#brotherly sleepxiety

[starboy14176]

My weird ts catholic boarding school AU I made in the middle of the night

Remus prince

15

He/they/it/rat

Genderqueer transmasc

Afab

Gay

Patton is his 💚boyfriend💙

out at school but it’s catholic school so almost no one respects them

very protective of Patton

Adhd and autism

short bean

Patton heart

15

He/bun

Ftm trans

Afab

Biromantic demisexual

Remus is his 💙boyfriend💚

Not out at school

Protective of friends

Depression

Tall bean

Virgil night

14

They/he

Ftm trans

Afab

Pansexual

Roman is his 💜boyfriend❤️

Not out at school

Must be protected at all costs >:(

Depression and anxiety

Short bean

Remus prince

15

He/him

Cis male

Amab

Gay

Virgil is his ❤️boyfriend💜

Very out at school

Protective of Virgil

Anorexia

Tall bean

Logan booker

16

He/they/xe

Demi boy

Amab

Homoromantic demisexual

Janus is his 💙boyfriend💛

Not out at school

The “every man for himself” type

Depression

Tall bean

Janus Foster

18

He/they

Demi boy

Afab

Gay

Logan is his 💛boyfriend💙

Not out at school

Protective of Logan and Virgil

Ocd

Tall bean

Remy night

18

He/him

Male

Amab

Bi

Emily is his 🖤girlfriend💖

Out at school

Very Protective of Virgil

Adhd

Short bean

Emily piconi

17

She/her

Mtf

Amab

Pansexual

Remy is her 💖boyfriend🖤

Not out at school

Must be protected

Ptsd

Tall bean

#sander sides #virgil sanders #sandersides #remus sanders #roman sanders #remy sanders #patton sanders #logan sanders #remile #prinxeity #intruality #loceit #brotherly sleepxiety #catholic au #if anyone wants me to write a fic for this tell me #because I want to but I can’t comment so someone please tell me to

[max-is-tired]

Spooky-son Zine Fic (Preview)

Hello everyone!! I don’t know how many of you guys know, but I’ve had the pleasure to be a part of @spookyson-zine as one of their writers. It was an amazing and fun experience, and looks like we’re finally about to see the end product!!

And since the zine will be soon available to be viewed, I thought, why not leave a little preview of my fic here? I loved writing this, it gave me an excuse to expand on a concept I’ve had in my head for a long time and boy howdy if it hasn’t become a full-wedged AU -I have the whole plot on my notebook, this will get written someday even if it kills me.

Anyway, without further ado, enjoy this little preview and please consider checking the zine out once it’s fully released!!!

+++

Virgil never knew his father.

He’s heard countless stories, of course. He knows of the great king Aaron, the man that, together with his queen, had brought their kingdom back to prosperity. The man that despised violence more than anything else in the world. The man that always resolved conflicts with words, with peace, with compromise. The man who wanted to protect, never to hurt –Virgil can see that man in Roman, his older brother, talented with the sword but repulsed by violence.

However, he also knows of Aaron, the caring father and loving husband, who was gentle and kind and loved to tell them stories until they fell asleep –the man Virgil can barely remember, nothing more than a distant, warm memory in his head. The man who had loved his family more than anything else, always, until his very last breath -a special type of devotion his eldest, Remy, seems to have inherited, even if he tries to conceal it behind a wall of sarcasm and sharp, witty one-liners.

And Virgil? Well, he’s not strong or confident, or anything a leader should be. He’s quiet, cautious, and prefers to watch from the shadows as his brothers take the spotlight. He guards them from afar, unheard and unseen, his mother’s magic dancing in his soul and pulsing through his veins.

Sometimes, Virgil wonders if there’s even just a little spec of his father in him.

But the others -oh, the others know.

They see it as he stands beside Remy during meetings, silent but unwavering in his support.

They see it as he frets over Roman after every training session, fussing over every scrape and cut and always, always making sure he’s okay.

They see it as he works on his magic under Thomas’ watchful gaze, purple light dancing on his fingers and fiery, unshakable determination burning in his eyes.

Virgil may not be a diplomat negotiating for peace, or a knight defending the kingdom, but he’s their shield, their protector, watching over them from the shadows, keeping them safe from harm’s way.

Everyone sees it but him.

Until one day, he does.

#sanders sides #preview #virgil sanders #platonic prinxiety #platonic sleepxiety #brotherly prinxiety #brotherly sleepxiety #character thomas #royalty au #maxiswriting

[ecoamerica]

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!

#ACLA24 #ACLA24Leaders #youtube #youtube video #climate leaders #climate solutions #climate action #climate and environment #climate #climate change #climate and health #climate blog #climate justice #climate news #weather and climate #environmental news #environment #environmental awareness #environment and health #environmental #environmental issues #environmental justice #environment protection #environmental health #Youtube

[nachosforfree]

I can’t stop thinking about brotherly remile (aka... coffeebean? StarbucksTherapy? fuckin CartoonCaffeine? idk im bad at the brotherly names). If they had a little sibling, which character do you think would be the best fit? Cos tbh I love the idea of their baby bro being Virgil 👀 ~ Kai-Blue ♣️

Baby bro virgil is very nice but im a little too much of a sleepxiety shipper to fully attach myself to the idea gksnfjd

#asks

[rosesisupposes]

Ask meme: its emo time - thoughts on Virgil?

STOP EMO TIME

favorite thing about them

the SNARK. the SARCASM. the PURPLE

least favorite thing about them

full anxiety mode sounds too much like my own brain 🙃

favorite line

“i heard through the Concord Grape vine that you guys were making puns... yeah Patton paid me a dollar to say that”

also,,, “i was lost once too but thanks to all of you life sucks less now” 

brOTP

I am in love with brotherly sleepxiety, but also prinxiety as bros, but also dukexiety as the Siblings of the Other Sides to Janus’ Tired Wine Mom but especially in the Father Figure Verse even though i makes me cry?!?

OTP

DELAMPS: Everyone Because He Deserves It. (this is gonna keep being my Sides answer idk my dude i’m all in for polyam sanders). I also am a huge fan of dukexiety. they’re both Thomas Protectors!

nOTP

there’s no one I dislike him with, but frequently I find myself being very ehhhh by moxiety where Patton’s treating him as juvenile or fragile

random headcanon

He is Big and Buff. Most muscly of the sides. Can’t protect Thomas if u ain’t swole!

unpopular opinion

Virgil should be a fight response as often as flight or freeze. He should be,,, instinct and protect and wary, not only the one being protected. If he’s a whumpee I will skip that fic 4 out of 5 times.

song i associate with them

Scared of the Dark by Lil Wayne & Ty Dolla Sign from Into the Spiderverse

favorite picture of them

send me a character

#my smol dark son #ts virgil #vintage-squid #roses speaks #ask bait #muscly virge agenda

[siren1song]

Big Brother Creativitwins Au Master list

Ao3 Link

Visibility (Brotherly Prinxiety Centric)

Pop (Platonic Sleepxiety)

City of Angels (Virgil Centric)

It’s Alright, It’s Okay (Brotherly Dukexiety)

Au Blog Here

#casper writes #au: Big Brother Creativitwins #BBC Au master list

[theeternalspace]

Masterpost of my Works in Progress Sanders Side’s Fanfic

Looking for my Completed Works? Click HERE

Absent Gods and Silent Tyranny or: How Logan Learned to Stop Over Thinking and Love Everyone (Platonic LAMP, Brotherly Prinxiety, Logan & Virgil focus)

Tumblr Masterpost // Ao3 Link

Dr. Logic makes his living working for whichever Super Villain is willing to pay. At the end of the day it is a job where he can put his talents to work.He certainly isn’t bothered by things like public morality or the definition of good vs evil.

He doesn’t have time for things like that, although he accepts that he would be considered a ‘bad guy’. As far as Logan is concerned, it is a small price to pay for the benefits of proper scientific funding.

But when his latest invention fails and his Boss decides to punish someone else for his mistakes, Logan is forced to reevaluate everything he thought he knew.

And maybe accidentally make some friends along the way.

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

(Honey you Should) See Me in a Crown (Prinxiety)

Tumblr Masterpost // Ao3 Link

“You are a marvellous creature, trapped inside such a small little cage” - Original Prompt.

When Thomas is attacked by Intrusive Thoughts, it is down to Virgil or Roman to deal with them. The Creative Side had vanished into the Imagination many hours ago to deal with one and hadn’t come back.

Following Roman into his world, Virgil discovers to his horror that the Intrusive Thought had somehow managed to possess his friend.

In control of the imagination and with Virgil his prisoner, it is clear that the Thought has a real plan in mind instead of causing chaos for the sake of it. But what does he actually want from his ‘Little Bird’?

And can Virgil escape in time to save Roman, Thomas and perhaps even himself?

Click HERE for a ficlet by @theitalianscribe on a possible reason why Remus isn’t in this story.

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

House of Leaves (Prinxiety)

Tumblr Masterpost  // Ao3 Link

Hero and Villain AU.

The Dazzling Prince wants many things in life. To rule, to have power, to be loved. To have his hero renounce the light and dance with him in the shadows of night.

When his other half comes to him for help, Roman finds himself being offered the thing he wants most in the world - if only he can reach out to take it.

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

On Yggdrasil’s Branches (Prinxiety & Platonic LAMP)

Tumblr Masterpost // Ao3 Link

The inhabitants of the mindscape are all under the strain of Remus finally revealing himself to Thomas. None more so, it appears, than Virgil. Worried about his Dark Strange Son, Patton takes it upon himself to visit unannounced. Only to discover Virgil’s unconscious form in Deceit’s arms as the snake faced side flees into his area of the mind.

Nothing Deceit does is ever as it seems however and once drawn through his doorway, Patton, Roman and Logan all find themselves in strange new stories, cut off from Thomas and each other.

A new reality, a unique world for each with no idea of how they got there or how to get home.

One of the few constants is Virgil. Except it’s a different Virgil every time. A different Virgil with a different story and a distinct different personality. He never seems to recognise them but it doesn’t take long for each to realise that the way home is intimately linked to their missing anxious friend.

The only problem is the other constant in each world - Remus.

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

Redemption has Stories to Tell (Prinxiety, Sleepxiety, Whatever a Roman/Virgil/Remy Polyamory is called)

Tumblr Masterpost // Ao3 Link

For his 18th birthday, Roman Sanders had expected presents, getting drunk, maybe, in his wildest dreams, a car of his own. Not to be told his parents had sold their first born to a demon, payment to be collected on his birthday. Today. No matter what he might want from life, it seems as though his destiny is nothing more than to be dragged down to Hell.

Virgil doesn’t want a human soul but he knows he doesn’t have a choice in the matter, not after his dad insisted and he finds the human not at all what he expected. Maybe this won’t be as terrible as he feared.

And Remy? Well Remy just wants to make sure this human doesn’t steal what is his.

But nothing can ever be that simple can it? Not when forces start to meddle in the very fabric of the Underworld and the group find themselves torn apart as new battlegrounds are forged and old secrets come bubbling to the surface.

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

The Consequences of Sound. (Prinxiety & Platonic LAMP)

Tumblr Masterpost // Ao3 Link

Anxiety hurts Thomas. It's just what he does, what he has always done. It's not what he wants. He only wants to protect him but that is easier wished for than done. When the opportunity to prove himself opens up to him, he grabs it, for once not caring about the consequences. Things go downhill from there.

The fall, rise, fall (and rise again) of Virgil.

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

When the Wolfbane Blooms (Sleepxiety & Logince)

Tumblr Masterpost // Ao3 Link

In retrospect, Virgil supposed the only surprising thing about being tied up in the woods and left to die by his village was that it hadn’t happened sooner.

Chosen as the sacrifice to the monsters in the wood, Virgil expects to be torn limb from limb by some savage creature intent on eating his heart. Or dragged deeper into the trees to be part of some horrible ritual. Maybe even kept as some kind of pet or living trophy - after all nobody knows what happens to the sacrifices, only that they are never seen again.

The beasts that lurk within are not what he expects however and soon Virgil finds himself in a desperate battle to protect his new found family against the growing anger of the villages around the forest, while trying to understand what has happened to him, his attraction to the mysterious leader of the group, and making sure Roman and Logan stop wasting time and finally admit their feelings for each other.

Can he save them or will he realise too late the real truth - that humans can be the worst monsters of all.

There is some outstanding art HERE by @justisaisfine of Remy and Virgil’s first meeting

#aca writes #sanders sides #masterpost #fanfic #absent gods and silent tyranny #see me in a crown #house of leaves #on yggdrasil's branches #redemption has stories to tell #the consequences of sound #when the wolfbane blooms

[jzixuans]

alright y’all we be REMEMBERING the gn post tonight because it’s day one of Remy’s birthday and it’s what he deserves

Good happy things!

-Remy’s birthday -Day one of Remy’s birthday because Remy’s too awesome to not get a three day long birthday celebration and I declare that to be law -It snowed again!!! For like four hours!! Snow!!! -I got some snow in my hair and it made my hair look sparkley and that was nice -After like an hour long mess of missing foods and mentally fighting myself I got some rice for dinner and that’s Big Good because food -This losleep fic by @candied-peach because it’s SO DAMN GOOD AND CUTE AND I LOVE -Also this sleepxiety snippet by @notveryglittery because it’s cute and I Want That -Blink’s voice spoke to me from the void with these happy things to add as well: --Cranberry black tea with honey --The new brotherly prinxiety short -Secret Blink snipe: mmmmm waves hands vaguely BLINK

#I'm too tired to word properly shgdcvsdhgc #enjoy my tired snipe #lia #caps tw #gn!

[the-duke-of-deodorant]

I saw your post saying that you're a piece of garbage and I'm gonna say that's false. Also for the ask game for characters how about Virgil, Deceit and Remus. And the get to know the writer ask clear and gold. sorry if this is too much, you don't have to answer all of them, and remember you are not trash

Ily so much ❤️ I’m sorry self deprecation has been so bad. I wish I could say that’s not something I genuinely believe but I do. I am and I have been for a long time and there’s nothing I can really do to fix it I just have to put up with all the bad things about me. Normally it doesn’t get to me but it’s starting to hurt

Virgil:

How I feel about this character: I feel bad for Virgil because I feel like he’s going through a lot in canon especially since Deciet was introduced. The way he responds to some situations isn’t good, but it’s because he’s scared and doesn’t know how to react. I think he’s aware of that which makes it worse because he can’t control himself (like being overly sarcastic and snapping at others in DWIT)

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Prinxiety, Analogical

My non-romantic OTP for this character: Sleepxiety, QPR Prinxiety

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Virgil needs a hug and open up to the others and tell them what he’s scared of so they could help. And probably apologize and snapping so much at them especially at Patton

Deceit:

How I feel about this character: Is a good boi. Has the right ideas but wrong way about going with it. Is a goofball and people don’t see that very much

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Deemus, Loceit, Roceit

My non-romantic OTP for this character: Anxceit

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: this boi needs more screen time

Remus:

How I feel about this character: He’s a good person, but he is hurting the others (specifically Thomas, Virgil, and a little bit Patton) but I don’t think he’s aware of it. I think if he knew he would feel bad but probably wouldn’t be able to stop because that’s who he is and what his job is as a side

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Deemus

My non-romantic OTP for this character: Intrulogical, brotherly creativitwins

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Roman and Remus would get along in canon. Imagine all the play fighting 😂

Gold: Do your stories usually contain lessons or morals?

Usually not in fics, but I like to make the problem in the story something relatable like dealing with anxiety or intrusive thoughts

Clear: Do your characters control where the story goes or do you maintain control?

I don’t think either of us knows what’s happening no one is in control

#ask game #sorry some of these sounded mean with the sides #i dont think any of the canon sides are unsympathetic but im gonna tag them here #unsympathetic virgil #unsympathetic deceit #unsympathetic remus #discorse

[transromansanders]

Roman’s Writing Masterlist

A Witch, A Prince, A Necromancer, and A Bard Walk into a Bar

A series of poems set in a fantasy AU that tell the story of four “friends”, and an evil wizard

Pairing(s): Prinxiety, Logicality, implied LAMP/CALM

Status: Complete

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8

Brotherly Distaste AU

A Familial DLAMP AU where Patton ends up fostering four boys, and antics ensue. Posted as non-chronological drabbles

Pairing(s): Platonic DLAMP/LAMPD, background Remile

Status: Ongoing

Secure

The Things That Brought Us Here

An Ice Cream Kinda Day

Home for the Holidays

First Snow

The Beginning

Braces

AO3

The Colors of Us

A soulmate AU drabble in a universe where you see an aura around your soulmate.

Pairing(s): LAMP/CALM

Status: Finished

Link

Flowers for a Special Occasion

Fantasy AU Logince angst with no happy ending

Pairing(s): Logince, could be read as LAMP/CALM

Status: Finished

Link

Ground Control

Analogical cuteness (kinda angst? With a happy ending) based on the song Ground Control by All Time Low ft. Tegan and Sara

Pairing(s): Analogical, background Royality

Status: Finished

Link

Heartless

Logince piece based on the song Heartless by Jacob Tillberg.

Pairing(s): Logince, background Moxiety if you squint

Status: Finished

Link

Crispy

Logan tries to make sweets. It goes very wrong. Patton thinks it’s hilarious.

Pairing(s): Platonic LAMP/CALM

Status: Finished

Link

The Lottery Ticket

Virgil is out with his son and buys a lottery ticket.

Pairing(s): Prinxiety, familial Analogince

Status: Finished

Link

Cotton Candy Hair

“What did you think would happen while you’re walking late alone?” Patton saves Logan from a dangerous situation.

Pairing(s): Logicality

Status: Finished

Link

Bath Day

Deceit’s scales are shedding, and he gets some much deserved tlc.

Pairing(s): platonic DLAMP/LAMPD

Status: Finished

Link

Time Travel AU

A collaborative effort between myself, @under-the-blue-moonlight​, and @urielthealienboio​ in which Virgil, Patton and Logan’s son, travels back in time and meets his parents before he is born.

Pairing(s): Logicality, Prinxiety, oc x oc

Status:The original is complete. The sequel is ongoing

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Sequel:

Part 1 Part 2-Incomplete

Whump Prompts

Prompt List Untitled (familial Moxiety) Frozen Veggies (Royality) The Story’s Climax (Prinxiety) Waiting (Prinxiety) No Matter What (Analogical) Start Over (Logince)

How Warm and Far AU

Warm and Frostbitten

Another Analogical whump prompt

How Far Away the Stars Seem

Sequel to “Warm and Frostbitten” in which Virgil and Logan are living their happily ever after.

Pairing(s): Analogical, background Royality

Status: Finished

Hero x Villain Prompts

No Escape (Royality)

I Win (Logicality)

Oblivion (Moxiety)

Just Like That

Meant to be the first part of a Pirate AU. We’ll see.

Pairing(s): Platonic Anxceit, nothing else so far

Status: To Be Continued?

Link

AU Prompts

Avian AU (see next listing) Angel/Demon AU Accidental Marriage AU Arranged Marriage AU Forbidden Love AU Fake Dating/Engagement/Marriage AU Porn Star AU Alien AU (see two listings down)

Avian AU

A collaborative effort with @urielthealienboio, winged!sides.

Pairing(s): Platonic DLAMP for now, subject to change.

Status: Ongoing

Link- incomplete

The Man from the Stars

Virgil is suspicious of his new neighbor, Patton. Done in very short parts.

Pairing(s): Moxiety

Status: Discontinued

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

Roman Hood

Robin Hood AU

Pairing(s): Prinxiety

Status: Discontinued, might rewrite into a oneshot

Chapter 1 Chapter 2

Bonus: Chapter 1.5 + art

Special Day

Virgil congratulates some friends on a very special day.

Pairing(s): Logince, background Moxiety

Status: Finished

Link

Your Ex-Lover is Dead

Based on the song of the same name by Stars

Pairing(s): Past Sleepxiety, implied Remile, implied Analogical

Status: Finished

Link

Fluff Prompts

All Untitled

(Prinxiety) (Analogical) (Logicality) (Logince)

Disaster Magic AU

Bullet Fic, Genderbent Sides, Moxiety with Vampire Payton and Witch Violet

Pairing(s): Moxiety, possible others

Status: Discontinued

Character Info Baby Violet Art Baby Payton Art Baby Ramona Art

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Made of Tin

The Steadfast Tin Soldier AU. No happy ending.

Pairing(s): Prinxiety

Status: Finished

Link

The Case of the Pining Detective

An AU where Roman is a police officer and almost arrests Virgil. Almost. Instead he finds himself too emotionally involved with Virgil and his brother.

Pairing(s): Prinxiety, brotherly Moxiety, platonic Royality

Status: On Hiatus

Masterlist

More AU Prompts

Coffee Shop Prinxiety #1, Library AU Logicality, Coffee Shop Prinxiety #2, Fake Dating Prinxiety, Fake Dating Logicality

Angst Ficlets

Cursed (Prinxiety), On My Hands (Prinxiety), Patton angst

Soulmate AUgust

Prompt List

Day 1 -Pineapple Day 2 -Violet and Blue Day 3 -Nerd Day 4 -Knowing Day 5 -His Voice Day 6 -I Understand Day 7 -Sharing Day 8 -3, 2, 1 Day 9 -Constellation Draco

Afraid

Unsympathetic Patton Human AU with Victim Virgil

Ship(s): None, could be read as Virgil x Deceit x Remus

Status: complete, probably

Link

No Good Deed

Wicked AU

Ship(s): Roceit (and side intrulogical/Lomus and one-sided Prinxiety, if I ever write that far).

Status: Unknown

Link

Dinos

Little!Virgil likes his dinosaur book. A lot

Ship(s): Platonic Anxceit

Status: Complete

Link

Prince of the Sea

A collab with @hitmewiththatfanart33. A Prinxiety AU in which Virgil is a runaway prince and Roman is a pirate captain.

Ship(s): Prinxiety, background Logicality, background implied Dukeceit

Status: Complete

Part 1 Part 2

I Only Have One

My first commission. Intruality Punk!Patton ad Pastel!Remus Promposal fic.

Ship(s): Intruality

Status: Complete

Link

The Dark Prince

A fic by the lovely @hitmewiththatfanart33, but on which I have been coauthor for a couple chapters now. Prinxiety Snow White AU

Ship(s): Prinxiety, Logicality, Remus x OC, past Loceit

Status: Ongoing, on a small hiatus

Masterlist Link

24-Hour-Diner AU

A bullet fic. with vampires.

Ship(s): hint of Loceit

Status: Complete

Link

Star-Crossed (But Not Really)

A ThVi Romeo and Juliet AU

Ship(s): ThVi, Intrulogical, was gonna have Moceit and Rosleep

Status: Discontinued

AO3 link

A Sticky Situation

Toddlers Logan and Roman discover Crofter’s.

Ship(s): N/A

Status: Complete

Link

Squeaker Shoes

Toddler Patton makes an equally small, very anxious friend.

Ship(s): N/A

Status: Complete

Link

Untitled Zombie Apocalypse Moceit

Patton. Cute Dogs.

Ship(s): Moceit

Status: Complete

Link

Roses

Prinxiety ficlet, Virgil is a prince who takes comfort in the company of the gardener.

Ship(s): Prinxiety

Status: Complete

Link

Floor is Lava

Brotherly Prinxiety ficlet

Ship(s): Lomoceit, brotherly creativitwins + Virgil

Status: Finished

Link

Never So Much Blood

An AU concept based on the Ludo song The Horror of Our Love. 

Ship(s): Roceit, Pintroverts

Status: To Be Written

Concept Roman Backstory Pintroverts Art

Logan’s Humans

Angst. Pure angst. Lots of character death. Beware.

Ship(s): Platonic DRLAMPT

Status: Complete

Link

#roman writes #roman's masterlist #long post

[sign-from-god-complex]

My Writing Masterlist!!!!

Grouped by ship, to hopefully make things easier to find!! All my writing is also tagged under the tag “lo can write” and all my music is under the tag “lo can sing”!! 

(⭐ = top 5 most popular fics // ❤️ = author’s favourites)

LAMP

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish) 

The Purpose of Marriage, To Know That You Are Loved - lamp! just fluff; very sappy. featuring: lots of love declarations and a nontraditional marriage proposal. (2,425 words)

tonight might be my night to reminisce - lamp! angst with a soft, hurt/comfort ending. featuring: Logan stargazing and getting existential. (1,665 words)

Saviour - platonic logince and platonic royality! hurt/comfort. featuring: a superhero au and some absolutely terrible puns I spent far too long trying to find. (1,398 words)

Spooked - platonic lamp with a focus on platonic analogical! fluff and humour. featuring: Crofter’s type bribery and bad ghost hunting. (2,362 words)

“You never told me you had a fucking twin.” (⭐) - platonic lamp with a minor focus on platonic logince! fluff and humour. featuring: Roman not knowing how to let other people talk and the subsequent confusion. (1,985 words)

cloud nine (❤️) - lamp! fluff and hurt/comfort. featuring: lots of napping and Virgil trying to help his boyfriends feel better. (2,799 words)

smitten - qpr royality & romantic prinxiety! fluff. featuring: Roman being a lovesick idiot and Patton being basically the sweetest partner ever. (1,033 words)

Chaptered Fics

A Gift From Me To You (❤️) - lamp and platonic sleepxiety! angst, fluff, hurt/comfort, this fic has it all! featuring: surprise soulmates and a whole lot of emotional journeys. (complete) (29,882 words / approximately 3,000 words per chapter) chapter 1 - chapter 2 - chapter 3 - chapter 4 - chapter 5 - chapter 6 - chapter 7 - chapter 8 - epilogue

Prinxiety

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

“I think I'm in love with you.” - prinxiety! absolute fluff. (616 words)

"So what, who cares what they think?"  - prinxiety! fluff and hurt/comfort. (345 words)

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

running out of luck // on his knees - prinxiety! light fluff; nothing hugely intense. featuring: late night strolls on the beach and Roman being a dork. (1,081 words)

“You better have a good reason for waking me up at the ass-crack of dawn.” - platonic prinxiety! fluff. featuring: a timelapse of early mornings or late nights and some reluctantly asked for affection. (1,247 words)

demiromantic love - prinxiety and implied endgame dlamp! fluff with a slight bit of angst. featuring: the obligatory identity crisis and crush on your best friend 90% of LGBT+ people experience in their life. (1,089 words)

stellar nebula - prinxiety with background loceit and parental analogince! fluff. featuring: an impulsive surprise and a whole lot more softness than Virgil was expecting to deal with. (1,375 words)

“You’re crying” (⭐) - platonic prinxiety! hurt/comfort. featuring: hot chocolates and late-night insecurities. (1,350 words)

Logicality

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

“Here, take my blanket.” - ambiguous logicality! fluff. (553 words)

“For some reason I’m attracted to you.” - logicality! angst (warning: no happy ending). (583 words)

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

Secrets - logicality! hurt/comfort and a lil bit of angst. featuring: a silly misunderstanding and some crying. (1,307 words)

Caretaker - platonic logicality! fluff. featuring: autistic! sides! and Patton being an excellent roommate and friend. (1,431 words)

solidity - ambiguous logicality! angst, possibly hurt/comfort but mostly angst (warning: no happy ending). featuring: some hardcore dissociation and reality issues, and Patton trying his absolute best to help. (1,073 words)

“Is there a special reason as to why you’re wearing my shirt?” - queerplatonic logicality! hurt/comfort and fluff. featuring: Patton trying to work on his issues and Logan being a good qpp. (1,151 words)

“If you don’t hug me right now, I think I might fall apart” - queerplatonic logicality! hurt/comfort and fluff. featuring: angry, protective Patton and some of the subtle ways to love someone. (2,012 words)

“Don’t be silly, I want to stay up with you.” - queerplatonic logicality! hurt/comfort. featuring: some school-related stress and Patton being willing to sacrifice sleep to assist. (1,046 words)

Falling Leaves - platonic logicality! fluff. featuring: autistic sides and lots of crunching leaves. (1,325 words)

Analogical

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

Nightmares - analogical! mostly horror, with some hurt/comfort. (730 words)

“Don’t say you love me.” - analogical! hurt/comfort. (627 words)

“All I do is drink coffee and say bad words” - queerplatonic analogical! fluff with a little bit of hurt/comfort (704 words)

“Have you seen my hoodie?” - analogical! hurt/comfort. (687 words)

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

Understanding Pride (⭐❤️) - queerplatonic analogical! a good mix of angst, hurt/comfort and fluff. featuring: aro/ace Logan coming to terms with his identity and nb Virgil helping him out with that. (5,519 words)

“Just smile. I really need to see you smile.” (❤️) - analogical! pretty much entirely fluff, with a tiny bit of self-doubt. featuring: ace Logan having to deal with some shitty people and Virgil being a soft boyfriend. (1,108 words)

“You’re very endearing when you’re half-asleep.” - analogical! complete fluff. featuring: a sleepy Virgil and a completely in love Logan. (1,031 words)

Royality

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

“This is girl talk, so leave.” - royality, with a side of analogical! fluff. (1,002 words)

First Dance - royality! absolute fluff. 

safe - royality! fluff.

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

How Does He Know You Love Him? - platonic royality! angst, with some hurt/comfort. featuring: some reminiscing from Patton and a long-overdue conversation. (1,540 words)

“Please, don’t cry.” (❤️) - royality! fluff. featuring: a proposal and Roman drinking loving his boyfriend juice. (1,562 words)

four and twenty blackbirds - royality! fluff. featuring: Roman’s being a gay mess and both literal and metaphorical sweetness. (1,589 words)

nevertheless - royality! fluff with a lil hurt/comfort. featuring: a song and a hesitant but undying kind of love. (1,196 words)

Logince

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

logince soulmate drabble - logince! fluff. (553 words)

“You can’t banish me! This is my bed too!” - logince! fluff. (451 words)

Awe - logince! complete fluff. (991 words)

Love You (❤️) - queerplatonic logince! fluff. (748 words)

interstellar infatuation (❤️) - logince! absolute fluff. (729 words)

“Did you seriously just get your foot stuck in a toilet?” - logince! humour. (737 words)

a hand to hold - logince! fluff. (594 words)

Full Fics (longer than 1,000 words, ish)

take care (⭐❤️) - logince! fluff, extremely sappy. featuring: Roman’s bad self-care tendencies and Logan’s willingness to do anything to help his boyfriend. (2,925 words)

the choice is ours and ours alone - logince and (background) moxiety! fluff and hurt/comfort. featuring: autistic Logan and serious relationship discussions. (3,534 words)

breathe in fire (❤️) - logince! angst and a little bit of smut (warning: no happy ending). featuring: an amazing one night stand, and Logan's fear of falling in love. (1,267 words)

“I think I picked up your coffee by mistake.” - logince! fluff. featuring: Logan being a gay mess and Roman managing to be smooth for (what I imagine to be) the first time in his life. (1,507 words)

Screw You // Okay - logince! smut? sorta. and fluff. featuring: arguments as a cover for sexual tension and Logan trying not to admit that he’s soft. (1,432 words)

Effort for Effort’s Sake - ambiguous logince! hurt/comfort. featuring: some emotional turmoil and Roman caring a whole lot. (1,915 words)

“I’ll be here to protect you.” - pre-romantic logince! fluff with a little bit of hurt/comfort. featuring: Roman’s irrational fears and Logan’s willingness to help him feel better. (1,215 words)

cuddles and catnaps - platonic logince! hurt/comfort and fluff. featuring: an exhausted Logan and a heartfelt discussion. (3,667 words)

better things are here with you - logince with background moxiety! fluff. featuring: love confessions and an agreement for the betterment of both ends. (1,768 words) - moxiety companion fic here!

celestial bodies (❤️) - logince! fluff. featuring: a proposal and more emotions than either of them know what to do with. (1,400 words)

disruptions - logince! fluff. featuring: a very nervous Logan and an unexpected, and yet entirely expected, love confession. (1,234 words)

Moxiety

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

“You’re cute when you’re all worried.” - moxiety! hurt/comfort. (440 words)

“Wait a second are you jealous?” - moxiety! fluff with a tiny bit of hurt/comfort. (762 words)

“I’m so proud of you.” - brotherly moxiety! fluff!!! (544 words)

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish) 

The Well (❤️) - moxiety with background logince! horror? angst? it’s something! featuring: fae Patton and Virgil being the protector as always. (2,820 words)

Nook - Present - moxiety! angst and hurt/comfort. featuring: loving husbands and emotional release. (1,149 words)

every way that matters (❤️) - queerplatonic moxiety! fluff and maybe some hurt/comfort. featuring: an unexpected marriage proposal and a bond closer than you could ever imagine. (1,167 words)

love like you - moxiety! lots of fluff and a little bit of angst. featuring: immortals in love and some sappy slow dancing. (2,064 words)

things are better here with you - moxiety with background logince! complete fluff. featuring: a lot of Virgil being stupidly in love and several attempts at a proposal. (3,404 words) - logince companion fic here!

Self-Control (❤️) - moxiety! fluff. featuring: a past as rebellious punk children and rediscovering feelings after a long time apart. (2,539 words)

Ships with Deceit

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

“Hey, hey, calm down. They can’t hurt you anymore.” - parental anxceit! hurt/comfort. (1,000 words)

“I love your hugs.”  - moceit! hurt/comfort. (243 words)

“Do you even still love me?” - dlamp! angst (warning: no happy ending). (626 words)

Certainties - loceit! fluff. (548 words)

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

they hate you, I’m sure - platonic moceit! hurt/comfort and fluff. featuring: some tears from Patton and cuddles from a good snake boi. (2,830 words)

“He’s so pretty I think I’m gonna faint.” (⭐) - roceit and one-sided royality! hurt/comfort maybe? I’m really not sure. featuring: Roman’s shitty friends and Dee being observant (bonus: Logan using neopronouns). (1,845 words)

the cost of admission - loceit! fluff. featuring: nb Logan and a direct interpretation of the line, “oh my god, they were roommates”. (1,421 words)

“Please, open the door.” - analoceit! hurt/comfort. featuring: an unexpected coming out and emotional vulnerability. (2,261 words)

Other

Drabbles/Ficlets (under 1,000 words, ish)

feigning innocence - losleep! fluff. (892 words)

“I’m thinkin’ about losleepxiety” - losleepxiety/analosleep! absolute fluff. (369 words)

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

Idealistic (❤️) - losleep! fluff with a tiny bit of hurt/comfort. featuring: Remy loving space and Logan loving them even more than that. (2,286 words)

Warmth - remile! fluff with a tiny bit of angst. featuring: nonbinary Remy, trans Emile and just an unreasonable amount of soft. (3,401 words)

Four Seven Hate - losleep! is “gay mess” a fic genre? no? then maybe fluff. featuring: Logan not understanding how emotions or people work and a whole lot of misplaced anger. (1,498 words)

“You’re stunning.” - sleepality! fluff. featuring: prom night and Remy being a bit of a sappy gay. (1,206 words)

No Ship

Full Fics (over 1,000 words, ish)

Patterns - no ship! angst, just entirely angst (warning: no happy ending). featuring: Virgil’s bad coping mechanisms and self-harm. (1,357 words)

Music

Make-Believe - a Roman-inspired song!

Lost & Found - a Virgil-and-Deceit-inspired song!

nevertheless - a royality song!

#sanders sides #sanders sides fic #lo can write #my masterlist #I just thought this might make it easier to find my writing in case anyone wanted to do that haha

[starboy14176]

Remy adopts a bunch of dark boys

Remus

5’2

Only trusts Virgil

Sleeps like a cat

Terrified of Janus

Was mainly Treated as janus’ “pet” well in the dark side

Probably hasn’t slept in 5 mouths

Very under weight

Living off monster energy and adrenaline

Calms himself down by watching horror movies

Virgil

5’3

Very protective of Remus

Also sleeps like a cat

Hates loud noises

Virgil can use magic and control shadows, Janus used this to his advantage and trained Virgil to act as a weapon

Can’t sleep without checking to make sure Remus is ok

Very under weight

Caffeine addict

Obsessed with Tim burton movies

Remy

5’8

Very protective of his family

Sleeps frequently in Virgils room because Virgil has a lot of nightmares and having remy there helps

Would throw hands if anyone tried to hurt one of his boys

Remy is janus’ ex boyfriend

Has a stash of Camille tea for when on of the boys has a nightmare

Gets very worried about Remus when he doesn’t eat

Living off coffee

A romcom fanatic

Blaze

5’6

Only really cares about Remus

Doesn’t sleep

Acts fearless but really is afraid of Janus

Was manipulated a lot by Janus

When he does sleep he uses a weighted blanket

Stress eats

Iced coffee fan

Watches horror movies with Remus when he’s sad

#sander sides #virgil sanders #sandersides #remus sanders #unsympathetic deceit #u!deceit #unsympathetic janus #u!janus #u!sides #remy Sanders #orange sides oc #orange side #the orange side is anger and his name is blaze #platonic dukexiety #platonic sleepxiety #dad remy #brotherly sleepxiety #abused virgil #abused remus #abuse tw #tw abuse #Jan did some bad shit man

[ecoamerica]

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!

#ACLA24 #ACLA24Leaders #youtube #youtube video #climate leaders #climate solutions #climate action #climate and environment #climate #climate change #climate and health #climate blog #climate justice #climate news #weather and climate #environmental news #environment #environmental awareness #environment and health #environmental #environmental issues #environmental justice #environment protection #environmental health #Youtube

[just-emotional-trash]

An Outranked Romance

Whose ready for the first chapter of a royal camp au!? Because the first chapter is coming to you sometime Monday!

I’m so excited, I love this au so far. The romantic ships are Prinxiety (main), Logicality, and Remile (maybe Demus? We’ll see). Platonic analogical, royality, Moxiety, and logince, and brotherly sleepxiety. All of them are friends.

Deceit and Remus are in it, but aren’t really a big part? At least, not as far as I’ve planned the story, but I’ll have plenty of warnings if they do anything unsympathetic.

Anyway, so excited! A backstory/world building post should be coming your way sometime tomorrow. All information/story will be found under #An Outranked Romance

See the inspiration for this story here!

#sanders sides #thomas sanders #sanders sides fic #an outranked romance

[rosesisupposes]

Skin Deep

Two royal twins, Remus and Roman, alike in almost every way, trained to be military leaders, trained to serve their nation as generals. But in a society that sees any body irregularities as signs of moral defect, one will never hold the same status as his brother. How could he ever be a proper Face of the Nation?

or, What If Roman Was The Unacceptable One?

Word count:  9,203

Main Characters: Remus, Roman

Appearances by: Patton, Remy, Logan, Virgil, Mentions of Deceit

Relationships: Platonic/Brotherly Creativitwins; background Losleep, past Moceit, beginnings of Royality, Platonic Sleepality, Platonic Sleepxiety, 

Warnings: graphic descriptions of war/battle; societal prejudice based on appearances; discrimination based on appearances; trauma-induced body modifications; mentions of emotional abuse including forced starvation/food deprivation;   

Credit to @hawthornshadow for being my wonderful co-creator in the worldbuilding especially, and to dear @vintage-squid for beta-reading!

read on ao3

Roman’s muscles were burning as he blocked the attack, catching the down-swinging blow at the hilt. He pushed back, threw his assailant off balance, and swung out his leg to send him sprawling. Without pausing for breath, he followed through, swinging his sword to stop mere inches from the fallen man’s throat.

“I yield,” the man said, chest heaving. “Also, fuck you, Your Grace.”

Roman grinned and sheathed his dull practice sword, offering an arm to help the man to his feet. “My only goal is to help you improve, my dear Toby. By pointing out the weak points in your defense. Repeatedly.”

“Thanks ever so, royal pain-in-the-ass,” Toby said, letting himself be pulled to standing. He stretched, wincing, and picked up his fallen weapon. The other men of Roman’s squad surrounded them, patting Toby’s back with sympathy and slapping Roman with what were framed as claps of victory but were probably harder than they needed to be. Roman brushed his hair out of his face, his bright red curls turned dark with sweat. One of the men tossed him a damp cloth to wipe his face, and he caught it with thanks.

Roman and his men were chatting and planning their next training session when a servant entered the yard.

“Your Grace, your father requests your presence.”

Roman immediately broke off from the group. “Is it an immediate request, or do I have time to make myself presentable?”

“His Majesty is aware that you were in the training grounds, and it is not an urgent matter.”

⁂

Roman, cleaned up and outfitted in his dress uniform, knelt before his father’s throne, waiting to be spoken to. He felt a slight trickle of sweat on his neck, and he spared a moment to hope that he wouldn’t sweat on his face as well. He would hate to have the makeup he’d carefully applied get smeared. Yes, his scars were common knowledge, and weren’t ever fully made invisible even when he caked on concealer and foundation, but he knew his father preferred it to be less noticeable. His father, and most everyone else too.

He wondered, not for the first time, if his brother would continue to require Roman to wear makeup once he ascended to the throne. He was never quite sure how Remus felt about the whole process.

He looked up under his lashes to see Remus inclining his head to speak into their father’s ear, advising him on some court matter. It appeared he’d been to the castle barber today - his hair was neatly shorn and perfectly shaped. Not a single strand blocked the view of his defined cheekbones, round chin, or his smooth, unblemished skin. Ideal, without flaws. He looked just as one would expect him to, the future Face of the Kingdom.

Currently, he was frowning. He looked up and seemed to notice his brother kneeling.

“Roman, thank you for coming. Father and I need your advice on the next advance.”

Roman rose, finally, and walked over to the map spread on the table by the throne.

“We expect the vanguard to be entrenched at the top of the mountain, but we might be able to draw them out with a flank attack-”

“But we’d run the risk of getting pinned down by their artillery and archers-”

The three royals broke into a flurry of strategy and tactics, Roman giving an on-the-ground view from the thick of battle to his father and brother’s eagle’s-eye-view. He noted more than one moment where his father urged bold, aggressive, and risky strategies that made Remus hesitate. But each time, the crown prince agreed with his father’s methods. Through the involved discussion, a battle plan was crafted.

“I expect well of you both,” the king said, nodding decisively. “We will meet on the peak in three day’s time. Gather your men and arms.”

Roman and Remus both bowed to their father. Roman waited a moment to allow his brother to exit the throne room before him, but walked by his side through the hallways leading to the family quarters.

“Are you quite alright, Reme? You seemed distracted in council-”

“I’m fine, Ro,” his brother responded, cutting him off. “It’s just another battle. Good night.” He entered his room and shut the door behind him with a thud.

⁂

“-no need for such theatrics, Your Highness, it’s just another battle.”

Remus stared up at the general, hardly aware of the tears on his cheeks or the vomit still lining his mouth. He was 12, on his first trip with his father to the battlefield. He hadn’t been prepared.

His tutors had spent years stressing the need for the royal line to fight alongside their men. The glory of war was the glory of generals, directing and rallying troops, inspiring hope and righteous fury from the front of the charge. Remus, as heir, must be the generals’ General. Plain in speech, getting directly to the point. Curt. No fancifulness, lest he be distracted. He was instructed on how to be the perfect leader, the perfect soldier, and one day the perfect king.

But what they hadn’t told him was the reality that all soldiers knew: there is little glory on the field of war. There was the Cause at home, of course, a grand narrative that justified sending the troops out for King and Country, a declaration of glorious purpose and righteous smiting.  

But on the field?

There had been the initial clash, of course, the charging of lines against one another. But that was where the resemblance to the theory Remus had been steeped in ended. He’d been brought to a battlefield and saw the charge, heard the horns and drums, and at first, his heart had swelled with the glory of which he’d only heard of.

Then he saw the aftermath. He saw the wounded scattered around like leaves after a storm, limbs detached and bloody like some terrible mockery of dolls, the flies buzzing over blown-out heads… he had barely made it out of the command tent before he started to vomit, long and hard, until he was heaving with nothing left to retch.

But the generals, and his father, had merely frowned and scoffed at his immaturity. Why did he dwell on this? It was a fact of life and war. He wasn't to mind it. He was to do his duty.

So Remus cleaned his mouth and pushed those sights to the back of his mind. They were to be expected, as part of the cleanup. No need to think about the wounded and marred.

Roman, the younger twin, was much older when he was brought to battle. He saw small skirmishes first, before the carnage of all-out war. But the sheen of glory faded for him too.

Remus remembered the voices of the public as they brought Roman home on a stretcher. The country’s champions were only supposed to lead, not get hurt. Or if they must be hurt, it wasn’t supposed to be in lasting or visible ways, they were supposed to at most suffer some injury, bravely soldier through, and return home triumphant in a sling. Why couldn’t Duke Roman have been properly injured, those who sat at home in their solars asked. A broken arm. A leg. Something that would heal and look dramatic doing it. Soldiers, especially noble ones, were expected to recover without a mark to show for it. Once the war had left the public consciousness, the injuries should have vanished, too. “Better to have been a martyr than to return home like that,” they whispered.

Not that Roman ever had a chance.

He’d been born with facial markings. Skin that looked almost painted with a pink mark, a wine stain imbued in the tan skin of his face. He looked wrong, the whispers said. Wrong for nobility. Certainly wrong for royalty. Imagine if such a one had been born the elder. How could such a one lead the nation, be the culmination of the bloodline and the clear face of morals that his people needed?

The king and queen had known of the double heartbeat, known that two children were on their way at once. And the nation and family knew, of course, that Remus was the elder, if only by half an hour. What a relief it was to know that the proper heir didn’t have such a deformity. The royals announced them both at once, hadn’t proclaimed each birth separately as was sometimes done. But then, of course, that was surely because of the queen, may she rest in peace. The midwives and servants didn’t speak of that day. Out of respect for her memory. A day of both joy and sorrow. King and country lost their beloved queen. But they gained the sons of the nation. Duke Roman, who served in battle honorably and mostly well. And Prince Remus, who was soft, and smooth, and blemish-free. A proper heir.

And he never returned from battle with injuries so dire they would leave unmistakable scars.

⁂

Three days later, Remus sat astride his charger, waiting for his father’s signal. The army’s flags snapped in the brisk wind, and he heard the creak and jingle of tack and armor around him as the soldiers shifted in place, maintaining formation as they waited.

The horn sounded, and Remus lifted his morning star with a yell and kneed his horse into a charge, soldiers streaming beside and behind him.

The fight was a blur. Remus remembered moments like the new technology of moving photographs, brief clips only a few seconds long. Catching a blow from an enemy horseman on his shield. Swinging his mace low and alongside his mount, catching a footsoldier from behind. Seeing Roman, bright in a white jacket that would soon be stained as he and his force streamed down a hill to join the fray.

It was just another battle. He played his role in the plan well, and their army won. He sat on a bench outside the command tent, cleaning his weapon and listening to reports. The victory was resounding - the only enemy soldiers not killed had been captured. The day was theirs.

Remus looked across the battlefield as one of his advisors continued to report. The ground was churned by the hooves of hundreds of horses, where it wasn’t obscured by bodies or fallen weapons. He found his eye caught on one lone body at the base of the hill from where he sat. An enemy soldier, now defeated. That's all the man should have been to him. Right?

But he couldn’t look away. He couldn’t. The man’s head was bloody, the wound jagged and terrible and... and it matched his morning star. The punctures, the dent, they matched the pattern perfectly. He’d just cleaned it - the blood and mud and matter had taken so much effort to clean. And there was where the blood had come from, that young man’s head, now part of the carnage, lying in a tangle of the fallen like logs ready to be burnt.

Remus’ hand started to shake, morning star still in his grasp.

“Your Highness? Are you alright?” the general asked.

Remus nodded, still shaking, and tried to flash the man a reassuring smile. His mouth split open, but it stretched too wide, too far, too fake. He started to laugh, air forcing itself out of his lungs in staccato bursts. The general’s eyes widened with nervousness, and he looked around them for someone else, anyone else to help.

Remus’ laugh went on and on, humorless and shrill. He couldn’t stop himself.

“Can't think about it, you know!" he cackled between laughs. "Can't dwell! It's a fact of life!"

The general backed away, heading for the other tents that housed the king and the other leaders.

When they returned to the hilltop, Remus was gone, without a trace. All that remained was a morning star, abandoned in the mud.

⁂

Two weeks later, the king paced the throne room fretfully.

“We fear the worst has happened to the Prince,” the king said. “An ambush, perhaps? Some straggler who escaped our forces, desperate for one last kill? Perhaps they recognized him and mean to ransom him, but wouldn’t we have received a demand letter by now? He’s clearly noble, anyone could tell that from a glance, why haven’t we received word? What shall we do without our heir? What will become of our nation?”

Roman stood at attention, silent. He had not heard from his brother either, but from the general’s report, he was far less optimistic that something so simple as kidnapping had occurred. But his father wouldn’t hear of it.

They hadn’t made an official announcement to the public, besides half-hearted excuses. But the rumors had begun, whispers noticing Prince Remus’ conspicuous absence. Only Duke Roman had presided with the King at the victory procession. How could the Prince allow “feeling under the weather” prevent him from attending? What was wrong?

Roman’s fingers beat an anxious rhythm on his sword hilt as he watched his father pace when they were both jolted by the loud slam of the throne room door opening.

In the doorway stood… well, it appeared to be Remus. But Remus had… changed.

His hair was long and straggly, and dyed a sickening swamp green. Metal spikes pierced the cartilage of his nose and ears, sprouting out like a mockery of armor. Studs were embedded in his cheeks. Black tears were inked under his eyes. His lips were painted a screeching shade of neon green, and when he smiled wide, they saw that his tongue had been disfigured, split into two.

They both stared, but Roman was the first to speak.

"Remus?" Roman asked. "I- we were so worried, what happened?"

"Oh I just got my head out of my ass, brother dear! Didn't want to be like all you shitheads anymore!" Turning to the king, the prince grinned lopsidedly "Daddykins, didn't you miss me? Did you have to slaughter children by yourself or did you bring ickle Romeo with you?"

"Remus!" Roman interrupted, shocked. "We don't-"

"Oh but we doooo!" Remus sang. "Me and Daddy do! We do our doody, don't we, Pop?"

The king finally spoke. "What," he demanded flatly. "Have you done to yourself."

Remus fluttered his eyelashes. "Oh I just stabbed my own face! Professionally, of course. almost as professionally as you with your broadsword. Not nearly as much blood, though, I know you'd be disappointed."

The prince approached the throne, heedless or because of the way the king recoiled from him.

"Hope I can still be your little boy, though, Poppy! Hope I can fill your big dick shoes! Can't you just wait for me to take on our glorious legacy? Aren't you delighted to hand off that big ol' crown to you eldest son?!"

"Let you be the face of the kingdom, looking like that? " his father said coldly. "Let you rule, when you have clearly abandoned all we hold dear?” The King rose, pointing past Remus with a finger that shook with rage. “Get out of our sight. We have only one son."

Remus grinned widely, and Roman realized with a sickening start that he hadn’t seen his brother smile this much since they were children.

“Whatever you desire, dearest darlingest popsicle!”

“Out!” the king roared, and Remus obeyed, his cackling laughter echoing back through the halls.

The king breathed deep, chest heaving as he calmed himself.

“Roman.”

The duke swallowed the lump in his throat to answer, “Yes, Father?”

“We name you Crown Prince, sole heir to our throne and fortune. We disown and disname the former Prince Remus. The realm places its full trust in you, our son.”

Roman knelt, hearing the unspoken end of the sentence. Don’t you dare fail.

“I thank you for this honor, father. I will serve to the best of my ability,” he said graciously.

The king took a medallion on ribbon from the wall - the sunburst seal of the royal house, only worn by kings and direct heirs. He placed it around Roman’s neck. “We- I know you will, Roman. I know you will be all that our country needs you to be.”

King and newly-named-prince made eye contact. The king’s eyes blazed, with anger and grief and unspoken warning: Don’t fuck up, like he did.

Roman bowed his head, lest his father see the heartbreak in his eyes.

You were what fucked him up.

⁂

Roman was introduced to the kingdom as the future king. It was not quite the joyous affair that Remus’ coming-of-age had been, not when the king spoke as if the former prince had died, when the announcement of Roman replacing him was practically perfunctory. When Roman had sat at his vanity for a full hour as the artists worked to cover up his birthmarks and battle scars. And for what? It wasn’t as if the kingdom didn’t already know that he was… imperfect. Marred. Flawed.

But appearances, his father told him coldly, must be maintained.

Roman was the heir, unable to be disowned too, not when the king had no more options. He needed the king’s advisors and generals to respect him if he were to ever properly reign. He needed the nobility to support him. He needed to get the ones in power, the Noble Council, to see past his face, to believe in his ability to rule despite his impurities. But he knew they would never be ignored.

Hadn’t he grown up with the whispers? Hadn’t he seen how others who were injured or disfigured be dismissed from court altogether? Hadn’t he watched as the mere rumor of a nobleman’s secret tattoo pushed him out of the public eye in shame? When a pair of clip-on earrings were scandalous just by resembling a body modification, what hope did Roman and his birthmark have to be accepted?

But he smiled, and waved, and spoke with the oldest generals, and accompanied his father to court days, and filled his role as heir. In battle, he was pulled into a higher level of command, no longer directing just his contingent of soldiers, but entire armies. He and his father led the charges still, of course, but he no longer trained with his men. His missed them, as he’d missed the relative privacy of being just a Duke instead of Prince. But it was his duty.

⁂

It had been months since Remus’ disownment when another major battle came to pass. The king brought Roman to the field with him, keeping him involved in the planning for the entire process. Roman was pleased to discover that the generals actually respected his strategic and tactical contributions - it seemed his closeness with his direct force had given him a keener sense of the risks and rewards of maneuvers that the command tent often lacked. That day, though, his father seemed a bit distracted. It didn’t seem to interfere with his reasoning or fighting, though. Not until the height of battle.

And then the King saw him. A young man with a morning star. It was a common-enough weapon for nobility, but... the boy had smooth skin and no scars and no piercings and he fought well, methodically and with only the required level of ferocity. He was a once-familiar sight on the field, one who had been there every battle until now.

And the king just... snapped.

He charged down the hill, ahead of the signal. Alone. It was unwise. Roman saw his father charge, tried to warn him back, tried to call to him and break through the distraction.

The King probably could not have articulated why he charged. It was out of anger, yes, but was it anger at the boy for being a reminder? Anger because of what he lost? Anger at Remus for no longer looking the way the young man did, for no longer being what the king had wished him to be?

He would never get a chance to explain.

The boy saw his danger. So did three of his fellows. The king brought no backup. He fell.

Roman continued the fight. What else could he have done?

The boy had frozen him too, a shadow from the past, one with a smile that Roman hadn’t seen on his twin’s face in years. Remus’ smiles had been growing stiffer ever since they were 12, pasted-on grins that never reached his eyes. And the last time he’d seen him- it had been even more unfamiliar. Manic. Pained. He’d laughed, but with no true amusement.

Even as he performed the steps of his role as heir, Roman couldn’t rid himself of the thought that the lack of genuine happiness in his brother’s face could only have been due to the king himself and the weight Remus had borne as the Crown Prince.

Roman ascended in the wake of his father’s death with that same weight, grown heavier through guilt and shame and the bitter knowledge that none of this was ever supposed to be him.

⁂

Roman had to be king. There was no one else. His father had been an only child. The next closest relatives were two different third cousins who were quite proud to be in the line of succession. If Roman wasn’t king, the country would fall into a civil war of family against family, fighting for the ‘truest’ claim to the throne.

The nobility accepted the necessity of his reign. That didn’t mean they were happy about it.

Whispers followed him through the halls, stopped suddenly as he entered the audience chamber, rumbled around him when he took his weekly rides through the capital city. He wanted to be an accessible king, one his people knew as more than just a bloodied general returning from the field. He even spent a single afternoon hoping that with enough exposure to his face and his scars, the country might grow to see past his appearance.

It was a foolish hope. Prejudices that have been passed down for over five generations don’t melt away because of one king, much less one who gained power under less than ideal circumstances.

And yet, it didn’t change his determination to be a presence in his people’s lives, not just a face seen from a distant castle balcony. After much cajoling and convincing of his personal guard, Roman began spending evenings mingling in the capital city restaurants and taverns. As a commander, he’d learned how best to let his soldiers get used to him, and he used this skill again across town, night after night. He would sit near the corner of the bar, or at a less-traffic corner of the dining room, or at the end of a shared table. He would eat quietly, only speaking when others greeted him, seemingly very focused on his food alone. And slowly, his fellow diners got over the shock of seeing their king among them and start chatting about their lives, their children, their heartbreaks and dreams. He would listen and nod and quietly pay their tabs, then leave before they got too embarrassed or self-conscious. And when it was commoners, it worked well. With the nobility, or the higher classes of commoners that desperately wanted to be nobility, he had to fend off the comments. Usually, it was surprise that his birthmark and scars were really that obvious. Or passive-aggressive comments about how it was “wonderful how cosmopolitan the Noble Council is these days.”

Roman would just grin and bluster and respond, “Royalty’s more than skin-deep, darling.”

It was just charming enough to satisfy most, or at least end that line of conversation, and he could go back to being a silent listener. But when eyes lingered on his birthmarks or traced down the long line of stitching scars down his cheek, he couldn’t help but flinch internally, preparing himself for the darts and daggers of judgment. The sting of disapproval never really faded, no matter how many times he endured it with a smile.

⁂

He risked it, one night, to go to a place he’d only heard about in hushed tones. It was a scandalous place, certainly not one that any self-respecting noble would be caught dead in. But Roman was desperate with hope. So without telling anyone, not even his bodyguard, he slipped out of the castle to visit Au Naturel.

The sign had been vandalized recently, bright red spray paint across it like blood splatters, but what could be expected when a slur was reclaimed with such audacity? Roman hesitated on the threshold, but surely it would be far worse to linger there on the street and risk being seen for minutes versus the seconds it would take him to enter or exit. With a deep breath, he walked inside.

The first thing he saw was a bouncer, a hulking man with navy blue hair and glasses. He stared down at Roman’s identification papers critically, eyebrows barely twitching in recognition of the kingdom’s regnal name. Roman tried to avoid staring, but the man was pierced in dozens of places, with visible tattoos curling out of the collar of the sensible black turtleneck. But he didn’t look distraught or distressed, just cool and collected.

Roman fought back a shiver of excitement as he reclaimed his papers and was welcomed into the heart of the bar with a wave.

He’d expected dim lights, maybe a smoke-obscured room, something out of the speakeasy fictions he’d read about in the edgier forms of media. Instead, there were golden lamps that lit everything well, and bright neon signs that threw off a rainbow of lights from the walls. The rainbows were reflected back off the many piercings in the crowd, off shiny gelled hair, even off prosthetic limbs. Roman had expected a huddled crowd of solidarity, of societal misfits in their one safe space. Instead, he found a party of delight, with faces that were all relaxed and at ease instead of just in temporary relief.

He shuffled to the bar, avoiding eye contact, a bit overwhelmed and unsure how to start mingling.

A smiling bartender greeted him. They had a mohawk, dyed in blues and purples with glitter sprinkled through like stars. They wore a lipstick of a startling bright shade of pink that contrasted with their tan skin. A huge silver hoop dangled from one ear lobe, accompanied by spikes around the cartilage, and they acknowledged Roman’s quiet request for a gin-and-tonic with a wink. As they turned to the racks of drinks, Roman realized with a start that their skin was perfectly smooth, besides the alterations. No visible scars or marks or even freckles, and the mesh shirt they wore meant much more skin was visible than normal. And yet, they were here. As they returned with Roman’s drink, they asked, “First night, hun?”

Roman nodded. “It’s not exactly what I expected.”

The bartender leaned, tilting down tinted glasses to fix Roman with a look. “What do you mean, babes?”

“I- the way people talk, I’d expected the folks here to be much more… I’m not sure. Bitter?”

“If there’s one thing I know about ‘people’, it’s that they always expect and want outcasts to be as miserable as they believe we ought be. But the owner puts a lot of effort into making this more than just an escape. She wants it to be an oasis. And she seeks out newbies to make sure they know it’s safe to just be here. Here, lemme introduce you, I think you’ll like her.”

Roman nodded his agreement, and watched the bartender flit and weave through the crowd, greeting people and they went. They were apparently a favorite, with patrons squeezing their shoulder or kissing them on the cheek as they passed. They only paused once, when they reached the stoic bouncer from the entrance. He was sitting in a booth, apparently on break, ignoring the room, until the bartender touched his shoulder gently and he turned to look at him with a smile lighting up his face. They exchanged a brief kiss, and then the bartender was sliding into a door labeled ‘Employees Only’.

Roman let his gaze roam. Everywhere, there thronged people with piercings and tattoos and colored contacts, and they all looked happy. He even saw others with scars and birthmarks like his own, but no one stared at them or seemed to care. And they couldn’t all be lashing back against trauma like Remus had, right?

“Welcome to Au Naturel, kiddo! I’m Patton, the owner.”

Roman turned to see a bright smile and an outstretched hand. The owner was like no one he’d ever seen. The majority of her skin was a dark, rich brown, but it was interrupted with splotches of pale skin. And where the skin was light enough to see, it was speckled with light brown spots. She was the kind of face that nobility put on dramatized posters of the ‘less fortunate’, those who were born with so many impurities that they clearly couldn’t hope to be any more than the lowest rung of the serving class. But here she stood, bright teeth flashing at Roman in the club she owned, in an atmosphere of pure joy that she’d created. A silver chain around her neck held a ring and a magenta charm affirming her pronouns.

Roman shook her hand gently. “It’s good to meet you, Patton. I’m Roman.”

“Oh, I know! Thank you for gracing my humble establishment with your presence, Your Majesty. I was a bit surprised when Remy told me who was sitting at the bar- I wasn’t sure if your facial marks were really as obvious as the gossips say.”

Roman cringed internally. He’d been recognized, clocked by bartender and owner, and he’d been here barely 20 minutes. The common refrain rolled off his tongue with the perfect intonation of repetition. “Well, royalty’s only skin-deep, darling.”

Patton blinked. “Oh- oh, Your Majesty, pardon me, I didn’t mean to offend.”

Roman faked a smile with practiced ease. “No offense, my lady.”

“No, I- I meant, I assumed they were exaggerating your appearance from just some small beauty mark, because I had assumed anyone who looked like us wouldn’t be allowed to ascend to the throne. I’m delighted that you’re real! And you have these beautiful marks of the gods’ favor, just like me, and you’re our King without having to cover them!”

Roman blinked, started to speak, then blinked again. “Marks of what?”

Patton grinned and sat next to Roman. “Of the gods’ favor, of course! You and I, we were painted in the womb, blessed with more than one color, claimed by more than one patron. Some people get just freckles, a smattering of kisses. Some get a beauty mark, a touch or two. But you and I, they couldn’t bear to refrain, and look at me! I got a whole big hug, from top to toe.”

Roman did look. And he found he got more and more confused by the second. Because here was this woman, multi-colored, a floppy fro bouncing in dark curls with strips of light blonde among them, speckled with freckles along her pale patches of skin. She was everything Roman had been told was impure, imperfect, pitiable- and yet, she was the most gorgeous creature he’d ever seen.

“I’ve… never thought of it that way,” he said softly. “Particularly with…” he trailed off, pointing to his scars.

“I don’t really trust the gossips on the news- how did you get these, King Roman?”

Roman traced the line on the back of his hand, remembering. “It was a particularly bad battle. A young soldier whose fellows had fallen on either side of him had a knife hidden in his belt. I was arrogant, back then, just foolish enough to believe that the norms of the battlefield would always be respected, that the separations of class meant anything in the melee. So I was caught completely unawares by the blade, thinking the young man was just a commoner and so no real threat. I was lucky, though. I survived.” Despite how the Noble Council reacted on my recovery.

Patton’s eyes softened. “I am glad you survived, Your Majesty. And gladder that the prejudices of some against your tapestry didn’t prevent you from becoming King.”

Roman ducked his head. “Thank you, Patton. And please- call me Roman.”

She giggled. “Oh, how scandalous, little ol’ me on a first-name basis with the King! At least let me comp your drink first!”

Roman felt his cheeks heating up as he watched her laugh, curls bouncing. “Please, I’m sure you pay more than your fair share of taxes already. Let me. Consider it a subsidy, if you must.”

Patton tilted her head, contemplating the royal man sitting in her bar. “If you insist, my liege,” she said with a sly smile.

Roman was sure he was visibly blushing now, but caught the owner’s hand in his. Brushing his lips against it, he looked up into Patton’s wide, blue eyes. “And insist I do.”

Patton was quiet for only a moment, before her face split open in a bright smile. “Oh, I like this one. I think we’ll just have to keep you.”

“Kidnapping a king? Now who’s being scandalous?”

“You can only kidnap someone if it’s against their will,” she replied with a wink.

Roman was saved from having to respond by the bartender returning. “Ooohh, Patty, I knew you had expensive taste, but flirting with actual royalty?”

Patton blew a kiss to her employee. “You would know, Remy.”

Roman realized he’d yet to let go of Patton’s hand, but didn’t feel particularly inclined to change that at this particular moment. Until Remy responded, “If even the absolute disgrace of the Dormions clan can recognize royalty, anyone can, but go off I guess.”

Roman turned. “You’re that Remy? Remington?”

Remy grimaced. “Yes, unfortunately. I was going to change my name entirely but Lo already got it tattooed so…”

Patton smacked them lightly. “No lying to new friends, Rem.”

“Fineee, I like the name if not the fam.”

Roman fiddled with his glass. “I- I’ve only heard the court gossip, but-”

Remy rolled their eyes. “Oh yeah, they love me. Perfect little first son completely wrecks and malforms himself and refuses to fit in the box we made for him! Which, while irritatingly misgendering, is all true. I came here on a dare once, tried to sneak in the back-”

“And then they met Logan!!” Patton interjected, hands cupping her cheeks in delight. “And it was love at first sight!”

“More like lust at first sight-”

“But then it became love, let me have this.”

Remy grinned fondly at their boss. “Yeah, it did. Lo was one of the first times I’d seen a real person with body mods outside of the PSAs and I had no idea how attractive they could be. I met him, we went off to-”

“Have a nice chat,” Patton interjected primly.

“Of course, Pat, I chatted at him for four straight hours,” they responded with a wink to Roman. “And then I had to come back and I started to get to know Patty here and the regulars and well... My parents were wrong about literally everything. Including thinking I was their son. But obviously, they didn’t love having that pointed out to them, so…” they trailed off with a shrug.

“Dramatic disownment, Patton hires you, you get your own tattoos and piercings?” Roman supplied.

“That’s about it, yeah.”

Roman looked around the room, the warm likes and mingling crowds. “I can see why you fell in love with it all so easily, why you wanted to have a place like this to call your own community.”

Patton reached out and squeezed Roman’s hand. “It’s yours too, now, Your Majesty- Roman. Please, feel free to come back whenever you like.”

⁂

The king was still hesitant to return. What if the other patrons hadn’t been as comfortable with his presence as Remy and Patton had been? What if he’d been spotted by less understanding people and they were waiting for his return to catch him in the act? And yet, he knew he needed to go back to Au Naturel. He’d learned so much in just one night, had his mind opened to so many different interpretations of the societal expectations that had plagued him his whole life. He couldn’t bear to never hear that again, to go back to the Noble Council and ignore the echoes in his brain that whispered “marks of the gods’ favor” whenever he looked in a mirror.

So two nights later, he steeled himself and made his way back to the bar. The same bouncer was at the door.

“Logan, was it?”

The man’s eyes narrowed, but he nodded.

“It’s good to see you again.”

His brow unfurrowed, and he nodded again, this time with the slightest hint of a smile stretching out his pierced lips.

Roman smiled back, and entered the main room.

He made his way over to the bar more confidently this time, but was distracted by the crowd from looking at the bartender as he ordered.

“Oh holy fuck shit heck fuck?”

He turned to see a much younger bartender with dark black hair, bright purple lipstick, and hoop earrings staring at him wide-eyed and a bit panicked.

“Uh, sorry, have we met?”

The young man just stared and continued to swear under his breath until he took a deep breath and called out, “Remy?”

They returned from the far side of the bar and saw Roman. With a wave, they said, “Hey there, Majesty. Gin and tonic again?”

Roman nodded as Remy turned away, arm around the young bartender’s shoulders. It didn’t stop him from hearing their quiet conversation.

“You could have warned me that the actual king might come in-”

“I did!”

“I thought you were exaggerating! Or talking about a drag king-”

“Okay fair, but Patton agreed with me-”

“I thought he was humoring you!”

“Logan backed me up!”

“...he just smiled at you. He does that all the time.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t fully prepare you, Virge. I didn’t know if he’d come back.”

“He’s not going to- we’re safe, right?”

“Look at him, of course we’re safe. And also Patty charmed the pants off him, we’re fine.”

“...literally?”

“I mean, maybe, Pat doesn’t kiss and tell.”

Roman started to blush and realized it was probably time to indicate that their conversation wasn’t secret. “I’m right here,” he cut in. He smiled as both bartenders turned to face him. “Patton is indeed quite charming, but I believe I’ve retained my pants.”

Remy smirked, not missing a beat. “So far, anyway.”

Roman tried not to color further and was saved (or ruined) by the appearance of Patton himself. “Remy, are you poisoning Virgey’s mind again?”

The young man grimaced. “Sorry! Virgil’s mind,” Patton corrected, sliding into the seat next to Roman. “Good to see you again, Roman.”

“It’s good to see you as well, Patton. It’s alright that I’m back?”

“Of course it is!”

“Because if I’m making anyone uncomfortable, I don’t want to take this space away from them-”

Patton laid his hand over Roman’s on the bar. “This space is for you, too, Your Majesty. I think in some ways, those like us born into noble families need it even more. Not to say that anyone has it easy, but…”

“But it’s expected that lower classes are ‘imperfect’,” Virgil said, returning with Roman’s drink. His mouth was twisted into a bitter line. “And when you’re not, you never get to be yourself again.”

Roman looked at him curiously. “I confess, I have only been allowed to mingle with mixed classes in my command. What do you mean, if you don’t mind talking about it?”

Virgil looked at Patton with a question in his eyes. Patton smiled. “He’s safe, Virge. Promise.”

Virgil nodded and reached up to his ears. He removed his hoop earrings, showing that they were clip-ons and that his ears were unpierced. “According to this crap system, I’m ‘perfect’. I don’t have birthmarks or discoloration or even freckles. Which means of course I’ve been banned from getting tattoos or piercings or dying my hair. I keep this stuff here with Rem, because it’s the only place I can wear it without my parents getting… upset.”

Roman frowned. “They don’t hurt you, do they?”

Virgil laughed hollowly. “They never hit me, perish the thought, that might cause bruises. Or scars. But you may have noticed, nothing about this damn value system accounts for things like, you know, mental health. Or being well-fed. As long as it doesn’t go as far as like, hair falling out or jaundice.”

“But why enforce it?” Roman asked. “The families I know, it’s to maintain their status and reputation…”

Virgil clipped his earring back on, fiddling with it nervously. “If I’m being generous, it’s a hope thing. That if I can just look refined enough, I’ll be seen by a noble or someone who wants the status of a ‘perfect’ partner and be whisked up into a life of luxury. If you ask my parents, they’d say they’re trying to help me get a better life.”

“But you don’t agree with that.”

“Not for a fucking second. Sure, I believe they believe that. But they refuse to see how shitty it is in the meantime and explode at me when I object.” He adjusted his hoodie, playing with the zippers on his wrists. “This is the only place I can cover myself up this much. They want me to show off as much ‘perfect’ skin as possible, so I can be spotted. Even in the middle of the fucking winter. And even if I wasn’t freezing, it makes me a target. People hope for that Scarella story even if they don’t admit it. It’s like those people who enter the lottery constantly, hoping that with a fancy enough schedule of plastic surgery, one day they’ll be part of the beautiful people. So when they see someone who’s already smooth… they resent it. And they want to ruin it.” He wrapped his arms around himself, shivering despite the thick hoodie. Patton reached out and squeezed his elbow in reassurance, earning a weak smile.

Roman was quiet in contemplation. Sure, he knew it was the most classic trope in media - someone with a Pure Heart (as shown, of course, by their unblemished skin) was seen among the unclean masses and swept away into the sunset by a generous benefactor. He’d fantasized about it himself when he was younger, that someone would see his worth and help him fix his skin so that his outside could look like his inside. After his injuries added to it, though, he’d given up entirely. But to know that the trope caused such harm to people like Virgil…

“I’m sorry I haven’t done more to fix this, Virgil,” Roman said quietly. “I have influence and power, I should and I will.”

Virgil flashed him a wry smile. “I think you’re doing a lot by just appearing in public without covering up your scars, really. I don’t think it’s gonna change fast, but with your help, it might start changing.”

“But you’re at risk and it won’t be fast enough for you.”

“Yeah, I am at risk,” Virgil said with a shrug. “But I don’t need to be protected. With all due respect, Your Majesty. Rem & Lo keep my stuff for me, Pat makes sure I can still make it here, and I’m earning my own money to get out of my parents’ house. I have a plan to earn my own freedom. So don’t change all this shit for me. Change it for everyone else.”

Roman nodded. “I promise, I will.”

Virgil raised an eyebrow. “I mean, I believe you’ll try…”

Roman raised his hand, pinkie outstretched. “I will. I mean it.”

Virgil smiled, but linked his pinkie too. “You swear?”

“I swear.”

They shook solemnly, before both starting to snicker and laugh, Patton joining in too. But none of them doubted Roman’s determination, all the same.

⁂

Roman returned to Au Naturel multiple nights a week for two weeks straight before he finally managed to ask.

“Pat, how did you manage to open this place? And keep it open, despite, well, everything?”

The response was a melancholy grin as Patton fiddled with the ring on the chain around their neck, right next to their pronoun charm.

“I got a loan from my late fiancé, Diego. He was the son of a noble house.”

“Late? I don’t mean to cause you distress, dear Patton, you don’t need to talk about this if it will be painful-”

“No, no,” Patton explained, reaching out for Roman’s hand. “I- I want to talk about him. Because he was a wonderful man and remains a wonderful memory.”

Roman nodded in understanding and squeezed their hand reassuringly as Patton began to explain.

Diego, too, was one of a pair of twins. His brother was named Cedric, and they were identical in almost every way. The one way they weren’t was Cedric’s eczema. Their faces matched, their laughs sounded like echoes of each other’s, but Cee had red scratchy scales that grew and faded but never fully vanished, and Dee had none.

And according to Diego, Cedric was better. Smarter, kinder, more optimistic, a faster friend to those he met. Yet society valued Diego more because of a condition that could only be treated, never cured.

“And so Dee became a huge advocate for us ‘imperfect’ folks,” Patton said softly. “He used his smooth face as an entry into places we’re barred from, tried to use the family money and influence to change discrimination policies. But, well. One man can only do so much.”

Roman nodded somberly, in perfect understanding.

“There used to be underground meetings of people like us, the underbelly of the city. We rotated locations and kept moving to avoid the zoning laws that made it easy to kick us out at anyone’s request. We’d found Cee and invited him, and he brought Dee too. And I- oh, he was the first person who looked at my skin and saw a work of art,” Patton said with a misty smile, hugging their own torso at the warm memory. “And he had the idea of using his name, using their family’s money to establish this place. They couldn’t take the title away from me if it was under his name too, so after only a couple months of dating and falling madly in love, we got engaged. The deed is technically still under his name, which means it’s secure, and the city can’t take it back.

“But then the household draft came through, three years ago. I was safe,” Patton said with a wry twist to their normal smile. “It called for one son per house, and my family doesn’t acknowledge me as a son those times I want them to, much less for the state. Not that they know where to find me anymore. But - their family wanted to send Cee. Because he was more ‘expendable’. And they didn’t tell Dee until he was already gone off to war. Of course, I was scared for them both, but I knew how important Dee’s brother was to him, so when he said he needed to get to the front immediately, I didn’t hesitate. I gave him the money and advice from my friends here who’d survived previous wars. He listened to it all, then went off to go save his brother.”

Patton paused, a tear creeping along their cheek.

“I’m so sorry, Patton,” Roman said gently. “He didn’t make it back?”

“Neither of them did. Dee threw himself in front of a blow to shield Cee, but it wasn’t enough.”

Roman hesitated, then hugged them firmly. “I’ve lost so many of my soldiers, but it never gets easier. I can’t imagine what this loss has felt like to you.”

Patton hugged back. “Thank you, Roman. It’s been years, but remembering-”

“I know. It’s perfectly normal, my dear.”

Patton smiled up, eyes still shining with unshed tears. “Thank you for listening, Ro. It means a lot.”

“Anything you need from me, Pat. I’m here.”

The next day, Roman quietly requested a meeting with the head of the zoning board of the city, and used the royal seal to confirm Au Naturel s deed to not just Diego and Patton but to anyone Patton ever decided to transfer ownership too. A copy of the document found its way, without fanfare, into the files at the bar. Roman never brought attention to it, nor did Patton, but a golden drink was left at Roman’s typical seat that never appeared on his bill, and a portrait of the nation’s first scarred King found its way to hanging among their other icons above the rows of bottles.

⁂

And then, one night at Au Naturel, there was a new customer who most had never seen before. Or at least, they hadn’t seen this face before. But Roman had.

“...Remus?”

The former prince turned. He’d added more tattoos since the last time Roman had seen him, lines of red drops down his neck to his bare arms. His hair was spiked into a faux-hawk and it almost hit Roman as he turned to face him.

“Is that the golden boy? Romano Cheese Man?”

“Reme, it’s been months, I’ve-”

“Stop right there.” Remus interrupted. He held up a finger topped in an elaborately manicured nail. “Don’t you dare say you’ve missed me, Roman Candle. I haven’t been hiding, you could have found me.”

“I looked!” Roman insisted, reaching out to grab his brother’s arm. “I tried to look, at least, but Father and the generals forbid me to leave the castle-”

“Ooohhh, is the royal baby disobeying orders tonight?” Remus asked, eyebrows dancing.

Roman frowned. “Not exactly, not when there aren’t any…” He looked for any flicker of understanding and found none. “Reme. Have you not heard?”

“Heard what, that the country is just sooooo pleased to have just forgotten the embarrassment that was the old crown prince? Didn’t need to check with the town crier for that one, queen bee.”

Roman squeezed Remus’ arm, a lump forming in his throat. “Brother-”

“Don’t you call me that!” Remus snapped. “I’m not in the family anymore, don’t you remember anything-”

“Father’s dead, Remus!” Roman practically shouted. Remus went silent, eyes wide. “Father died and I have to be the goddamn king now, and I’ve been looking for you for months but no one wants to acknowledge you still and you left me to rule alone.” Roman’s voice cracked on the last word, and Remus stopped trying to pull away. His eyes darted around Roman, taking in the signet ring, the badly-concealed bags under his eyes, and the tear coursing down the royal cheek.

“...how did he die?”

Roman took a shuddering breath. “In the field. He charged alone, after an enemy soldier who looked just like you- well, you three years ago.”

“Did you charge with him? Trying to get back that old shell of a royal? It was never real, brother, just a bundle of neuroses wound so tightly they acted like a person-”

“I know that, Remus! You think I didn’t see how much he pushed you? You think I didn’t know what being in the field did to you?” The other patrons of the bar had edged away, giving the brothers space, while Patton watched nervously without moving from her seat at the bar. “Reme - all I ever wanted was to be able to help. I trained so hard in the hopes that maybe you would be able to sit out for a battle or two. Get a break from the violence. But he didn’t want me, didn’t want the charge to be led by this,” Roman said, gesturing at his own face. Tiredness showed in every inch of him as his shoulders slumped. “And look where that got him. He’s dead, I’m leading anyway, and both his sons are miserable.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, Ro. I’m not miserable. I’m wonderful,” Remus replied. “I can do whatever and whoever the fuck I want to, now. No one breathing down my neck, no one saying I’m improper, no blood on my hands except for what I choose to be there.” He lifted his arm, showing off his tattoo, the line of red drops marching down his bicep and forearm and returning back up the inside of his wrist and elbow.

Roman looked down at the marks, blinked, and looked back up. Green eyes met green, as identical as the day they were born. “Are you really?”

Remus scoffed. “Of course I… well. I’m happier. Happier than I was. Wacky, isn’t it, I think my incredibly violent and restrictive upbringing may have given me some issues.”

“But you’re not just… I don’t know, bursting at the seams, doing whatever you think Father would have hated for the sole sake of knowing he would have hated it?”

Remus paused. “Hey, I didn’t come here to have my someone dig through my head, I only wanted someone to give me head-”

“Reme!”

“What, it’s true!”

“We were having a moment-”

“And I was planning on a different kind of moment!”

Roman frowned at his brother, ready to keep arguing, but instead, he started to laugh, and Remus did too, and soon there were just two very similar-looking men leaning on the bar, wheezing with laughter.

Roman wiped his eyes. “You really are happier.”

Remus smiled. “I really am. I’m… still working it out. What’s terrible by his standards versus the society’s. Which society standards are probably actually shit and which make sense. I don’t understand it all. But I will.”

Roman impulsively flung his arms around his twin. “I believe in you, Reme. Just, please- don’t leave me to do this alone?”

Remus pushed Roman a bit back, holding him by the arms. “I’m not coming back to the palace, Ro. I can’t do that. I don’t want to.”

“You don’t have to. But you’re still my brother. As long as I’m the head of the family, you’re part of it. And I…” Roman looked back at where Patton was chatting to other patrons. “I have a lot to learn about what our society is doing to people. We both have a lot to learn, and unlearn. Can you help me?”

Remus grimaced. “Of course I’ll be your brother, but…”

“It doesn’t have to be official- no ‘advisor’ or any title unless you want one. But dammit, if you don’t deserve the crown’s money after all you had to do in its service- any land you want, any title, any income, say the word and it’s yours, Reme. Just, please... don’t shut me out.”

Remus looked down, and back up. He raised his hand and traced Roman’s birthmark lightly. “Can I get this as a tattoo on my face, too?”

“Is that a yes?”

“Well, twins should match, shouldn’t we?”

Roman smiled, understanding perfectly. “Yeah, twins should match. Scars and all.”

⁂

Taglist:  @residentanchor @royally-anxious @jemthebookworm @arandompasserby  @sparkly-rainbow-salt @astral-eclipse​ @thelowlysatsuma @adorably-angsty @max-is-tired @almostoveranalyzed

#roses writes fanfic #first fic of the decade babey #creativitwins #brotherly creativitwins #don't you dare tag this as rem//rom i WILL fight you #ts roman #TS remus #ts patton #ts remy #ts virgil #ts logan #ts deceit #OCs #king creativity #sympathetic remus #sympathetic deceit #gore tw #violence tw #war tw #prejudice tw #implied abuse #trauma mentions #Happy Ending #angst with a happy ending #their dad is a dick #we live in a society #past moceit #background losleep #implied/eventual royality #we're here for platonic love this year babey

[rosesisupposes]

Roses Writes Fanfic: The Master Post

Did you know I’m in law school? Now you do! My writing is likely going to slow down for a bit, but there’s a fair amount to tide you over 😘

Writing Tag: Roses Writes Fanfic

Chaptered Fics

Destined [Complete] [Read on Tumblr] [Read on Ao3]

After centuries of acting as an oracle to heroes, quest-seekers, and villains alike, Virgil just wants to live as a normal, modern human. For someone who can see infinite probabilities, you’d think he’d know better.

Relationships: romantic Prinxiety, romantic Logicality, past platonic/romantic Loceit, platonic LAMP/CALM

Selected warnings: Graphic visions/descriptions of violence, sympathetic/understandable villains, tragic backstories, cliffhangers

Breakin’ Free [Complete] [Read on Tumblr] [Read on Ao3]

The High School Musical au that absolutely no one asked for

A very closeted jock and a very shy nerd accidentally fall for each other in a haze of forced karaoke. Who would have thought they’d somehow end up at the same school?

Relationships: romantic Prinxiety, romantic Logicality, platonic analogical, platonic creativsleep, background Remceit

Selected warnings: internalized homophobia, manipulation of friends, Deceit is a schemer

Another Goddamn Hero Story [Complete] [Read on Tumblr] [Read on Ao3]

Roman used to be a Prince. He used to be a superhero. Now, he and his fellow villain Patton are the biggest threat to the status quo of Harmony City, and there’s no pair of heroes more trusted to stop them than Logan and Virgil. What happens when a bigger threat emerges than anyone thought possible? Another goddamn hero story, that’s what.

Relationships: eventual romantic LAMP/CALM, romantic Royality, platonic into romantic Analogical, background Remceit, familial Patmas

Selected warnings: graphic violence, major fandom character deaths, child deaths, hospitals/hospitalization, hallucinations, emotional manipulation, extreme poverty, cliffhangers

Starlight is Forever [In Progress] [Read on Tumblr] [Read on Ao3]

A highly-trained spy is send to infiltrate one the most prolific and dangerous crime families in the world. His targets? The family heirs: twins Roman and Virgil. Who just so happen to be multilingual, rich as sin, and utterly and entirely attractive. He's in serious trouble.

Relationships: romantic Analogical, romantic Royality, familial Prinxiety, familial Logicality

Selected warnings: lying, suggestive themes/allusions to smut, flashback to sympathetic Deceit

Love Language [Indefinite Hiatus] [Read on Tumblr] [Read on Ao3]

Logan loves all three of his boyfriends. He's smart - he should be able to figure out how to express it. Shouldn't he?

Relationships: Logan-centric LAMP/CALM

Selected warnings: none so far

Oneshots and Shorts

Prompt Fills of Various Lengths [Read on Tumblr] [Read on Ao3]

The Blue in an Ocean of Grey - Logicality Hurt/Comfort

Not Your Kiddo - Moxiety Angst

Clumsy - Logicality Angst/Dark

Glow - Platonic Logicality, Fantasy

Who The Hell is Patton? - Royality Captain America AU

Do It For Him - Royality Fluff

Ordinary Night - Single dad Virgil, familial LAMP, brotherly sleepxiety

Validation - Logicality Hurt/Comfort (tw transphobia)

Medicinal Poison - Moxiety angst

Pout - Remile Fluff

Auditions - Logince Fluff

Little Songs - Fae au, Rodecality

Last To Know - DLAMP Wedding Fluff

Monsters - Brotherly prinxiety, losleep, and moceit; background romantic remceit

Midnight Thoughts - Remile Fluff

Shorts

Do It For Us - Royality Wedding Fluff (sequel to Do It For Him), background Analogical, platonic LAMP

Lean On Me - Prinxiety Hurt/Comfort, breakup recovery, Secret Santa story

Sucker - Remile, tattoo parlor au, strong allusions to smut, platonic Remceit

Who Tells Your Story? - Hamilton AU with MoRoLo, Platonic/Antagonistic Prinxiety, and background Anxmile; major character deaths, child death, infidelity

The Store - The Unicorn Store AU, Prinxiety, background Moceit; self-doubt, mentions of abuse

Someone New - Hozier lyric-inspired short, Roman/Everyone, first-person POV

you should see me in a gown - Logince fluff, Logan flusters his boyfriend

this short is like a movie heist - (it’s all about vents) past Analogical, moxiety hurt/comfort, not really a happy ending

Smells Like Teenage Rebellion - mini superhero au; brotherly logicality, romantic royality

The Head Never Rules the Heart - yet another superhero au with romantic villain logicality that becomes lodecality, creativsleep heroes that may become creativsleepxiety

The Defiance of Rationality - a mini AU of Celery’s A Lesson In Practicality and  Probable Theorem

Skin Deep - Roman & Remus centric story of being royal twins in a very appearance-obsessed society; angst with a happy ending; brotherly creativitwins, background losleep, platonic LAMPS, past moceit, beginnings of royality

Not-Quite-A-Fic/Ramblings of AUs

Doctor Who (platonic DLAMP)

Ouran High School Host Club 

The Sides Get Drunk

Pride & Prejudice - logince

Princess and the Frog - logince

Howl’s Moving Castle

I’m Not THAT Cliche - College AU, prinxiety

Shit, I Like You x3 -  creativsleep, analogical, logince

The Last Booth - analogince into LAMP dystopia

Sides As Seasons

Also,

I made my own Sides

Non-Sanders

Maid of Honor [Complete] [Read on Ao3]

Tamora Pierce’s Tortall-verse; canon-compliant

How Raoul and Buri fell in love, and how Thayet watched in the background, cackling

Pairings: platonic Thayet and Buri, romantic Buri and Raoul

#Roses Writes Fanfic #masterpost #sanders sides fanfic #sanders sides fanfiction #i may possibly write too much #what is an OTP all i have is multi shipping for days and days