Remus wasn't himself, even after the rash began to fade. He simply slumped in the common room or lay dejectedly on his bed in Roman's room. He wouldn't even eat without being forced to. There had been no sight or sound of Janus and Virgil for almost a week, and there was no indication that they would ever come out to talk. Roman was at a loss when it came to his depressed brother, and Patton was desperate to talk to Virgil and Janus to reassure them that they weren't hated for what they were. But Logan was as calm as ever, taking in information with deliberate focus. He watched and hid and made notes as he observed life in the Mind as his fellow Sides unraveled. And he eventually had enough information to formulate an idea.

"Why should I make that much?" Patton asked dejectedly, stirring the beef in the pan. "They won't come up."

"I believe it would be beneficial to have extra, just in case," Logan said, adjusting his glasses. "Would you please make more?"

Patton shrugged and added more to the pan. After dinner, there were a lot of leftovers, which was what Logan had wanted. He volunteered to clean up and sent Patton to his room. Then he set about preparing what he needed for his plan.

When he was satisfied, all he had to do was wait. So he slipped into his hiding spot and turned off all the lights. He listened to the tick of the clock as the hours chimed away, and he spent that time pondering philosophical quandaries. The lights down the bedroom hallway clicked off around ten. Logan was pleased by the sleep schedule being followed. It would be beneficial to help Thomas fall asleep. Their Center was unaware of why he felt like he was fighting himself constantly, and if it persisted for much longer, they would be summoned. That wouldn't go well, so Logic had to figure it out. And things began almost as soon as the clock finished chiming at three in the morning.

Logan hunkered down and slowed his breathing as there was a soft creak. Then footsteps. And a gleam of reflective eyes peered in the common room from the doorway to the Subconscious.

"Anybody?" Janus's soft voice asked.

"No," Virgil whispered back.

There was a shaky sigh. "Good. Let's get food. I'm starving for something tasty."

There were hurried, muffled footsteps into the kitchen, and Logan heard an excited gasp after the fridge opened.

"Why is there so much?" Janus hissed.

"Patton cooks to deal with feelings," Virgil murmured. "Shut up and enjoy it."

There was a grunt of satisfaction. "So #&$% good, Virgil. It's totally fair they have so much."

"Mm."

There were the sounds of eating, and Logan stole across the living room and into the hallway. Without a noise, he opened Roman's door. Remus was asleep on a twin bed on one side of the room, and Roman was on the other side. Logan went over and placed a hand over Roman's mouth. The prince jerked up and gave a muffled grunt of surprise before Logan leaned over.

"Don't make a noise. Follow me. Seal up the doorway I lead you to. It's very important."

Roman could hear the urgency in Logan's voice. So he slipped out and followed him to the doorway, which he waved a hand at. Instantly, it was sealed. He turned to ask Logan what was going on when he heard the soft sounds from the kitchen. He gasped and spun. Was it possible? And then Logan turned the light on. Silence reigned and Roman blinked owlishly as Logan straightened, cleared his throat, and spoke at a normal volume.

"Roman, if you would be so kind as to retrieve Patton and Remus, I believe we have a discussion to have."

Not a single noise from the kitchen. And Roman realized that the doorway he'd blocked off was the doorway into the Subconscious.

"Now, Roman."

Roman turned and bolted for Patton's door as Logan approached the doorway. The kitchen light wasn't on, but he could still see just fine from the common room light. Virgil was curled up in a ball, his breathing fast. When Logan stepped into the kitchen, he began to rock back and forth, little whimpers falling from his lips. Janus was standing rigidly by the counter, the leftover food he'd been consuming sitting on the countertop. His eyes were locked on Logan, his posture and eyes telling the logical side that he was ready to strike. Logan was careful to move slowly.

"Is there anything you require to make this easier?" Logan asked gently.

"Lights off," Janus hissed, the sibilant 's' betraying his nerves.

"Dimmer lights," Logan countered. "We need to see your expressions. And you need to see ours. Anything else?"

There was no answer, so Logan turned to ask Roman to create some ambient lighting that would make Janus and Virgil more comfortable. Before he could take more than two steps, Patton came running out of his room toward the kitchen, but Logan caught him.

"No," he said firmly.

"Are they okay?" Patton demanded.

"No. Go sit down."

Remus and Roman came padding out of Roman's bedroom, and they joined Patton on the couch.

"Where are they?" Patton demanded.

"They have requested dimmer lighting to be more comfortable."

Roman stopped to think about what he should create, but Remus raised his hand and snapped at once. Instantly, a string of lights wrapped around the room and the main lights turned off. The lights were dimmer than Logan would have liked, but Remus snapped again before he could comment, and instantly two large piles of blankets appeared on the other end of the couch.

"What's that for?" Patton asked.

Remus shrugged. "Sit down and wait," he said dully.

The minutes dragged by, and Patton squirmed restlessly as he kept glancing at the dark door of the kitchen. Just when he was about to snap, there was movement, and Patton and Roman yelped in surprise when the lights reflected on a pair of animalistic eyes.

"Ah. Come on then," Logan coaxed. "It's alright Virgil."

Virgil blinked then turned and whispered something to Janus. Then there was a long pause before the two Sides dashed forward at a surprising speed straight for the blankets and burrowed in. All that could be seen from one pile was Janus's glinting eyes, and Virgil had completely buried himself in his pile, which shook. The Light Sides watched with curiosity.

"Well, that was a good idea, Remus," Logan stated.

"I know," Remus said. He leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. "Unlike most of the ones that come from me. I'm sorry for my $&!# idea. I have a lot of those."

Silence. Then Janus's voice, drawing out every 's' he spoke in a hiss. "That's all?" he asked reproachfully.

Remus shrugged. "What else can I say?" he asked tiredly.

"Why?" Virgil grunted from his pile of blankets.

"I dunno."

"Liar," Janus hissed.

Remus ran his fingers through his hair. "Fine. I was terrified that I would start to be ripped apart by my desire for the Light Sides to like me. I saw both of you go through it, and it looked like it fucking sucked. I saw you both start to hate yourselves and doubt everything you did and everything you are. I was trying to avoid that kind of pain. I want to like myself. I do like myself…"

"Except the parts they would find offensive," Janus cut in.

Remus grimaced. "It hurts. Like a %#*&ing knife tearing through my heart. But you're right. And I was so scared that I came up with a ridiculous, dumb#$& plan to try and avoid that. And, as usual when I don't ask you, I made it worse. And I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you two." He looked down at the floor.

There was a pause. Then Virgil shifted until his eyes reflected the dim lights again. "You made us a freak show," he rumbled, the dark edge to his voice making a shiver go up their spines.

"Stop right there," Logan said firmly. "While Remus's plan was ill-advised, and I would have put a stop to it had I not been awoken out of a deep sleep, I do not agree that it was a 'freak show' as you put it. What we saw was a coping mechanism that you three have obviously developed over time to deal with the stressors of your jobs and lives. And while it is far from healthy, it is understandable, considering your more primal and base functions in the human experience, that a more animalistic and primal response would be the one you would naturally gravitate toward."

"So?" Janus asked.

"So while we are surprised by your differences and animalistic tendencies, we do not think them ugly or shameful," Logan replied.

The two pairs of gleaming eyes glanced at each other. Then Virgil raised up a bit so that his face was uncovered. The patches below his eyes were thick and dark and spread over his cheekbones. He stared at them intently, searching for any sign of disgust.

"There is no cause to be anxious, Virgil," Logan said gently. "I have many questions for both of you about your more unique characteristics, but I assure you that I am not disgusted by you. You're not a monster simply because you exist as a human-animal hybrid, Janus. And neither are you, Virgil."

"And Remus?" Janus hissed.

"He's not a monster either."

They were not satisfied by the answer.

"Do they know?" Virgil asked Remus.

"About… that?" Remus asked tightly. "No."

"Perfect time to show them then," Janus said.

Remus flinched and squirmed then relented. "Fine. I guess I owe you. Might as well join the freak show."

Janus also raised his head as Remus stood up and stripped off his pajama top. He sighed then faced the Light Sides and looked away as he flexed. To their bewilderment, it appeared that Remus's skin was splitting at his sides, and then they screamed when something came out of them.

"By the many tentacles of the Kraken, what the %#*& is that?!" Roman screeched.

Patton gaped with wide eyes and Logan stood up and let out a strangled noise, unable to help himself. Remus cringed and looked at the floor, his shoulders slumping.

"Romy's right. Except they're octopus, not kraken," he muttered, shuffling his feet.

The Light Sides gazed in utter astonishment at the eight tentacles that hung from Remus's skin. They were long and green with so many suction cups, gleaming wetly in the dim light, and as they stared, Remus seemed to shrink in on himself, his face turning red. Janus and Virgil stared wordlessly.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, blinking away tears. "I'm so %#*&ing sorry."

"Mm." Janus shifted and more of the blankets fell away. "Shame burns, doesn't it?" he crooned. "And you so often don't feel it."

"I am now," Remus said. His face burned so hot, and he fought back tears. He expected laughter from the Light Sides, and he felt so exposed, ugly, weak. He hated it. He wanted to sink into the floor, to not exist in this painful state of vulnerability and shame.

"That'll do," Janus said thoughtfully. "Wouldn't you say, Virgil?"

Virgil looked at him and nodded. "Yep. You're good."

Remus let out a breath, and in an instant the tentacles were gone, slithering back into his sides, which sealed into seamless skin. He scrambled for his shirt then tugged it on. Then he looked pathetically at the two Dark Sides, too ashamed to even look at the Light Sides.

They stared at him then Janus gestured between them. "If you must."

Remus dove over and stole a blanket from each of them then hid himself in them, shivering. He couldn't bear to look at the Light Sides. He knew that was how he'd made Janus and Virgil feel, and he knew he deserved it. But dang it, even Roman hadn't known about his tentacles. There was silence as Logan slowly seated himself, staring at the three Sides in front of him with wonder.

"Absolutely fascinating," he breathed. "Octopuses are some of the most intelligent creatures on the planet aside from humans. And they're very, very creative… and here you are, an encapsulation of Thomas's dark creativity, and you are part octopus?"

"Yes," Remus said from his blankets.

"Burns, doesn't it?" Janus asked, looking very satisfied.

"I'm sorry."

"Apology not accepted," Janus said.

"Ditto," Virgil said.

Remus sighed with relief as he lifted his head and wrapped his arms around both of them. They shifted into his grip, relaxing into his embrace, and for a moment, Remus was happy. Then Roman spoke.

"You have tentacles?!"

"Yes," Remus said. His old energy seemed to be coming back to him as he sat up straight and glared at his brother. "What about 'em?" he asked defiantly.

"When did that happen?"

Remus bit his bottom lip and stroked his mustache as he squinted in thought. "I discovered them when I was thirteen," he said. "You'd left by then so I didn't bother to try and tell you. You would've only thought I was a villain like Ursula or something."

Roman shifted uneasily and looked away. "I…"

"Don't bother, bro," Remus said. "I know we're freaks. Animals. Monsters."

"Thomas would be better off without us," Virgil muttered.

"Mm," Janus hummed.

Logan sat back. "Ah. So we are back to that. I believe it is about time to have the rest of our difficult conversation. But perhaps something sweet and unhealthy would ease the tension a bit." He turned to Patton. "Would you make us something?"

Patton nodded. "Um, sure. What do we want?"

There was a thoughtful pause then Janus spoke. "Not that it matters, but Virgil says your chocolate chip brownies are absolutely awful and that I'd hate to have one. I do despise chocolate after all."

Patton turned to look at Janus, who glanced at him then lowered himself back into the pile of blankets until his eyes were the only thing they could see. Patton slowly smiled.

"Okay, Jan. And how about some of those meringues you hate?"

Janus let out a soft hiss. "Sounds horrible."

Patton hopped up. "Give me forty-five minutes!"

"Peppermint tea?" Virgil asked. His voice still had a deep undertone to it, but it was less anxious than before.

"Of course! Roman? Come help me," Patton said.

"Yeah," Roman said. He raked his eyes over the three Dark Sides, especially the lump that was his twin. "Yeah I need a minute to process… things."

Logan sat back as Patton and Roman headed into the kitchen. "Would you like to answer some questions?"

"No," Virgil growled.

"Absolutely!" Janus snarled, panic in his tone.

"Please don't," Remus muttered, shifting uncomfortably.

"Very well. Would you mind if I put on an audiobook or a podcast to listen to while we wait for the food to be done?"

"Something funny," Virgil said after a moment.

Logan nodded, took out his phone, and began to scroll. Janus leaned over to Virgil and Remus.

"Together?" he whispered, his eyes vulnerable.

"Of course, snakebite," Remus said.

"Honesty?" Virgil murmured.

"Too suspicious otherwise," Janus groused.

"Friends?" Remus asked.

"Always," they both replied.

Remus grinned then shifted and his tentacles slithered into their blankets to embrace them, unseen by Logan, who was studying their options. Virgil's eye patches lightened and receded a bit, and Janus shyly bared his fangs in a grin.

"Things are all good again," Remus sighed.

They all went silent as a comedic podcast began to play, and they were abruptly reminded that they had some very awkward conversations to have.

"Not quite," Janus said. And they all sank down into their blankets again.