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edupunkn00b · 6 months

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A Light in the Darkness

Photo by Johanes Plenio via Unsplash. Color and tone edited.

Logan finds a light in the darkness when he needs it most. It leads to more than he ever thought possible.

WC: 2617 - Rated: G - [ AO3 ] - CW: fear, minor injury, blood mention, past major character death referenced, ghosts, happy ending Written for @houser-of-stories as part of the @tss-october-ghostwriters gift exchange for. I hope you enjoy it! I had fun writing it! -

“Keep running, freak!”

Taunting laughter filled Logan’s ears as he stumbled deeper into the dark forest. He tripped on a rock but kept his footing and continued to run. Heedless of the thorns that snagged his hair and his clothes, heedless of the cold. Heedless of the villages’ stories of the ghosts and spirits who guarded the woods.

The trees grew thicker here, wide long branches crowding out the nominal path. The prickly pines tore at his ragged sweater and threatened to snag his third-hand spectacles from his face. He stopped, yanking hard to free himself from the gnarled grip of one sharp-spined bough. The voices, his friends’ voices—former friends’ voices—grew louder and he gave one more hard pull on his sleeve. The yarn snapped and the branch took a bit of his skin in trade, but he surged forward.

Loose soles on his worn boots flapped. One caught on a tree root and he slammed down on one knee. Cold, flickering light from the mob’s lanterns shone through the trees. Logan watched their shadows loom over the thicket.

He’d lost the path.

Again scrambling upright, Logan limped forward and dove into the thick underbrush. He dodged to the left, then the right. The shadows grew shorter. The men drew closer.

A dark mass, a boulder or maybe a massive tree trunk, blocked his path. It swallowed up the dancing lantern light, a flat, empty darkness.

Whatever it was, Logan ran toward it.

Shouted swears as the mob hit the thicket echoed against the trees. “You made me rip my favorite pants, freak!” Someone shouted. The blacksmith. Perhaps the shopkeeper. Enraged, they all sounded the same.

Logan hoped to hide behind the mass, definitely now a boulder—he could just make out a bit of the grey treeline above it. As he drew nearer, though, he discovered it wasn’t merely a boulder, but a gap in the rocky foothills on either side of the forest. A cave.

Bears lived in these woods. Bats, too. Worse, if the stories were true.

Given what Logan knew about the villagers’ stories about him, though, he doubted the veracity of many of their stories.

A rock exploded against a tree only a dozen yards to his left.

“We see you!” a voice jeered as another rock struck the same tree. “Fucking tall ass freak!”

The chance of a bear beat the certainty of the mob, so Logan darted into the cave.

He slowed as soon as he passed the threshold, the utter darkness within making the forest feel brightly light. The tiniest glint of lantern light at the cave’s mouth was the sole evidence flames had ever existed. Shivering, he inched deeper into the cave, stepping toe-heel. Relief flooded his veins when the grating voices faded, the last glimmer of lamp light absorbed by the dark stillness of the dark stone. The cave was cold and dry, his own breathing roared in his ears.

He was alone. He was safe.

Fear-fueled strength waning, Logan sank down and crouched against a mostly smooth divot in the wall. Knees hugged to his chest, he worked to slow his breathing, ignoring the ache in his knee and shin for now.

For now, he just listened.

Save for several breathless moments when the men tromped past the entrance, the cave was dark and silent. Even that moment was brief and it appeared the mob gave up their pursuit.

Logan had no way of knowing how much time had passed, nor how easily sound from within the cave might spill out into the forest, but eventually the throb in his leg could no longer be ignored. Moving as slowly and quietly as he could, he stretched out his injured leg to assess the damage.

Blindly prodding, he found a gash below his kneecap and another above the edge of his boot. The rest appeared to be simple bruising. Nothing was broken, but he would need to clean the wounds so that infection wasn’t his next big problem.

Logan shivered, stifling a humorless laugh. Expulsion meant he’d never need to have that argument again. Not in this village, at least. He shifted again and a warm trickle down his leg told him his current big problem was blood loss.

Feeling around the cave floor turned up little more than a few dried leaves and pebbles. He raised a handful of the tiny dried bits to his nose. Yarrow. He stretched to gather more, then ripped his pant leg from ankle to knee. Wincing, he pressed as much of the dried yarrow over his wounds as he could stand. It wasn’t perfect, but was better than continuing to bleed.

He let his head fall back against the wall with a little thud and a sigh. Eyes squeezed shut, he shoved away the pain to consider his next steps.

It was possible the mob would simply wait him out at the edge of the forest, counting on hunger or the cold to drive him back to the village. Even if they hadn’t torched his home, return was not an option.

Under cover of darkness, this little cave was a sanctuary, but in the harsh dawn’s light, it could quickly become a cage. Though tempted to rest for a few hours before heading out in search of a more permanent safe space, Logan was self-aware enough to admit that, in this weakened state, there was little guarantee he’d actually wake before dawn. The fear of waking to the raucous voices of the mob, their lanterns in his face, shook him from his drowsiness, the imagined gleam of their torchlight snapping open his eyes.

The light, however, had not been imagined.

An arm’s reach away, just above eye level, floated a glimmery ball of light. It shone a soft blue, the color of the sky at mid-day. The color of his late father’s eyes.

The color of hope.

Logan stared at the light for a long moment before shaking himself. Was he dreaming? Pushing up to his feet, a groan escaped his lips at the jolt of pain in his leg. The light flickered, then rose, again just above his eyes.

Fuzzy memory brushed at his mind, an old story his father read to him before (and well after) he could read for himself. Mythical fables of tiny lights that would guide the hopeful, the virtuous, the hurt and the needy home.

“You know I can’t return to my home,” he said aloud to the little light. Sharp laughter edged his voice, shame at his own foolishness. He’d been homeless for far longer than when this village, too, turned on him for his strangeness. Alone in a cave and talking to an imagined ball of light, could he blame them?

Almost in response, the light shifted and a second light sprung to life a few feet from the first.

Instead of leading him toward the mouth of the cave and back out to the forest, it drew him deeper inside. Logan blinked at it. Did he really have anything to lose?

He stepped forward and the first light rushed forward, dancing around his head. “Alright, alright,” he chuckled, the bright blue light impossibly warm and cheery and filling him with… more optimism than he’d felt in a long, long, time. A third light sparked to life and he nodded. “It appears you have a plan,” he muttered. “Just—” he gasped when he stepped and put his full weight on his injured leg. “Just go slow,” he managed, one hand on the cave wall for support. “Please,” he added and the little light bobbed, like a nod, before drifting deeper into the cave.

Well after Logan had expected to hit the back of the cave, the lights continued, leapfrogging ahead each time he drew near enough to touch the closest light. One halting step at a time, he followed. When he stumbled, a fourth and fifth light sparked on either side of him, sharing their strange warmth.

“Thank you,” he murmured and let them guide him. Logan didn’t know how long they’d meandered through the cave and a high-pitched laugh bubbled up from the back of his throat at the image of himself limping in circles in the back of a dark cavern. Not long after that, the wall seemed to fall away, starlight and the thin pink light of dawn glowing beyond.

He managed one more step before falling forward. Logan was already wrapped in a dark blanket of unconsciousness when the lights caught him and laid him gently on the ground.

“Ohh, Jannie!” The familiar sing-song followed by an emerald glow at the edges of his vision was Janus’ only warning before Remus appeared in front of him. Shoulders shimmying, he levitated, one leg crossed over the other, a few inches above the wooden table where Janus prepared both meals and potions. The brilliant green of his eyes over-illuminated the grimoire in its stand as he stared expectantly at Janus. The apparition pouted when Janus didn’t look up. “It looks like Pattycake found another one! Out by the Gate.”

“Hm, really?” Janus graced him with a single eyebrow raise before returning to his work. It wouldn’t’ve been the first false alarm—or outright prank—the spirits in his charge had brought to him. He finished his current sentence before pulling the ink closer to the page.

“Yes, really!” Remus huffed and the lid to Janus’ inkwell popped into place, blocking his quill. “Pattycake says this one’s important, too.”

Full attention drawn, Janus laid down his quill and met Remus’ translucent eyes. “Important?” he murmured.

“Mm-hm… Important and alive, just like you.” Remus’ grin didn’t last. When he dissolved only to reappear next to the cottage door, his eyes were serious. “But maybe not for long.”

“I’ll get my bag.”

By the time Janus had gathered his bag and his cloak and pulled the heavy wooden door shut behind him, Remus had already found Virgil. The pair were exchanging their typical morning greetings, cat’s claws buried in the thick bark of his oldest alderwood. His hiss cut short the moment Janus appeared and started down the path.

Virgil shifted and leapt from the branch to join him, eyes drawn to the medicine bag in his hand. “You’re not headed to the village, are you? Things are… tense down there.”

“That says a lot coming from our resident scaredy cat,” Remus laughed, not bothering to corporate.

“Tense?” Janus asked, ignoring the friendly barbs. "How so?”

Giving Remus nothing more than an eye roll in response, Virgil shrugged at the witch. “The usual ‘you’re not like us so you have to die bullsh—”

As though summoned by the curse, one of Patton’s will o’ the wisps blipped in front of him and Virgil nodded. “Sorry, Pat.”

Shaking his head at the predictable antics, he pointed down the path from his cottage. “Is he still down by the gate?”

In answer, the will o’ the wisp buzzed half-way down the path before pausing. Janus would need to wait until they were all back in the cottage before Patton could speak to him, but for now, the dual message was clear.

“Yes, and hurry up!”

Logan dreamt. He was a child again, small enough to comfortably curl up in a nest of blankets in front of the hearth. He watched as his father stirred the big iron pot, metal ladle clanging gently against the sides. The pot bubbled, full of a broth or stew or perhaps even the dumpling soup he liked… whatever it was, it smelled wonderful.

The fire crackled gently in the fireplace, close enough to warm him, far enough that he had no fear of sparks. His father had always known just how close to let him settle in. The blankets were thick and soft, softer than in his memory, even. They smelled of sage and lavender and black pepper. A tiny black cat curled near his leg, purring gently.

His father hummed as he cooked, an old lullaby he used to sing when Logan was feverish or had woken from a nightmare. He smiled as he dropped a handful of herbs into the simmering water, the fragrant smoke wafting through his shimmering blue hair.

Eyes wide, Logan sat up. “Papa?” Rough and cracking, his voice was low. The voice of a man, not that of a little boy. Hands shaking, he reached up and felt his own face. Two-days worth of stubble scratched his palms, and his fingers were rough and calloused. But he couldn’t deny the evidence of his other senses. “Papa, is that you?”

“Logie…” His father turned and before Logan could blink, was at his side. He smiled, bright and bold, his front cuspid cracked, just like Logan remembered. His entire form was edged in a faint blue, the same shade as the lights Logan had seen in the cave, he held his hand. Wrapped firmly around his, his father’s hand was warm and tingly, sending the hair on his knuckles and his arm on end. “Of course it’s me, Logie,” he murmured in the voice Logan thought he’d never hear again.

“Papa,” Logan clung to him, eyes squeezed shut. He felt real. He felt warm and safe. Familiar broad shoulders, big, fleshy muscles, thick curls tickling Logan’s cheek.

He felt like home.

“Papa, the town, they—” Tears choked out the rest of his words and he cried hot, shameful tears. “I—̛I was alone. I couldn’t fend them off, I—”

“You’re safe, now, Logie,” his father whispered. “You’re not alone anymore. You’re safe here.”

“But you’re—” He couldn’t force the word past his tight throat. “I buried you, Papa,” he finally managed to whisper, squeezing the hand in his.

“I know. And you were so strong.” His father’s hand cupping his cheek, Logan melted against it, just like he would when he was nothing more than a child. “It’s really me, Logie. Just… just a little different now.”

“But…” It was impossible. His father had… “But how?”

His father’s eyes shifted and Logan turned to follow his gaze. A man, a plain, ordinary man stood in the corner. He wore a heavy black cloak, his face half-hidden in shadow. A crooked smile fought its way to the light, the flicker of the fireplace giving him an animated expression. “Logie, I’d like you to meet my friend, Janus.”

The man stepped forward, hand outstretched. He quickly flipped it over, palm up, but not before Logan caught sight of the runes tattooed across the back of his hand.

Before he could think better of questioning the hospitality of the man his father described as a friend, Logan blurted out, “You’re a witch?”

“You got a problem with wiccans, Stretch?” A cloud of green formed inches from his face, molding before him into a wild pair of eyes above a manic grin.

“Smooth, Remus,” spat the cat by his shin and Logan’s eyes whipped back to it and stared.

“Y—you speak?”

The cat stretched and kneaded the floor, claws carefully tucked inside its paws. Logan blinked and a young man dressed head to toe in black wool suddenly sat hunched in the cat’s spot. “Of course I speak.” His smirk and the dark eyes flashing warmly heavy bangs belied the otherwise hard tone. “Don’t you?”

“Oh, Kiddo…” His father squeezed his hand and nodded to the witch. They both watched as he filled three bowls with dumpling soup. Stunned, Logan leaned against his father and accepted the first bowl.

“Eat up, Logan,” the witch murmured with another half smile as he passed a bowl to the man-cat, cat-man… Whatever it was. “We have a lot to explain.”

#Light in the Darkness #ts logan #ts janus #ts patton #ts remus #ts virgil #tall!Logan #witch!janus #ghost!remus #other tags are spoilers #sanders sides #sanders sides fanfiction #magic au #logan sanders #patton sanders #janus sanders #remus sanders #virgil sanders

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thatonelesbianfander · 3 months

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Honestly, at the pace I’m writing these chapters for The Ghost and the Reaper AU I’m probably going to finish writing this fic by the end of the week. I might end up switching the chapter posting to daily if I finish the fic early

#thatonelesbianfander #sanders sides #thomas sanders #thatsthat24 #tss #sasi #the ghost and the reaper au #sanders sides au #sanders sides fanfiction #remus sanders #roman sanders #virgil sanders #janus sanders #patton sanders #logan sanders #c!thomas sanders #c!thomas

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annaizscribbling · 8 months

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Janus, from The Only Ghost I Know is Me

I want to lick his design. Can't explain it just think it would taste like citrus and electricity

#the Only Ghost I Know is Me #janus sanders #ao3 #sander sides #sasi #thomas sanders

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wolfprincesszola · 6 months

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The Fate of the Marked Six Masterlist

Summary: Virgil moves into a new town and meets Roman, a ghost that he promises to help in finding the unfinished business needed to pass over. However, Roman's past seemed to be deeply muddled with trouble, an uncurable disease that has started to affect a classmate, and a certain tight-lipped valedictorian. Friendships are made and Virgil finds himself thrown into a situation far more complicated and twisted than he signed up. Hopefully, with the help of his new five friends, he can find a way to bring peace to the town once and for all.

Pairings: Logan/Patton (Logicality), Roman/Virgil (Prinxiety), Remus/Janus (Dukeceit)

Word Count: 85,082

UPDATES EVERY WEDNESDAYS!

Read it at archiveofourown (click the underlined)!

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menacetheinconvenence · 2 years

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Remus shenanigans

#thomas sanders #sandersides #sander sides art #remus sanders #sander sides #janus sanders #ghost

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ghostkids-comic · 2 years

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Finally I have references for all of them

Edit: there is a mistake with Remus’s death date. He died in 2000 not 2005, in the same car crash as Roman which is why they are fused

#ghost kids au #logan sanders #sanders sides #virgil sanders #patton sanders #remus sanders #roman sanders #janus sanders #media.warning.deathmention

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ashs-random-writing · 2 years

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A Haunted Home

~~~~~

Virgil had been in the house for a few years. Of course he had, he had died there, he couldn't leave. What he really didn't like was people in his house. He would do quite a lot to get them out, but one thing he would not do was hurt them. He wasn't a monster.

Patton, Logan and Roman were just looking for a nice new house to live in, but they found a new-ish mansion-sized house that came with a friend. Of course, they moved in

~~~~~

Virgil floated aimlessly as the fifth group that month was touring his house to buy. He didn’t really care anymore, most didn’t buy it, and even if they did, he could just scare them out.

Might as well start early, he supposed, starting to mess with things in the room the humans were about to tour, which happened to be the kitchen. He picked up some of the knives from a drawer, wondering how easy it would be to spontaneously start practicing knife throwing. It wasn’t like he could get hurt..

He put the knives down, concluding that he might hurt someone living. He may not want them in his house, but he wouldn’t hurt them. He started looking through the cabinets for something, only finding pots and pans. He sighed

“I guess these’d work” he mused to himself quietly, starting to bang them together and throw them around. He heard the real estate agent sigh loudly from the next room

“Pay no mind to those noises, it’s nothing really” They stated, pretty convincingly

The real estate agents had figured out that the place was haunted pretty early on, so Virgil had lots of fun messing with them whilst they were looking through the house, or showing people around. They weren’t too bad, really

When Virgil was alive, he had built a fake wall into the house, to make it easier to not get murdered in his sleep, so his bedroom was pretty well hidden. The real estate agents found it and left it alone, not wanting to upset the ghost. Virgil was happy for that, it wouldn’t feel like home if his room was gone. He needed his things. Different was always bad.

And, the agents never showed it to potential buyers, which Virgil was sure could get them fired if their higher-ups ever found out, so he was grateful for that. It was still fun to mess with them, but never the same extent that he did to people who tried to get him out, or perform an exorcism or something

The exorcisms had never worked of course, but they were still unpleasant and annoying.

He zoned back in to listen to the humans question the noise again

“It’s just the ghost, don’t worry. He tends to try chase people away, but it’s mostly just throwing things at walls like a toddler” The last part was louder than the rest of it, obviously aimed to lightly insult him, before continuing “All the people who have lived here only move because they’re freaked out, he never hurts anyone, so you’d be safe, don't worry”

He rolled his eyes, sent them the middle finger, and threw one more pan at the wall before floating off to his room. He could still hear the humans-

He paused his thinking for a second, instead mulling over the fact that his brain kept referring to them as ‘the humans’. Was he not human anymore? His subconscious didn’t seem to think so. He could barely remember what solidity felt like.. He never really felt human to begin with, honestly, so it wasn’t that much of a change

Virgil shook his head, returning to his thought. He could still hear them in the other room, conversing, mostly about him. The real estate agent (Jamie, he remembered) had gone into the kitchen to clean up the mess he had made.

Virgil listened to the humans conversation idly, chuckling at one of their insistences that ghosts weren’t real

There were three humans in total touring the house, each of them being very different from each other. The one who was denying seemed extremely serious, for no particular reason, almost reminding Virgil of his old teacher. The next was rather loud and kept making Disney references, to the point that Virgil had started mentally calling him Princey, and claiming that there couldn’t be a ghost because ‘Ghosts are evil, except for Moana’s grandmother’

Virgil rolled his eyes at that one, still listening to them through the wall

The third seemed rather cheerful, almost too cheerful for Virgil’s tastes. He kept saying how “if there is a ghost, it’s like the house comes with a friend! Besides, I’m just dying to meet them”

He could almost imagine the sunny grin on his face when he said that, and he heard one of the other two humans groan at the pun. Virgil laughed

“Patton, was there really any need to make a pun for the supposed ghost? We’re the only ones who would be living here if we bought the house, you wouldn’t be meeting anyone except maybe a few neighbours”

Virgil rolled his eyes for what felt like the millionth time, still laughing

“Come on, Lo, I know you don’t like puns, but hearing a few ghost puns won’t.. kill.. you” Another groan was heard behind two people’s laughter

“Besides, how do you explain what happened earlier if there’s no ghost?” ‘Patton’ asked

The serious one sighed “Perhaps something simply fell out of a cabinet and Jamie made something up to make the house seem more interesting? Regardless, I do think it would be a good investment to buy this house, it is large enough for all of us to live comfortably, and still is in budget” Virgil froze at that, they were gonna buy the house?

He needed to start planning how to chase them away right that very second. He liked living alone, and these humans seemed interesting now, but Virgil knew they’d hate him after a while. They all did eventually, even when he was living

He wasn’t the type to talk a lot, or look people in the eyes, but he was good at listening, contrary to what people believed, and he stored everything he was told in the back of his mind for future reference, but everyone always left

He couldn’t get attached to these humans, they were gonna hate him and leave, so he should save them the effort and make them leave immediately.

He stayed in his room a while until they left, only coming out when he was sure the only person still there was Jamie

Jamie was sat in the kitchen on her phone, and laughing quietly at some video. Virgil decided he should probably apologise for causing a mess and throwing stuff around.

He couldn’t exactly talk to them, so maybe just giving them something would work. He had a small rock collection in his room, and he had seen Jamie looking at them sometimes, and he figured that she would appreciate one of them.

He picked up one of them, shaped vaguely like a dinosaur of some kind, before floating out of his room to give it to the human. He held it out to them, and they smiled

“Is this for me?” He held it out more persistently and she took it, grinning.

“Thank you, it’s very cool. Is this because of earlier?” They held it to their chest whilst asking. Virgil didn’t know how to respond, so he just stayed floating there for a while, until Jamie eventually left

---

Logan looked back at the house as he and his friends drove away, thinking. He definitely did not believe the talk of a supposed ‘ghost’, noises be damned, but the house was interesting, and a reasonable price.

He watched the road ahead steadily, as the others conversed about how fun the house would be once they bought it, and how they would decorate it. Logan pitched in on a few points, mainly how he would decorate his space, and mentioning how nonsensical it was to argue about who gets what room in a house that they might not even buy.

He rolled his eyes fondly, before opening his book from the backseat of their car. Soon, they arrived at their current apartment, which was much too cramped to fit them all comfortably, hence why they were house hunting.

They had been saving up for quite a while, so it was quite a relief to find a nice house that was actually in budget for once. It was a few weeks later when they actually managed to buy it, and a few weeks after that when they managed to finish moving in.

He started moving his things into his room, listening to Roman and Patton’s Disney discussions. Once he had gotten every piece of furniture in place, he started organizing his books on his shelf, and getting his better stuff in place. Once he had everything perfectly placed, he went into the kitchen area to help Roman and Patton with the food, which was a lot easier when there was more room to move around then a tiny room in a tiny apartment.

After they’d all eaten, a few hours later, they all went back to their respective rooms, until a loud shriek sounded from Roman. Logan and Patton both went to investigate, only to find all of the louder man’s Disney merchandise strewn about the room as if it had been thrown (which, of course, it had not been, Roman would never do such a thing and ghosts didn’t exist).

“That damn ghost! He couldn’t just leave my precious Disney stuff alone, could he?” Roman crossed his arms, glaring at one of his many figurines on the floor

Logan sighed “Roman, is it not at all possible that they merely fell off of the shelf? I have already explained the statistical improbability of a ghost residing here”

Roman glared at him “Oh, yes, because all of my Disney stuff, and only my Disney stuff, would just randomly fall and end up on the complete opposite side of the room, how is that more logical than a ghost?” He looked away angrily, starting to pick up the fallen figures (because, yes, they merely fell, there was not a ghost, Logan thought to himself)

Logan and Patton both started helping and it took, at most, two minutes to put everything in the correct places, but Roman still seemed unhappy

“Something’s missing..” He looked over the figures slowly. Suddenly, he gasped

“My Jack Skellington figure! He must’ve taken it! I was right, ghosts are evil!” he pouted

Logan rolled his eyes, the figurine had likely just rolled under a bed or dressing table. The imaginary ghost wouldn’t have taken it, anyway. He walked back to his own room, only to find that whilst he and Patton were helping Roman, someone had thrown all of his stuff all over the room

He took a deep breath, his things had merely fallen. He looked around and- there! The window was open. A perfectly logical answer to his conundrum. Ghosts didn’t exist, so he needed to reason away from them and towards logic

His room’s door slammed shut and locked. It was fine, just the wind, that he… couldn’t feel at all…

He attempted to pull the latch on the door, but instead of being the easy feat it was an hour ago, it now felt as though someone was holding it shut, which, of course, was preposterous, no one but him was in his room, and the latch could not be touched or even seen from the outside

He eventually managed to open it, and leave, only to reconsider his stance on ghosts. Perhaps… maybe.. ghosts could exist. Theoretically.

---

Virgil found it hilarious how easy it was to annoy these humans. The loud one, Roman, had so much Disney stuff, and it was too easy to make a mess in there. Besides, the dude had a pretty cool Nightmare Before Christmas figurine that Virgil decided would look amazing underneath his posters.

Despite everything, the more serious one still denied that Virgil existed, so he decided that a little prank whilst he was helping Roman sort his stuff out was a little necessity

He had seen him painstakingly place each and every thing to perfection, and decided that that’s where he’d start. He threw everything quietly, before waiting for the nerd to reappear.

When Logan arrived, he looked around quickly, before his eyes settled on the window and he nodded to himself. Virgil groaned, he had spent a while on that, so to have it written off as the wind was pretty annoying

He slammed the door loudly and closed the latch

“Good luck blaming that on the wind, nerd” he glared at Logan, as the latter turned around warily, looking a little bit shaken

He walked closer and tried the latch, which Virgil was holding shut, laughing to himself. He shivered slightly as the human’s hand went through his when he was messing with the mechanism

Eventually, Virgil let go, watching as Logan walked through and started breathing mildly more intensely than when he was inside. Virgil closed the door behind him and closed the latch once again, before floating down to his own room and fixing his Nightmare Before Christmas display and his new addition.

It didn’t bother him very much that the figure was technically stolen, it wasn’t the first time he had illegally acquired a new item. Most of the time when that happened it was when he was more down on his luck, needing to.. borrow.. food and drinks from a store, but Karma seemed to think that was bad enough to punish him

He had gotten a large inheritance from his great uncle, and had managed to buy a big-ish house, get a fake wall built in, before the burglar arrived.

He was binging some Netflix show on his couch, in the middle of the night, and the robber probably assumed he’d be asleep. He probably should’ve been, maybe then he wouldn’t still be floating around. The thief might’ve not found him, might’ve assumed he wasn’t home and left with just some stuff, not his body. He had watched the body be carried out, presumably to the river half a mile south

His murder was never solved as far as he knew, so that could explain why he was still here, floating around and just annoying everyone. He sighed, looking around his room, specifically at the signs of no one living there

He looked at the cobwebs that had shown up just about everywhere, the spiders that lived in them, the thick layers of dust that was settled over most of his belongings, apart from his new figurine.

He could hear the voices of the humans conversing directly above him, and he rolled his eyes, starting to reread one of his few books. He knew what was going to happen in it, so it was comforting. He had annotated it when he was alive so he would find it more amusing on future reads. Now, it surely helped him not go insane at least, but it had gotten pretty boring pretty quickly

He started listening to the noise above him, what the humans were discussing. He decided that they were probably discussing the door he had locked from the inside, if the declarations of being correct from Roman was any indication. Patton had started trying to mediate the situation, trying to stop the bubbling argument between them. Virgil felt tempted to go up there and stop it himself, they were getting annoying, how did Patton put up with that? Hell, how did any of them live with each other if this was how often they argued?

He acted on the temptation with minimal hesitation, throwing a small object at the wall between the humans

Patton reached out to catch it, fumbling with it a bit, before dropping it, albeit gentler than Virgil did

“Hey, uh, Ghost, could you not throw that, please? It’s made of glass, and pretty fragile, so, uh.. Anyway, I’m Patton, what’s your name?” Patton asked, usual sunny grin on his face. Virgil kinda felt bad that he couldn’t answer in a way that Patton could hear.

He answered anyway, just so he could say he tried

“Virgil.. My name’s Virgil”

Quite predictably, they didn’t hear him. He frowned, he had kinda wanted that to work.. He shook his head rapidly. No, he didn’t want that to work, he wanted the humans to leave, he didn’t want to be their friend. Not when he knew they’d have to leave him at some point. Ghosts were eternal, humans were not

Patton’s grin dimmed slightly at the perceived silence

“Are you still there? If you are, would you be able to hold something, so we’ll know?” Virgil nodded, mostly to himself, picking up another small object

Before Patton could reply, Roman jumped in, pointing at his general direction

“Aha, fiend! Tell me where you’ve taken my figure!” Virgil rolled his eyes and threw the thing in his hand at him. Roman gasped in offence, as Virgil started floating away

He went down to his room, going back to his book boredly. The nerd had some pretty cool looking books, maybe he could take one of them. Virgil sighed to himself, deciding that everything would just be miserable for eternity if this was what got him excited. He didn’t know how it wouldn’t be.

He could still hear them talking but he stopped listening. Let them talk, he thought, let them talk about him, he couldn’t stop it either way. They weren’t arguing this time, so he just concentrated on reading again. He got bored pretty quickly and started concentrating on his ghost abilities a little bit more.

If he really concentrated he could keep a visible form, but not well. He could be seen, but he was still mostly invisible, you’d still be able to see the wall behind him before you’d notice him, really. He looked at himself in the mirror sadly, specifically the blood covering his chest. He wondered what he would be doing if he hadn’t died. Probably binging Netflix again, honestly. He could hear the humans again, this time a little closer than before.

Virgil, once again, paid it no mind, instead going into what he called ‘ghost sleep mode’

It wasn’t really sleeping, it was more disappearing from the plane of existence he was currently on for a few hours, and replaying memories from life, the happiest ones specifically. There wasn’t really a lot to play for him, he hadn’t had a very happy life

He was shown bits and pieces from childhood, that time a nice old woman paid for all his groceries when his card declined, the time he bought his house. When he started decorating his room, the first time his hair was cut short, the time the neighbour’s kids invited him to play with them, memories of his old friends before they left him, fractions of bittersweet memories.

It was a while before he reformed in the living world, and as usual he was accompanied by a small flash of light. He rubbed at his eyes, and looked at the clock. He’d been in the in-between for five hours just about, making it 11:30 pm.

The humans should be asleep by then, right? Well, maybe not Logan, since Virgil had locked him out of his room, but the others probably were. Maybe. He wasn’t really one to judge other people’s sleeping habits, since his own messed up one was what had gotten him killed in the first place

He floated up to where their bedrooms were, checking on them, making sure they were safe. He didn’t like them, but for now, they were sorta like guests, so he had to keep them safe. Logan was asleep next to his door, and Virgil finally gave in, unlocking the door for him. Logan needed to sleep in his bed, if he didn’t then Virgil would be worrying that what happened to him would become a shared experience

The door swung open, but Logan still didn’t stir from his sleep. Virgil looked at him a while before sighing and grabbing the back of his shirt and dragging him towards his bed. If that’s what it took to make them be a little bit more safe, then sure, he’d do it

Logan finally woke up, starting to struggle against his grip. Virgil let go, dropping him unceremoniously on the floor

Logan looked around a bit, before talking quietly “Were you- were you trying to make me go to bed?”

Virgil would be blushing in embarrassment if he had any moving blood, but instead, he threw something at the human and flew back to his bedroom as quickly as possible. He buried his face in his hands

He didn’t care about the humans, he wanted them to leave, he didn’t care about them. He didn’t care for them, he couldn’t care for them. He- he just couldn’t. They’d leave, they’d move out, they’d hate him, if they died, they wouldn’t be ghosts with him, they would just die, they’d go to the afterlife and he wouldn’t be able to follow. No matter what, they’d leave him eventually.

---

Patton didn’t really know what to think of the ghost, really. He seemed to keep to himself a lot, only throwing stuff around, just like Jamie had said.

He seemed to have calmed down after a while. Patton noticed that he left them alone for a while until they started arguing, which was when he showed up. When Patton had tried talking to him, he had seemed content to chill until Roman provoked him..

He went to sleep with these thoughts in mind.

It wasn’t long ‘til he woke up. He went down to the kitchen groggily, intent on fixing up some breakfast for everyone. A few minutes after his first batch of pancakes, Logan walked in, looking a bit bewildered

“The ghost was trying to drag me into my bed last night” was the first thing he said

Patton looked up “Uh, could you explain that more, Logan? What do you mean”

Logan looked at him with wide eyes, seemingly trying to also make sense of what happened “well, the ghost had locked my door, as you know, so I had fallen asleep on the corridor next to my room, but I woke up to something invisible dragging me into my room, towards my bed. I asked the ghost if that’s what he was doing, but he just threw something at me. I- I think he might’ve been embarrassed..” Logan sat at the table as he was given a plate of pancakes and some jam

Patton thought for a moment “Well, let’s be glad that he’s such a thoughtful ghost and not an ‘I’m gonna make the walls bleed and stuff’ type ghost”

Roman soon came bounding down the stairs with all the energy of a toddler on a sugar high

“Good morning, Patton, Nerd” He nodded to them happily, grabbing a plate of pancakes and sitting diagonal to Logan at the table, “I am happy to report that the ghost was not tormenting me or committing thievery against me last night!” he exclaimed loudly

Patton smiled “That’s great, kiddo! Logan says that the ghost was trying to drag him into his bed last night when he was sleeping in the corridor, so I think he might not be as bad as you seem to think,” He smiled, making more pancakes

Roman scoffed “For nefarious, evil purposes probably” He mumbled, crossing his arms and looking away

“Name one ‘nefarious and evil’ thing that he could’ve been doing that for” Logan countered

“Uh, he could’ve been trying to get you in another room so he could make a ginormous mess” Roman stated matter-of-factly, a smug look adorning his face

Patton spoke up “Well, that doesn’t seem to be the case, does it? He’s not done anything when he’s been left alone, so I personally don’t think he’s all that bad” he shrugged, sitting down with his pancakes

Roman scoffed “He stole from me!”

Logan shook his head “You don’t have any proof of that, besides, even if he did, he only took one small figurine, that hardly qualifies as robbery”

“One small figurine that I bought! And he just took it!” Roman crossed his arms, glaring at his nearly empty plate

“Well, we are living in his house, so its kinda fair” Patton pointed out, trying to stop the argument that was brewing.

Roman simply stormed off, muttering angrily to himself, and Logan shook his head, making a comment about ‘childish behaviour’. Patton didn’t really hear what was being said, he was too busy feeling guilty. He didn’t want to make Roman upset..

He walked upstairs to his room, almost in a trance, before collapsing into the bed, crying. He just had to get involved in the argument, didn’t he? He couldn’t leave it alone, could he? He felt a small chill go through him, but he paid it no mind, instead just hugging a stuffed cat to his chest as tight as humanly possible

He wiped his eyes, or tried to at least. He should’ve been happy, they had a new house, his own room, he should’ve been happy, not upset. He could feel someone looking at him, but he hadn’t heard the door open. He turned around warily, only to see a floating stuffed bat that he had never seen before

The ghost, he realised suddenly. He looked at the plushie for a few moments before asking “Is that for me?”

The plushie was set on his bed next to him, as a paper and pen started writing with what seemed like no one holding them. He read the note that was handed to him and started smiling

‘its for you, her name is Trylla, take good care of her and please don’t be sad

-V’

The rest of the name was scribbled out, but Patton didn’t mind. If he didn’t want to share his name he didn’t have to

“Thank you, Vee, she’s very cute, I love her!” he hugged Trylla to his chest protectively. Another thought popped into his head

“Oh! Uh, Roman is pretty convinced that you took something from him, so, um, if you did, would you be able to give it back? He’s really upset about it” There was no response, but he decided to hope that the ghost was listening

He started re-watching one of his comfort shows on Netflix, still hugging the bat to his chest. A few episodes later, Roman came bursting in, figurine in hand

“Patton, look! The ghost returned my figure! This proves that he took it” he had a smug look on his face, and Patton sighed

“Yes, but it also proves that he was nice enough to return it when I asked him, and look, he gave me something. I think you’re wrong about him, honestly. He doesn’t seem very evil to me” He held up the purple bat to him as proof, before hugging it again

Roman rolled his eyes “Fine, I guess I can admit he’s not too bad, but you gotta admit, it’s pretty interesting. Where is his storage space? All the rooms were cleaned out, so where did he get that bat thing? Where did he take my figure? I think we should try find it” Roman seemed to be getting excited at the idea

Patton was less excited “Wouldn’t that be an invasion of privacy?”

“It would be an adventure, that’s what it would be! Besides, we own the house, not him, we can go wherever we want”

Patton frowned slightly, he didn’t quite know why invading someone’s privacy would be an adventure, but there was lots that he didn’t know, so he kept quiet

---

Virgil was panicking. Why’d he have to do that? If he hadn’t of given that stuffed animal to Patton, he wouldn’t have given Roman his figure back, meaning that they wouldn’t get the idea to try find his room

What was he supposed to do, though? He saw one of the humans crying, he gave them a stuffed animal, simple, right? Wrong. Apparently, he couldn’t do anything nice for the people he was letting stay in his house, without them deciding to try find the one place in the house that still felt like it was his.

Of course.

In his panic, he couldn’t even work up the energy to make himself tangible enough to throw something at Roman, instead floating down to his room and sitting on his bed. How bad would it actually be if they found him? He was foolish to believe his space would last long, but he was still reluctant to imagine that they could take it from him.

If he was able to touch breathing things, he could probably push them out, fight them, but he couldn’t. He could touch their clothes, but even that took more effort than other things. He grabbed a comfort item and held it to his chest as tightly as possible.

It wasn’t the same as when he was living, instead of him feeling its warmth, it was hard for him to even work up the strength to feel it at all. He cried into it, like he had countless times in life. It still wasn’t the same, his tears evaporated when they touched things that were solid.

It was one of the reasons he gave Patton his stuffed toy, Patton could use it more, it wouldn’t be different for him. That turned on him though, the humans were trying to find his safe space, and they would probably take it from him.

He gave up. They were gonna find it eventually, there was nothing he could do, instead he started ‘sleeping’, waiting for the inevitable to happen.

It showed the usual stream of happiness for a few hours, but this time, along with living memories, it showed him giving Trylla to Patton and watching the other’s face light up. He teared up at that. He really didn’t hate these humans, which made it all the worse for him. What was he going to do when they left him?

After a few minutes of crying in the in-between as the memories ended, he was shoved back into his room. The humans were gathered there already it seemed. They immediately looked in his direction at the flash of light, and he uncurled from the foetal position that he always spawned in.

He knew that he would be visible for a few moments, before fading, but he just stared at them, feeling oddly hurt at them invading his space. God, why did he have to go and get attached to people so easily?

They stared back at him, seeming almost in shock. Virgil could feel himself fading, and he glared at them in his final visible moments, before going to sit on his bed, facing away from them. He didn’t want to look at them in that moment, he knew that this would happen, but still, it felt like a betrayal coming from them.

He could hear the sound of hushed whispering, but he couldn’t make out the words. He thought about how easy it would be to go and listen in without them noticing, but he decided against it. He wasn’t rude enough to invade someone else’s privacy.

He looked back at them sadly, before curling in on himself slightly. They were all friends, they cared about each other, and they just took Roman’s suggestion straight away. It just showed that they didn’t care about him. He cared enough about them to try keep them safe and happy, but they were just wandering into his safe space with what seemed like no remorse

He grabbed a stuffed spider and made himself as touchable as possible, to try replicate the feeling of warmth cuddling it gave him when he was alive. It wasn’t the best, but it was all he could do.

One of the humans cleared his throat, and Virgil looked back at them

“Um, Virgil?” He stiffened at that, putting the spider on the bed next to him

How-

“If you’re wondering how we found your name, its in the front of most of your books” Virgil scoffed, picking up a book looking at the inside of the cover (which, as expected, had his full name written out: Virgil Pierce. He ignored the scribble of a previous name of his) before throwing it at the human that had spoken, Logan.

So they weren’t just going into his room without permission, they were looking through his stuff as well. Good to know.

Logan looked down at the book, before looking in Virgil’s general direction

“What was that for?”

He didn’t bother responding, they couldn’t hear him, so he should just save his non-existent breath for something else. Besides, they should be able to figure out why he was upset, it was pretty obvious.

More whispering was heard, but this time he could make out some words. An uneasy feeling spread through his chest. They obviously didn’t want him to hear them, but would it really be so wrong to listen in? He sighed, deciding to take the moral high road, if only to help his chances to get into heaven if he ever passed through the in-between, to the other side.

Roman cleared his throat a few minutes later, looking around the room, presumably for Virgil

“Um, we’re-” Logan nudged him, staring pointedly, which made Virgil laugh a little. They were treating this like siblings having to apologise to their parents after a fight

“Fine, *I’m* sorry for invading your privacy without permission, and for dragging these two into it as well,” He turned to look at the other two, seeming like he was annoyed “There, I apologised, happy?”

Virgil fully laughed out loud at that, before covering his mouth. He didn’t quite know why, they couldn’t hear him either way, but its what he always did when he was alive.

He watched Patton press on for more of the apology

“Fine, I’m sorry for calling you evil and creepy, but in my defence, you did steal from me” Roman pointed a finger at where Virgil was floating, getting just a bit off

Virgil rolled his eyes once more, grabbing some scrap paper and a pen from his desk

‘youre in my house, i can do what i want. now get out of my room’

He passed the paper to them, and retreated back to his bed, still watching them. The whispering started up again, this time only a few seconds, before they nodded

Patton smiled at him “That’s fine, we can go. You have a really cool name by the way!”

The humans left, closing the door behind them, and Virgil felt a swell of pride grow in his chest at the compliment. That was one of the first times people had complimented his name and not called it weird.

He pushed it down, he would rather not have anything growing in his chest other than a new set of unpunctured lungs, thank you very much, especially not affection for the people who were invading his privacy and living in his house.

He gave a sigh, running a hand over his face. It was gonna be very hard on him when they eventually left. He stayed in his room for a few more hours, until it was past late night and into the early early hours of the morning, one am to be precise.

He went to check on the humans, knowing that it was very likely that they’d be asleep, but he needed to know for sure.

He was about to float to their bedrooms, but instead heard the sound of talking and the Netflix opening sound coming from the living room. He froze. They needed to go to bed, he needed them to go to bed. He didn’t want them to die..

He flew into the room as quickly as possible, before seeing a pillow fort built out of the couch, and feeling breath that he didn’t have catch in his throat. Everything was just like the night it had happened.

He sunk to the ground, wrapped in his memories. Hearing the kitchen window smash, being too afraid to even move. Making eye contact with the robber and feeling the cold metal of a gun being pressed to his chest. It all had happened so fast, he had woken up to the sight of his body being dragged outside and he had screamed.

His show was still playing as the crime scene was being rid of evidence, it was still on the ‘are you still watching?’ screen when his house was being looked through by detectives. It had been switched off by the time the investigation was half way through.

He didn’t remember much about those few days, he figured that he must’ve been in shock. He remembered them finding his room, looking through his stuff, taking a few pictures and then leaving everything alone. All physical evidence from outside of his room that his room even existed was probably still sat in a box somewhere, never touched.

He remembered the day he was announced officially missing, posters with a name that wasn’t his plastered around the town, and people desperately searching for him. He clutched at his head, like he was in pain.

He didn’t want to relive this again, he had gotten over it, he was dead, he wasn’t gonna come back to life, so why was he always longing to? What would life even give him? More pain, more heartbreak, more people calling him a name that he wasn’t?

He had been declared legally dead, after his body was found, though the murderer roamed free. Virgil could only imagine what was written on his grave

‘Here lies [REDACTED], she was a loyal daughter, sister and friend. She will be missed’

He shook his head. It wouldn’t do to think of his gravestone as if it could be changed. He was Virgil now, he wasn’t a girl, no matter what was said of him. He was Virgil, he was himself.

He could feel sobs wracking his body, and he was back to thinking about when it happened. The murderer pressing the gun to his heart, which was beating frantically, because of course it was! He could see the blurry silhouette of someone getting closer and he panicked, too deep in his own mind to remember that he wasn’t there anymore, that he wasn’t still being threatened at gunpoint.

He pressed himself into the wall, as far as he could, before stuttering out a plea

“D-don’t- don’t get any closer- please- I’ll do anything, just please don’t kill me- I can’t- I can’t die yet” He was getting thoughts of déjà vu, but he wasn’t sure why. Had this happened before? He was about to get shot, wasn’t he? He didn’t dare open his eyes, he couldn’t stare death in the face. Not again, a small voice in the back of his head reminded him.

He could feel himself shaking, and he curled up more, desperately trying to protect himself. The unknown person got closer, he could feel it. He whimpered, squeezing his eyes tighter

---

Roman was trying to have a shitty Netflix movie marathon with his friends, but he couldn’t focus on that anymore. After he had found the ghost- Virgil’s- room, all he could think of was the glare he had given them all. He could swear that the ghostly figure almost looked sad.

Another thing was that he had been expecting was something less human looking. Maybe a deathly pale figure in robes and hundreds of chains, but instead what he saw was a person only twenty or so years, old, with blood soaking through his patchwork hoodie.

Roman kept thinking back to that for hours, through each crappy movie he watched, until it got to one o’clock. He forced himself to watch the beginning of another movie from his pillow fort, curled up in a mess of blankets, his friends next to him, Patton hugging the stuffed bat that Virgil had gifted him.

A few minutes later, the lights started flickering, and the tv was glitching. At first he was annoyed, but then he noticed the faint glow against the wall. He looked closer and noticed the ghost curled up next to the wall, only appearing when the lights were out, and looking extremely distressed and his eyes focused on something in the distance. He was clutching at his head desperately, as if he were trying to force something out

Roman hesitantly got closer, and the lights stopped flickering, going completely dark. He could see the ghost faintly, outlined with a purple glow

The ghost’s eyes went wide before they squeezed shut, and he started shaking

“D-don’t- don’t get any closer- please- I’ll do anything, just please don’t kill me- I can’t- I can’t die yet” Roman froze. Logan placed a hand on his shoulder, which startled him. When had Logan even gotten up?

“I don’t think he’s in the right frame of mind right now, Roman. That sounds like what could’ve been his last words.. I don’t think he’s seeing you as you, I think he may be seeing.. someone else” Logan was also staring at the apparition with what seemed like sympathy

Patton looked down at the bat in his hands before at the ghost. He walked closer to the ghost, momentarily stopping at the pained whimper that escaped him. He set the stuffed toy down before walking back to the group

“He needed it more than me, it’s his anyway” He shrugged, sitting on the floor, getting ready to comfort the ghost if need be. Roman joined him, he may not have particularly liked the ghost, but being able to see the ghost had changed his perception somewhat

It was no longer that all ghosts were evil, because now that he had a face to attribute to him, a name, it reminded him that.. ghost stories are just tragedies told from another perspective. He couldn’t imagine begging for his life against someone who had presumably broken into his house.

Roman started realising that something must’ve triggered this, and he looked around the room. The only thing that seemed out of place was the pillow fort. He shuddered

Your house could be broken into at any moment, even when you’re just sat in a pillow fort watching a movie. Maybe that’s what had happened to Virgil... He stared at the ghost, upset at the thought

He couldn’t even think how traumatic that would be, something meant to make you feel comfortable and safe to be the place where you were killed? He couldn’t bare to watch the apparition in pain any longer, and he got closer, determined to help somehow

One of the floorboards creaked under his weight and Virgil started shaking more, his form flickering, and the lights starting to do the same again. Roman stopped, before starting to approach again, this time avoiding any creaky-looking floorboards, and going considerably slower. He gently pushed the stuffed bat closer, and sat opposite the ghost

“Virgil, you’re not there, okay? I know it probably feels really real, and I understand that, but can you open your eyes please? I want you to name five things you can see, can you do that for me?”

Virgil shook his head, still with his eyes shut as tightly as ever, and Roman wracked his brain to remember other techniques to calm down someone with PTSD and other such disorders. He nodded to himself once he remembered. Man, that Mental Health Awareness course really turned out useful

“Okay, can you breathe in for four seconds for me? That’s it, you’re doing really well, now hold for a while, that’s great, you’re doing perfectly, now breathe out for eight seconds. You’re doing really well, now can you repeat that for me?” Virgil still wouldn’t open his eyes, but he wasn’t flickering as much anymore. He was getting gradually less visible, but he was definitely calming down

“That’s it, you’re doing great, keep going!” He gently encouraged, vaguely aware of his friends watching him. He ignored them in favour of coaxing Virgil into a healthier state of mind

Soon, when the ghost was just barely visible, and nothing was flickering anymore, Virgil opened his eyes

Roman smiled as warmly as he could manage, and the Ghost’s lips moved in a soundless word of gratitude, before fading. Trylla the stuffed bat was given to Patton. Roman got some paper and a pen out

“Virgil, if you’re still there, can you tell me what caused that episode, so we can avoid it, or give you a warning so that you can avoid it?” The pen was picked up from the table and Roman read the note

‘its a few things, long story’ Roman nodded

“We have time, if you’d like to explain?” He offered. The pen hovered above the page for a few moments before scribbling something down

‘no, you guys need to go to bed. I don’t like thinking that you’re down here when anyone could break in’ Roman read aloud, he nodded

That seemed pretty valid, he decided.

He knew he was acting pretty differently than he was a few hours earlier, but he was not going to be rude to someone going through a trauma induced episode. He didn’t want to stress him out any more than he already was

Patton spoke up for the first time in a while “Hey! Do you think we should buy some whiteboards so we can talk without having to get paper and a pen out every time?”

The pen scribbled something down and Roman once again read it aloud

“‘Sure, you should buy the big ones and stand them up in each room’ Great idea, my superb, stupendous spirit!”

He could practically feel the eye roll that nickname was greeted with, though he couldn’t see it

‘dont call me that’

Roman laughed at the quick response

“Would you prefer if I called you ‘Emo nightmare’ for the rest of my life?” He suggested, crossing his arms in a joking manner

‘You probably won’t live here the rest of your life, so in the very little time you’re gonna live here, you can call me whatever you want, just not that’

---

Virgil had fun with the humans. Even Roman didn’t seem to dislike him anymore. He tried to ignore the fact that it was probably just because he had just relived a traumatic experience, and they had to help him through it, and so far that was working.

After he had convinced them to go to bed, he started cleaning up the living room, folding blankets, putting pillows and cushions where they were meant to go, making sure everything was in place, before floating through each room a few times, checking for intruders, checking for things out of place, making sure the house was safe

He floated up to the bedrooms, checking on Logan first, then Patton, then Roman. He sat down in the corridor between their rooms, staying there until they woke up. They needed to be safe. They didn’t seem to be leaving any time soon, so he needed to protect them whilst they stayed

He waited, sometimes looking out of the window, looking into their bedrooms, making sure nothing was wrong.

Soon enough, Logan’s alarm rung, and the human was starting to get ready. Virgil followed him as far as he could, watching through a window as he drove away, presumably to his job. Virgil had overheard at some point that he was a teaching assistant

He vaguely wondered which school he worked at, before floating back upstairs to stay with the others. It was a few more hours before they woke up, but Virgil stayed alert the entire time. Intruders could show up at any point, he had let his guard down for one night, not going to his hidden room, and- well you already know what happened

Roman awakened first, walking down to the kitchen whilst rubbing his eyes. Virgil watched him intently as he started cooking. He was always extra cautious around fire, even in life. Such an intense power of destruction at the disposal of a person felt wrong to him

He flinched as the stove turned on, watching Roman prepare his breakfast. God, he missed eating. After he was sure that a fire wasn’t gonna consume the entire house, he went back upstairs to check on the still sleeping human.

He felt a small tug in his chest when he noticed Patton holding Trylla. He smiled, sitting down on the floor and messing with something. He waited for just about half an hour before Patton woke up

He grinned, starting to follow the human around. He knew that he wasn’t helping himself by doing this, it would just make everything harder on himself, but for once, he could feel like a part of something. He could pretend to be one of them

Roman greeted Patton good morning, before starting up a conversation

“Oh, just so you know, Remus said he’d be coming up to see me today with his partner, so he’s probably gonna burst in here at the most inconvenient time ever” Virgil listened, before humming in thought

Nice to know there’d be more people in his house. He sat on the table cross-legged and hummed a song to himself

“Oh, we should probably tell Virgil then”

He listened to Patton’s response and laughed

He wrote on some paper that was on the table with him

‘Im right here :)’

Patton walked over to read it “Oh, hi Virgil!” He exclaimed once he had. Virgil smiled at that, writing out a greeting. Roman walked over as well, looking to be thinking

“Wait- were you spying on us? Why are you just here?”

Virgil laughed again whilst writing his response

‘not spying, im just hanging out in my house and making sure you dont burn it down’ Roman made an offended noise upon reading it

“Excuse you, I am amazing at cooking and I am not dumb enough to burn down the house!” Virgil smiled at that as Patton made a small noise of disagreement

“Patton, you’re supposed to be on my side!” he complained, making a pouting face

Virgil sat there a while, content to just watch them and answer any questions they asked

After maybe ten minutes, Roman’s phone buzzed, and he nodded to himself

“Remus says he’ll be here soon, so we should probably get ready. Oh, and, Virgil, I’ve told him about you so if you decide to do any ghost stuff, he won’t be freaked out, just so you know”

Virgil smirked to himself before writing his response ‘well now im not gonna do anything, im gonna make you look crazy’

Roman gasped dramatically, placing a hand on his chest and staggering backwards

“How dare you betray me so? Once, I may have trusted you with my life but now you have taken your sharpest blade to my back and I don’t think I can forgive you for that” He placed the back of his hand to his forehead like a damsel in distress. Virgil laughed at that, writing down something telling the human to stop being so dramatic

‘dont be dramatic, what if i want to have a nap?’

Roman paused his woeful sorrowing to think for a moment “Do ghosts even need sleep? Can ghosts even sleep, actually?”

‘meh, we cant really sleep but i like to call it sleeping. its more like i disappear for a while and it shows me my happiest memories for a few hours’ He wrote, feeling like it was an inadequate explanation

Both humans nodded at that, before there was a knock on the door. Roman started grumbling about not even having enough time to do his hair before Remus showed up.

Whilst Roman was greeting his brother and his brother’s partner, Virgil got an idea

‘do you wanna team up with me to make roman look crazy? all you have to do is deny that i exist or that you know me’

Patton read what he had written and nodded, a mischievous smile on his face. Virgil also grinned, going to hide the note to get rid of evidence

Once he had done that, Roman walked in, with what looked like a clone of him but with a moustache and a tall, pale person wearing a they/it pronoun badge. Virgil nodded at that, committing it to memory before going to float in a corner and watch the events unfold

Patton walked over to the other humans happily “Hi Remus! Hi Janus! What are you guys talking about?”

Roman looked at him “Oh, I was just telling them about Virgil!”

Patton looked at him with an innocent face “Who’s Virgil?”

Virgil, meanwhile, was laughing extremely hard in the corner, Roman’s face was just priceless. The human sputtered and stammered a few times

“Did you team up with him to make me look crazy?” he pouted, crossing his arms.

Virgil took the time whilst Roman was sulking to look at the guests. He didn’t much like new people, but in this instance, as long as they didn’t find his room, he’d be fine. There wasn’t much need for scaring them out, since they were only visiting, and since that would blow his cover

Remus looked almost completely identical to Roman except with different make-up and a moustache. He was wearing a dark green leather jacket adorned with spikes on the shoulders and back, with a brighter green shirt on underneath. Virgil started to suspect a possible favourite colour, with the outfit choice and green and purple makeup. Virgil started looking at the other person

Janus was tall, about 6’1 to Virgil’s 5’6. That immediately filled him with irrational rage. He start looking at its outfit. They had a few piercings, and tattoos. Virgil could admit they definitely had style, begrudgingly. Still didn’t make up for the tall thing. It was also wearing some fingerless gloves, and a black and yellow shirt on top of a white vest. The outfit certainly matched their two-tone black and yellow hair, which was a half/half style.

He sat on the countertop, almost wishing he could have some popcorn for the high-quality acting Patton was pumping out at pretending he didn’t exist. Janus was narrowing its eyes at the act though, like they almost didn’t believe him. Huh, it was smarter than it looked, he noted, before floating off to his room.

The act lasted for a few hours, until Remus and Janus left to go to their apartment. The minute they drove away, both Patton and Virgil burst out laughing

Roman pouted at them, well, really only at Patton, but Virgil was floating behind him.

“Patton, why’d you do that? You betrayed me! I would expect this from Virgil, yeah, but how’d he get you to team up with him?” He had his hand on his heart, as if extremely emotionally wounded, but it was very obviously joking. He paused for a moment “Logan is now my favourite roommate, you two have officially betrayed me, and therefore have plummeted to the bottom of the list!”

Virgil touched a hand to his heart. He was classed as a roommate? He thought for sure he’d just be ‘annoying ghost that lived there too’ (well, he didn’t really live there but that was just a technicality). He was touched by the notion, and he grew more and more attached to them. He winced. It was so gonna hurt when they left him

---

It was a few months later when anything exciting happened. And by exciting, Virgil just meant different. Life got pretty boring when you’re confined purely to 10 rooms in the world.

He floated into the living room boredly, scrawling a greeting on the dry-erase board in that room. Roman (the only person currently in that room) looked up at him distractedly

“Oh, uh, hi Virgil. Uh, Remus and Janus are getting kicked out of their apartment ‘cause their landlord wants to sell the house, so would they be able to stay here for a while?”

Virgil groaned. He was gonna let them, of course he was, but the problem was that he’d have to give up his act that he didn’t exist. He had been perfecting it for months, he had even managed to convince Logan to get in on it. Months of hard work down the drain. He didn’t actually care that much, but he liked to pretend he did, picking up the dramatic tendencies from Roman

‘sure i guess. Why not’ he wrote out, waiting for Roman’s response

The human smiled “Thanks Vee”

Virgil smiled back. It was gonna be different but, different didn’t seem to be all that bad sometimes

~~~~~

Taglist: @a-chilly-pepper

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runningonadhd · 1 year

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My friend: so I found this pentagram in my basement

Me: there’s a ghost in my house

My friend: I think I accidentally released a demon

Me: they gave me a Led Zeppelin shirt

My friend: It might’ve stolen one of my toes

Me: it’s a nice shirt

#based on true events #this was an actual conversation #i’m not even joking #the Led Zeppelin shirt came from somewhere #I recently got another shirt thank you ghost #janus sanders #logan sanders #remus sanders #roman sanders #sanders sides #thomas sanders #virgil sanders #dark sides #deceit sanders #patton sanders #phineas and ferb #percy jackon and the olympians

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jaratedeguadalupe · 1 year

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remus is a shaneiac and virgil is a boogara i will not reconsider this stance

#sincerely from somebody who's rewatched unsolved as many times as the amount of total earth rotations #you bet that these boys were jumping in their seat when ghost files came out #watcher is an aboslute banger #remus is the type of person who would submit a batshit unhinged ghost story to too many spirits in hopes of it being pickes #title: ghost pickle ruined my marriage #virgil proof read it #because janus refused to #and logan is too busy playing neopets #ts remus #remus sanders #virgil sanders #ts virgil #dukexiety

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thefloofinator · 1 year

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Art vs Artist 2022 <3

Not necessarily in chronological order, but you get the idea. Has been fun, I hope to draw more Janus, do more fanart for other stuff, and introduce/continue ocs and aus in 2023 :)

#sanders sides #tss janus #janus sanders fanart #brian david gilbert #brian davis gilbert fanart #vintage #ghosts #vintage ghosts #1800s ghosts #art vs artist

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edupunkn00b · 6 months

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Photo by Johanes Plenio via Unsplash. Color and tone edited.

Logan finds a light in the darkness when he needs it most. It leads to more than he could ever thought possible.

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Sanders Sides (Web Series) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Logic | Logan Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil & Dark Creativity | Remus & Deceit | Janus & Morality | Patton (Sanders Sides) Characters: Logic | Logan Sanders, Morality | Patton Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Will o' the Wisps, Ghosts, haunted forest, Haunted cottage, technically, Angst, villagers with torches, Happy Ending, past major character death referenced, again‚ i stress the happy ending :)

https://www.tumblr.com/edupunkn00b/732674913337491456/a-light-in-the-darkness?source=share&ref=edupunkn00b

#Light in the Darkness #ts logan #ts patton #ts janus #ts remus #ts virgil #tall!Logan #witch!Janus #ghost!remus #other tags are spoilers #sanders sides #sanders sides fanfictin #magic au

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thatonelesbianfander · 3 months

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The Ghost and the Reaper Chapter 2

Fandom// Sanders Sides

TW// Panic Attack, Strong Emotions, Crying, Yelling, Screaming, Funeral, Nightmare, Fire, Death mention, Storms, Swearing, Weapon

Word count// 2161

Description// Janus is one of the many grim reapers whose job it is to reap the souls of the dead and help them ascend to the afterlife. After one assignment, the spirit they reaped, a 23-year-old nonbinary person named Remus, refused to ascend. Now, Janus is stuck with them following it around wherever they go.

Characters// Remus Sanders, Janus Sanders, Roman Sanders, C!Thomas Sanders, Logan Sanders, Virgil Sanders

Pairings// None

AUs// Found/chosen family Creativitwins & C!Thomas, human!sides, they/them Remus, it/they Janus, he/she Roman

Masterpost // Previous // Next

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

Janus stood alone in their kitchen, drinking their cup of coffee while staring off into the distance. Remus appeared in front of them, looking around.

”Oh, you’re back,” Janus said, putting its coffee mug on the counter.

”Yeah…” Remus said, refusing to make eye contact with Janus.

”What do you have?” Janus asked, noticing the rose in Remus’s hand.

”A fucking nuclear missle. What does it look like, dumbass?” Remus said sarcastically.

“I’m sorry about yesterday, okay?! Is that what you wanted to hear?!” Janus yelled.

”Yes,” Remus said, looking off into the distance.

”Okay, well I have afternoon duty, today. I’m off duty for the morning,” Janus said, pouring more coffee into its mug.

”Hm…” Remus thought. Janus looked over to them.

”So, what do you want to do?” Janus asked.

”Well, there isn’t really anything to do… I was just thinking I would just go fuck around in one of those abandoned places,” Remus said, “You know, a good old classic haunt.”

”What place were you thinking about?” Janus asked, intrigued.

”Well, there’s an old church near the graveyard, but the old school next to that bakery might also be good,” Remus suggested.

”Eh… Those places get boring after a while…” Janus replied.

”Alright, then. You don’t need to join. I’ll just go by myself,” Remus said.

”Alright. Be back by noon,” Janus said, waving Remus off. Remus faded out of view, reappearing in front of the old church. They walked inside, immediately jumping off the ground and hanging upside down on the chandelier. The chandelier rocked back and forth, Remus swaying with it. They fell back down on the floor, walking up the aisle of pews to the front of the church. Visions flashed in their eye as they saw a casket being rolled up the aisle. People sat in the pews, all being dressed in black. Remus looked around, seeing their father and sibling in one of the front pews. Remus stumbled back, lifting the casket lid up to see themself in it. They backed up as the people in the pews stared directly at them. The people in the pews all stood up, walking over to Remus and surrounding them. The sounds of whispers erupted from everyone as they surrounded Remus. Remus couldn’t make out any of the words but they heard one word loud and clear. One word they were terrified of.

”Anti-christ,” the figure of Roman said, pointing at Remus. Remus started to panic. They pushed through the crowd, running to the doors of the church. They banged on the doors, desperately trying to get them open as they were surrounded again. Fire started to build up as they banged on the doors. They turned around, finding their father and sibling right behind them. They clung onto their father’s clothes, falling to their knees.

”PA, HELP ME, PLEASE! I’M NOT THE ANTICHRIST! I DON’T WANT TO BE! PLEASE!” Remus pleaded with their father, their father just standing there with a vacant expression. Remus sobbed as the flames engulfed them, scared and alone.

“Oi! Remus,” Janus said. Remus startled awake, finding themself back in the graveyard. They looked over to Janus.

”Oh, hey there, Jan,” Remus said, putting the rose they had in their hands down.

”Are you good? It’s 10:03, and you were still asleep when I got here,” Janus asked.

”I was?” Remus replied.

”Yeah…?” Janus said.

”Must have overslept by accident. Anyways, what are we doing, today?” Remus asked.

”Well, I already got through a bunch of my tasks before coming here. I just have 2 more spirits to reap, and I also have to have a meeting with my manager so that should be fun…” Janus replied.

”Ugh, do we really have to meet with that guy? He’s a bastard,” Remus said.

”I know you don’t like him, but I don’t really have a choice,” Janus said.

”Then, let’s get that out of the way first. Save the better thing for last,” Remus suggested.

”Alright, then. Also… I’m sorry about last night… I wasn’t thinking and I should have worded what I was saying better…” Janus said.

”Don’t sweat it, man. It’s fine. Come on, let’s go,” Remus said, fading out of sight. Janus followed suit, the two reappearing in an office-like room. A man sat at a desk. His face was darkened with only his mouth visible. He wore an outfit reminiscent of a stereotypical grim reaper with the hooded robe and everything.

”Oh, hello, Janus! And… you…” the manager said, Remus flipping him off.

”You wanted to meet with me, sir?” Janus asked.

”Yes, yes. Sit, I’ll make you something to drink. Tea or coffee?” the manager said, standing up.

”Just black coffee, please,” Janus said, talking a seat. Remus hovered in the corner, leaning back against the wall and grabbing a notepad and pencil from a nearby table.

”So… why did you call me here?” Janus asked.

”Oh, it’s nothing serious! You’re just a little bit behind on your quota for spirits this week and I was wondering what was going on,” the manager said, handing Janus a mug of coffee.

”Shit, I’m sorry, I thought I was ahead on quota this month…” Janus replied.

”It’s fine, it’s no big deal. I’ll just need you to pick up the pace a little. Maybe even take a few nights of work,” the manager said.

”How much am I behind by?” Janus asked.

”Just 10. It’s no big deal. You could probably get it done in a night if you take the whole night,” the manager replied.

”Okay, then I’ll do that,” Janus said, standing up as it finished their coffee, “Have a good day.”

”You too,” the manager said. Janus shook the manager’s hand, turning to Remus.

”Come on, let’s go,” Janus said. Remus ripped the page they had been drawing on out of the notepad, putting the notepad back down on the table. The two faded out of view together, Janus waving goodbye to the manager.

The two reappeared in a room together, Janus walking over to the two bodies that laid together on the ground. It took out its scythe, swiping at the bodies. The two spirits rose up, stumbling back a little before regaining their balance.

”Ugh, what happened…” the one spirit asked.

”You died,” Janus said, pulling up a screen and swiping through it.

”Fuck, we did?” the other spirit asked.

”Yup…” Janus said, pulling up a profile, “Your name is Virgil Blackheart, correct?”

”Yes,” Virgil responded. Janus printed out a little slip, handing it to Virgil.

”You do have one unfinished task before you can ascend, so I would get to it as quickly as possible. And you are Logan Croftberry, correct?” Janus said.

”Yes,” Logan replied. Janus printed out another slip, handing that one to Logan.

”You also have an unfinished task, so I’ll let you get to it. If you need any help, my name is on that slip. Just call it and I’ll be on my way to assist you when I can,” Janus said, putting the screen away.

”Okay…” Virgil said.

”Any questions?” Janus asked.

”Who’s that?” Logan asked, pointing towards Remus who floated behind Janus.

”That’s no one. Just ignore them,” Janus said, pushing Remus away.

”Rude! I have feelings too!” Remus said, dramatically falling back.

”So, who are you?” Logan asked.

”Remus Sanders-Kingstone! Nice to meet you!” Remus said, holding their hand out.

”Logan Croftberry, please to make your acquaintance as well!” Logan said, shaking Remus’s hand.

”Alright, we better get going now,” Janus said, pulling Remus away, “Any important information about afterlife living including rules and stuff can be found on that slip. If you ever need me for whatever reason, call me. Good luck with your ascending,” Janus said, fading out of view while waving. The two reappeared in Janus’s apartment, Remus floating over to the couch.

”Alright, I’m going to go catch up on my quota,” Janus said, grabbing a new scythe.

”Ooo! Can I come?” Remus asked.

”No. You are going to stay here and not get in my way, so I can do my job and not be distracted,” Janus replied.

”Aww, you’re no fun,” Remus responded.

”That doesn’t matter. I need this job,” Janus said.

”Whatever,” Remus said. Janus went into his room, putting his hat away and grabbing a cloak. He put the cloak on, pulling the hood up over his head. Remus looked to Janus, confused.

”What’s with the stereotypical reaper outfit?” Remus asked.

”The night time reapers have a strict uniform to follow. I need to put this on so they know I’m working,” Janus said.

”Alright, then. You go have fun without me,” Remus said, putting a hand to his head and falling back dramatically.

”Don’t be dramatic. I’ll be back in a few hours, don’t go anywhere,” Janus said, fading out of view. Remus looked around the apartment, checking to make sure Janus was gone before fading out of view as well.

Remus reappeared in a living room, finding it empty. They walked around a little, finding someone in the kitchen. They peaked in the kitchen to find their father cleaning the dishes. Music played over a little speaker, playing Remus’s favorite song. They sat on the kitchen counter, watching as Thomas cleaned the dishes.

”I love this song,” Remus said, kicking their feet against the cabinets below. Thomas continued to wash the dishes, oblivious to the fact that someone was there. Roman entered the room, his hair wet and messy from the shower. Thomas looked over to Roman, smiling. He walked over, hugging Roman. Roman hugged back.

”Hey, buddy. Ready for movie night?” Thomas asked, putting a hand on Roman’s shoulder.

”Yeah, I guess…” Roman replied.

”Awesome! Just let me finish these last few dishes and I’ll be out,” Thomas said. Roman nodded, exiting the kitchen and going to the living room. Remus followed, sitting on an empty chair. Roman sat on the couch, turning on his phone and scrolling through photos. Thomas came out of the kitchen.

”I’ll be right back, I just need to put this towel away,” Thomas said. Roman nodded again, Thomas going upstairs and putting the towel into a laundry basket. Thomas put the laundry basket on top of the dryer, going back downstairs and sitting on the couch. He turned on the TV, going to Netflix and clicking through the movies.

”So, what do you want to watch, tonight?” Thomas asked.

”Mulan,” Roman replied. Thomas smiled, turning the movie on and putting the remote down on the table in front of him. Roman leaned his head on Thomas’s shoulder, curling up in a blanket. Thomas put his arms around Roman, holding him close as the movie played. Remus sat on the edge of their seat, enticed by the movie. Roman looked over towards the chair where Remus sat, tears coming to her eyes.

”That was their favorite chair for movie night…” Roman said. Thomas frowned, looking over to Roman. He wiped the tears from Roman’s eyes.

”Buddy…” Thomas said, “You know it’s not your fault.”

”It is though… If I hadn’t said all that horrible stuff to them…” Roman said, starting to cry. Thomas pulled Roman closer, comforting him as she cried. Remus perked up, looking over to the other two. Remus frowned, getting up and walking over to the two. Remus reached their hand out to Roman, about to touch her before remembering what Janus had said yesterday. They pulled their hand back sadly, walking back over to their chair and sitting back down. They watched the movie as Thomas and Roman sat on the couch together. Halfway through the movie, the lights in the house started to flicker as a storm started up. Thomas stood up, locking the door and closing the windows as Roman sat on the couch.

”Welp… So much for a calm night,” Thomas said, coming back to the couch. He grabbed a blanket that was on the arm of the couch, bundling up in the blanket and sitting back down next to Roman. He pulled Roman closer to him, Roman’s eyes darting around anxiously.

”I hate when it storms,” Roman said.

”I know, buddy. I know. It’s okay,” Thomas said. Roman leaned in closer to Thomas, closing his eyes as Thomas held him. Remus got up from their chair, looking at the two. They smiled softly.

”I love you two…” Remus said, to no reply. They faded from view as Roman and Thomas fell asleep on the couch. Remus reappeared in the apartment, laying down on the couch and falling asleep as well.

Masterpost // Previous // Next

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gamerzylo · 2 years

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Janus: Remus is on the phone again.

Orange: Tell him I exploded and uh…tell him it was very sad and that the last thing I said was "Make sure Remus moves out of my condo."

#incorrect quotes #source: space ghost coast to coast #janus sanders #orange side #remus sanders

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wolfprincesszola · 3 months

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The Fate of the Marked Six Chapter 16

imagine i just did a sike and after getting everyone together, i just killed everyone off /hard joking (i would never do that don't worry, happy ending is a happy ending). as always, reblogs and likes are appreciated! enjoy <3 ——————– Summary: Virgil moves into a new town and meets Roman, a ghost that he promises to help in finding the unfinished business needed to pass over. However, Roman's past seemed to be deeply muddled with trouble, an uncurable disease that has started to affect a classmate, and a certain tight-lipped valedictorian. Friendships are made and Virgil finds himself thrown into a situation far more complicated and twisted than he signed up. Hopefully, with the help of his new five friends, he can find a way to bring peace to the town once and for all.

Trigger Warning: None

Content Warning: Swearing

<Previous> <Next> ——————–

Chapter 16

Roman’s mind wasn’t the most fun to be in when he knew someone he loved was in danger. Currently, that someone was his brother. Logan's spell had hit Roman when he first went missing. Roman found every clue there was to be around Logan, but for some reason, it always led to nowhere. Then, out of nowhere, Patton had found Logan injured and tired. It was almost worrying had he not known Logan. If Logan looked like hell, it meant what he went through was more than what he knew hell to be.

The police had been in contact with the friends as soon as Logan was put into safety and treated for his wounds. However, Roman felt something was off.

“We won’t be able to see him until later tomorrow.” Virgil walked into the room, defeated as he sat on the couch next to Roman.

“Mhm.” Roman blinked, turning to look at the boy, “You’ve been using your power, haven’t you?”

Virgil raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

“You looked drained. I know that most mediums have the power to search for a specific ghost, but it could be deadly.”

“Yeah.” Virgil sighed, “I just…needed to make sure Logan wasn’t one. I thought I could get out of it before I drained all the magic out of me.”

“What happened?”

“I had Janus on standby. I got really close.” Virgil shuddered, “But…at least Logan’s okay. He’s safe and sound.”

“Hm.” Roman decided to leave his worries in his mind. “You should sleep.”

“I guess I deserve it.” Virgil sighed, yawning.

Roman chuckled, “You do.”

“What about you? Will you be okay?”

Roman nodded, “Ghosts don’t need sleep, remember?”

“Still…” Virgil murmured, “My anxiety’s still at an all time high. I don’t think I would be able to sleep.”

Roman thought about how to help Virgil.

“What if…I tell you a story that I remember?’

“You remember your past?’

“...just flashes.” Roman murmured, “Come on, Hot Topic, let’s get you to bed.”

“Aw, you think I’m hot.” Virgil grinned at him.

Virgil caught the pillow that Roman threw at him before it could hit his face, “Alright, fine, I’ll try my best to sleep.”

Once he was tucked into bed, Roman sat at the edge of the bed. “You know, I’ve done this plenty of times, but this one feels different.”

“Maybe because you don’t think of me as your brother? Hopefully.” Virgil snorted.

“Yeah, I don’t.” Roman snorted before looking at him, “You’re kinda like my soulmate.”

“Really?”

“I don’t know. It might just be the attachment to the first medium I’ve met, but something’s different about you.”

“I really like you too, Ro.” Virgil replied.

Roman felt his heart skip a beat, but tried to ignore it. It was him talking about them as friends. About them as platonic soulmates. They were nothing more. Besides, there would be no other way for them to even be in a romantic relationship.

Taking the idea out of his head, Roman just smiled back at him, “Right…about that story. What do you want to hear?”

“Anything about you. I feel like it’s always about my life and never about yours.”

“I’ll tell you about the time that I was face to face with a bear.”

Roman wasn’t even halfway through his story when he heard Virgil stop giggling. He looked over to see him sleeping peacefully and Roman smiled, standing up. Brushing the hair out of his face, Roman walked out of the room, deciding to pay a visit to another one of the other 3 friends. Even if they didn’t see him, they always managed to know when he was in the room.

-+=~=+-

“Remus, where’s Roman?” Janus rushed into the room where Roman was chilling with Remus. The two were currently playing catch with a plastic basketball as Remus had remembered he could interact with any object, but not any person.

“What? Why?” Remus asked as he threw the ball to Roman.

“Oh, okay.” Janus sighed in relief, “I’m assuming that’s him?”

Roman shook the ball in a nodding manner before throwing it back to Remus. Remus caught it, “Still didn’t answer my question.”

“Virgil freaked out when he couldn’t find him.” Janus sighed, catching the ball before Roman could, “Come on, you two.”

“What?” The two boys raised an eyebrow.

“Oh…you don’t know. They’re still treating Logan, but he requested to see us, so we can go see him now.”

As they walked into the hospital, the three met up with Virgil and Patton.

“How is he?” Janus asked.

“We're waiting for you guys to see him.” Patton gave a small smile. He looked better, clearly having also gotten sleep, but still horrible from not taking care of himself.

“You look less tired than before.”

“Ah, yeah.” Patton muttered, “I guess Logan being found put my worries to ease. Sort of.”

“Sort of?”

Patton ignored the question as they all walked in the room to see Logan reading. Upon hearing the door open though, Logan jumped, throwing the book at the group. Patton dodged it coming right towards his face, catching the book.

“Woah, Logan.” Janus stared, “Are you okay, Patton?”

“Sorry. Impulse.” Logan murmured as the group traveled to where he was, Patton giving Logan back his book.

“Where’d you learn to catch like that?” Remus asked.

“Dodgeball practice. Ass at throwing, so I learned to dodge and catch. Stopped me from being beat up.”

“Nerd.” Janus snorted at him.

“What happened?” Virgil asked, “I mean…you weren’t like this before.”

Roman could tell Virgil was trying to put it delicately because it was true. They had never seen Logan be that scared. He was always calm and collected, robotic even. Even when he was scared.

“I ran into the wrong type of people. Caleb got some ghosts, I think, to possess some humans, and I was stuck in his dungeon. I learned pretty fast how to defend myself against ghosts and humans that ghosts have possessed.” Logan murmured, looking down. “I was scared.”

From the looks of their friends’ faces, it was clear this was one of the few times that Logan had even shown emotion, and it must’ve been the first that he had shown this much.

However, to Roman, he had heard enough. Letting Virgil know that he was going out for a breath of fresh air, he walked out to the balcony, where he looked out. Whoever was in there, he knew, wasn’t his brother.

He hadn’t even noticed when the door had slid open and someone had come out.

Virgil stepped back from the window to lean against the railing where Roman was. Roman didn’t say anything, keeping his eyes fixed on the horizon.

“You don’t think that’s him, do you?” Virgil asked, breaking the silence.

Roman looked over, suddenly surprised by how far Virgil was leaning, “You shouldn’t do that. I can’t teleport living beings, you know?

“You told me before you could.” Virgil remarked before deciding to take pity on him and safely lean instead of almost falling off the railing.

Roman tried to grab onto Virgil’s arm, only to phase through it, “Yeah well…that relies on physical contact.”

“Alright, Ro, fess up. What are you worried about? Logan’s home safe and sound. What makes you so reluctant to accept that you were worried and now you’re relieved?”

“I just…the vibes feel off.”

Virgil snorted, raising an eyebrow, “The vibes feel off? Of course they do. Logan probably just went through hell. It makes sense he’s not acting like himself. He looks like he just went through hell and back. So maybe he’s a little more scared than usual.”

“No, no, it’s not that.” Roman murmured, staring at Logan, “He just….feels off. I don’t know what it is. Call it brotherly instinct.”

“Hey, maybe you should think about the fact that the brotherly instinct is probably just your anxiety taking over. Besides, you haven’t been around him for almost 4 years. How do you know that it’s instinct?”

“Just take it as a gut feeling.” Roman murmured, turning to stare at Virgil. “Ask Patton. Please.”

Virgil shrugged, calling both Patton and Remus over. Coming over in confusion with Janus following soon after, Virgil held his hands out. Immediately, the two boys grabbed onto his hands, with Janus holding on to Remus’s. Roman could feel the magic rushing through everyone and then suddenly, Virgil motioned to Patton. “Ask him yourself.”

“What’s this about?” Patton asked, “Please don’t say it’s about how worried you are for my health. I don’t care. At this moment-”

“Not what I was going to say.” Roman interrupted Patton, “Don’t you think Logan’s…for lack of a better phrase…vibes are off?”

“Well…kinda.” Patton shrugged, “I noticed it as I was helping him to the hospital, but I blamed it on whatever he went through.”

“Kinda?”

“His magic’s too powerful.”

“You can feel auras?” Remus raised an eyebrow.

“Well…I can tell when someone has magic. It kinda envelops me and that’s how I know how powerful someone is.”

“Yeah. I can teach you how to do it one day, Remus.” Virgil offered. “But that’s not what’s important right now. Continue, Patton.”

“When Logan’s magic envelops around me, it feels like a warm blanket around me. I feel safe around his magic. When I helped him to here, his magic felt cold. It feels almost too powerful because I feel like it’s going to start sucking my magic.”

“I thought Patton didn’t have a power.” Janus pointed out.

“Not that we know of.” Virgil corrected him, “But everyone has magic in their system, power or no powers. It’s what keeps us alive. It shouldn’t feel like it would start to suck out the magic that keeps us alive.”

“So that’s bad?”

“Either that’s not Logan, or Logan has been through something that changed his magic, which I wouldn’t put it past if he came out looking like that. I mean, the police confirmed the blood on the grass spot in the woods we found the other day was his. We just need to get him to tell us the full story.”

Roman sighed, almost feeling more worried now that he knew what Patton thought.

Virgil thanked the two boys before separating to talk to Roman again, “You okay? That help you?”

“I don’t know.” Roman groaned, “I just feel like something’s wrong with me that I can’t figure any of this out. I feel so horrible…”

Roman trailed off as he looked down from the second story where they were in to see someone walking in covered in discrete clothing, rushing past people while phasing through them. They looked almost in a rush like they were looking for someone.

“What?” Virgil raised an eyebrow.

“What are the chances that someone is covered from head to toe in winter clothing when it’s 95 degrees outside…and a ghost?” Roman asked.

“Zero to none.”

“Then we need to see who the person that walked in was.” Roman replied, “Let’s meet in the middle. I’ll go from the bottom.”

Virgil nodded and Roman blinked to teleport to the bottom of the building, only to find the ghost.

“Hey!” He yelled, and the ghost turned towards Roman slowly. Roman got a closer look, surprised to see someone that looked like the carbon copy of a female version of his father. Then, the ghost started to run up the stairs, Roman soon following behind him.

“Don’t move.” Virgil showed up on the other side, pointing something at the ghost. Roman didn’t know what it was, but he said the command with such force that even Roman’s heart dropped and he held his hands up in the air, along with the ghost.

“What is that?” Roman asked as he jumped out of his thoughts. Virgil wouldn’t hurt anyone, especially not him.

“Something.” Virgil breathed, “Having experiences with ghosts my entire life, I’ve come across a lot of good and bad. And I needed to find a way to stop the bad ghosts. This is one of the ways. Come here, Roman.”

Roman teleported to him, careful not to be anywhere near whatever he was holding.

“Tell me who you are and what you’re doing here.”

“Your brother sent me.” The woman looked at Roman. “At least, I’m assuming he’s your brother.”

“My brother’s in the room. What do you mean he sent you?”

“My name is Jasmine Sanders. You look more like my family. You are…?”

Roman crossed his arms, “Roman Sanders.”

“Roman. What a beautiful name.”

“Cut straight to the point.” Virgil waved around his gadget.

“Right. When your brother was captured, a couple of Caleb’s workers and I had decided to try and help him escape. However, I was caught in the process, and your brother tried to be the hero. He told Caleb that he’d go willingly with anything Caleb said as long as Caleb let me and the other workers off the hook. Whoever is in there is a fake.”

“Impossible. They’d have to be a human possessed.”

Jasmine just sighed, taking out a book. She muttered something and held it out. “A peace offering.”

“What is it?” Virgil raised an eyebrow.

“A spell book.” Jasmine just kicked it over, “I gave it to Logan, but he gave it back to me. Said I needed to protect you.”

“So why wouldn’t you keep it then? You know how to use it.” Virgil, upon inspecting it, picked up the book.

“I can feel the auras of your magic. Logan’s magic was incredibly strong, but yours is even stronger. You guys will get the hang of it immediately. Besides, I can’t stay here very long. Just enough to explain what’s going on to you two.”

“Then talk.”

“Uh, Vir, maybe we should do it less out in the open. You might look crazy right now.” Roman looked nervous as he saw people starting to rush in.

“Fine. Come on, I know a quiet place.”

With that, the two ghosts followed him, careful not to touch whatever Virgil had in hand. Jasmine fell behind and Roman caught up to Virgil.

“So, what is the gadget in hand?”

Virgil opened his hand to show the crystal that he always carried with him, “It’s not going to hurt her if Jasmine’s not lying.”

Roman waved his hand over the crystal, feeling magic flow through him, “Woah, that’s different from the one I have.”

“Well, yeah. It’s Logan’s crystals, so it’s infused with his magic already even without his knowledge. It has Patton’s protection, and I’ve also put extra protection on mine.” Virgil smiled, “It’s triple the magic a crystal usually has.”

“Huh, so it could be used for weaker people to use powers?”

“Well, if they have powers, yes, but most likely, it’s used to help people without powers conjure spells, or strengthen the ones of a magic user.”

“So I could theoretically use that book?” Roman raised an eyebrow, pointing to the spell book in Virgil’s hand.

“Not out in the open.” Virgil pulled them into a quiet room.

“What is this place?”

Virgil was quiet before he looked out to make sure that Jasmine had followed them. Once everyone was in the room, Virgil closed the door, locking it. “I didn’t tell you, but I started interning at this hospital. Every intern gets their own room. This is mine.”

“Oh, that’s so cool.” Roman grinned. “So…Jasmine, please do start speaking.”

“I can’t say too much. All I can say is to not let any ghost touch you, just in case it’s Caleb.” Jasmine rolled down her sleeve to show a purple stamp, “I made that mistake, and now my soul is bound to him forever.”

“So why tell me this in the first place?”

“It’s time for a change. Everyone’s tired of existing here. They want to move on to the afterlife. They want to stop suffering under the hands of Caleb.” Jasmine replied, “And for once, I’d like to see my sister again.”

Roman felt his heart break. He knew how that felt.

“Caleb’s obsessed with this prophecy. Logan already knows it, but it’s time you heard it too. Generation after generation, seek the red carnation. Throughout all the Sanders, look for the one that is a magic commander. If what you seek for is power, they will bring you to the pink hydrangea flower. Lives lost and many crossed, a man willing to find the special one at any cost. Succeed if every generation is decimated, or rue the day he was betrayed by the ones he dictated.” Jasmine repeated before waving her hand and it appeared on Roman’s arm, “It’ll go away once the prophecy is fulfilled.”

“Do you know what it means?”

“Not fully. We all thought you’d be the end and he would succeed, but none of us thought that he would find what he wanted.”

“And who is what he wants?”

“The fake will lead you to his lair. The fake will tell you everything you need to know.” The stamp on her arm was now glowing purple.

“What?”

“Just make sure that whatever you do, the fake does not make the chosen one tear the world apart.” Jasmine replied as the stamp was searing into her skin, “I’m sorry I can’t stay longer. I have to go before Caleb finds me here. Just trust that everything will be alright and things will be alright.”

With that, Jasmine got up and phased through the wall, clearly going to rush back to Caleb’s lair.

“We should go back.” Roman cleared his throat as he picked up the spell book Jasmine left. “There’s a lot we need to tell the group.”

“Okay…” Virgil was quieter than he first started off as.

The two walked back to find Janus and Remus talking to Logan. Logan was trying his best to show that he enjoyed their company and as Roman let his gaze fall on his brother, He watched Logan's eyes flicker for a second to purple. Only a second, but it was good enough to know that whoever was in front of them was a fake.

The fake smiled at Virgil and fake Logan's gaze landed on Roman. The fake smiled at him.

“Logan…? What are you looking at?” Patton asked, squeezing his hand. Roman narrowed his eyes at the boy, even though Patton couldn’t see him.

The fake blinked and forced his gaze away from Roman, “Sorry, for a second, I thought I saw my brother. I guess it must be an effect left from being near Caleb.”

“I’m sorry we weren’t there.”

“No, I’m sorry. I tried to be the hero. Tried to keep you guys from getting hurt. If I could just figure out the mystery myself, I could keep everyone safe. I could maybe…bring back Roman. Maybe, no one would have to miss anyone, and I could heal Remus. And if I got hurt in the process, at least I could die knowing I helped make the wrong things right.”

Roman felt his heart pang. Even though he knew it was a fake, the things fake Logan said he hoped were true, so that when he did find him, he could tell his how wrong he was and how stupid he was to think they would ever not miss him. He had been down that path too. He had seen his brother in the clutches of Caleb’s hands as his friends were in danger, and he had seen the path he chose of his brother over his friends.

“...when I saved my brother, I hadn’t thought about how he would feel with survivor’s guilt. He knows he should’ve been the one dead, but instead, he’s the only one that persisted.” Roman murmured. “I wish…he just knew that I would’ve done it a million times over if it meant he was safe.”

Virgil stayed quiet, looking at the fake.

Fake Logan sighed, grabbing a notebook and pen nearby, “Caleb’s going to strike soon. I could see it. I got some information while I was there. There’s a prophecy. I’ve broken it down a bit.”

Logan scribbled the prophecy down, “Generation after generation, seek the red carnation. Throughout all the Sanders, look for the one that is a magic commander. The red carnation is the same as the magic commander. It has to be someone with powers, and it’s the end of the battle. It’s not a coincidence that Caleb's looking through the entire Sanders bloodline. He’s waiting for the one to lead him to the thing he wants. And from the brief conversation we managed to have, I found out that I’m the red carnation. Always have been, always will be. Red carnations represent passion, which I guess I used to have before...before my brother's death. If what you seek for is power, they will bring you to the pink hydrangea flower. I don’t know what he wants, but I do know one thing. The pink hydrangea flower is Patton. Patton has something he wants, and it makes sense since the pink hydrangea flower represents heartfelt emotion and that lines up with Patton's ideology. Lives lost and many crossed, a man willing to find the special one at any cost. That’s just Caleb. Succeed if every generation is decimated, or rue the day he was betrayed by the ones he dictated. I’m guessing he’ll only gain what he wants from Patton once I’m dead, and if I manage to survive, we’ll get some help.”

“What do I have that he wants?” Patton replied horrifically, “I don’t even have a power.”

“You do.” Roman finally spoke up, Virgil repeating his every word to Patton. “I’ve kept my mouth shut about this because I didn’t know what kind of chaos it would bring if you knew. It doesn’t make sense that you can’t cast any magic when you have one of the most powerful auras in magic. You wouldn’t be able to cast magic spells if you didn’t have any active magic.”

“...I do?” Patton raised an eyebrow, “What is it?”

Fake Logan turned towards Roman. While Patton was only looking at Virgil, Fake Logan was staring into Roman’s soul.

“It’s a power that’s so powerful that the world puts it on inactive mode. It would only take a lot of passion and feeling for you to unlock it and the first time you do, it will be disastrous unless you have someone else powerful enough to stop it.”

“Who would be powerful enough to stop it?”

“From what I’m guessing? Caleb.” Roman replied, “Especially if he got a hold of my soul, or Logan’s.”

“That’s not good then. We need to keep you two safe.” Patton replied worryingly.

“No. That’s not what we need.” Janus shook his head, “That’s too passive. We’ve been waiting too long. Now, it’s our time to strike. We need to find a way to have you control your power.”

Fake Logan was quiet through all of it.

“Okay…”

“Whatever we do, we need to sleep it off.” Remus stood up, “We’ll be heading off now. You’ll be okay, Logan?”

“I’ll be fine now. Thanks for coming to see me.”

The group walked out in silence. It was only when Roman was sure no one else would overhear that he motioned for Virgil to take everyone’s hands. Patton grabbed onto Remus’s, who held onto Janus, who in turn held onto Virgil’s. Once everyone adjusted to seeing Roman, Janus spoke up.

“That isn’t Logan in there.”

“You know?” Roman asked, surprised, “I was just about to tell you that.”

“Logan’s fate is regret. It’s a really rare fate. The only person I’ve seen it on recently is him. He regrets letting you die. He regrets not doing anything. He regrets being there for his parents. He regrets not holding onto his emotions. He regrets everything he’s ever done. That’s his fate, that’s how it’s always been. The boy in there isn’t Logan because there’s two fates that float above his head. It's love. Someone is controlling a human.”

“Yeah. I was going to say that. I saw his eyes flash purple.” Patton replied, “Besides, his magic feels different. It’s not warm and no matter how long I try to convince myself that I’m going crazy, I have this gut feeling that Logan’s still out there, trapped somewhere.”

“It’s the magic.” Remus murmured, “Roman told us he casted a spell right after he went missing. It led us to the hoodie and the blood, but after that, it was a dead end, but we all knew he was still alive. It was just a gut feeling.”

“He wasn’t limping on his foot, almost like it was healed.” Virgil remarked before taking out a spell book, “And also a relative of Ro's…decided to give Roman this book.”

“It’s a spell book.” Patton murmured. “Try it out, Roman. Family artifacts are more powerful with family connections. I also think about bloodline connections being more powerful.”

Roman grabbed the book from Virgil’s free hand, flipping through it before he came across a cool one. “A honorable king is he, change his clothes into one of a bee!”

He pointed at Virgil, who started to panic and opened his mouth to scream and yell about why he chose to practice on him. However, before a single sound could come out, a ball of magic shot above Virgil and burst, the magic particles coming down slowly and changing Virgil’s outfit.

“I hate it and I hate you,” Virgil huffed as he looked at his new outfit. “So it does work?”

“Yeah, we’d need to practice our powers.” Roman replied, “But some of these are pretty interesting.”

“Like what?” Virgil asked as everyone made a closed circle around him to look at the book.

“That one.” Patton stopped the book flipping and Roman read the description out loud.

“Hades and Persephone…it’s a spell that will allow the caster to shift from the living to the ghost world for a certain time frame. Someone wrote in it, and added the note that a ghost will shift into the living world for that time frame. The time frame determines the caster’s power. The more magic the caster has or the more powerful the magic is, the longer it can hold.”

“That would be good for you, Roman.” Patton replied, “When I can see you, I can feel your aura is strong, even as a ghost. People usually lose 30% of their magic when they die and become ghosts, but yours feels just as strong as Logan’s.”

“We’ve got to try out all of this and strengthen everything we have.” Janus replied, “Is there anything else your relative might’ve given you?”

Roman flipped through the rest of the book before a stack of folded papers fell out of the last part of the book. Patton knelt down to grab it, opening it with the help of Virgil’s hands before Roman stepped to widen the circle up so he can look at the papers as well.

“It’s details about everything about Caleb.” Virgil murmured.

“That might just save us.” Roman gaped, “When I went there the first time, I had no idea what I was going into. Even now, I’m blanking on those memories. We could all get out alive, and rescue Logan. We can change the prophecy, so he doesn’t succeed.”

“What would that entail?”

“Studying these notes behind Fake Logan’s back, and…something that might be incredibly dangerous.” Roman stared at Patton.

“Why are you staring at me?”

“It means unlocking your power, Patton, and maybe even causing the end of the world.”

“Fuck…” Patton let out, and it caused the tension to release from everyone as they all laughed. That was something Patton wasn't used to saying, but it was right in that moment.

“How do we do that?” Patton seemed determined.

“You’re willing to do it?” Janus was surprised.

“If it means saving Logan, I’d do anything.”

“Alright, lover boy, hold your horses.” Remus replied, “It seems more complicated than that."

“It means either we let Caleb play with your mind until you slowly go insane and unlock your power…or we try to do that. The only issue is that we don’t know how to stop you from ending the world.” Roman replied, throwing the spell book at Patton. Patton caught it before it could hit his face. Barely. “We don’t even know what your power is. All we know is that it’s powerful. Your magical aura is 10x the aura of Logan’s, who’s probably the next most powerful person. Even if we were to all put our powers together, there’s no way we could stop you from not using your powers. In a sense of desperation, people with magic will do whatever it takes. In your case, your sense of desperation will be unlocking the magic.”

A silence fell between all of them, the mood becoming somber.

“Let’s rest on this.” Virgil spoke up, “Come on, Ro. Let’s go home.”

“Okay…” was all Roman could say. He was exhausted too. He just wanted everyone to be happy again. He wanted things to be okay, but most of all, he wanted Caleb to get the fuck out of his world.

With that, the group separated back to their homes. Roman was expecting Virgil to go home. It was almost sunset and time for dinner. Instead though, he stopped at the museum.

“What are we doing here, Vir?”

“We both need a little pick-me-up. Your brother told me he always goes here when he’s feeling upset. Says it calms him down. Now get out. We’re going.”

Roman got out of the car with Virgil, and the two walked into the museum. Making their way to Roman’s exhibit, Virgil sat down on one of the chairs facing Roman’s last work.

“Your brother brought me here one day. While you were out trying to find anything relating to Caleb, we were always at school. Logan took that time to get to know us by making us stay late to find anything from our end on Caleb. I was so stressed over all of this plus the recent test that came up that one day, Logan just stopped me in the middle of helping his research and told everyone to go home. He dragged me into his car and drove me here. Told me everything there was to know about you. About all the stories behind your paintings and about every film in the museum. I swear, I had never seen him so happy than in that moment.” Virgil replied, “Then, he told me that this was your proudest work. You never told him the reason, but he could guess. He had been receiving his powers in flashes, and he saw the scenery. He saw you and another boy that he hadn’t ever met that looked your age.”

“...my soulmate. I saw him in a dream. No recognizable traits, but I knew he had brown hair and brown eyes. I didn’t see his smile, but for some reason, I knew it was the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. There was so much purple too."

Virgil smiled and Roman’s heart dropped. There it was. There was that smile that he had been missing all his life. The smile he had been searching for.

“Then…for some reason, Logan told me that he knew the boy. At the time, he didn’t. Then, he met me and it all made sense once he found out I was a medium. I’m your soulmate, aren’t I?” Virgil asked, his eyes landing on Roman. Roman stared into his eyes, not wanting to look away. They were inches away from each other, but it was clear Virgil didn’t mind their proximity.

He didn’t know what to say, so he did the only thing he knew how to do. Speak his feelings. “Hades and Persephone, set my spirit free, let the two lovers of life and death meet once again, and with my fate written, lift the pen.”

Virgil’s breath hitched as Roman went to cup Virgil’s face, the two of them making contact for the first time. He could feel his breath on him and he knew he could feel the same.

The two sat there in silence, staring at each other. Then Roman broke it, “I’d really like to kiss you, Virgil.”

“Then do it, coward.” Virgil smirked. Roman quickly wiped his smirk away as he used his other hand to pull his waist closer to him and he brushed their lips against each other softly before he finally pressed them together.

As they separated, Virgil flushed, leaning his head against his chest. Roman chuckled as he held the boy close to him. After spending so long with him, it felt nice to finally hold his and tell him all that he wanted to say. It didn’t matter that he knew it would only be a few hours before he would miss his touch again. In that moment as he was holding him, he felt everything would be okay and that maybe they would get that moment one day where he was staring at Virgil in that grass field.

“God, how are we going to explain this to people?” Virgil flushed, “I can’t believe out of all the things I had to go ahead and do was fall in love with a ghost.”

Roman and Virgil stayed in the exhibit until Roman decided to activate the spell again to see if it would stop the spell. It did. The two walked out with a grin on their face.

Once the two had gotten ready for bed, Roman told Virgil that he wanted to stargaze. Virgil nodded, joining him a moment after, looking up from his driveway. In that moment, Roman willed himself to be in the living world again, just for a moment to allow Virgil to lean his head against his chest. He enjoyed the feeling of having the boy in his arms.

“Hey, Vir, can I confess something to you?”

“Sure.”

“That was my first kiss.”

“Me too.”

“I wish I got to spend time living longer. Maybe I’d be in college. Maybe I’d already be engaged to someone. Maybe…just maybe, I’d be happy. Maybe my brother would be happier than he has been. Maybe if I was alive, he wouldn’t have felt the need to separate and not make friends.”

“If you had to make the choice again, would you? Or would you let him die and live your life?”

“I’d make the same choice.”

“Hm. You’re a good brother.” Virgil smiled. “And a good person.”

“You’re a good person too. I wouldn’t have gotten here without your help. I would’ve probably been under Caleb’s control by now had you not taken me on that first day.”

“I didn’t take you in! You annoyingly intruded in!” Virgil scoffed, “But I’m glad I met you and got to this moment too. Thanks for giving me every reason to reach out to you.”

The two didn’t speak for the rest of the night, Roman only moving to pick Virgil up and carry his back to bed when he fell asleep. Once he was asleep, he realized how much he missed being alive. As he willed himself back to his ghost self, he decided now would be a good time to rest. He needed it for the next few days. ——————– prinxiety kiss (tbh this one is my favorite out of the three couples)

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#cw swearing #sanders sides #the fate of the marked six #chapter 16 #high school au #ts logan #ts patton #ts virgil #ts remus #ts janus #ts roman #roman is a ghost #roman x virgil #prinxiety #yk what i give up on tags #gl man

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