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"Something's wrong with Logan," Patton said, clearly shaken by whatever he had witnessed.
The three sides stood in Thomas' living room as usual, with Roman more concerned about Thomas' upcoming stage performances than the current situation, while Virgil listened intently.
"You mean the nerd who's always burdening himself with responsibilities?" Roman chuckled, rustling the script as he waved it dismissively. Virgil shot him a stern look, his expression unimpressed. "Well, this isn't his first time working in his office all week!" he said, rushing through the words and glaring at Virgil.
"So what's the big deal?" He flipped to the next page of the script.
Virgil rolled his eyes at Roman's dismissive attitude and rested a hand on Patton's shoulder. The worry in Patton's eyes was genuine; his pupils darted around the room as if trying to spot someone, and his body trembled with fear."It's more than just his workaholism," Virgil stated flatly.
He knew Thomas better than the light sides gave him credit for, and he recognized that Patton rarely got this upset. The dark storm sighed and abruptly pulled Patton into an embrace to comfort him. "I'll go find Logan. Just stay put for now." Patton's eyes widened at the sudden gesture. "B-but... Virgil," he stammered, pulling back to look at the emo.
Virgil ran through every possible scenario in his mind and only one stuck out to be the worst. Not wanting to alarm Patton, he gently patted his shoulder. "I got it, padre," he forced a smile as he stepped back. "Just don't go near the office until I'm back, okay?" Patton hesitated but nodded, trusting Virgil's judgment.
"Okay, whatever you say, storm cloud," Roman said, his eyes still glued to the script as he sat on the couch.
"Princey—" Virgil closed his eyes and sighed in frustration. Roman finally noticed how serious Virgil was being.
"Okay, okay... No walking to the office until you come back, right? I got it."
Virgil leaned in and whispered
"And look after Patton... please."
Roman's expression turned to confusion, but he nodded nonetheless as Virgil walked away.
It is Virgil's responsibility to prepare for the future and to fear what’s coming.
He absolutely despised his lack of control over the inevitable.
Virgil arrived at Logan's door and mentally braced himself. He knew this day would come, yet he wanted nothing more than to protect Thomas. With a few knocks, Virgil's heart pounded in his chest; even during his time on the dark side, the emo rarely saw him.
The door clicked open, revealing "Logan" staring back at him through a narrow gap, and indeed, his eyes glowed orange.
Virgil gulped, unable to say anything except,
"Why Logan?"
"Logan" smiled and fully opened the door. "Come in; we can talk."
It felt like a trap, but there was nothing he could do to the anxious side, so Virgil stepped into the office.
"Took you a while to catch on, hm?" Logan didn’t sound like himself. His voice was the same, but that tone... Virgil knew he wasn’t even trying to hide it. "You didn’t answer my question," he spoke sternly, turning to meet his gaze. "Why are you controlling Logan?"
The side chuckled at Virgil's desperation for an answer. "That is such an ambiguous question, darling." His expression darkened. "Wouldn’t you like to know, Virgil?"
The emo felt fear growing within him; he was not safe.
"You ask me as if you don’t know why I’m here. We both knew this day would come; it was only a matter of time before Logan COULDN'T TAKE IT anymore..." The side circled Virgil and pushed him down onto the edge of Logan's bed.
"You DIDN'T have to do THIS."
"Oh, but Logan would say otherwise."
Virgil squinted. "What does that even mean? Logan would never willingly let someone like you possess him." Virgil aggressively pointed at the side in front of him.
"Someone like me?" The side paused, his eyes glancing at Virgil with an expression that the emo couldn't quite understand. "You’ve lost all your manners ever since you joined the light sides..."
Without pause, a smirk appears.
"Sounding like Roman isn’t a good look on you."
Mischief laced his every word and action.
"Honestly, I’m sure you have the intelligence to understand that what Logan believes doesn’t matter; it’s about how he feels."
"Enlighten me," Virgil crossed his arms.
"Poor Logan was ignored and neglected... by those little friends of yours and Thomas." The side gasped dramatically, a hand on his chest. "Thomas?! The host of this body is ignoring logic to do what he wants?"
"How... infuriating."
He glanced at Virgil with a condescending smile... a smile could be wiped off with an uppercut, Virgil's fingers twitched at the idea.
"Logan's" eyes glowed brighter with orange as he fell back into the office chair, legs crossed, amused by Virgil's growing rage.
Virgil then took a deep breath and rested his head on his palms, realizing there was no way out of this. There was no quick fix, especially now that Logan had silently lost control. Maybe he had failed again—failed Thomas three times in a row. Even when he knew—... he knew all of this— why did he let it happen? Why couldn’t he stop them? Why is he so... incompetent?
"Oh, don’t look so sad, Vee," the side mumbled softly, his demeanour shifting.
"Don’t call me that." Anger surged in Virgil's chest at the nickname.
"Okay." He looked away from the emo. "But know that you can’t stop us."
The silence was deafening as Virgil breathed through the anxiety rising in his heart. "You cannot escape the inevitable—"
"IT DIDN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY!" Virgil shot up and yelled. "You didn’t have to waltz in here, control Logan, and hurt Thomas from the inside out." His eyes seemed to glow with a shade of violet.
"Did you forget how Thomas suppressed us? Suppressed YOU?" The side didn’t flinch at Virgil's anger.
"We were hurting him— why wouldn’t he run away?" Virgil shouted back.
"You know damn well that Janus and I only want the best for Thomas. Do you really think we’re some kind of sadistic psychopaths who chastise him for being who he is? Do you not remember who we are?"
The side spoke with a tone of logic, or perhaps he believed what he was saying was logical.
The side sat comfortably, his calmness was unsettling.
Virgil couldn’t think straight. What could he do now? What could he tell Patton when he walked out of this room?
"Listen, Vee," the side said, lifting his hand to silence Virgil’s protests about the nickname. "They don’t need to know what you know. You believe you're not us, but I can certainly tell you you're not them either. I suggest you keep this to yourself. When the time comes, Thomas will be hurt, but he will grow. Growth is what Thomas needs. Suppression will only go so far." Virgil glared at him, all the burning anger in his heart evident. "You know it's true, Vee... I never lie to you."
The side stared into Virgil's glowing eyes. "I cannot control what you say to them. You know what's right— both for yourself and for Thomas. Causing a ruckus out there when you know it's inevitable will do more damage than good."
Virgil vigorously shook his head, and the side allowed him to speak. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"But we do want to protect Thomas, right?"
Virgil fell silent. He searched for any hint of deception in his eyes, struggling to believe the words coming from his mouth. "I do what I want." With a sharp response, he turned to storm out the door, but the side grasped his arm before he could leave.
"Do what's right." The side sounded sincere, showing an almost "pleading" expression.
What the hell does he want from me? Virgil only paused for a moment before flinging off his hand and slamming the door shut behind him.
Virgil couldn't breathe, he stormed into his room, and the door closed with a bang. What is he going to say?
He leaned against the door and slid down to sit on the ground. Virgil is almost certain that Roman and Patton wouldn't understand even if he explained this to them.
They would only accept the orange side if they truly learnt about his nature and intentions, yet the memories of them showing disgust towards Janus and Remus flashed before his eyes.
Is acting oblivious the only option? But Thomas' mental health is at stake...
A knock can be heard at Virgil's door.
"Hey... Virgil? I heard you leave the office, are you okay kiddo?" The sweet yet concerned tone of voice was slightly muffled, Patton stood on the other side.
Virgil felt his stomach drop, what can he say to this?
He stood up and twisted the doorknob to see the father figure standing there with eyebrows furrowed and hands fidgeting from worry.
"Pat..." Virgil mumbled. "
"What do you mean he's possessed? B-but how is that possible—" Patton stuttered, staring at Virgil, his eyes wide with horror. Virgil paced around his room, sighing in frustration. "How can you be so sure he’s possessed?" Patton asked softly.
Virgil groaned and rested his head in his palms. "He talked to me like he always does—like the absolute jerk he’s always been." He paused, noticing Patton's confused expression. Right... he had to remember how unfamiliar the light sides were with the orange side. "Like any other dark side... uhm, when they just show up to pick on me. And Logan's eyes glowed orange," Virgil muttered, hoping Patton wouldn’t question his earlier slip-up. He averted his gaze.
"I never knew he could possess someone that easily..."
"This is my first time seeing it too," Virgil lied through his teeth.
"We can't tell Thomas about this," Patton hurriedly insisted. Virgil raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you suggesting we LIE to Thomas about Logan being possessed? His sense of logic is skewed right now, and he’ll undoubtedly hurt everyone he comes across. We HAVE to deal with this immediately." Virgil's eyes glowed for a split second before he turned away to calm himself.
"But if Thomas knows... then Roman—do you remember when Roman mocked Janus? How he can't accept the dark sides? He kept Thomas up for almost a week until Logan finally convinced him to stop. We don’t have Logan, and we can’t stop orange. How can we even protect Thomas from Roman?" Virgil glared at Patton. "Why are you talking about Roman like he’s some sort of beast?" Patton seemed taken aback by Virgil's question. "No—I don't mean it like that. Princey is such an important part of Thomas, but I’m just worried about him..."
Virgil stared at Patton with suspicion. "Look, it's getting late. We should let Thomas rest before we decide what to do," Patton said, his voice steadying. Virgil glanced at the time; it was almost midnight. "Fine..."
He found it strange that Patton would speak of Roman that way. But as he recalled Roman's insults toward Janus, he realised Patton didn’t stand by the prince—perhaps he had a change of heart.