Having gone through my Rainy Day Prompt-asks (from forever ago) and seeing these two asks I... lowkey combined them. I’m sure neither of them are being interpreted as intended at all but I had an Idea:
Which turned into an au as I was drawing it because of course it did.
Basic idea went like this: Roman is an Oldtimey ghost, and to boot, one of those extra-creepy child-ghosts, so most people ya know... run. And that’s if they actually see him. Because most people do not.
Remus is a modern kid of a family who moved in either nearby/into Roman’s usual haunting grounds and... for some reason, can see the ghost, and isn’t afraid of him one singular bit. Actually, he’s a little bit of a brazen brat, but hey, beggars can’t be choosers, and Remus actually genuinely hangs out with Roman and they become friends. All the adults think Remus has imagined himself a... lowkey creepy, as expected with Remus- imaginary friend. ...probably because the kid is exceptionally bad at making living friends. Not that Remus cares.
Anyway I can not afford to make myself another official au so I welcome people to take it as a prompt if they so wish.
Other thoughts/ideas under the cut:
Remus pesters Roman a lot about how he died, and Roman gives him wildly different stories every time.
Remus actually almost died once himself in an accident and gave himself a concussion so hard it turned his hair white from the trauma to his skull
lowkey wanna make it that Roman saved him and that linked them- Remus doesn’t remember it though.
Remus has a variation of Frozen’s Reindeer are Better than People, but Ghost Edition
Remus made his outfit himself out of various costumes. He wears it constantly.
Roman can possess Remus. They found it out by accident. Remus thinks it’s hilarious. Roman thinks Remus needs to wash more often.
Roman was definitely a prince
When Remus is asleep, Roman pretends to sleep next to him, because Remus started waking up and trying to find him when Roman left the room.
Roman goes with Remus to school, and they help each other learn and work on homework. Remus totally once convinced Roman to possess him during a test.
As Remus grows up, for some weird reason, Roman starts to grow up too.
Roman also gets stronger ghost-y abilities as he grows. Eventually, he’s able to make himself visible to anybody, if he wants to. He rarely does because it usually scares people.
I might have to make this an official au... (I really shouldn’t though. I do not have the time to do another au....)
hi I doodle these two getting into shenanigans pretty much all the time & figured I should actually finish something lmao
So these two can’t actually have a proper conversation, since Virgil can’t hear Roman ((hence the black background for Ro’s text, which is what I’ll be using for ghosts when they’re speaking but not making themselves heard)), but Roman can interact with objects, so they write back & forth on a little notepad.
Y’know how some people think kids can see ghosts? I’ve decided that’s a thing for this AU. So Virgil moved into this house @ 9 years old ((I should probably post the timeline, huh?)), & could see the twins & Janus, & instead of being terrified like a normal child, Virgil was just like “..I’m basically Ruby Gloom!!!!!” & decided they were all his friends. I have doodled.. many many comics of Remus & kid!Virgil. I’ll probably redo a few of them digitally & post them at some point.
I wrote some text on the notepad, but it’s pretty small, so here’s a transcription:
Hey Ro
Greetings, Virgil! *doodle of Roman waving hi, he’s wearing a crown*
Do you actually even wear a crown. Or is this lies & deceit
Patton walked through the school’s halls, feeling stares follow him and stick to the white cast wrapped around his forearm. Logan and Janus walked on either side of him and threw glares at anyone that dared lingered too long. But Patton felt their eyes on his back as they walked away.
“Did you hear what they told the police?”
“Just ignore them,” Janus hissed in Patton’s ear. Their hand was gripping Patton’s hand tightly and their words were brimming with confidence, sure that every word that they said was true. “They are mindless sheep and if they knew what we did, they’d be running through the streets in panic. Just ignore what they say.”
How could Patton possibly ignore them? When what they were accusing him was so terrible, so awful, that it made Patton want to cry?
“I heard that they claimed that Virgil didn’t actually die. They said that he was taken instead.”
Logan’s hand was like a vice on his shoulder, grounding Patton to reality, a reality that was so hard to understand lately. “They will eat their words soon enough,” he muttered, a hard steely glint in his eyes. “After we bring your brother back, he will tell them exactly what happened and they’ll see that we never lied.
Patton managed a short nod, glancing out a nearby window and looking at the old mansion that stood on the highest hill in town, looming over everything. Even as far away as Patton was, he had the feeling that he was watched. Though, it could’ve just been the hateful stares coming from the other students. Not that Patton could blame them. Virgil was such a sweetheart, it was hard not to love him.
“Taken? By who?”
“We’ll sneak back out there tonight,” Janus muttered, pausing by their locker and shoving their bag in. “We know what we’re doing this time. What to bring and what to say. It was a mistake bringing Virgil and you last time but we know that now and we know how to save him.”
“The ghosts of the Prince Brothers who used to live in that house. Now that’s rich. Even if there really were ghosts in that mansion, why would they want anything to do with the Heart Brothers?”
Patton swallowed and asked, pulling on the strings of his brother’s abandoned hoodie with his good hand, “I still don’t understand why they took him and not both of us. I mean...” He trailed off and gripped the strings tight, pressing his injured arm close to his chest.
Logan adjusted his glasses, giving Patton a look mixed with sadness and relief. “They tried, Patton. I suspect that it hadn’t tripped back and broke that old stairs’ railing than you would’ve been taken right alongside your brother.”
“You don’t know!? Dude, Patton and Virgil’s great-great-grandfather were one of the Prince Brothers! They changed their name since them but their family used to live on that hill!”
“Oh,” Patton whispered lamely. He stared down at his cast and cringed as he remembered falling from the second floor of a mansion where he and his brother had once played and the face that had stared down at him with bright glowing red eyes. “I-I’m still surprised that the railing broke so easily. That old house has really gone downhill, hasn’t it?”
Somehow, Patton didn’t think that it was just time that had broken down his old home.
“Seriously!? Dude, that’s wild! Patton and Virgil were related to - damn! But still, why would they go for Virgil? I mean, if they’re really related to the Princes, why would they try to, I don’t know, kill them or whatever?”
Janus scowled, glaring out the window at the mansion. “It doesn’t matter how downhill it is,” they said darkly. “After we get Virgil back from them, we’re burning that fucking mansion to the ground. It should’ve been burnt to the house years ago.”
“I can agree to that,” Logan muttered. “The better solution would be burning whatever is tying them to this world but I suppose we’ll just burn the entire house instead. Hopefully, that will fix everything.”
“But what if it doesn’t,” Patton asked softly, hands shaking hard. His arm throbbed his uninjured hand gripped the injured one, trying to stop the trembles. “What if, what if whatever’s tying them here isn’t in the house? What if it just makes them angry?”
“Hell if I know, dude. Besides, does it matter? It’s not like any of this matters. Patton Heart is a dirty liar and a brother killer on top of that. This ghost bullshit is just that.”
Janus clenched their fists tightly and spat out, “Then we’ll find whatever the hell it is and burn that too. We’ll do whatever it fucking takes. I don’t care what their reasons are for trying to take you two. You’re here and it’s not up to them whether or not that continues or not.”
“But I-” Patton cut himself off, his jaw clicking with how quickly he closed his mouth.
“Well, obviously. I’m just wondering what the liar’s reasoning is for the ‘ghosts’ taking his brother. I mean, what, did Patton just say the ghosts were just trying to kill them or something?”
There was a pause where Janus and Logan stared at him. “But what Patton,” Logan asked gently. “What is it?”
Patton hesitated before saying softly, “I don’t think they wanted to kill us. The one who tried to grab me looked so scared when I fell and they were wailing and... The one with the green eyes was beaming when he grabbed Virgil was sunk into the floor. He was babbling about how he was so happy to have family back in the house and how angry he was when our Mum made our Dad move us away. I think... they just wanted their family back.”
“No. He said that the ghosts just wanted their family back.”
“Well, the ghosts can’t force you or Virgil to stay with them,” Janus said firmly. They placed their hand gently on Patton’s cast, their fingers brushing against the sling. “We got you out and tonight, we’ll get Virgil out. I promise.”
“What a weak ass excuse. Like ghosts care about their families after they die.”
Patton nodded firmly, trying to ignore how the ghosts with red eyes had called him ‘Grandson’ and pleaded with him not to leave when Patton had run away. “Right. We’ll get him back.”
day five bringing us some bittersweet love, and my first attempt to write Virgil.
ships: prinxiety
tw: death and gore ment.
The lights of the old theater hum and flicker as they turn on, testament to how long ago they probably should have been replaced. Virgil huffs a laugh to himself as he walks towards the stage. The ghost lamp is still sitting there, which he flicks off in a moment. It’s not as if it actually does anything, on or off, but it's a habit at this point. He stands there for a moment, waiting to see if anything, or anyone, would appear, then turns towards the wings.
“You’re so late today, I’d begun to worry you’d crossed over to my side without consulting me,” a voice calls from behind him. He kills the smile that begins to form as he turns around. Standing with his arms crossed is Roman, the utter asshole Virgil had somehow befriended during his long nights working at the theater. His brown hair was carefully unkempt as always, his white costume perfect except for the ugly stain of blood, still a bright red, across the center of his chest along where the gash that killed him sits.
Oh yeah, Roman is a ghost. Virgil has a whole sixth sense, “I see dead people” thing going on. Another reason he doesn’t get along well with people.
“What makes you think I’d have time to consult you before I died? It’s generally not a choice, as you’re well aware,” Virgil responds. Roman throws his head back in a hearty laugh that from anyone else, Virgil would be sure is completely fake. But no, Roman is just like that.
“Fair enough, my knight in gloomy armor,” Roman says. “What are we working on today?”
“We aren’t working on anything. I’m doing a double check on the stage props, making sure nothing’s missing. We haven’t got that long until opening night,” Virgil says, throwing the response over his shoulder as he heads further into the wings. Roman, predictably, is not far behind him.
“Is that so? How long exactly is there?” Roman asks.
“Two weeks. Opening night is the twenty-seventh, today is the thirteenth,” Virgil calls back absently, making his way through the mess of a backstage he’s been left with. He doesn’t notice how Roman trails behind slightly at the comment.
The rest of the night goes surprisingly well. There’s nothing incredibly important missing, none of the stage props have massive portions of them that are damaged or unfinished, and most of the hand props are also complete and unbroken. Virgil walks through everything once more to double check, and then heads to the stage manager’s podium to make sure that they have the lighting cues noted. Through the whole night, he notices that Roman is being oddly quiet. Certainly not silent, but he trails off at times, or starts rambling on about stories he’s already told, which he usually never does. They make their way back to the stage, and when Roman lets out another forlorn sigh, Virgil stops in his tracks.
“Alright, what’s up with you tonight dude? You’re acting all,” Virgil flails his arms, gesturing at Roman’s bent posture, “Weird. I dunno.”
Roman wanders to center stage before responding. “I died 34 years ago today. I officially have been on earth as a ghost longer than I was alive.”
Virgil grimaces. “Oh. I, uh, didn’t know that.”
Roman chuckles, sad and empty and not at all like his normal, boisterous laugh. “There was no way for you to know. I never told you.” He sits down on the stage, legs pulled into his chest. He looks so… young, like this. Virgil sits near him, a few feet away.
“Do- do you wanna, like, talk about it?” Virgil knows he could have done that a little better, but he openly admits he’s bad at emotional conversations. He’s out of his element here, but he’s trying.
Roman seems to appreciate it, at least, because he gives Virgil a small smile. “I was supposed to be the prince in a performance of Cinderella here in 1984. We were doing our last dress rehearsal when something went wrong. Somehow, one of the lights shattered right before I got to have my dance with Cinderella. I pushed her out of the way, but… I wasn’t fast enough to save myself.” He looks down at the gash running from just below his sternum to his stomach. Virgil follows his gaze and notices, from this distance, that the wound is more jagged than he thought. He can imagine some massive piece of glass falling from the catwalk, sees Roman running to push his co-star out of the way only to be impaled. It’s… not a pleasant image.
Roman sighs, looking out into the house. “I just wish… I wish I could’ve gotten to have that dance. Maybe it’s selfish, but… I don’t know,” he trails off, letting his head fall to his knees. Virgil can’t do anything but look for a moment. He’s never seen Roman so small, so sad. He wants to do something, to help somehow, but it’s not like he could magically give him that last dance.
Unless…
“Wait right here!” Virgil shouts, then runs to the speakers. He plugs in his phone, and goes through his phone to find the track he was looking for. Thank God he didn’t delete the songs from his last show.
He runs back onto stage just as the first strains “Waltz for a Ball” began to filter through. He stops just before he runs directly into Roman and holds out a hand.
“Fair warning, I don’t know the choreo for this, so you’ll have to guide me,” he says. Roman looks from his hand to his face, and he breaks into a bright grin. Virgil can’t help but smile back.
“Worry not, I’ll be able to get us through this,” Roman says, full of his normal gravitas again. He grabs Virgil’s hand, feeling surprisingly solid, if a bit cold. Then he sweeps them into the dance.
The dance is, in all honesty, quite simple. Virgil remembers that much from when he ran sound for it at another theater a while back. There’s lots of people dancing all in unison, so of course it’s relatively simple and easy to coordinate. That doesn’t make it any easier for Virgil, who is not a talented dancer (he works backstage for a reason), and who is rapidly becoming aware of just how bright Roman’s eyes are, and that he has a splash of freckles across his nose and cheekbones, and that he’s close enough to Roman’s face to make out details on his nose and cheekbones.
Roman chuckles at some point, muttering that he’s “literally dancing on his own grave”, and that statement shocks Virgil back into a bit of reality. He’s dancing with a ghost. This isn’t some cute guy he somehow managed to flirt with, this is the ghost of a man who died decades ago, whose only source of companionship is the one person in the world who seems to be able to see him.
It doesn’t make the heat leave his cheeks, and it doesn’t slow his beating heart, but it does sit like a rock uncomfortably in his stomach.
The final strains of the song fade out, Virgil laughing as Roman says all of the lines of all of the actors in dramatic, ridiculous tones. They step away from one another slightly, Virgil’s face slightly red, Roman with a bright grin across his face.
“I… thank you for that , Virgil,” Roman says suddenly. Virgil looks up at him, and he continues. “I never actually got to do that whole dance in costume. Obviously, this isn’t exactly how I thought it would happen, but…” Roman glanced up at Virgil, his eyes flitting over Virgil’s face. “I couldn’t ask for a better dance partner.” His soft smile knocks the breath right out of Virgil’s lungs, so he can only stare for a moment. In fact, it’s his prolonged staring that makes him realize something.
“Uh, Roman? Why are you getting more see through?” Roman’s face morphs into a state of shock when he looks down at his own body, apparently also seeing the way he’s quickly fading. Then he lets out a slightly hysterical laugh.
“The last dance. That’s what was keeping me here. But you helped me resolve it, so now I can-”
“You can pass over,” Virgil finishes his sentence with not a small amount of dread. If Roman passes over, he never gets to see him again. He never gets to have long, ridiculous conversations about absolute nonsense during his long hours.
Roman gives him a sad sort of smile, like he knows exactly what Virgil is thinking, which of course he does. He seems to be able to read Virgil like a book. He reaches out and lays a gentle hand on Virgil’s cheek.
“Thank you. Not just for this last dance, but for all of the nights you kept me company. For all of the secrets you divulged to me. For all of the love you let me feel, for the first time in a very long time. I just ask one thing of you: don’t forget me, please.” By the time he finishes, he’s almost completely gone. Virgil puts his hand over Roman’s, trying to cling to his last few moments with him.
“I couldn’t forget you, even if I wanted to,” Virgil whispers. Roman leans forward, eyes closing, and brushes a soft kiss against Virgil’s lips. Before Virgil can respond, he’s gone.
He writes beautiful (and incredibly gay) sonnets in Spanish.
Loves Liszt and can play his pieces on the piano.
Died around the last decade of the 19th century.
Ah, yes, did I mention? Amazing piano player.
Did I also mention he can sing opera? Well, he can, and when Virgil listened to him singing Alfredo’s part in “Un dì, felice, eterea” from La Traviata, his knees almost went weak.
Roman does also paint, in fact, there is a misplaced painting somewhere in the mansion of a certain someone he was, tragically, quite fond of.
He met his unfortunate ending during a dinner party. Disappointed but not surprised? Actually no, more like surprised and horrified.
Roman had to marry his best-friend Genevive for the sake of propriety and to provide his family with a heir. In spite of his self-denied gayness, Roman did adore his wife, he just was not attracted to her. He was also very grateful to have her around because she was way better at finances than him and a secret badass.
He does manage to seduce Virgil by playing the piano, and pfff, he totally did not spend days practicing new pieces to find the one he played to him and perfect it. That’s just ridiculous.
His taste in interior decor is the best thing anyone will ever get. No matter what Virgil says.
Seriously, how dare he insult the curtains he chose?! The nerve.
More on the au:
Handy info
Writing: 1, 2
Some asks: 1, 2
And, of course, don’t hesitate to send me an ask if you want to know anything!!!
Creators: give a “behind the scenes” look at one of your works. This could be things that got removed or changed, the origins of ideas/details, whatever you like! (x)
For this trivia tuesday, I'm sharing the messy sketch for this comic.
I remember I was trying to fall asleep (very unsuccessfully) and as I was very new to the fandom still, I wondered if my idea for this comic was too out there/too ridiculous for a (mostly) dark and serious show, and as I stared at the ceiling, I debated whether I should go for it or not.
But I loved (and still love) Roman, and this idea wouldn't leave me alone, and while I often just write down my ideas because my memory is so bad (especially when they're wacky ideas/shower thoughts/insomniac thoughts), this time I *needed* to doodle it out. And so I turned on my xmas lights and I did. I probably started the actual comic the next day :)
