#to percy 'never even held a sword until 12' jackson???????

[introspectivememories]

i firmly believe that jason would've beaten percy in that mark of athena fight

[bright-eyes-strawberry-lies]

My (incomplete) Notes on The Lightning Thief

Percy Jackson, at 12 years old, is miserable

Percy is trying very hard to be good

Percy reacts violently when his friends are threatened

“I’m going to kill her” 

I wish I’d decked her right there

Percy turns red when he gets called on 

Percy knows a lot about both Greek and Roman gods

Percy has an “I’ll-kill-you-later” stare

Percy gives “safe” answers to authority figures

Percy sells an illegal candy stash out of his dorm room

Percy knows about shrooms and thinks that he was drugged on the field trip

Percy has nightmares about the teacher (Kindly One) that he killed

Percy has to get summer jobs

Grover is a very bad liar

Percy almost cries in class when his favorite teacher tells him that he’s different

Percy gets into fights to protect Grover from bullies

Percy sees the Fates snipping the thread and knows he’s going to die

Grover mentions that it’s always 6th graders who are killed

Percy ditches Grover at the bus stop

Grover’s bladder acts up when he gets nervous

Sally Jackson took night classes to get her GED

She wanted to be a novelist

Gabe Ugliano is Percy’s stepdad

His cigars make Percy nauseous 

He drinks beer and leaves a mess everywhere

He takes money from Percy and uses it to fund his gambling and calls it their “guy secret.”

If Percy tells Sally, he’ll “punch Percy’s lights out”

Gabe takes over Percy’s room while Percy is at school

Gabe makes fun of Percy’s grades

Sally works at a candy shop and brings Percy blue candy

She runs her hands through his hair and asks him how he’s doing

She never raises her voice or says anything unkind to anyone

Percy wants to punch Gabe

Percy wants to kick Gabe in the balls and “make him sing soprano for week” 

Gabe blamed Percy for things that aren’t his fault

Percy makes a hand gesture that Grover did, but at Gabe, and the screen door slammed shut 

They have a rental cabin on the beach that is “half hidden in the dunes, full of sand and spiders”

Percy and his mom eat blue foods because Gabe said there’s no such thing as blue food. It’s an act of rebellion. 

Percy thinks that his mom doesn’t want him around

Percy is mad at Poseidon for leaving him and his mom

In preschool, Percy is put to sleep in a crib at school. The crib had a snake in it and Percy strangled the snake to death. 

Percy has a dream that a horse (Poseidon) and an eagle (Zeus) are fighting to the death

“O Zeu kai alloi theoi” means “Oh Zeus and other gods!” 

Percy experiences panic when he realizes that his teacher was a monster trying to kill him

Lightning hits the camaro and blasts off the roof

Percy’s got good instincts; the hair frequently raises on the back of his neck when he’s in danger

Sally gets killed by the minotaur 

She’s actually stolen by Hades

Percy rips off the minotaur’s horn and impales it into his side

Percy is crying, weak, trembling with grief and he literally carries Grover and drops onto a porch

Annabeth tries to get Percy to talk while she’s spoon-feeding Percy ambrosia 

Percy has been unconscious for two days after his fight with the minotaur

Percy would rather live on the streets than live with Gabe

He considers lying about his age and joining the army

Percy is very good at telling when adults have been drinking

Grover is nervous about Mr. D

But he still manages to ask for the diet coke can to eat

  The farm house is four stories tall, sky blue and white trim

The camp grows strawberries and the campers pick them

Grover is 28 years old but satyrs mature at half the rate that humans do

The Poseidon cabin walls glow like abalone. There are six empty beds with silk sheets. It smells salty. 

Chiron gets horribly depressed about training heroes

Luke is very handsome except for a thick white scar that runs from his right eye to his jaw.

He’s the son of Hermes and the counselor 

Luke is 19

He’s in cabin 11

Monsters will always reform because they don’t have souls

The bathrooms are cinder block buildings with a line of toilets and a line of showers; there’s a girls and a boys

Percy feels a tug in the pit of his stomach when he uses his powers

Annabeth just watched Clarisse drag Percy into the bathroom to give him a swirly 

Luke steals Percy some toiletries from the camp store. 

Percy is not good at archery, foot racing, or wrestling

The only thing that Percy is good at is canoeing 

Percy can’t find a blade that fits right in his hand. 

Luke has been the best swordsman in 300 years

Percy bests him after pouring ice water on his head (son of Poseidon) 

Hades doesn’t have a cabin at Camp Half-Blood or a throne on Olympus. They say that it would be bad if there was a cabin for Hades. 

Sixty years ago, after World War 2, the big three gods made an oath not to have more kids.

Two of them broke it; Zeus with Jason and Thalia, Poseidon with Percy.

When Hades found out, he let out all three Kindly Ones and a pack of Hellhounds

Thalia wound up becoming a tree. 

Grover was the satyr assigned to bring only Thalia in. Thalia had befriended Annabeth and Luke, and she wouldn’t leave them behind. 

Percy thinks that Luke’s scar makes him look almost evil

Clarisse has an electric spear

It makes Percy go numb wherever she touches him with it

One of the boys in Cabin 5 (Ares) cuts Percy across the arm

Once Percy gets into the water, he’s very good at fighting

Luke wins capture the flag

Annabeth has a Yankee's cap that makes her invisible. It was a gift from her mother. 

Annabeth is the first person to figure out that Poseidon is Percy’s father.

No wait, Grover was first and then Chiron. Well, they knew he was one of the Big Three’s son.

As soon as Percy steps out of the water, he is exhausted and in pain.

When Hellhounds die, they melt into shadow and soak into the ground.

Hellhounds are from the fields of punishment.

When Poseidon claims Percy, everyone kneels.

“Poseidon, Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God.”

Percy is miserable being alone in Cabin Three and being so isolated. He would rather get into fights every day than be ignored. People are steering clear of Percy. 

Except for Luke, who gives Percy one-on-one sword training. 

Annabeth teaches Percy Greek but she’s distracted.

Gabe tells the press that Percy is violent and a troubled kid. The newspapers say that Percy may be involved in his mother’s disappearance. 

Gabe also tells the press that Percy has expressed violent tendencies in the past.

Percy has more dreams of Zeus and Poseidon fighting. He hears Kronos’ voice calling to him. 

It doesn’t rain in Camp Half-Blood (or even get overcast) unless they want it to. 

Dionysus wants to kill Percy. 

Percy gets embarrassed when he knows something someone doesn’t want or expect him to. 

Percy has a nervous laugh. 

Illegal copies can be made of the Gods Symbols of Power.

Percy has tried to steal pizza from Gabe’s poker parties and got busted for it.

Percy is furious that the camp is being punished for his existence. He thinks he’s responsible for the gods' fight. 

The Big House attic is four flights up. It’s full of mementos from old demigod fights. 

Percy is scared of the oracle. 

Percy’s fists clench at the very sight of Gabe. 

Percy doesn’t have many friends. 

Percy isn’t afraid of Hades; he wants to get revenge and take Hades on. 

Gods can’t encroach on each other’s territories but demigods can. Gods can’t be held responsible for heroes actions. 

Percy describes his emotions as rolling glass in a kaleidoscope. 

Percy is so relieved that Grover is coming with him that he wants to cry. 

Annabeth volunteered to go on the Quest. Percy is not surprised. 

Previously, Luke told Percy that Annabeth has been harassing Chiron for a prophecy and that she’s been hanging onto all of the new campers until she’s sure they aren’t the chosen one. 

Annabeth says that Percy will mess up this quest without her even though he’s been more than adequate at handling everything that’s been thrown his way. 

The camp store loans Percy $100.00 and 20 golden drachmas. 

He’s also given a canteen of nectar and a ziplock bag full of ambrosia squares.

The ambrosia and nectar is only to be used in emergencies; it will kill a mortal and demigods will literally burn up if they overdose. 

Annabeth’s cap was given to her on her twelfth birthday by her mom, Athena. 

Luke actually runs up the hill to give them the basketball shoes. They’re the flying shoes he got from his dad for his quest when he was seventeen. 

Luke gives the shoes directly to Percy. 

Percy is worried that Luke would have been jealous of the attention he’s been getting.

Percy blushes because Luke gave him the magic gift. 

Luke seems uncomfortable talking to Percy. He trails off three times and uses “um.” And then there’s an [awkward] handshake. 

Luke pats Grover between the horns and gives Annabeth a hug.

Annabeth’s crush on Luke has been brought up three times so far. 

Percy figures out by this one interaction that Annabeth let Luke capture the flag instead of her. 

Percy thinks that he’s a brat for wanting a magical gift from his father. 

Riptide (Anaklusmos) is a gift from Poseidon that Chiron has been holding onto for the next child of Poseidon. 

Riptide is forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of Mount Etna, and cooled in the River Lethe. 

Mortals aren’t important enough for the blade to kill but it will kill demigods and anything from the Underworld. 

Percy thinks that the real world feels like a fantasy after spending two weeks at Half-Blood Hill. 

Percy thinks that Annabeth hates him. 

Annabeth thinks they have to be rivals because their parents are. 

Annabeth was also mean to him before she knew who his dad was.

Even after two weeks away from Gabe, Grover can still smell him on Percy.

This makes Percy immediately want a shower.

Grover says that Percy should be thankful Sally was with someone who smelled so repulsively human because it kept the monsters away and that Sally must have loved Percy a lot to put up with that guy.

This does not make Percy feel better but he hides his feelings; or hopes he does since satyrs can sense emotions with or without an empathy link. 

Percy is on the quest because he wants to save his mom.

He is not on the quest to retrieve Zeus’s lightning bolt

Or to save the world 

Or to help his dad out of trouble. Percy is actually really, really angry with Poseidon for never visiting or helping Sally. 

Annabeth and Percy are good at playing hacky sack. 

The three Furies are considered the worst monsters in the Underworld. 

Percy had a chance to escape on the bus and didn’t take it. 

Alecto threatens to kill Percy (again)

Percy can speak Latin

Percy knows that the Greek Gods (Zeus and Hades in particular) are being assholes to him. 

The food at Camp Half-Blood is grapes, bread, cheese, and extra-lean-cut nymph-prepared barbecue. 

“Your head is full of kelp.”

In Aunty Em’s emporium, Percy says that the smell of her cooking makes everything else go away, however he still has the sense of mind to notice Grover whimpering, the statues’ eyes following them, and Auntie Em locking the door. 

Percy’s neck tingles when he’s in danger. 

Percy is annoyed that Annabeth is being rude to a woman who just fed them for free. 

[obsidiancreates]

Old Writing Part Two: Electric Boogaloo

Yeah so uh here’s the “Fandom School” one.

This one has not been seen by even myself since like... October of 2016.

Oh jeez. That’s so long ago. Fuck time.

So this is... the whole story. Each Chapter was super short, the first three are under 400 words, so I just stuck ‘em all in here.

This one... is from 12 year old Sid. Yup. Little baby Sid. 

It is bad. I’m warning you now. But perhaps, entertaining. At the very least, a good example of being able to grow and improve with enough practice.

Chapter One: Fangirlish

Abby shouted as she hit the floor. Her brother came running in, a look of worry on his face.

"What was that thud?" he asked.

"I laughed to hard while watching Venturiantale and fell off the bed."

Her brother face-palmed.

"Come on, Jeremy. Don't face-palm. They're funny!" Abby said with a grin.

"They're all you think about! You really need to stop obsessing. "

Abby gasped and looked at him like he just asked her to eat a smelly boot. "How could you say such a thing! Plus, they're not all that I think about. I also think about Doctor Who, and Star Wars, and Tolkien stuff, and Percy Jackson, and My Little Pony, and Monster High, and Warriors. "

Jeremy sighed. "Those are all....what do you call them? Fandoms?"

"Indeed. However, I am obsessed with them because they are beautiful. They are fabulous in ways you do not understand, mortal. Be gone!" Abby cried. She grabbed the ballpoint pen she took with her everywhere and uncapped it. "Be gone, or else you shall face the wrath if Riptide! Wait, Riptide can't harm mortals."

Jeremy sighed again and left the room, muttering about Abby being weird.

Abby went back to her video, laughing her butt off. After she finished it she went and read some Percy Jackson fanfiction. She was deeply absorbed in a very interesting fanfic when her alarm went off. It was time. She got up off her bed and went over to her desk.

She sat down and took out her notebook. She put on some music, written by Venturian of course, and began writing. She was writing a fanfic about Doctor Who.

"Abby, there's someone here to see you!" her mom shouted. Abby sighed, but went downstairs anyway.

She entered the living room to find a girl around her age sitting on the couch. She had blond hair with blue streaks and green eyes. She was wearing a t-shirt that said 'Fandom U' on it.

"Hello Abby, "she said with a grin, "I hear you're quite the fangirl."

Chapter Two: A Fellow Fan

Abby was a little creeped out. Who wouldn't be if a girl you had never met before was sitting in your living room saying she had heard about you?

The girl seemed to notice that Abby was weirded out, and spoke again. "My name is Bell, by the way."

"Bell? Who names their kid Bell?"

Bell laughed. "My mom's favorite movie is Beauty and the Beast. Anyway, you're a fangirl, are you not?"

"Yeah, kinda. And by kinda, I mean totally." Abby said. She was still a bit creeped out, but Bell seemed friendly enough. "Why do you ask? More importantly, how the heck did you hear about me? That's kinda creepy, considering this is the first time I've ever seen you."

Bell smirked. "So you're asking to know my secret?" She said the last part in a creepy voice.

"Wait, you watch Venturiantale? Awesome! But, could you at least answer my first question?"

Instead of responding, Bell handed Abby a piece of paper. It looked like a letter you would get from school. "Here, read this. If you decide you want to attend, just call the number at the bottom of the page." With that Bell left, humming a tune Abby recognized as the theme of Rohan.

She went back up to her room with the paper and began reading it. At the top it said, in big, bolded letters, Fandom U.

That's what Bell's shirt said.

As she read the paper her eyes  widened.

Dear Whom It May Concern It has come to our attention that you are a massive fangirl. We are pleased to announce that you have been accepted into Fandom U. All supplies we be provided upon arrival, should you choose to attend. Please note that some fangirls can be dangerous if you speak negatively about their fandom, and the school is not responsible for any injuries should you be insensitive enough to do so.

Sincerely, The faculty of Fandom U

Excitement came over Abby. "I'm going to Fandom U!" she screamed happily.

Chapter 3: Belonging

A few weeks later, Abby was all packed and ready to go. She had called the school and arranged everything. She was sitting at the bus stop, waiting for her transportation. She bounced her leg up and down, a nervous habit of hers. Finally a bus labeled 'Fandom U' arrived. The doors to the bus opened, and Abby couldn't help but stare at the driver.

"Well, get in!" the driver said through his mask. He was dressed in a full on Stormtrooper cosplay. As Abby stepped onto the bus, she wondered how he wasn't being baked alive in the heat.

She discovered that each row represented a different fandom. She took a seat in the Doctor Who section because it, somehow, had more room then the other sections. The bus started up, making the same sounds the T.A.R.D.I.S makes. Abby stared out at her hometown, feeling excitement  at what lay before her. She leaned back in her seat, humming fandom songs. Normally people would look at her like she was crazy, but instead everyone joined in, humming with her.

She had found where she belonged, and she loved it. The whole bus ride was filled with fan theories, discussions about characters, and tons of references. It was the most fun Abby ever had!

After what seemed like only minutes, they had arrived. Abby looked up at the building in front of her in awe.

It was enormous, like a castle. Above the door there was a huge sign reading 'Welcome to Fandom U!'. The building was shaped in an unusual way. So unusual that Abby wasn't even sure what shape it was. The outer walls were painted with so many fandom symbols that Abby had a hard time seeing anything else.

"Abby!" a voice called. Abby turned around to see Bell running towards her. "Abby, great news! They made me your escort!"

"Escort?"

"Well, yeah. It's a huge school. Plus it's your first day. I'm here to show you around!" Bell said.

She looked at Abby's face, which was still a face of awe. Bell grinned and said "Abby, welcome to Fandom U!"

Chapter 4: Orientation

"This place is amazing!" Abby said. She looked over at Bell, who seemed just as excited as Abby felt.

"Wait until you see the inside," Bell said. She started walking and motioned for Abby to follow. Abby grinned and walked with her into the school.

The inside was more amazing than the outside. The entrance was decorated with hundreds of pieces of fandom merch from hundreds of different fandoms. Abby noticed a T.A.R.D.I.S replica, a statue of a cave troll from The Lord of the Rings, a replica of Luke Castilian's sword Backbiter, and what appeared to be a statue of Papa Achachalla.

As she and Bell continued to wherever they were headed, Abby took in everything she could. The halls were each themed around a different fandom. There was a Doctor Who hall styled like the inside of a Dalek spacecraft, a Narnia hall styled like the Pevensy's castle, a Lord of the Rings hall styled like the halls of Rivendell, and a Venturiantale hall decorated with the channel's colors and each of the siblings emblems, among many others.

The classroom doors were all shut, so Abby didn't get the chance to see inside. She followed Bell to a large room resembling a theater.

"Welcome to the auditorium! This is where all the assemblies are held, as well as the school plays!" Bell said. She led Abby over to the very middle row and took a seat. She motioned for Abby to sit next to her, which is just what Abby did.

"This room is huge! How many students are there?" Abby asked.

"I'm not sure. A few hundred, maybe. Possibly more," Bell answered. "Oh, orientation's starting! We better stop talking. "

All the other students had sat down while they were talking. They all went quiet as a lady walked up on stage. "Greetings, students! I am Miss Silnet, your headmistress," she announced. Abby was shocked. The lady definitely wasn't dressed like a headmistress. She wore a camp Half-blood t-shirt underneath a black sweatshirt, a pair of jeans with fandom references doodled all over them, and a pair of plain red sneakers. Her ginger hair was pulled into a loose braid with bits of silver weaved in. She couldn't have been older than thirty, yet was still clearly a fangirl.

"Welcome to Fandom U! I'm sure some of you new students are curious as to what the U stands for. Most people think it means university. However, a university is a collage, and here all ages of fans are welcome. The U in fact stands for United. We are all united under our love of our fandoms! Join me as I say the school's pledge," she said. She put her hand on her heart and began the pledge, with many returning students saying it with her.

To be obsessed For all our lives, To value the next part Over the next school test. To love those who do not love back, To stalk them on the Internet. To unite as one Under the fandom sun.

Abby looked around her, thinking about how all these people had similar interests, habits, preferences, possibly even crushes as her. She realized that they truly were united in their love of fandoms. She could tell this was going to be her best school year ever.

Chapter 5: Classes

After orientation Bell lead Abby to her dorm. The room had two beds, two dressers, two closets, two trashcans, two desks, two bookshelves, and, to Abby's surprise, two TVs. There was a dark blue couch in front of each TV, the bedding was purple on both beds, and at each desk there was a chair made of oak with dark green built-in cushions. There was a large window in the middle of the wall leading outside, with a view of the huge field behind the school. In front of the window was a kitchen, complete with all the cooking utensils you could ever need. On both sides of the room there was a private bathroom with a shower, sink, medicine cabinet, mirror, and, of course, toilet.

"This room is amazing!" Abby marveled.

"It gets better. Guess who your dorm mate is. Me!" Bell said. Abby  was very happy to hear that. Despite having only known Bell for a short time, the two seemed to be best friends. Plus, Bell was the only person Abby actually knew!

Abby then noticed the large boxes sitting by the desks. They were labeled School Supplies.

"So, which side do you want?" Abby asked Bell.

"Hm. The right side, I think."

"Okay!" Abby said. She set down her luggage, which she had been hauling around all day, on her bed. She walked over to her desk and opened the box.

Inside was everything a fangirl could need. There was a laptop, about a dozen brand new books, some notebooks, some pencils, some pens, a spare phone charger for both Apple and Android brands, a charger for the laptop, an extra pillow in case of a feels attack, a sketchbook for fanart, colored pencils, and many course books for class.

She closed the box, not feeling like unpacking it. Her eyes fell on some paper on her desk. She picked it up and asked Bell, "What's this?"

"It's a list of all the different classes you can take. In this school you get to choose all your own classes! What you do is pick your five main fandoms, then pick two classes per fandom. Later one of the teachers will come to collect it. They enter it into a computer, which then devises a schedule," Bell explained.

"Oh. Thanks!" Abby said. She turned her attention back to the paper. On the first page were five spots to write her fandoms. She thought for awhile, then chose Doctor Who, Percy Jackson, Venturiantale, Star Wars, and Warriors.

She turned to the next page, which had a list of the different classes for each fandom. She read over all the options, then chose the ones that interested her most.

Abby's choices:

Venturiantale: Tale Fighting, the class where you learn to fight like the Tale characters, and Lore 101, the study and attempt to make sense of VT lore.

Percy Jackson: Demigod Combat, the class where you learn how to fight like a Demigod, and Camp Cooking, the class of learning to cook the meals they eat at camp.

Doctor Who: A Study of Time, the class on understanding how time works, and Regeneration History, the study of the Doctor's personal history.

Warriors: Knowing Your Herbs, the class on healing methods the clans use, and Warriors Speak 101, the study of Warriors phrases and words.

Star Wars: Understanding the Force, the study of what the Force is as well as how it is used, and Dark vs Light, a debate class studying the pros and cons of each side in an attempt to find out which one is truly better.

Abby finished filling out the paper and looked over at Bell, who appeared to be doing the same.

Abby and Bell spent the rest of the night unpacking. Abby discovered that the closest was filled with fandom clothes, as well as the dresser. "How did they know my size?" she asked, a tad creeped out.

"Your mom had to put it on your admission papers."

"Oh."

Just before Abby went to bed there was a knock at the door. The teacher had come by to collect the class papers. After the girls had handed them over they got into bed. Bell seemed to fall asleep pretty quick, but Abby stayed up for hours,unable to sleep at the anticipation of the next day.

And then I never wrote Chapter Six. I guess she overslept, huh? Heh.

[sonicrainicorn]

Made of Love, Chapter 12

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Table of Contents

Ship(s): Logicality, (platonic) Prinxiety

All Characters: Thomas, Virgil, Roman, Logan, Patton, Dr. Picani, Joan, Talyn, and Deceit

Synopsis: Humans Roman and Virgil get wrapped up in some serious magic business without meaning to. Their other companions aren’t exactly as they seem, either. Together they all must defeat a great threat for the safety of humanity.

Chapter Desc.: After an interesting training session; Thomas, Roman, and Virgil discover an old photo in a bookshelf.

TW: Cursing

Prefer to read it on Ao3? Click here!

Despite their better judgment, both Roman and Virgil continued to keep their promise to Logan. It was stupid and careless, but they could never bring it up. They each tried to find a way to tell Patton with each time ending in failure. Anytime they worked up the courage, he just gave them his usual bright smile and then suddenly they couldn’t do it anymore. Maybe Logan had a point. Breaking that joy would have been cruel.

But it wasn’t fair to either of them. Patton had a right to know and Logan needed the help. Who knew what would happen the longer this went unchecked.

Then Virgil found out that Thomas had no idea, either. He didn’t even know it was going on at all until Virgil accidentally mentioned it in front of him. And boy, oh boy, did it make him feel terrible denying to explain it. It's Logan’s story to tell, he insisted, go bother him about it.

All in all, it was a rather rough few days.

Patton and Logan started to teach Roman and Virgil the basics of weapon fighting. How to hold said weapon(s) and the general way to use them. For the most part, Logan and Roman were together and Virgil and Patton were together. Rarely were all four of them in one place. Thomas would drop by either of their sessions every once in a while, but even his presence became scarce.

After two days, Patton had Virgil’s daggers enchanted. The day Patton came out holding two pens is the day Virgil became terrified of a writing utensil.

As promised, they worked very much like Percy Jackson’s Riptide. Well, the film version. But no one wanted to say it out loud. All Virgil had to do was click the pens and then they shifted into his daggers. To get them back to pens, he had to tap the end of the handles. It felt weird to be able to do it. This was something legitimately out of a fantasy novel happening in real life. Now Virgil understood what Roman meant.

He carried them in his pockets -- one on each side -- and made it his habit to have them there before leaving the house. Part of him was still cautious to have them so close to him. Weapons were meant to hurt and do damage -- why should they be anywhere near him? But there was something about them that he couldn’t quite place. Something that made him stick with them despite every other instinct telling him otherwise.

Many times Virgil found himself staring down at the pens as if they held the world’s secrets.

“Hello? Earth to Virgil?” Thomas waved a hand in front of Virgil’s face. “Come in, Virgil.”

Virgil pocketed the pens and looked up. “What?” He didn’t know how long he had been spacing out. Something about staring at magical pens made him lose track of time.

“I was gonna go watch Roman get his butt handed to him --”

“Thanks for the motivation,” Roman grumbled as he walked out the back door.

“-- and I wanted to know if you were gonna join.” He ended with a smile.

Virgil considered his options for a moment; stay inside and do nothing, or watch Logan totally school Roman the second he gets too cocky. “Yeah, alright.”

The two walked outside together.

Their relationship hadn’t mended all the way or anything, but Thomas still felt comfortable around Virgil. Neither of them liked to think about the incident, so they never brought it up again. Virgil continued to feel guilty about it, though. He could tell how much it still affected Thomas. Imagine if someone demanded you, a child, to spill your life’s secrets. You probably wouldn’t look at that person the same way again. Virgil wouldn’t.

But they were working around that. As long as Virgil didn’t fuck up more than he already had, then maybe they could return to how they once were. He was kind of getting tired of Thomas hesitantly telling him things.

Once the two reached the training grounds, they spotted Patton standing off to the side while Logan and Roman talked. Interesting. Patton didn’t show up to watch Roman get his butt kicked as often as Virgil and Thomas did. Why would he show up now?

“Patton?” Thomas decided to speak up Virgil’s questions. “What are you doing here?”

“Well jeez, if you don’t want to see me you can just say so.” He crossed his arms and smirked. “I’m here as a first-aid kit. And also to kinda do some magic stuff.”

“First-aid kit?” Virgil questioned.

“Magic stuff?” Thomas’s excitement overshadowed Virgil’s concern.

Patton smiled at Thomas’s enthusiasm. “It’s not as exciting as it sounds. Once Logan’s done then you’ll see.”

Thomas and Virgil sat on the usual log to wait. Eventually, Logan stopped talking to Roman and turned to Patton with a soft smile. Virgil wanted to vomit at the amount of love they looked at each other with. Even in short little glances, the two always looked like they were gazing at the stars. It was sickening.

“Are you ready?” Logan asked.

Patton shrugged. “As I'll ever be.”  He patted Logan's head as he moved past him to the center of the clearing. After slight visible hesitation, he placed his knees on the ground and put his hands over the dying grass. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then, with a rustle of leaves and grass, nearby twigs began to move. They tumbled and rolled together until they started to stack up. Twigs wove themselves around each other in a similar manner to how Patton formed a staff many days ago. Instead of braids, they formed a thicker more intricate system. Twigs, branches, and other leftover vegetation continued to add and grow until two solid forms could be made out. Two humanoid forms, that is.

“Okay.” Patton stood up from the ground with a sigh. Virgil noticed that the patch of grass that had once been dead now flourished. “It's not mimicry or anything, but it's the best I can do.” He smiled at his two plant people. They were both of average height with no discernible features; a head, a body, two arms, and two legs.  Test dummies. “They'll respond to commands so just say ‘startup’ if you want them to activate and ‘objective complete’ when you're done.” They crumbled back to a pile of sticks. Patton chuckled nervously. “They're a little sensitive.”

“It’s perfect, Patton, thank you.” Logan gave him a swift peck on the lips.

Virgil and Thomas gagged in response.

“You two need to learn about love,” Roman sighed at them.

Shortly after, the training session had begun. This would be the first time Roman used his katana against something. Before, he had been learning with a wooden sword (and then getting his ass handed to him by a more skilled Logan) so this might have been considered a step up. In addition to that, this would be his first time sword fighting against someone that wasn’t Logan. Or, in this case, something.

One of the dummies created its own sword. It extended out more like an extension of its arm rather than an object it would hold in its hand. Its movements were slow enough for Roman to block and follow. If it got hit, it would crumple for a few seconds then regain its form. Level one, basically.

“Roman, are you scared of it?” Logan asked with a slight smirk. He had been walking around to examine how Roman did.

“W-what? No.” Roman laughed a bit to play it off. “I would never.” Despite his words, his actions were timid. He had a clear shot and gently took it, the sword sticking into the wood a little bit. The dummy fell into a pile of sticks.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, Roman,” Patton said from beside Thomas on the log. “It’ll only go as hard as you do.”

Roman pouted. “I’m not afraid --” He squealed when the pile sprung to life and fell back on his butt.

“That’s believable,” Virgil scoffed.

“Why don't you show him how to do it, Logan?” Thomas suggested with a smile. “You're really good at this stuff.”

“Yeah, show him up.” Virgil smirked at Roman's glare.

Logan hesitated. “I don't know. I'm not really --”

“You can do it, Lo.” Patton beamed. “You set your own difficulty.”

With a sigh, Logan relented. He brought out the pommel which the rest of the sword appeared out of.

Roman pushed his bracelet down and his katana disappeared from his hand. He sent Virgil an annoyed scowl before sitting down in the grass. Virgil flicked the back of his head in retaliation. If he didn’t want to get hit, he shouldn’t have sat so close.

After taking a deep breath, Logan swung his sword. Right off the bat, the dummy blocked it. It matched Logan’s speed and skill almost instantly. Every parry, every swing had a reaction from both parties. Unlike Roman, Logan knew what he was doing. He could handle woven sticks. And he could handle them a lot better than Roman. As if to add insult to injury, once the opportunity arose, Logan sliced clean through the dummy’s torso -- splitting it in half. Whereas Roman only dared to poke it a little bit.

It fell into a pile and Logan twisted the pommel to retract his sword. Thomas cheered to celebrate the victory, making Virgil smile a bit.

“You went easy on it,” Patton commented, almost as if he were suspicious of something.

Logan rubbed his wrist. “Yes, well, I didn’t want to further damage Roman’s pride.” He gave a small smile that immediately felt off to Virgil.

Patton frowned as he eyed Logan’s wrist. Virgil had to physically restrain himself from saying anything. In fact, he ended up squeezing Roman’s shoulder with how badly he wanted to speak up. Why did he insist on keeping his promise to Logan?

Regardless, the session continued as normal. Logan made sure that Roman put a little more effort into his fighting and further emphasized that there was nothing to worry about. The dummy wouldn’t kill him or anything. His sword wasn’t anything to fear, either. He had control over it. It couldn’t do anything that he didn’t want it to.

Things went a lot better after that.

Unlike Logan, Roman ended up with a few injuries by the end of it. Minor cuts from where the dummy managed to hit him. No big deal. They were easily fixed by Patton, anyway.

“You did so well, Roman,” Patton cheered and Thomas agreed.

“Yeah, you didn’t get totally creamed today,” Virgil added with his usual sarcasm lacing every word.

“I always appreciate your input, Virgil,” Roman muttered.

Virgil responded with a silent thumbs up.

“For your first try, it wasn’t a complete failure.” Logan had similar styles of wording as Virgil did; if he meant something positive he usually didn’t make it sound that way. “You still have a lot to work on, but nothing that can’t be fixed.”

Roman gasped and put a hand to his chest. “That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

The rest of the day went by without much incident. Though, perhaps Virgil missed a good portion of the day due to a four-hour nap. In his defense, no loud noises woke him up. He depended on those so as to not oversleep. Most of the time they were yells from Roman and Thomas because some form of “betrayal” took place. Other times they were Logan and Roman getting into an argument. A few times Roman barged in and demanded something. Alright, so most of them were Roman. The dude was dramatic.

Once Virgil stepped out of his room, however, he got dragged into the beginning of an argument. Not one he wanted to take part in, but one he had to be involved with since Logan and Patton weren’t going to deal with it.

Thomas insisted that creatures like dragons and unicorns had gone extinct centuries ago. Roman, being the stubborn fantasy nerd that he is, refused to acknowledge the possibility of that ever happening. Why he wouldn’t take the word of someone who grew up with magic since the day he was born was beyond Virgil. Denial, possibly. Maybe he couldn’t handle learning that magic is real only to find out he’d never get to see some of the most cliche magical creatures.

Virgil didn’t care. Logan and Patton acted like they didn’t know the argument was even going on at all. They were trying to torture him, weren’t they? Ugh, if he knew they were going to be petty he would have second-guessed ever getting mad at Thomas.

Eventually, Thomas had enough of the bullshit and dragged both Virgil and Roman downstairs. The whole way down, the three continued to speak over one another. With Thomas and Roman arguing their main points and Virgil trying to get them to see reason (and maybe shut up).

The room Thomas led them into wasn’t bare like the weapons’ room. This one had bookcases along the walls. Posters and maps rolled up in a safe place or displayed on available walls. There was a desk in between two small bookcases with several scraps of papers and a notebook resting on it. An office space -- or even a research room.

Virgil decided to ignore the two in favor of looking around. There were a few pictures hanging up. Some black and white polaroids with a tiny grinning Thomas, a frame with washed out colors of Thomas and a girl, and then one that made Virgil stop. A grainy-looking photo in an old frame. Black and white like many of the others, but this one appeared much older. It depicted three people standing in front of a background of flowers. The one in the middle took Virgil a minute to recognize. Picani. He looked to be around Thomas’s physical age but still just as tall. He seemed happy. A man and a woman stood on either side of him. The woman had long hair that must have been falling out of its updo with the way she was handling it. The man seemed as if he was in the middle of holding back a laugh. All three of them kind of looked like that, actually.

Wait a minute… Virgil recognized that facial expression. It’s something he had seen many times since first moving into this house. Something that happened whenever Roman tried to start a fight or Virgil made a snarky remark he probably shouldn’t have. Whenever Logan gave a sardonic retort that Patton didn’t approve of. Because that was a face Thomas made for all of those. When he wanted to laugh but shouldn’t.

Were these Thomas’s parents?

“Here it is. Roman, stop moving your mouth, I’m about to prove you wrong.” Thomas reached up to the top of one of the bookcases. He had just enough height to grab a specific book. As he brought it down, something ended up fluttering to the floor. “I -- what is this?”

Virgil spared one last glance at the picture before walking over to the other two. Maybe he should hold onto that observation for another time.

Thomas picked up the object to reveal it as a polaroid -- like the ones on the wall. Instead of a young Thomas, this one had two people. One of them was Picani, once again looking to be around Thomas’s physical age. In this one, he seemed more shy, giving an almost bashful smile. Perhaps it had to do with the more eccentric person next to him. A teenage boy with aviator sunglasses and a wide grin.

“Who’s that?” Roman asked, pointing to the unknown boy.

“I…” Thomas furrowed his brows. “I don’t know.”

Virgil noted how close the two in the picture were sitting. It almost looked like they weren't expecting to get photographed. Picani had a book in his lap, his round frames sliding down his nose. The other boy had his legs crossed and an arm slung over the bench behind Picani's shoulders.

“We could ask Patton and Logan,” Roman suggested.

“I just -- why don’t I know him?” Thomas almost looked distressed at this.

“It’s fine, Thomas,” Virgil tried to sooth. “You don’t have to know.”

Thomas didn’t take his eyes off the picture. “But -- but this is the fifties. I was with him. I was almost always with him. How can there be someone I haven’t met from this time period?”

“Let’s just go up and ask Patton and Logan. They’ll tell us who he is and you can ask why you never met him.”

“I guess.” Thomas still didn’t take his eyes off the picture.

Virgil frowned. He tried to take it, but Thomas yanked his arm back and held it to his chest. Like a wild animal that had been cornered. Virgil held his hands up in defense. “Alright. Keep it.”

“It’s okay, Thomas. I’m sure there’s an easy explanation for this,” Roman said. “Maybe you were just never properly introduced -- there were times when you weren’t with Picani, right?”

“Yeah. When he’d go to school or work.”

“So that’s at least two times a day you wouldn’t have seen him. They must have met during one of those times and you just never had an opportunity to see him.”

“But I --” Thomas shook his head. “That makes sense, I guess. Let’s just go ask them.” He shoved the book back on the top shelf.

The whole way up, Thomas didn’t take his eyes off the picture. It made Roman and Virgil share a concerned glance. They didn’t know why this was such a big deal to him. It shouldn't have mattered so much. He didn’t need to know everything about Picani.

Once they got back up to the second floor, Thomas hurried down the hall to the living room. “Patton. Logan.”

There was a squeak and a thump as Patton fell off the couch. Logan sat up, face flushed. “What? Nothing was happening.”

“I’m gonna pretend I believe you for a second because I have a question to ask about this photo.” He pointed at it.

Patton’s head peeked up over the coffee table. “What photo?”

Thomas turned it around.

Immediately, both Patton and Logan tensed up. They stared at it with wide eyes -- as if they never expected to see it again. Patton stood up and gently took it from Thomas’s hand. Logan came around to look at it as well. They didn’t say anything as they studied it. A piece of their history captured in one tiny square.

“Where did you find this?” Patton asked softly.

“It was in one of the bookshelves.” Thomas shared a glimpse of uncertainty with Roman and Virgil. “Who is he?”

“No one.”

“A friend.”

Patton and Logan stopped to give each other a look. For the first time ever, they didn’t say the same thing when they spoke at the same time. It caused uneasiness to settle about the room. “We can’t just ignore that he ever existed,” Patton continued.

“It’s not like we haven’t tried,” Logan muttered, bitter.

Patton frowned. “That doesn’t make it okay to. It isn’t fair. Not for us -- and definitely not for him.”

“What happened to him?” Thomas interrupted tentatively.

“He was human.” Logan snatched the photo from Patton’s hands. Virgil felt his heart drop. “I’m going to put this somewhere safe. We’ll discuss this later, Patton.” He gave Patton one final look before walking away.

Patton watched him go with an indescribable emotion on his features.

“Patton,” Thomas said and wiped a stray tear that left his eye. It made Virgil aware of his own tears streaming down his face.

“Oh!” Patton snapped out of his daze. “Sorry. I’m not used to controlling that anymore.” As soon as the words left his mouth, Virgil felt the tightness in his chest ease up. He could breathe again.

“Why does that happen?” Roman asked as he rubbed the last of the tears out of his eyes.

“I guess you can call me an empath.” Patton shrugged. “I can know what others feel, but more often than not I end up sending out my own emotions. Whether or not that’s apart of my healing abilities is up for debate.” He looked down at his hands. “I’m not really aware of it half the time. And Picani doesn’t have that ability so I’m kind of getting used to having them again.”

Virgil wiped his face. “Maybe don’t send out such harsh vibes next time.”

Patton gave a half smile. “It’s not always that simple. I can keep all my normal emotions in check, but I kind of lose control over the big ones. If I get too worked up over something then I project those feelings without meaning to. Usually, they’re low enough to not be detected, but you two are humans. There’s no magic protecting you.”

“Ugh, you’re like Blue Diamond.” Roman ran his hands down his face. “I don’t think I’ve ever cried so many tears in such a short amount of time.”

“Sorry. I’ll work on that.”

Thomas frowned a bit. “If he was so important to you -- important enough to cause this --” he motioned to Roman and Virgil, whose eyes were still glossy with tears -- “why don’t I know anything about him?”

Patton paused -- as if he needed to process the words -- before letting out a sad smile. “You never wanted to.”

Thomas froze, surprise and disbelief all over his features. “What?” The word came out so quiet -- like a silent breath rolling over his lips.

Though Patton didn’t acknowledge this.  His gaze was trained out toward the hall. “I should probably talk to Logan before he starts going over the ‘what ifs’ in his head again.” He silently excused himself.

No one decided to ask any further questions.

(Next)