Description: The prompt for this one-shot is this animatic, “Wires” by Anna Midnight, which I highly recommend you watch before reading the first chapter.
Word Count: 2368
Chapter Warnings: Self Doubt, Guilt, Self-blame, Injury, Verbal Abuse, Injury, Crying, Hurt/No Comfort, Angst/Whump, Blood mention, Suspension, Choking, Dark Side!Logan, Death Mention (Let me know if I missed anything!)
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Patton stared up at the gnarled branches of the weaving deciduous trees as they twisted over the path ahead of him. The barren branches grew together, barely allowing narrow slits of moonlight to reach the ground and illuminate his way. It was as if the forest itself was trying to keep him here wandering in circles forever.
This place was part of the imagination. That much, Patton had figured out, and logically, Patton knew that shadows moving around him shouldn’t be able to hurt him. That had been the truth for as long as he could remember, but ‘Logic’ had left the game. Nothing he thought he knew made sense anymore. The rules of Thomas’ mind had gone out the window and the shadows that currently danced in his periphery seemed more sinister and unnerving than even in Remus’ part of the imagination.
The snap of a twig brought Patton’s eyes darting up as he scanned the trees once more. A thin veil of mist drifted from between the trees, blurring his vision as his heart pounded in his chest. He closed his eyes and reached his hands over his ears, trying to block out the world as he regained his bearings.
This wasn’t right.
Virgil had left him. Patton had spent hours wandering through the forest before he'd spotted the familiar purple hoodie. He'd moved to rush to his friend's side before being stopped in his tracks by the guilt in Virgil’s eyes, tears streaming down his face as Patton stared him. Patton had wanted nothing more than to curl Virgil in his arms and reassure him, but to his horror, his hands had passed straight through his friend. He had nothing to offer but empty words and empty promises as Virgil inevitably disappeared back to whatever corner of the mind where Remus was keeping him.
He kept reappearing again and again, his sense of self falling way with each cycle. All the while, Patton seemed doomed to wander the same path again and again, tortured by the knowledge that his friends were disappearing and he was doing nothing. Patton shivered as a breeze rushed over his arms, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake as he dropped his arms back to his sides. His head felt heavy as he looked back to the sky for any inkling of where he needed to go.
His kiddos needed him. They needed him more than ever before and there was nothing he could do. He'd told Virgil he was coming for him, but truth was he'd been moving for hours and he seemed no closer to any part of the mind he recognized. A dozen crossroads had passed him and he’d taken a different turn each time, only to find himself circling back to where he'd started.
This was useless.
He was useless.
The last he'd seen Roman, Logan had encased him in stone. Virgil, on the other hand, had made it clear he was being held somewhere by their own darker side of creativity. He didn't know what had become of Janus but it was clear that Patton seemed to be the only one free to move under Logan’s control. All he had to do was break free from this forest.
It should have been a simple task.
That’s probably why Logan put him here in the first place. Patton sighed. He knew Patton wasn't as brave as Roman or as observant as Virgil. Even Janus seemed to have an intuitive sense of the right thing to do most of the time. If the last few videos they done together showed him anything, it was that everything he thought he knew was wrong. He’d thought he was helping, but he'd ended up hurting everyone.
No wonder Logan didn’t seem worried to let him roam about on his own.
He wasn't a threat on his own. The others brought value, but he was just a happy voice to play the mediator when the other argued, and he wasn’t even good at that anymore. Patton stared at his feet as he made his way down the trail. The forest had faded to grey around him, as though Thomas’ mind itself was growing bored of Patton’s struggles.
“I ask for help, Pat.”
Virgil’s words replayed in his head for the thousandth time as he absently took the left fork of the next twist in his path. If he could ask for help, he already would have. He'd have been grateful for anyone to show up and take the lead. Anyone else would be doing better than him.
Another loud crack shook the twisted branches over his head, sending a chilled down his spine as it echoed around him. Patton shot up, his back straightening as his fingers curled into fists and he scanned the thick underbrush. Adrenaline flooded his body as he stood stalk still, waiting as the crisp forest air became silent once more.
“What was that?”
“Patton?”
A rasping voice broke the silence as Patton’s head spun around. His breath hitched in his throat as he turned to find Janus sprawled out on the ground before him. His limbs were still as his head lifted to blearily stare at Patton through the darkness.
“Janus—”
“Stay back.”
Janus' sharp hiss stopped Patton in his tracks. The lying side's glare turned hostile as he bared his teeth at Patton.
"What are you still doing here, Patton?”
Patton chewed the corner of his lip as a pit of guilt dropped in his stomach. “I'm lost, Janus. Can you please—”
“You were supposed to be out of this place by now.” Janus growled as his body shuddered with pain. “You’re the only one that's free. Why are you coming for us?”
“I'm trying—”
“Do you think trying is going to get Virgil back from Remus?” Janus’ breath grew unsteady. “How is trying going to free Roman from his prison?”
“I know. I'm coming—”
“Stop lying.” Janus hissed, his voice pained as he tried to force himself to his feet. “You don't know what you’re doing. You can't even give a straight answer to the simplest of questions.”
Patton took a half-hearted step back as his stomach twisted. “I—I don't know the answers anymore."
“Then, what good are you?”
Janus' figure straightened upright, staggering toward Patton as he quivered on the path. His shadow darkened as he loomed over Patton, as though his very presence was sucking the light out of the forest. Patton felt the guilt burning in his stomach. His face flushed as tears brimmed in his eyes but he couldn’t deny what Janus was saying.
“Maybe, it's best you’re finally on your own." Janus snarled in disgust as Patton dropped to his knees. “No one should have to waste their time taking care of you.”
Janus' dark shadow lingered for a moment as Patton quivered on the ground. The breeze whistled through the trees as tears streaked the moral side's cheek. Soft moonlight glimmered on his cheeks as Janus turned down the path to leave him.
“I want nothing more than to believe you. It'd be simpler if I could just accept I was a bad person.”
“What?”
Patton forced himself up to one knee. His mouth hung open as he collected his thoughts, wiping away his tears as he looked up to Janus’ shadowy figure.
“I know I’ve messed up a lot lately, but I know my friends don't expect me to be perfect.” Patton whispered to the ground. His voice, nearly lost to the wind at first, began to grow with confidence as he tipped his head up to the figure in front of him. “And Janus knows even better than I do that mistakes are okay. He knows that you can’t sacrifice all of yourself, no matter how bad things get—Which means, you’re not him!”
“What a clever boy.”
Patton’s confidence started to falter as a hollow laugh echoed through the air. The wind shifted rushing over Patton’s arms as the mist swirled around Janus’ shadow. Moonlight shimmered as the fog rushed around the figure, obscuring Patton’s vision until the wind slowed and allowed the vapors to dissipate.
“Logan!”
A thin smile curled on the logical side’s lips as he stepped out of the shadows. He tucked his hands neatly into the pockets of his silver suit, strolling forward as a massive coiling figure rose out of the darkness behind him.
“Janus.”
Patton sucked in his breath, taking a timid step back as he took in the twisted wires holding Janus suspended above them. His body was stiff and unmoving as he settled in place and Patton could see the red welts in Janus' skin where the wires had cut in, making him bleed.
“Logan, what are you doing?”
“Oh, Patton. Don’t tell me you’re worried about him.” Logan chided him, his voice cold as the wires tightened on Janus' wrists. The movement pulled a pained grunt from the lying sides lips and his eyes fluttered open, blinking as he stared absently at Patton. “After all, it's not like he hasn't done the same to you. It seems to me that it's only fair he pays for impersonating us both.”
“Let him go!” Patton shrieked, his voice cracking as the metal cords twisted over Janus' limbs. “You’re hurting him, Logan.”
“Stay back, Patton.” Logan interrupted with a wag of his finger, stopping Patton with the cold tone of his voice. “You have a choice to make, but you won’t get the chance if you break Janus prematurely.”
Patton stopped moving. His hands shot to his lips as the wires loosened from Janus' lips, allowing him to sputter out a weak cough. “Logan, please don’t—"
Another loud crack sounded in the distance and Patton's head snapped toward the sound. His heart pounded in his chest as a soft light started to illuminate the sky. Whatever the sound was had begun grown louder as he moved through the endless forest, growing with the lights that now danced over the trees.
Logan’s empty smile grew as the colors started to swirl in the sky above them. Bright shades of pink blended into the sky, spreading across the imagination like the lights of the aurora borealis in the sky.
“It would seem that our dear prince has started breaking from his shackles.”
Patton swallowed the lump in his throat. “No—Logan, you can't—”
“Ah, so now everyone's favorite father figure is figuring it out.” Logan’s smirk returned to his face. “You can only choose to save one and its time to make your choi—”
“I choose Janus."
Patton spoke without thinking. His eyes stayed focused on where the cords cut into Janus' wrists. His heart ached as another crack filled the sky but Janus was hurting and he couldn’t look away once he saw Janus' eyes widen with shock.
“Interesting choice.” Logan blinked, sounding bored as he looked away from Janus' shocked expression. “Care to share your reasoning with the class?”
“He's hurt.” Patton stuttered, struggling to pull his words together as Logan stared at him. “I wouldn’t—”
“Patton, don't—
“I didn’t ask for your opinion Janus.” Logan interrupted with a snap of his fingers, ignoring Patton’s squeak as a coil of wire tightened around Janus' neck. “He's consistently undermined your decisions and turned the others against you, Patton. Why would you waste your breathe on him?”
“He's our friend, Lo. ” Patton’s voice went quiet as he stared up at his former friend, but Logan’s face remained unmoving. “Janus helps keeps us all from burning ourselves out. He takes care of Thomas and all of us.”
“Patton—Just go find Roman.”
“Janus,” Patton glanced warily at Logan, but the logical side seemed lost in thought. “I'm not going to leave you.”
“Just go—” Janus rasped, fighting to speak against the wire around his neck. “I can handle Logan.”
“But—”
“I suggest you take his offer, Patton.” Logan stated, his voice devoid of emotion. “Your little move was enlightening, but ultimately fruitless. My pawns will move as I expect from them.”
Another crack sent Patton stumbling as red and pink lights danced through the sky. His gaze turned to the sky as a scream erupted from the forest behind him.
“Go find Roman, Patton.” Janus rasped as the coiled wires dragged him to the ground, forcing him to sink out. “Save him.”
“We'll be back for you, kiddo. Don’t you worry.”
Patton blinked as Logan stared back at him, a strange look in his eyes a he sunk out. Once he disappeared, Patton dug his feet into the ground to take off in the other direction. He looked to the sky of the imagination, following the dancing lights as he rush forward to save the prince.
Logan let out a breath as he rose up into his room. He strode past his rows of books, barely glancing at the aisles as he moved to the back of his room.
“Where are you going?”
Pausing, a sour smirk spread across Logan's face as he turned to look up to the wall behind him. “Suddenly curious, are we?”
Janus felt the tips of his extremities tingle as the cords around his wrists pulled him into the air. His vision blurred as his muscles stiffened from the rough treatment.
“If you ask me,” Logan mused as a hint of a emotion twitched on his lips. “I think you were rather quick to sacrifice your only chance to get out of here.”
“If this is the worst you can do,” Janus huffed, straining against the cords. “then I can handle it.”
“That’s a rather short-sighted assumption. Don't you think?”
Janus' movements slowed as the cords tightened their grip on his limbs. His breath hitched in his throat as he struggled to keep his eyes fixed on Logan.
“What I have planned is far worse than you can imagine.”
“And what's that, Logan?”
“Tell me, Janus.” Logan cocked his head back towards Janus, pausing before turning back to his books. His fingers drifted along the spines as a curious grin spread across his face. “Have you ever considered what it takes to kill a side?”
When your future boyfriend comes out lookin like a mad scientist s n a c c but you can't let him know you think he's hot because you're embarrassed so you say he looks weird and it low key hurts his feels
I uh... found a new obsession blog the other night.
@askdarksidelogan
This last one’s more of a theory as to what’s to come, but eh whatever. (And also of course I find it in the middle of some angst. Idc tho I love angst)
