Chapter Seven
Recollections and Reflections
A/N This chapter was supposed to be published before Halloween.
Did that Happen? Of course not.
I apologize.
-1 Days until Halloween-
He was running down a hallway, his breath coming in quick, sharp, painful gasps, but he had to get through, he shouldn't linger here and he knew that. The walls, ceiling, and floor were moving and shifting steadily, in, out, in, out, in, out; a steady rhythm, as though it were breathing. They were coated in a strange, clear, viscous sort of liquid that made it difficult to remain upright as he ran. He could not stay here. He slammed his shoulder into the door at the end of the hall, causing it to crash open.
"Mother f-"
Virgil huffed a deep sigh. Anya's house was one that had quite a lot of fuel for him to go off of. On the outside it looked like it was only an oversized farmhouse, but the inside of it was like a dusty old mansion with chandeliers and candelabras and winding spiral staircases and ornate murals on the ceilings. Doors were light and squeaky and the place was drafty, so a door could creak open at any time. The floorboards wailed under pressure and most rooms were badly lit, so shadows were more than abondant. Usually, Virgil would be having a lot of fun keeping Thomas up with racing thoughts, but at the moment, Virgil couldn't bring himself to care to. Currently, Thomas was with Anya by the black berry bushes trying to coax a quail into his hand, Patton was with the horses, cows, and goats, petting them and getting to know them, Kohan was sleeping in Virgil's heavily locked down room, and Virgil was wandering through the marsh trying to find a good spot to listen to music and chill. He had found some pretty good, sturdy trees that seemed they would make a good spot for a hammock, a treehouse that needed a few repairs, and a very large tree with a huge hole in the middle. The first two seemed dangerous and Virgil assumed that there were probably squirrels or owls in the large hole in the tree, so he kept on. It wasn't until he came across a fork in the trail that he saw something interesting. There was a make-shift road sign that reminded Virgil of something Roman and Logan had done when they were all little.
Virgil had always wanted to be able to play with Logan and Roman, it seemed so fun, but he was always too scared to ask. They were six gosh dangit, the only thing he should be worried about is how much time he had to play with his friends, he definitely shouldn't be worried over whether or not they would want to play with him, but there he was watching them play instead of joining. Patton was building a sandcastle over in the sand box, Virgil always wanted to play with him too, but he couldn't ask, especially because his best friend was Judas. Judas didn't like it when he played with someone else. Roman and Logan were playing adventure like they always did. Roman had his wooden sword and Logan had a huge book (Probably a whole 200 pages) that Virgil was pretty sure he couldn't read and a rolled up piece of paper with drawings on it.
"We should mark this trail so we don't get lost." Roman said, in the process of tying two sticks together. He stuck them in the dirt, but it fell apart.
"We can't get lost." Logan shook his head exasperatedly. "We're in the backyard."
"Pretend, Logan." Roman sighed.
"But we have a map." Logan pointed out, tying them together and sticking them upright in the Earth so they wouldn't fall. Virgil covered his mouth so they wouldn't hear him giggle.
"But what if we go off the trail and don't know where we are on the map?" Roman said, pointing his sword towards Patton in the sand box.
"We just won't go off the trail." Logan shrugged.
"But what if something chases us, like a bear!" Roman made a growling noise and put his arms up.
"There are no bears in the backyard." Logan said, confused.
"Pretend, Logan!" Roman sighed again. Virgil giggled again, and darted back behind the wall so they wouldn't see him.
Virgil physically bit back tears. He would not lose a hold on himself. Not now. Not when Patton and Thomas had much bigger things to deal with. He knew they'd feel obligated to run to his aid. He sat down in front of the little sign and put his head in his hands. He took a few deep breaths and steadied himself.
"Hey mister, are you okay?" Virgil's head shot up and he looked around wildly. There was a little kid standing a few feet away from him. Two of them actually.
"Reese, we're not supposed to talk to strangers." The one that had spoken reminded Virgil a bit of Logan with dark, neatly combed hair and black, rectangular glasses. Not to mention he carried a general air of holier than thou even though he appeared to only be eleven or twelve. The other child, Reese presumably, scowled. He was dressed in a white T-shirt and had a red coat tied around his shoulders like a cape.
"Sorry about him." Reese said to Virgil. "He worries too much."
"And you worry too little." The boy in the glasses hissed, grabbing the other boys arm.
"He's right you know." Virgil mumbled solemnly, looking at the ground.
"Waddya mean?" Reese said. It had appeared he'd startled the other child enough to make him stop pulling on his friend's arm.
"You want to hear a story?" He offered picking up a small stone and flicking it into a small marshy spot a few feet over his shoulder.
"Come on Flint." Reese urged him. "It's like the wise old hermit in your story."
"That's ridiculous." The other little boy replied, but he sat down on a short stump, giving Virgil his attention anyway. Reese hoisted himself up onto a large, thick branch that hung to just below his shoulder.
"I had friends like you once." Virgil said, not entirely sure why he was talking to these children at all. Let alone about anything like this. "Roman was a lot like you Reese." Reese's eyes widened, and Virgil had to stop himself from smirking. Children are so gullible. "He was a dreamer, you know. Always ready for a grand adventure." The other boy- Virgil was pretty sure he had been called Flint- widened his eyes too. "Logan was a genius, liked to pretend he didn't make mistakes or get scared." Flint's jaw visibly clenched and he sat up impossibly straighter. "Yeah, they were a lot like you." Virgil nodded to himself.
"Were?" Flint echoed. "What happened to them?" Virgil flinched slightly, purely for dramatic effect, noting he was acting just a bit like his missing prince- the missing prince, not his.
"They took things too far." He said quietly, fishing around for something he could say about their disappearance to make it more twelve-year-old friendly. "Logan and Roman were always at each other's throats ever since highschool. They could never quite agree on anything. Logan always wanted to be smarter, more mature, more serious, and Roman lived for fun, for his friends, for love and honor. The older we all got, the more and more they fought, and finally… finally they decided they were better off on their own. Logan was whisked away to a fancy college to become a scientist at the Smithsonian and Roman disappeared on a journey to save his very best friends-" Here Virgil felt Judas's presence lift and paused briefly in confusion. He looked up at the two boys listening to his story. Their eyes were wide and shocked. Unsure of why, Virgil took a breath and continued. "No one has heard from them since they left. And things will never be quite the same." Flint looked down at the leather bag slung over his shoulder taking a small but thick book. He shared a meaningful look with his young friend, and then looked back down at the book. Reese hopped down from the tree branch and drew himself up, one arm crossed over his chest and the other pointing away from his body. It reminded Virgil forcefully of Princy.
"Something, sir, tells me that everything is going to be okay with them." He said slowly and dramatically as though he were in an amatuer play. Flint rolled his eyes but stood as well, tilting his chin up ever so slightly.
"You remind me of a man." He said in a voice that sounded like Logan's whenever he quoted some famous philosopher or scientist. "A man from a half-remembered dream I had years ago. There is light for you yet on the horizon. Do not fear." Virgil, in spite of himself, smiled and laughed ever so slightly, shaking his head. Remembering that the path behind him had many places that looked like solid ground but were actually knee-deep water, Virgil said to them;
"The only direction worth moving in is forward, but maybe this time you should turn around first." He thought maybe they would think it was funny, or even just a little smart-sounding, but their eye only widened again. The two of them both turned around obediently, and started to walk down the trail they must have come from. At that same second, Virgil felt an insistent tugging in his chest and realized someone was summoning him. Pausing only to brush some dirt off his hoodie, he sunk out, not even thinking about what would happen if the two boys saw him do that. They were young after all, kids make things up.
Patton was sitting on the fence of the horse/cow/goat pasture. A bright smile lit up his face as the little pygmy goat butt his head against Patton's outstretched hand.
"Cutie." He cooed. The goat looked up at him with big, brown eyes and blinked before letting out a long bleat and butting against his hand again. Patton giggled and scratched behind his ears. He sighed, however, after a moment. Not even the presence of a small, adorable, fluffy animal could distract Patton from what was making him sad.
"Lev! Slow down! Who even is that guy?" Patton's head shot up at the sound of a child's scared voice. There were two little kids running toward him, one in a green flannel and patched blue jeans and the other in an oversized black, white, and grey plaid hoodie and black sweats. The little boy in the green flannel skidded to a stop in front of the wooden fencing.
"Hey there, kiddo." Patton said kindly. "Everything okay?"
"Yes, sir!" The little boy said. His friend had stopped a few feet away from them but was shuffling closer. "Are you Thomas Sanders Sir?" The boy in the green flannel had a slight southern accent and a big bright smile. He had a black camera in his hands, decorated with stickers of cats and rainbows. "I'm a really big fan!" Patton smiled at him.
"Yup, sure am Kiddo." At least he kind of was.
"Awesome!" He said brightly. "Are you about to do a video? Why are you dressed like Patton? Did you get a haircut?" Patton laughed.
"I don't think any videos are going to be shot anytime soon." He said honestly. He hated the little disappointed look on the boy's face.
"Why not?" The other boy's voice was very quiet, Patton almost didn't hear him.
"We… uhm… I kinda lost Roman." Patton admitted uncomfortably.
"Oh." The boy in the hoodie didn't seem to understand.
"Oh! I get it! I bet you Reese has all sorts of ideas for you! A lot of your fans probably do, you can always ask you know." Patton beamed at him.
"You know, that's actually a good idea kiddo. What's your name?"
"My name's Lev!" He pulled his friend over by the sleeve of his hoodie. "And this is Beckett," Beckett frowned and tugged his arm away from Lev.
"Didn't I see you earlier?" He asked quietly.
"I don't think so kiddo, I've been here pretty much all day." Patton said honestly.
"Huh. I thought I did." He sounded a little worried and maybe a bit suspicious now. "Would've sworn to it, same glasses and everything." The glasses? Logan was the only side that wore glasses like Patton's. If it was him…
"Where did you see him?" Patton asked. Beckett's expression turned slightly fearful.
"Over by Ring Creek, come on Lev, we need to go now!" He grabbed Lev's arm and dragged him away. He was muttering something about doppelgangers, but Patton was hardly paying attention. He mentally called out to Virgil and Winston, trying to summon them to him. Virgil appeared by his side hardly a second later, but instead of Winston, came Lucius. Patton did not have time to think about it.
"We need to go find the creek!" He said quickly.
"The creek?" Lucius crossed his arms.
"It's important!" Patton maintained. "I think Logan might be around there! A kid said he saw me over there, same glasses and everything, but I never went over there."
"I think I passed it while I was walking around." Virgil said, and Patton could tell he was struggling not to get his hopes up. "Come on." Patton followed Virgil at a trot, and even though he thought Lucius wouldn't come, he trailed just slightly behind. In a matter of seconds, they had made it to the creek. There was no one around. Logan wasn't there.
"Maybe he left already." Patton offered. "The important thing is we know he's around somewhere, we can-"
"Patton," Virgil began. "I think we're going to have to just admit that they're dead" Virgil mumbled, looking down at the ground. "They've been gone without a trace, they aren't even affecting Thomas anymore… they're gone."
"Don't say things like that Virgil." Patton whispered, tears building in his eyes. "They'll be okay." He took a deep breath. "Both of them. Everything is going to be fine." But even as he said this, tears began to spill down his cheeks.
"Fools, you know nothing." Lucius spat, glaring at his shoes. The mirrors aren't rooms that hold sides within, there is no such thing as a dead side, emotions don't die, they only become repressed."
"What do you mean sides can't die?" Virgil demanded. "You and I have both seen it happen." Something like anger flashed behind Lucius's eyes.
"We thought we did, but that side is still alive." He growled. "Unfortunately."
"Don't you dare talk about him like that!" In a second, Lucius was on the ground, Virgil's foot on his chest, pinning him into the grass.
"Virgil, what's happening?" Patton asked, shooting worried glances between them.
"He killed him, and he won't admit it." Virgil growled, but his usual venom was lacking, and his voice wavered as though he were fighting to keep it steady. His foot ground Lucius into the grass harder, but Lucius merely glared an icy glare at Virgil.
"He got what was coming to him, what you saw happened, but he is still ali-" He was cut off by Virgil stomping rather hard on his ribcage.
"Virgil! Stop!" Patton yelled, grasping for his arm, trying to pull him away, to stop him from hurting the dark side any further. Someone was going to get hurt very badly out of this if it didn't stop! Lucius coughed, and hoarsely said,
"Virgil, stop… please."
"What's the matter Lucius? Didn't you just tell me sides can't die?" Virgil sneered, lifting his foot again.
"Virgil, stop!" Patton burst into tears. This was not the Virgil he knew. The Virgil he knew worried over everyone else and was protective. He was the perfect son and just about the best friend you could ask for. He wasn't violent like this. He wasn't scary like this. But just as he finished that thought, he felt strong arms wrap around him and found his face buried in black and purple.
"I'm sorry, Pat." Virgil's voice rumbled against his cheek, and Patton realized his face was pressed against Virgil's chest. Virgil's chin came to rest on his head. "I'm sorry, Dad." He said again. Patton could hear the tears building in his voice and so he returned the hug. After a moment they pulled away, Virgil looking very uncomfortable. Patton turned to help Lucius, but he was already standing again, looking for all the world as if he had nothing happen to him.
"What happened, Virge?" Patton asked, still teary. "Why did you attack him like that."
"He killed him." Virgil mumbled again. "And he's trying to pretend he didn't."
"Killed who?" Patton asked, immediately worried.
"My little brother." Virgil replied darkly. "He killed my little brother, and he won't own up to it." His voice had risen to an angry shout once again. "He's a murderer!"
"Calm yourself, nave." Lucius sneered. "Your brother is still alive."
"I watched you kill him!"
"STOP!" Patton yelled at the both of them. They both turned and blinked at him, shocked. "If his brother isn't dead, what happened?" He demanded of Lucius.
"Instead of dying, a side goes grey." Lucius replied. "He's in the grey domain now, the mirrors are the only way in and out of there. You fools are lucky you thought the mirrors were broken, or you would've been trapped in an upside-down plain of existence entirely in grey scale full of murderous sides who don't even know what they're doing, let alone have the ability to stop themselves."
"You bastard." Virgil snarled. He went to move forward, but Patton put a hand out to stop him.
"Is there anything we can do to fix him?" Patton demanded.
"Even if I knew how, do you think I would tell you? The whelp was in my way, he deserved what he go-" Virgil socked him across the face, but Lucius barely seemed phased.
"Stop talking right now you piece of-" He stopped dead in the middle of his sentence. "Roman… Roman NO!"
