Remus turned to look at him. He blinked. "I do. My boss jokes about being a witch sometimes but I know it's true. I saw him reorganize a whole shelf with his mind once. He didn't know I was watching."
Patton chewed on his lip. "But… I can't really be a… a witch?"
"Well I disagree!" chirped Remus. "I think you are and I promise, one day very very soon. We will test your powers."
"I don't have powers."
"Well I would prove it to you but I have a drum lesson this afternoon. But I'll do it tomorrow!"
Patton laughed. "Yeah okay. We'll see."
"Vampires are also real," Remus added.
Patton sighed. "Remus."
"They are!"
"I'll see you tomorrow." Patton said, opening his gate. "Bye, Remus."
"See ya tomorrow, Pat!"
Patton shook his head and went inside. He wasn’t a witch. He dropped his bag by the door and saw Logan and Emile already in the living room. They were both sitting on the couch, facing him as if they’d known the second he opened the gate. They looked… serious. The teenager nervously set foot inside the living room and swallowed. “Hi?”
Emile smiled tightly. “Hey, pumpkin.”
Patton bit his lip and looked down at his feet. He didn’t know what this was about but oh god he wished he could still live with them. Please don’t send me away.
“Honey, can we talk for a moment?”
Patton nodded faintly but he could barely force himself to step forward. Emile’s shoulders fell slightly as he realized how nerve-wracking this must be for the boy kid. He scooted over and patted the spot on the couch in between him and Logan.
“It’s okay, Pat. We’re not mad at you or anything,” Emile assured him.
Patton found it slightly easier to breathe as he moved to sit down with them. Emile wrapped his arm around his shoulders and waited for Patton to lean further into the embrace before kissing his hair. “Your papa and I need to tell you something…”
Logan hadn’t moved the entire time. He stayed frozen, his eyes on the carpet, his lips pulled into a frown.
Patton swallowed and waited nervously.
It broke Emile’s heart to see his boys so anxious and he wished he could pull them both onto his lap and hug them and make everything okay. But he couldn’t do that just yet. He took in a deep breath. “Lo, baby, you want to say it?”
Logan sighed and pulled his legs up onto the couch to cross them and face his husband and son. “Patton…” he winced. “We wanted to tell you sooner.”
Patton paled. “Tell me what?” he whispered.
“Sweetheart do you believe in magic?” asked Emile.
Patton started speaking but faltered. Remus did. But did Patton believe him? He trusted Remus, of course he did, but how could magic be real? How could witches be real? Vampires are also real, Remus had said.
Patton froze. Vampires? The other day in the kitchen, there was blood in the sink because Logan had been… feeding? Feeding on Emile? No, no there was no way, and that was hardly enough to prove anything.
“Pat?” Emile asked again.
“I… I don’t know.” Patton breathed.
Emile squeezed Patton's arm comfortingly. “That’s okay, hun.” He looked to Logan.
“Well… it’s real.” Logan began awkwardly. “And I’m… I’m a vampire.”
Patton stiffened and didn’t miss the way Logan curled away from him, looking at his feet, ashamed.
Emile rubbed Patton’s back but waited a few seconds before speaking. “Are you okay?”
“I don’t… I don’t?” Patton shook his head desperately. “No I would have known. I should’ve, I should’ve realized. Papa, you- I didn’t know. God, I’m so stupid, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I should’ve-”
“Hey hey hey,” Emile took Patton’s wrists and pulled him into a better cuddling position. “Don’t be ridiculous, pumpkin. We kept it from you for a reason. You’re not stupid, you didn’t know.”
Tears dribbled down Patton’s face and he sniffled. “I… I’m sorry I didn’t realize.”
Logan frowned and shuffled closer. “Patton? We don’t want you to feel guilty, we didn’t want you to know until now.”
Patton’s bottom lip quivered as Logan pressed a delicate kiss to his forehead. “Please don’t feel bad about this. We should’ve told you sooner. I’m sorry we didn’t.”
“You’re so strong, baby.” Emile murmured. He rubbed Patton’s back again. “Do you have any questions?”
Patton scrubbed at his eyes. “You drink blood?” he squeaked.
Logan nodded. “I drink Dad’s blood when I need it. And there’s an emergency supply in the garden shed. I can eat human food if I want to but it doesn’t have an effect on me. It still tastes good though.”
“I’ve seen you out in the sunlight.” Patton muttered, half to himself. He sniffed away the last of his tears and managed to compose himself a bit more.
“A witch charmed my wedding ring to protect me.” Logan held his hand up and showed Patton the golden band.
“You know a witch?”
“Remy. And his dad, Roman, technically. But Remy cast the spell.”
“Isn’t Roman your boss?” Patton thought back to Remus talking about the bookshop he worked at. “What’s the name of the shop?”
“The Witch’s Corner,” replied Logan. “Roman owns it.”
Patton managed a smile. “I think Remus works there.”
Logan nodded.
“Can you turn into a bat?”
Logan scowled. “No. I cannot.”
Emile giggled. “I asked him the same thing when I found out.” he whispered.
“How old are you?”
“208 years old,” said Logan. “But I was turned at 27.”
Patton laughed slightly. “You’re really old.”
Logan chuckled. “Yes, I am.” He glanced down and cleared his throat. “Are you scared of me?” he asked softly.
Patton pulled away from Emile’s hug to wrap his arms around his papa’s neck and give him the tightest hug he could muster. “Never.”
Logan blinked rapidly and squeezed his son tighter. “I love you, Patton.”
“I love you too, Papa.”
Emile smiled at them and wiped his own eyes. He gave them a moment of quiet before he noticed the time. “Alright. I think it’s time we think about dinner. How does pizza sound?”
Logan nodded. “Good.” He pulled away from his son and wiped furiously at his teary eyes.
Emile picked up his phone and started ordering the pizza as the three of them adjusted themselves on the couch, each dad wrapping an arm around their son.
“Do you know any other vampires?”
“Virgil.”
Patton furrowed his brows. “Virgil’s a vampire and Remy’s a witch?”
“Mhmm,” Emile confirmed. “I was the only human in the group.” He chuckled. “But now I have you!” He kissed Patton’s cheek. “What kind of pizza do you want?”
Patton smiled and rested his cheek on Emile’s shoulder, looking at his phone. “The veggie one from last time.”
“Good choice.”
Logan snorted. “No it’s not.”
Emile rolled his eyes. “We get it. I assume you want meatlovers?”
“Yes please.” Logan stood up and kissed Emile’s forehead on his way to get the blanket from the chair. He tossed it to the others. “Patton, hun, do you want to help me build a fort?”
Patton squeaked. “YES!”
Emile chuckled. “Carrying on the tradition, are we?”
Logan scoffed. “Obviously.” He bounded up the stairs to get more blankets.
Patton looked to Emile. “Tradition?”
Emile smiled as he thought back. “The night your papa told me he was a vampire we made a blanket fort afterwards. It was the first night he told me he loved me.” Emile sighed happily and turned back to Patton. He brushed some hair away from his eyes. “Go help Papa while I finish the order, okay?”
Patton nodded and scampered off to find Logan.
Emile sank into the couch with a fond smile. He loved his boys so much it almost hurt. Patton had been so good tonight. He definitely deserves more brownie, Emile reasoned as he added extra dessert to his cart. He set his phone down and got to his feet before he jogged up the stairs. “Let’s make this fort!”
Reprodução: Agência Brasil / EBC
O governo dos Estados Unidos anunciou a doação de U$ 500 milhões (R$ 2,5 bilhões) para o Fundo Amazônia, entre outras iniciativas de combate ao desmatamento direcionadas ao Brasil. O valor proposto pelo presidente Joe Biden ainda precisa ser aprovado pelo Congresso americano.
O anúncio aconteceu no dia 20 de abril, durante o Fórum das Grandes Economias sobre Energia e Clima, após uma série de encontros bilaterais entre os dois países nos últimos três meses. Outras nações, como Noruega e Alemanha, também já se comprometeram a retomar as doações para o Fundo, que esteve paralisado durante a gestão do ex-presidente Jair Bolsonaro.
“O governo brasileiro tem feito um trabalho muito sério, que dá credibilidade para que países se disponham a fazer doação a fundo perdido para ajudar o Brasil a levantar um novo modelo de desenvolvimento que nos possibilite gerar emprego, renda, prosperidade e preservar as bases naturais”, disse a ministra do Meio Ambiente e Mudança do Clima, Marina Silva, em coletiva de imprensa após o anúncio da doação. Na avaliação da ministra, a iniciativa encoraja colaborações de outros países.
O Fundo investe em ações de combate ao desmatamento e de promoção da sustentabilidade na Amazônia. Projetos em outras regiões do país também podem ser apoiados, desde que cumpram com as diretrizes estabelecidas. Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis (Ibama), Corpo de Bombeiros Militar (em seus programas de proteção florestal) e órgãos ambientais estaduais estão entre as instituições financiadas. Responsável pelo monitoramento ambiental por satélites, o Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE) também é uma entidade apoiada pelo fundo. Além disso, os governos dos estados podem ter projetos aprovados. Por exemplo, entre 2011 e 2017, o governo amazonense recebeu R$ 17,5 milhões para reflorestamento no sul do estado, região sob intensa pressão de desmatamento.
Segundo Adriana Ramos, coordenadora de Política e Direito Socioambiental do Instituto Socioambiental (Isa), o fundo é o principal financiador das políticas para o meio ambiente na Amazônia e para o monitoramento e controle do desmatamento em todos os biomas. “As novas doações ao Fundo Amazônia são extremamente importantes, pois demonstram a confiança da comunidade internacional com os compromissos assumidos pelo Presidente Lula de desmatamento zero até 2030”, afirma a pesquisadora.
Dissolução e retomada do Fundo
Em 2019, o então ministro do Meio Ambiente Ricardo Salles extinguiu os dois comitês responsáveis pela gestão dos recursos do Fundo Amazônia, inviabilizando o financiamento de projetos e a continuidade das doações. A existência desses comitês é uma condição contratual dos doadores, para impedir que o dinheiro seja utilizado para outros fins. Segundo dados do Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (BNDES), o Brasil deixou de investir cerca de R$ 3 bilhões em ações ambientais entre 2019 de 2022, valor que permaneceu retido no fundo após a dissolução dos comitês orientadores.
Em outubro de 2022, o Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) determinou que a União tomasse as providências necessárias para reativar o Fundo Amazônia. Na ocasião, a maioria dos ministros concluiu pela inconstitucionalidade da extinção dos comitês, pois configuraria omissão do governo em seu dever de preservar a Amazônia. Reinstituídos por decreto em 1º de janeiro de 2023 pelo presidente Lula, os comitês retomaram suas atividades, o que permitiu os novos aportes de recursos.
Como funciona
Criado em 2008, o Fundo Amazônia é gerido pelo BNDES e pode ser visto como uma espécie de crédito que outros países dão ao Brasil pelos bons resultados de suas políticas ambientais. Apesar dos desafios, o país está entre os que mais diminuiu emissões de gases que causam o efeito estufa.
Entre 2005 e 2016, houve a redução de 71% as taxas de desmatamento, segundo dados apresentados pelo Plano de Ação para Prevenção e Controle do Desmatamento na Amazônia Legal (PPCDAM). Devido a esses esforços, o Brasil se qualificou internacionalmente para receber recursos de países estrangeiros, como a doação anunciada por Joe Biden.
Comitês
O governo brasileiro tem autonomia para decidir sobre a utilização do dinheiro, mas depende das decisões de duas instâncias: Comitê Orientador do Fundo Amazônia (COFA) e Comitê Técnico do Fundo Amazônia (CTFA).
O COFA estabelece os critérios para aplicação dos recursos, enquanto o CTFA atesta a quantidade de emissões de carbono oriundas de desmatamento em território nacional. Anualmente, o Fundo passa por dois processos de auditoria, que avaliam a contabilidade e a adequação dos investimentos aos objetivos do programa. Em todos os anos, os auditores concluíram pela adequação das contas e dos relatórios apresentados pelo BNDES.
O Comitê Orientador do Fundo Amazônia (COFA) é formado por três blocos: governo federal, governos estaduais e sociedade civil. Entidades como a Confederação Nacional da Indústria (CNI) e a Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores na Agricultura (Contag) estão entre seus membros e acompanham a aplicação dos recursos. Estados precisam contar com um plano estadual de combate ao desmatamento para ter direito a voto nas deliberações. Esse comitê também é responsável pela aprovação do Relatório de Atividades.
Já o Comitê Técnico do Fundo Amazônia (CTFA) é composto por cientistas que se reúnem pelo menos uma vez ao ano. A atribuição deles é avaliar a metodologia de cálculo da área de desmatamento e das emissões de carbono adotada pelo Ministério do Meio Ambiente. Como a participação no CTFA é considerada de interesse público, seus membros não recebem qualquer tipo de remuneração. A última reunião deste comitê aconteceu em outubro de 2018, indicando a descontinuidade dos trabalhos nos anos posteriores.
Para Adriana Ramos, o modelo de funcionamento do Fundo Amazônia oferece autonomia na aplicação dos recursos, fortalecendo as políticas ambientais brasileiras. “Alcançar o desmatamento zero é um desafio imenso que envolve estratégias múltiplas como a demarcação e proteção de terras indígenas, titulação de quilombos e criação de unidades de conservação, destinação de terras públicas, inclusão de critérios de agricultura de baixo carbono no Plano Safra e efetividade do Cadastro Ambiental Rural, para citar apenas algumas das ações que poderão ser apoiadas com recursos do Fundo”, conclui.
Edição: Heloisa Cristaldo
