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edupunkn00b · 2 years

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A Little Bit of Love, Ch. 5: Like Coffee and Crofters

Prev - Like Coffee and Crofters - Next - Masterpost - [ AO3 ]

Rated T - CW: mild swearing, mild innuendo (oh, hello there, Remus. yes, Roman got the joke, too), kissing, mostly a big ball of fluff

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The next morning, Roman flung open his door with a flourish, a bright grin stretched across his face and a song prancing through his mind. He stretched with a majestic yawn and stepped out into the hallway. The moment he left his room, though, he stopped short, the happy hum dying on his lips. Instead of the quiet puttering or murmured words of the other early risers in the kitchen downstairs—and sometimes even the sounds of sizzling bacon or eggs—he was greeted by… silence. He twisted, looking over his shoulder to check the window in his room. He blinked at the bright Mindscape sunshine pouring through his open curtains. His brow furrowed.

It was definitely morning.

Frowning, he gave himself a little pinch. He was definitely awake. He looked up and down the hall and other than the somewhat-expected shifting around of their rooms to accommodate Lucas' orange door—Logan's dark blue door was no longer next to his and instead had moved down to the end of the hall—nothing seemed amiss. Roman paused, staring at the doors. Remus' room was now directly next to his own, without Logan's serving as a buffer between them. They would need to improve their soundproofing. He wrinkled his nose in anticipation of some of his brother's more adventurous creations. They would need to improve their smell-proofing, as well.

Shaking his head, Roman returned to his current problem. No-one else seemed to be awake. He knew some of the others had gone to sleep rather late last night, and, as usual, no-one ever expected Virgil to emerge from his room before ten, at least not willingly. Roman was almost never the first Side to wake. On a typical morning, Logan was always up and about before he was. Roman had recently come to learn that Janus tended to rise early, as well, preparing a large mug of tea before hiding in the corner of the common room, sipping slowly, until finally he sauntering back to the kitchen for a refill, caffeinated and ready to chat and charm and churr his way through the day.

Shrugging, Roman crept downstairs. Perhaps the others were all catching up on sleep after the strain of the past few days. As he got closer to the kitchen, though, the bubbly sound of the coffee maker completing its cycle and the rich smell of freshly brewed grounds wafted toward him, softening the worry line between his eyebrows. He skipped down the last of the steps, dashing into the kitchen to see who was awake.

He grinned when he saw the plain black shirt. Of course Logan was awake. Clearly tired, but dressed and out of his room, bright and early, just as Roman expected him to be.

Roman chuckled at the exhausted Side as he slouched over the kitchen table, head cradled on his arms, his thick, black rectangular frames askew. A half-filled water glass sat next to his elbow. "Good morning, Specs." He patted the Logical Side's shoulder as he passed on his way to fetch a mug. "Late night?"

"Good morning, Roman." A tired mumble emerged from beneath his folded arms. “However... While you are factually correct that I, too, wear eyeglasses, I presume by the overly familiar nickname that you mistook me for Logan.” Lucas straightened, revealing his orange and indigo striped tie.

"Oh, shit," Roman swore softly. "Sorry, Lucas, I… yeah." He held up the coffee pot as a peace offering and Lucas nodded with a small smile. Roman took down two mugs, speaking over his shoulder. “So, uh, does that whole ‘exhausted brainiac’ look you have going on there just come naturally or were you not practicing what Logan preaches last night?”

"Had trouble sleeping." He stared blearily at a scratch on the table while Roman made their coffees, looking up with a murmured 'thanks' when he handed him a steaming mug.

Roman slid into the seat opposite his, watching the newest Side as he stirred his drink. “Wanna talk about it?”

“It’s nothing important,” Lucas said, shaking his head.

“Okay, now you’re really doing your best Logan impression,” Roman laughed lightly. He took a sip of his coffee, hesitating, before finally blurting out, “Up late thinking about Habib?”

Lucas slammed down his mug and Roman swallowed back his surprised yelp as the ceramic hit the table with a loud crack, sloshing coffee over the lip. “Wha—How did you—”

He feigned a casual shrug and passed Lucas a paper napkin to mop up the spill. “Remus has been worried about you. He told me what happened on your ship. I’m sorry.” Lucas grit his teeth as he scrubbed at the table, finally throwing the napkin in the trash and rising from his seat. “Wait," Roman called after him. "Don't kill him yet. You know my brother can’t keep a secret to save his life.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Crossing his arms, Lucas chuckled darkly as he looked up toward the stairs. “He can keep a bloody secret when he wants to.” He turned back toward Roman and spread out his hands, gesturing over himself. “Remus has known about me for nearly twenty years. You’ve known about me for twenty hours.”

Roman huffed out a small laugh, raising his mug in salute. “You’ve got a point, there." He looked closely at Lucas and gnawed at his lip before finally venturing, "Maybe… maybe Remus had a good reason for sharing this secret with me.”

Lucas glared at Roman as he sank back into his seat. “He told you everything, didn’t he?” Roman shrugged lightly, looking away. Lucas sighed and took a long pull of his coffee.

"I wish he would just let this damned idea die," Lucas muttered, staring down at his cup.

Chuckling, Roman slid into a seat closer to him. "Now when have you ever known my brother to simply let go of an idea?"

Lucas shook his head. "That man's like a dog with a bone.” He rolled his eyes at Roman’s little smirk. “Don’t ever tell him I said that.” Lucas sighed. "He's not going to let this drop, is he?"

"Nope, he's not." Roman finished his coffee and stood to refill it. "Besides," Roman grinned over his shoulder at the newest Side, "I think it might even work."

---

The warm glow of the Mindscape’s late morning sun filtered softly through the sheer curtains in Logan’s room. Sunlight danced over the walls and Janus soaked up the radiant heat from the sun and from his loves, his entire universe, finally together in his arms.

Slowly, he opened his eyes and realized he was not the first to wake that morning. Janus blinked happily, looking up into Logan’s small smile. “Good morning,” he rasped in a gravelly voice.

Logan’s smile broadened, “Good morning.” A gentle warmth spread through Janus’ chest when he swore he saw Logan’s eyes twinkle. “You're really here,” he whispered.

“Yes, my dear Logan,” he reached out and twirled his fingers through Logan’s hair. “And there's nowhere else I'd rather be.”

Logan’s fingertips trailed down his hand and Janus gasped. Logan snatched his hand back, eyes wide. “I’m sorry—Did I hurt you?”

Janus felt a flush travel from his chest to his hairline, “No,” he cleared his throat, “Ah, no… rather it’s….”

Logan narrowed his eyes, his smile turning into a smirk. “Do you find tactile stimulation of your scales… pleasurable?”

Janus looked away. “Wh—when you touch them like that… ah…" He risked a glance and saw Logan smiling back at him. "Yes.”

Remus shifted on the other side of Logan and nudged him. He mumbled sleepily, propping himself up and resting his chin on Logan's shoulder. “Oh, Lo Lo, just wait ‘til you—” he whispered in Logan’s ear, winking at Janus. Logan’s breath hitched, eyes wide, then his blush matched the Protective Side’s.

“I… I look forward to that, ah, experience.”

Janus’ eyes widened as Remus stretched and sat up against the padded headboard, smiling wickedly at the pair, eyebrows dancing. “Muse, what did you—” Logan interrupted his question with a soft kiss, then cupped his cheek, oh-so-lightly brushing his thumb over the galaxy of scales shining across his cheekbone. Janus gasped against his mouth and Logan took the opportunity to deepen their kiss.

His eyes fell closed and he was floating, anchored only by Logan’s careful caresses across his skin, and the soft, sweet, energizing heat of his mouth.

"Hmm…" he groaned when they finally broke away. "With a wake up like that, who would ever need coffee?"

Logan chuckled, starting to wiggle out from between the two Sides. "Now that you mention it, judging by the angle of the sun, I'd say we are more than overdue to join the others for—"

"Oh, Lo Lo… don't go yet." Logan laughed as Remus pulled him back into bed, flipping the Logical Side on top of him. "I haven't gotten the chance to properly say good morning to you yet." He smiled up at him, tracing a line from his temple to his jaw. "You're stunning in the morning."

Logan blushed and looked away. "It's merely because I am without my glasses."

"Oh!" Remus exclaimed, grinning at Janus when he passed them over from the bedside table. He watched Logan set the frames properly on his face. Remus bit his lower lip and held Logan's face between his hands. "You look even better now," he whispered and pulled him closer for a kiss. Remus wrapped his arms around the Logical Sides' shoulders, drawing him closer until Logan rest his full weight on his chest. Remus tightened his embrace and hummed happily.

"I trust you two will be fine while I shower?" Janus said with a little chuckle as he slipped out of the bed.

Remus broke away from their kiss and pouted at Janus. “Alone?”

"Yes,” he said with a laugh, coming around to the other side of the bed, kissing each of their foreheads. “Another time, Muse,” he whispered against Remus’ ear. “There's no need to rush." He left a little line of kisses along his lobe and down his neck before he straightened.

”The last thing I would want to do is disrupt your routine. If you two are accustomed to—”

Logan shivered as Janus gently drew a hand through his hair, brushing scaled fingers against his scalp and the back of neck. "Another time," he purred, meeting Logan's eyes.

He nodded, a little breathless at the promises in Janus' gaze.

“Fine, Jannie...” Remus mumbled with an exaggerated sigh as Janus closed the door behind him. His grin broke through as he winked at Logan. “I guess we’ll just have to find some other way to pass the time….”

The Logical Side’s cheeks burned and his mouth twitched against his stern expression. “I suppose we could always start a game of chess or a puzz—” The rest of his suggestions were lost in the crush of Remus’ lips against his own.

Logan let out a muffled laugh as Remus rolled him onto his back. The Creative Side propped himself up on one elbow, smiling down at him. Logan melted from the heat in his eyes. "Hmm… this works, too..." he murmured before pulling Remus back down into another kiss.

---

Roman and Lucas were sitting next to each other, heads tilted together in a quiet conversation, when Patton bounded down the stairs.

"Good morning, Kiddos!" he sang as he entered the room. "Oh… wow," Patton squinted at the relatively underpopulated room. "Is everyone else still asleep?" He checked the time on the little oven clock, frowning. "Do you think we should check on them?"

Roman rose with a grin and a bear hug for the Paternal Side. "I'm certain they'll all be down soon, Padre. Nothing to worry about." He gestured at the mostly empty kitchen and and clasped his hands together. "Since everyone else is still in bed… Can we make breakfast together?” He nodded toward Lucas. “Are you in?”

Lucas stood with a small shrug. “It’s certainly one way for me to become better acclimated to this kitchen. It took me fifteen minutes to find the coffee filters this morning."

“Oh, well," Patton glanced at Roman, who nodded encouragingly. "Tha-that’s great! Um, Lucas… is there something you would really like for breakfast?”

He laughed. “I suppose hardtack and marmalade is not on offer?”

Patton poked around in the cabinet next to the stove. “Hm, afraid not. We can do toast and Crofters,” he suggested.

“Oh! And cheesy eggs!” Roman added excitedly, tugging open the door to the refrigerator and retrieving a large carton of eggs and a bowl of shredded cheese.

Patton raised an eyebrow. “Now, Kiddo, I know that cheese wasn’t already shredded in the fridge like that.”

Roman winked at Lucas. “Patton really likes to do things the hard way in the kitchen.” He turned to Patton. “C’mon, Padre, the shredding was just a teensy conjure. The cheese was already in there….”

Narrowing his eyes and smiling, Patton shook his head then shrugged. “Alright then. Lucas, would you take down the big cast iron skillet?”

“Ah, sure, I’d be happy to,” Lucas blinked in surprise at the apparent sincerity in Patton and Roman’s stated desire to include him in their cooking. He passed over the pan. “Here you go.”

“Thanks, Kiddo,” Patton cheered before pouring a little oil in the pan and heating it on a burner.

Roman flashed Lucas a little grin over the Paternal Side’s shoulder, mouthing, “He called you Kiddo!”

Movement behind Lucas caught Roman’s attention and his face bloomed in a soft smile. Lucas began to turn when Roman murmured, “Good morning, my Dark and Stormy Knight.”

Patton, surrounded by dozens of little half-egg shells looked up, “Oh, good morning, Virgil! Did you sleep well?” He yelped, his attention drawn back by an ominous sizzle as part of an egg white slipped onto the burner.

“Patton, may I help you?” Lucas asked, eyeing the smoke curling from the side of the pan.

“Um, no thank you, I’ve—” The tendril of smoke grew and there was a sudden flicker of flame under the pan. “You know what? Yes, please!” he squeaked, backing away from the stove.

Lucas turned off the knob and grabbed the lid to the pan. He slid the pan off the burner and slapped the lid over the flames that leapt up. He turned over his shoulder, “Is there a—”

“Stand back, Luc,” Virgil ordered in a low version of his Tempest voice, aiming the nozzle of a bright red fire extinguisher at the flames. Patton yanked away the pan of eggs and Lucas backed up, nodding at Virgil.

Virgil shot a few quick blasts of the white powder over the burner and the flame was soon extinguished.

“Thanks, Virge!” Patton cheered, pecking the now blushing Side on the cheek. He grinned up at Lucas. “And thank you, Lucas. Can I…?” Patton opened his arms, a sheepish smile pulling up one corner of his mouth.

Nodding, Lucas carefully hugged the Paternal Side. Patton sighed, still smiling, and pulled back, tilting his head at the sticky white powder and scorch marks on the stove. “Okay, then. Take two? But first, we need to clean up this mess.”

Roman winked and snapped it away. “Mess? What mess? Lucas, do you know anything about a mess?” He turned to Virgil, eyes wide. “Virgil?” Virgil shrugged in response, smiling at Patton.

Laughing, Lucas shook his head. “I know nothing of any mess.” He gestured at the sparkling stove top. “Everything looks pristine to me.”

Patton tried to glare at the three smirking Sides but couldn't hold back his own laugh. “Okay, eggs coming up.” He looked at the spatula in his hand. “Lucas? Would you take care of the eggs and I’ll tackle the toast?”

Bowing his head, Lucas accepted the spatula. “It would be my pleasure.”

“Oooh, did somebody say 'pleasure?'” Remus cackled as he flew down the stairs, head-first. He crashed to the floor with a manic laugh and jumped to his feet.

Logan ran down the stairs after him, taking the steps three at a time. “Remus! Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Pocket Protector!” Remus grinned, a trail of blood tricking down his neck.

Eyes wide, Logan shouted, "No, you're not, you're bleeding!"

Remus waved his hand and the blood was gone. He shrugged, fingers splayed in jazz hands. "Object impermanence," he sang, winking at the Logical Side.

Scowling, Logan examined the back of the Creative Side's neck for several minutes. Remus made faces at Virgil and Lucas as they finished preparing breakfast and set the table. But he didn't try to stop Logan's careful prodding. Finally, Logan sighed with a little shake of his head. “Why did you jump off the top of the staircase like that, anyway?”

“I was just trying to get a head start downstairs." He rolled his eyes and spoke in a loud stage whisper. "It would have looked pretty suspicious if the three of us all came downstairs together.” He waggled his eyebrows at Logan and Janus as he slid into his seat. "I wasn’t sure if we were telling everyone yet or if we were on the down low like Ro and Virge."

The ensuing silence was broken by the clatter of Roman's fork falling against his plate. Virgil's cheeks matched Roman's sash and he pulled his hood low over his head.

Logan adjusted his glasses, hiding his own blush. “The operative word, of course, being ‘were?’”

Leaning over Logan to flip Virgil's hood away from his face, Remus grinned, “Aw, c’mon, Virge, we all knew. You two are lousy at hiding your feelings.”

Roman grumbled, “Yeah, you’re one to talk!”

Remus briefly pressed his hand against his heart.“I don’t try to hide anything I'm feeling. In fact,” he winked as he straightened his posture, removing his elbows from the table and lowering his hands. “I bet you can guess what I'm feeling right now...."

The human half of his face tinged pink, Janus carefully lifted Remus' hand from his lap and kissed his knuckles. "I don't believe anyone needs to guess, Muse," he murmured with a small smile as he clasped their hands together, resting both on the table.

"L… not that I'm not happy for you, but..." Virgil drawled over the edge of his coffee cup. "Are you sure you're not, uh—”

”Getting in over his head?" Remus chirped, blinking innocently at Virgil with a shoulder shimmy. Lucas choked on his coffee and Roman tried not to laugh as he patted his back.. "Biting off more than he can chew? In for a rough ri—"

Virgil shook his head, eyes squeezed shut against Remus' imagery. ”Thank you for making my point, Re..."

Remus laughed, winking at Logan and leaning his head against Janus' shoulder. "I don't know... I think Lo's gonna to be just fine. After all, he didn't move my hand from his thigh." Logan shrugged, blushing lightly, and took another bite of his toast.

"Your hand wasn't on my thigh, Muse."

Logan's eyes widened and flicked over to Janus. Janus smiled at him and Logan's blush grew as he gulped his coffee. Virgil quietly retrieved the coffee pot and topped off his mug.

"You're gonna need it," he whispered.

Remus shrugged with a grin. "I know my audience."

Patton cleared this throat and looked around the table, everywhere but at the Sides sitting directly in front of him. “Um... So, uh, what’s everyone up to today?”

All eyes again turned to Logan. “Oh,” a small smile tugged at one corner of his mouth. Remus quietly conjured Logan’s small calendar and a pencil into his lap. Logan squeezed his knee and smiled. “Thomas is having a relatively quiet day today," he said, flipping to that day's schedule. "He has a rehearsal for Terrence's play at four o'clock and is getting together with Nico at eight.” He blinked down at the schedule. “That leaves us free for most of the day."

Remus stared at Lucas. “And Ro, Lucas, and I are headed to the Imagination for a few hours.” He took one last bite of his eggs, to which he'd added conjured jalapeño and pickle chips, then grinned at Lucas.

“We are?” Lucas and Roman said together and exchanged a look.

“Yep!” He finished Logan's coffee with a little grateful smile.

“Re, I don’t know… Thomas has his rehearsal this afternoon and I—”

“Then we’d better stop flapping our gums—oh, that’s an idea." Remus turned to Janus, bouncing in his seat "Hey, Jannie, remember when I—”

“Remus? We’re at breakfast.”

“Right, we should hurry up and get going.”

Lucas crossed his arms, frowning. “Remus, you know I already have plans to—”

“Cancel ‘em.” Remus grew serious. “This is important.” He stared into Lucas’ eyes, the air between them thick with unspoken words. Virgil tensed, inching closer to Patton on his right, waiting for one of the powder kegs at the table to explode. “Luc, we hafta try," Remus said softly.

Lucas deflated. “Fine,” he growled, shaking his head and slamming back the last of his coffee. He brought his dishes to the kitchen, muttering under his breath the entire way.

“Perfect!” Remus shouted before planting a kiss first on Logan's mouth and then Janus'. He catapulted himself over the table and grabbed Roman’s hand, yanking him away.

Roman yelped as Remus dragged him up the stairs. “Wait! Stop...” Roman protested. “We left a mess!”

“No time to lose if you wanna be there for Thomas's rehearsal!” Remus snapped his fingers over his shoulder and his and Roman’s plates disappeared, followed by a small clink in the cabinet.

“But that’s cheating!”

“That’s why I don’t do it all the time,” he sang as he pushed Roman toward the stairs. “C’mon, chop, chop!”

Roman poked his head around the edge of the banister as Remus continued to urge him along. “Hey, Emo—late lunch?”

Hiding his grin—and his blush—behind his coffee cup, Virgil muttered, “You’re on, Princey.”

The remaining four Sides listened as Roman’s door creaked open and then slammed shut, swallowing the mostly-lighthearted bickering between the three typically more volatile Sides.

“Should we be concerned over whatever scheme Remus has cooked up?” Virgil asked. He gnawed at his thumbnail, flinching when a heavy thud shook the ceiling light.

“Nothing broke!” Remus’ muffled shout filtered through the closed door.

Patton rubbed Virgil’s shoulder. “Didn’t they soundproof their rooms?”

“That's after the soundproofing," Logan said, shaking his head with a wry smile. "To answer your question, Virgil, no. I do not believe Remus would do anything to put either Roman or Lucas in actual danger."

Virgil crossed his arms, frowning. "Besides," Janus said. "Roman is far more sensible than he's given credit for. And his objection to Remus' plan seemed to be centered on the timing, not the activity itself."

"You're defending Roman now?" Virgil smirked. "Alright where's the real Janus?"

Patton chuckled, his voice a little higher than usual. The remaining Sides finished their breakfast in near silence, broken only by two more ominous bangs from upstairs and a few murmured words between Logan and Janus. Virgil had another cup of coffee, stirring in extra sugar and milk. Patton periodically snuck glances across the table toward Logan, but would look away as soon as Logan made eye contact.

Finally, Patton stood, picking up his dishes and the empty serving tray from the table. "So, uh, Kid—uh, Logan… Are you still up for…" He tilted his head toward the stairs.

Rising from his seat, Logan nodded. "Yes, certainly." He peered down at Janus as he pressed a kiss against his palm, the scales on his jaw tickling his wrist.

"Let me know if you need anything." He looked up, including Patton in his gaze. "Either of you. You two go on… I'll tidy up here."

"I'll help," Virgil added. He shrugged lightly when Janus' head whipped over in his direction, a surprised smile tugging at his lips. "It's only fair." He scowled. "Don't think I didn't notice you'd cleaned up when I came down for water in the middle of the night."

Janus hid an amused smile behind his tea cup. "What makes you think it was me?"

Smirking, Virgil shook his head. "The yellow dish towel was hanging on the cabinet. Patton likes the one with the kittens—"

Mimicking the tiny paws of the dishwashing cats on his favorite kitchen towel, Patton cooed. "Their little paws are so cute!"

Virgil chuckled at the interruption. "And Logan insists paper towels are more sanitary."

Logan looked up from where he stood in front of the sink, drying his hands with a paper towel. Adjusting his glasses, he shrugged, "Accurate."

Janus and Virgil watched Patton and Logan make their way upstairs. It was suddenly very quiet in the common room. Janus adjusted his capelet and Virgil tapped the back of his heel against his chair leg, gnawing at his lip. Finally he looked at Janus from the corner of his eye, his mouth twitching with a tiny smirk. “So… you and Logan.” Virgil furrowed his brow. “And Remus.”

Janus hummed as he stood and moved to the sink where he tugged long kitchen gloves over his own yellow ones. “So… you and Roman.” He met Virgil’s glare with a smile and a cocked eyebrow. “Glass houses, Virgil. Glass houses….”

Virgil narrowed his eyes and huffed, bringing the remaining dirty dishes to the kitchen. “You know what I’ll do to you or Remus if you do anything to hurt him, right?”

Janus smirked, beginning to scrub the dirty egg pan. “You might need to get in line for that. If it ever came down to it.” He stared pointedly at Virgil. “Which it wouldn’t.” His smile melted away. “You know me, Virgil. While I can hardly be called the most… forthcoming Side, I’d go to hell and back for any of you.”

Eyes focused on his task of arranging their dishes in the dishwasher, Virgil nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I do know that now.” They worked together in silence to return order to the kitchen and dining area.

When they were done, Virgil flung himself onto the couch, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his playlists. Instead of taking his one of his usual spots along the backrest or in one of the corners of the couch, though, Virgil sprawled near the middle, leaving space on either side. Janus stood by the counter for a few moments, watching from a distance. He smiled. Virgil used the same trick when he was younger when he wanted company but felt too anxious to simply ask for it.

Wordlessly, Janus glided into the living room and sat down, leaving just a few inches of space between them. After a moment, Virgil leaned his head lightly against Janus’ arm. Glancing over at Janus, he turned up the volume on his phone and started an old Green Day playlist.

They sat together like that for several songs. Finally, Virgil spoke. “Why didn’t you just tell me, Jan?” He craned his neck to look him in the eye. “I know you’re all about the hiding and the scheming but maybe let the rest of us in on it and we can, you know… help you?” Virgil sighed, leaning more heavily against Janus’ shoulder. “I can keep secrets with the best of them. No”—he covered his own mouth with his hand and made muffled sounds—”required.”

Janus looked down at Virgil’s head resting against him. “You know, Virgil, it doesn't seem all that long ago that you were one of the secrets I was keeping.” The Anxious Side kept his gaze directed on his phone, but he wasn’t actually using it and before long, the screen timed out and went dark. Janus shrugged. “I suppose in the future, though, I’m going to need to try to take you up on that from time to time.”

Janus carefully let his hand fall on the cushion next to Virgil’s. Virgil smirked and laced their fingers together. “Still as touchy-feely as ever, huh, Jan?” Virgil laughed gently at his blushy smile. “Wanna watch something?”

Janus rolled his eyes but his smile grew. “Perhapsss… but only becaussse it meansss that much to you.” Virgil laughed harder and leaned his whole back against Janus, pulling the Protective Side’s arm up over his shoulders and across his chest. Stretching, he reached for the remote and passed it to Janus.

“Here, Jan, I’ll even let you pick, since it is such an imposition.”

---

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cotncandyboifics · 3 years

Text

A Lovely Night: Chapter 5

AO3 Link

Masterpost

Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 6

Pairing(s): pre-established roceit & prinxiety, anaroceit, eventual anaroloceit, eventual intruality

Word count: ~2.5k

Story summary: Roman's boyfriends had had a rivalry since before either of them had actually met Roman. Running a bit late to a date night, Roman accidentally gets them to start dating too.

General CW: non-detailed description of an anxiety attack, non-detailed description of physical pain, food, kissing, potentially triggering descriptions of physical bodies, swearing, caps lock, school settings, s-xual innuendos, slight description of gore(imagery), vague descriptions of anxiety, Implications of an eating disorder, fatigue, dissociation, suppression of stimming, implied heavy restriction (ED), inner monologue-style anxiety description, eating,(will be added to as I write more)

Chapter CW: Swearing, slight description of gore(imagery), vague descriptions of anxiety, food, (let me know if i missed anything please!)

Author notes: i like this chapter a lot :) the stage has been set.

...

The next morning, Virgil had an opening shift at the knitting and sewing supply store he worked for. He'd found it the first week the three of them had moved to this town for college, and immediately took a liking to it, likely thanks to his long-lasting hobby of clothing alteration. He'd made some good money to save up in high school from making and selling custom hoodies and other clothing, even having taken a few commissions over the years.

It wasn't rare occurrence, that he was opening the store, and on this particular morning it wasn't so dreadful (once he'd pried himself away from his half-asleep boyfriends, who both vaguely grumbled protests at the incomplete cuddle pile as Virgil was getting ready). Virgil had gotten to his favorite coffee shop, where Janus' brother Patton worked, in time that it would be open and he also wouldn't be late for his shift, which was rare. It only worked out that way if Virgil's bus commute was perfectly timed.

Now caffeinated, and somewhat less-pessimistic-than-usual about the day ahead of him, Virgil retrieved the keys to the shop from his pocket, fumbling for a bit before finding the right one. He let out a breath as he found it, unlocking the door as he'd done a thousand times before and stepping in, shutting the door behind him and leaning his back against it. Virgil noted the clock on the wall, reading 5:02 am. The shop opened at 6, and he had more than enough sorting and stocking to do before then.

The next hour passed rather quickly. His co-worker Emile showed up shortly after him, and they both spent the rest of the time before the shop opened restocking and organizing the horrendous amounts of yarn and string and such supplies throughout the store and in the back room.

Shortly 6 am arrived, and it was time for the two of them to draw straws to decide who would man the register and help customers while the other continued stocking. Typically Virgil enjoyed the latter while Emile enjoyed the former, but their manager had insisted that they make the odds more random in order to get them both more comfortable in their unpreferred positions.

True to their manager's sentiment, Virgil drew the register stick. They both sighed at each other, and Emile returned to sorting through some cerulean yarn balls. Virgil made his way to the front of the store, unlocking the doors and flipping the sign to open, before making himself at home behind the register.

Generally, customers were rare at this time of morning, save for a few early-riser regulars. The bell at the top of the door chimed. Virgil didn't look up, expecting to see Margaret in her usual morning power-walk getup, coming in to check up on whether they'd gotten a shipment of lavender yarn yet.

"Morning, Marge. We still haven't gotten any lavender in, if-" Virgil halted his speaking upon looking up, feeling his throat constrict as he realized who had entered. At any rate, this person was certainly not Margaret.

The first thing that caught Virgil's attention about this new customer was their eyes. They were a burning blue, with small subtle mushes of gray here and there. Through their vaguely foggy colors, those eyes cut sharp like ice shards. The customer seemed entirely calm and stoic, however that did not extend to the ferocious - however not hostile - intensity with which they were staring Virgil down. Of course this intensity did not extend past their eyes, as the very slight twinge of a polite smile was seated at the corners of their mouth. Virgil briefly noted some seemingly familiar physical characteristics (although he was extremely wary to assume anything - what would be the chances of him and his boyfriends all meeting the same man individually, completely perchance?); shining black hair, square-framed glasses, the freckles, the pale and sunken nature of their face. Or, as Virgil certainly noticed, the subtle pronunciation of his cheekbones and jawline. They wore a black coat and a navy patterned scarf that appeared to be hand-knitted.

Virgil stumbled his way over to the closest register to the door - he wasn't sure why they even had two, they never needed to use them both simultaneously - and leaned haphazardly on the counter, propping his chin up on his palm.

"Sorry, hello, I thought you'd be someone else. Marge is usually the first in. What can I do for you?" His face felt really hot, and he was pretty sure that much was obvious to the newcomer, but he tried his best not to think about it.

The stranger didn't speak for a moment, merely leaning forward slightly with a furrowed brow. Virgil panicked for a moment, but followed their line of sight to the name tag on his hoodie. It was quite scuffed up, and the name "Virgil" was scarcely discernible through various smears of odd substances. Virgil quickly unpinned the name tag, beginning to rub away at the gunk with a sweater-covered thumb.

"It's Virgil, sorry about that," He spoke, hiding his hot cheeks behind his bangs as he scratched at his name tag feverishly. He quickly decided on just setting it down, wanting to give the newcomer his full attention.

"Good morning, Virgil," they spoke, and wow, was Virgil gay. The strangers' voice was deep and smooth, and reminded him a bit of Janus'. But this had a tactful, almost clinical and calculated sincerity, whereas Janus' was far more lilted and drawly. Regardless, Virgil felt his throat constricting a bit. He tried subtly coughing the feeling away. "I am in search of some high quality yarn, as a gift for a dear friend of mine. It is my understanding that this establishment is highly regarded for its products' quality?" Virgil tried not to stare. The stranger was running their fingers down and up the inside of one of the lapels of their coat very slowly, and that reminded Virgil terribly of Janus. He felt like he was in high school all over again, ogling over a tall pretty boy.

Regardless of his gay panic, Virgil cleared his throat. "Yeah, we try," His voice cracked slightly, and he tried clearing his throat again. "I mean, we have some pretty awesome suppliers, and we have a really, uh... Big selection of stuff. Do you, do you know what it is you want to get for your friend, exactly?" Virgil thanked any gods that existed had allowed him to formulate a coherent sentence, and he was glad to have the expectation of speaking temporarily off himself.

The customer tapped his chin with the side of his index finger, - which again, reminded Virgil painfully of Janus - humming as he continued surveying his surroundings. "I think he'd appreciate a selection of soft or pastel colors, and he adores the color blue. I think white would be a suitable addition as well. Do you sort your yarns by color?" he inquired, returning his heavy gaze to Virgil and pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Virgil tried not to audibly gulp.

"Yeah, we do. here, let me show you to the right aisle," Virgil stepped away from the register, and tried to get out from behind the counter, only to completely trip over a cardboard box and fall directly onto his face.

"Goodness, are you alright?" the stranger paced quickly over to where Virgil was groaning on the floor, attempting to pull himself up onto his elbows. They reached a pale-white and very bony hand down to Virgil, who stared at it for a little too long before taking it gingerly.

The customer pulled firmly, and Virgil did too, and they both slightly miscalculated how much strength they needed to apply in order for Virgil to stand. Virgil stumbled forward just a bit as he rose. He looked up slightly and found himself nose to nose with the now wide-eyed man. Virgil yelped slightly, jumping away like a startled cat.

"Sh-shoot, sorry about that," Virgil took to fidgeting a bit aggressively with his hoodie strings, curling them around and between his fingers. "Uh, this way," he pushed a bit awkwardly past the man, looking at his shoes as he walked and willing away the burning heat he felt in his cheeks. Of course the first cute guy he encounters besides his boyfriends is right there when he falls on his face.

He paced over to the aisle with hues of blue and purple yarn, spotting Emile still working with a large box of cerulean. After a momentary panic and trying to wave Emile's attention without making any noise, the stranger turned the corner into the aisle Virgil had led him to. Virgil sighed to himself, annoyed at an in-no-way-at-fault Emile who still hadn't noticed their presence.

Virgil cleared his throat. "Hey, Emile, could you take register while I help this... customer?" Virgil had to take a moment to recall a phrase to describe him besides 'very beautiful man'.

"Uh-" Emile went to say he could help the customer for Virgil, since they were meant to stay in the vicinity of their assigned roles, but Virgil was looking at him with an intensity that blatantly said 'I am begging you to let me help this very gorgeous man to find his yarn and if you don't so help me god I will impale your severed and rotting skull on a rusty metal pole'. Emile chuckled a little shrilly. "Yeah, sure Virge," Emile slid past the two of them, making his way to the register as the chime of the door sounded again. "Welcome in, Margaret! Do-you-how-do?"

Virgil turned his attention back to the man looming slightly over him, leading him down the aisle to the softer and lighter shades. The customer was already scanning the shelves with a tactful intensity that made Virgil almost as anxious as it did further attracted to him.

"This variety is more than adequate," he spoke, almost under his breath, and Virgil tried not to shudder at the rumble in his voice.

"Um, great," Virgil piped up after a moment, and the icy gaze of the tall boy was on him once again. His cheeks felt real hot. "I can, get you a bag for... what you pick out? Er, a gift bag, if you'd like?" Virgil tapped the side of his fist into his hip a few times, trying to expel some of his nervousness. The stranger smiled softly.

"That would be excellent. Thank you, Virgil." He turned back to examining his options, and Virgil scurried off to find a gift bag.

The bags were all by the front register, and he grumbled a bit to himself on the way, preparing for some relentless teasing from his coworker for the next century at minimum. Emile was just waving Margaret off when Virgil rounded the corner, stepping behind the counter to rummage through some boxes for a gift bag.

"Sooo, Virgil," Emile started, tone entirely teasing as he leaned a little too far on the counter, tapping his orange pen on his lips.

"Don't. Say. Anything." Virgil hissed through clenched teeth, glancing up to give Emile another pointed glare for good measure. Emile chuckled lightly, leaning back on the counter a bit.

"Whaat? I won't! I'm totally innocent, see?" Emile puffed out his bottom lip and made his eyes look big. Virgil scoffed.

"Is that a cartoon reference?"

Emile grinned, shrugging. "Probably."

Virgil found the gift bags - finally - and began scampering off and away from the prying gaze of his overly curious co-worker.

Virgil helped the customer to find and collect the proper amount and variety of yarns that he wanted. As it turned out, it was a relatively easy task; aside from being impossibly and unintentionally charming, the stranger was mindful and courteous, and working with him was proving to be relatively easy. They bantered a bit, falling into a casual conversation as they searched for yarn, as well as while they walked back to the register for Virgil to ring his items up.

Emile gave Virgil a pointed look as he approached, trading him places as he walked with a skip in his step back to his yet unstocked shelves. Virgil rolled his eyes at him, stepping extra carefully behind the counter so as not to trip on any stray cardboard boxes. He leaned against the counter in front of the register, beginning to type numbers into it as though he knew the yarn prices like the back of his hand.

the customer stood at the counter before Virgil, vaguely examining his purchase as he watched Virgil slightly through his peripheral. He noticed the way Virgil bit at the inside corner of his mouth, worrying the flesh between his canines as he focused on adding the prices.

"Alright... your total is 82.53," Virgil said slowly, looking up at the stranger, who had - oddly enough - already been looking at him. The stranger glanced away momentarily, clearing his throat and reaching into an inside pocket of his coat for his wallet.

He produced a pristine black leather wallet, pulling a shiny navy blue debit card from between its folds and setting the wallet on the counter as he handed off the card. Virgil took the card and charged it, the customer punching in his PIN through the keypad.

A faint buzzing sounded from within the man's coat, and he reached in once more with knitted eyebrows. He pulled out what seemed to be his phone, eyes widening as he saw whatever was on the screen. Virgil couldn't see, but he figured someone must be calling him.

"My apologies, I must depart," The man spoke quietly, grabbing his gift bag of yarn and bringing his phone to his face as he made hastily for the door. Virgil didn't hear what he said when he answered the phone, but his brow was still furrowed when Virgil caught a glimpse of his face walking down the sidewalk out the store window.

"Bye..." Virgil said to the empty store front.

He looked down, seeing the customer's debit card still in his hand. "Shit." He saw the wallet set on the counter before him as well. He grabbed it, opening it to return the debit card to its proper place and see if there was a way of contacting the man within the wallet.

As he opened it, a white card similar in shape and size to the debit card fell to the floor. Virgil retrieved it, flipping it over to see what it was.

"No way..." Virgil was holding a driver's license. The name it was registered under was too familiar for it to be a coincidence.

He'd need to be giving one Logan Lattimer a call on his break.

#sanders sides #virgil sanders #logan sanders #ts logan #ts virgil #emile picani #analogical #anaroceit #anaroloceit #theyre so gay oml

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djpurple3 · 4 years

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if you're still up for those ts prompts, i had this anxeit idea where Virge comes down after the new video, and Dee is there. The other panic, because "how the hell do we explain this to him" But baby V is sleep deprived, caffeine deprived, and has just had a very anxiety filled day, so instead of going to his spot normally he just, flops into Dee's arms, snuggles a bit, and kisses him a bit while hell breaks lose around them. Could also work with analogical if anxiet makes you unconfortable

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ok im going to do my best –im not 1000% I understand it but I do like the vibe. So im getting ‘forbidden lovers anxceit and virgil is too tired to hide it anymore after janus gets accepted’ out of this. Which sounds dope. And oh dude I positively adore anxceit!! and thank you for the prompt

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Janus was always an early riser. Virgil was not. It meant that their time was evening time, though in a perfect world, Virgil would absolutely love waking up next to Janus as well. However, they were yet to figure out a way to lie their way out of Janus leaving Virgil’s room in the morning, or vice versa, so generally, there was 100% less cuddles than Virgil would like. That was okay for now, but oh, the novelty was wearing thin.

Virgil had been told by Roman that they were confronting the whole ‘wedding’ fiasco the night before, and Virgil had told the prince not to expect him there. His nerves were still absolutely shot from the last five debates they’d had over it (and ‘debates’ was a very soft way of describing it), and honestly, all he wanted was to get some good sleep – which was always about 3/5ths easier and 5/5ths more enjoyable with Janus. Which he really hadn’t had the chance to do yet. For a while. So when Virgil slogged his way downstairs at 2pm the next day, exhausted and jittery and hoping everyone wouldn’t be at each others’ throats, he was pleasantly surprised to find Logan, Patton and Deceit all relaxing on the couch.

They were all sitting and chatting, with tea and a nature documentary of some kind playing in the background. Roman was at the dining table, drawing, and had headphones on and a deep frown etched onto his face, like he was pointedly ignoring both them and his own emotions. Virgil stopped at the bottom of the stairs, it having taken him that long to realise his boyfriend was here, interacting with his family with surprising ease. Logan noticed him first, offering a terse greeting as his eyes flicked between the purple-clad and the yellow-clad sides, as if expecting hackles to be raised immediately. Patton closely followed, his tone forcefully bright but his eyes shining with worry. Janus turned, as he was closest to the stairs and had had his back to Virgil. They stared at each other for a moment, before Virgil spoke.

“So. How much of the cat is out of the bag?”

This wasn’t the question everyone was expecting. Logan and Patton glanced at each other in confusion as Janus rubbed his hands together nervously.

“About half,” Janus mumbled, glancing up at Virgil with an awkward, worried smile. “I joined the coming-out club, name and all.”

“Congrats, then,” Virgil said, trying to hold onto the bitter edge he knew the others expected, but god, he was too tired for this, he really was. He wandered over, and leant on the armrest with the hint of mischief glinting in his eyes, mostly overtaken by his exhausted longing to just be in Janus’ arms, stat. “Can we let the other part out too, or you holding onto that?”

Janus’ eyes lit up, before they flicked towards the others. Namely Roman, Virgil noticed, who had lifted his head and was watching closely. Janus’ lips pressed into a line, but he smiled.

“Whatever you want,” he said earnestly, and he crossed his fingers – which was Deceit’s silent telling to Virgil that he really was being honest (because they both enjoyed irony in healthy doses). “I’m happy either way.”

Virgil took a breath, before letting it out in a huge sigh of relief.

“Thank god,” he huffed, and he turned on his heel and let himself fall dramatically into Janus’ arms, who immediately started giggling. “I think I was about to fuckin’ implode if we had to keep this up any longer, Jan.”

Janus brushed Virgil’s hair out of his eyes with absolutely unmistakeable tenderness as Logan’s eyes widened and Patton let out a small squeak of surprise. Virgil raised an eyebrow at Janus, and gripped his collar loosely, in silent question.

Janus smiled, and let himself be pulled down for a kiss.

There was several spluttering sounds from all across the room, to varying degrees of severity as Virgil released his boyfriend, before kicking off his shoes and snuggling into Deceit’s side with a satisfied hum.

“God, I missed this,” he said, quietly, but not quiet enough to be unheard.

Janus’ eyes flicked up to Virgil’s family, who were all staring at him with various, intense looks of shock, before putting his arm around Virgil and resting his head against his boyfriend’s. Virgil noticed that Janus’ grip was light and unsure, but Virgil took his other hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Tomorrow, Virgil would freak out about this. Today, he was just hungry to be in his snake boy’s arms, and possibly actually get some sleep there, too.

“Do you like Antarctica?” Janus asked softly, ending the chance for anyone to blurt questions. “We’re watching March of the Penguins.”

Virgil threw up a peace sign.

“Penguins are fuckin’ dope,” he agreed, as enthusiastically as his sleep-deprived ass could handle. “Hit me with some Antarctica facts.”

And, well, that was that.

#sanders sides #sanders sides fanfic #sanders sides ficlet #anxceit #virgil sanders #deceit #janus sanders #logan sanders #patton sanders #roman sanders #ts spoilers #djpurple3's writing yo #forbidden lovers #i adored this

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