Chapter Text
Maybe Patton had been a little too excited about his offer.
I mean, it just seemed like the next logical step. Him and Remus still weren’t quite there in terms of friendship levels, so making his story come true sounded like the perfect plan! He had even mentioned it offhandedly, before Logan came walking down the stairs. And from there, every other side showed up, and breakfast got in the way, and before he knew it, Remus had slipped back into the Dark Side looking for Janus. Morality had looked so defeated that Roman asked him if he was alright.
And to be fair, Patton had been a bit vague... and sleepovers usually happened at night. Maybe he’d pop around by the time the moral side was about to slip into bed. The idea got him so excited that he could barely stop himself from bouncing in place, humming random tunes as he did the usual chores. It wouldn’t hurt to check it, anyways.
A comfortable sigh left his lungs as Patton plopped down onto the couch, looking around the living room. Most Sides had gone back to their rooms, as per usual, and he was almost sure Virgil was with Thomas right now, so for now, it was just him and his thoughts, and that was... that wasn’t bad, of course.
Quickly summoning a pen and a notebook, Patton took to brainstorming ideas for what they could do at their sleepover. Unlike the others, Remus wasn’t someone he knew well, but he was willing to change that. Scratching off anything that was violent, bloody or gory, the moral side was having quite a bit of trouble thinking about the things the duke might enjoy. It even made him take a step back and reconsider how he could recontextualize those things in a positive light. Maybe Remus would like some videogames? Or a scary movie? It wouldn’t be Patton’s cup of tea, but if it brought a smile to Remus’ lips then well. He could enjoy it a little too.
Taking that was good enough, the father figure moved along to snacks. There wasn’t going to be any alcohol, even though Logan had said on more than one occasion that in moderation, wine could help you sleep better, so maybe they could stick to the basics. Some popcorn, some juice boxes. If Remus didn’t like it, they could just summon anything in his room! So long as Thomas remembered it, of course. He was still a Dad, at the end of the day. He didn’t dabble only in childish things.
The moral side got so into his list making that he didn’t notice Virgil popping back into the Mind Palace, not feeling his presence at all as he focused on trying to improve a really bad doodle of all the things they could put under the pillow forth. Only once he had stared at Patton for long enough did it seem like that usual chill started at the bottom of his spine, the light sense of dread pooling in his stomach.
- Virge? – Patton said without even lifting his head, knowing he wouldn’t be startled by his presence even if he had been wrong. – What is it, kiddo?
- What do you got there? – he raised his chin in his direction, dropping his eyes to the colorful notebook in his hands. – I’ve never see you this focused on anything.
- Oh, uhm! – Patton laughed just a bit too loudly, pressing his notes against his chest before his mind could really catch up. – I’m—I’m doing my Christmas list early! Yea!
God, what had he just said. Virgil was staring down at him, he was staring up at Virge, and it was obvious that he was aware of the lie even if Patton hadn’t tried to elaborate. He had never felt this embarrassed in his entire life.
- Okay – the anxious side shrugged, casually stuffing his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. – That would explain why Thomas was singing Christmas songs.
- He was?! I mean – Patton tried to clear his throat, his heart hammering inside of his chest. – Was he now?
- Yea. I was on my way to annoy Roman over it, but I guess you were the one at fault for that.
- Oh uhm, you- you wouldn’t hurt your Pops now, would you?
Virgil glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, reading him like no one else could, and Patton had to stop himself from squeaking as the other side took a step forward in his direction, the intensity of his stare easing away as a quiet smile drew across his lips.
- Relax, will you. You haven’t given me a reason to hurt you. Still gonna annoy Princey tho.
- E-Easy now. Roman said he was going to be working on a script—and he’s gone.
Just as quickly as he had arrived, Virgil had vanished, disappearing with a quiet whoosh, and Patton found himself alone again, his pulse slowly going back to normal.
- What’chu got there?
Morality screamed so loudly that his eardrums popped, his hands flying to the sides of his own head as he curled up into himself. He recognized that voice, and that alone should have been enough to remind him to be kind and open minded, but Virgil really had put him on edge here!
- Hoooly fuck, do that again!
- Language... – he still had the strength to say, weakly dropping onto his side and resting his head on the arm of the couch.
The ringing slowly subsided, partially because Remus had stayed quiet until Patton whimpered out of relief, but from there on out, the duke wasn’t nearly as patient as he had secretly hoped, poking at his butt until Patton threw a nasty glare at him.
- You should be ashamed of yourself! Scaring me like that...
- Hey, it’s not like I did that on purpose – Remus pouted, crossing his arms over his chest. – The Sexy Snake is busy and he told me to go look for whoever was lying. Figured it might have been you.
Patton felt himself go tense.
- You... figured it was me?
- I mean, duh – Remus rolled his eyes, still trying to look mad despite appearing so soft. – Janny has told me all about the ways you guys lie. And apparently you do it the most when you get yourself in a pickle.
- W-What makes you think—I don’t lie!
- See! I don’t need to be in charge of the Deceptive Department to know you just lied there.
Patton opened his mouth to say something, fire an accusation back at him, but decidedly closed it almost immediately afterwards, feeling his cheeks burning up over being caught lying.
- Aww, don’t sweat it, Daddy. It’s really hot that you care this much.
Morality allowed himself to groan as he buried his face in his hands, just wishing the couch cushions would swallow him hole.
- It’s not that I wanted to lie – he admitted quietly, hoping no one else but Remus could hear him. – It’s just that... I got a little scared, alright?
- Scared?
Patton had expected a lot of things once he heard the way that Dark Creativity had parroted his words. Mischievousness, mostly, in the way that his eyes shimmered dangerously and the ends of his mustache curled upwards, but while those signs must have been there at some point, by the time that Patton was able to face him, he showed none of those things.
Instead, he looked confused. Maybe even concerned.
His eyes quickly searched for the notebook he had summoned earlier, snatching it up with nimble fingers.
- Uhm – the moral side pressed the open pages against his chest once more, thinking over his words in his head so that they wouldn’t come all out of order. – You see, Virge—Virge was just here, a little while ago, and... and I didn’t want him to judge my plans for tonight, so—
- Oh-hoh-hoh, plans? – Patton didn’t like the way he had said that word one bit, Remus’ hands sinking into the dip in the cushions as he crowed over his personal space. – Those must be hella spicy if you didn’t want Virgin to find out.
The couch seemed to make way too much noise as Patton leaned away, his cheeks growing heated again.
- N-No, none of that! I just—
- Oh, I can’t wait to know what kind of kinky shit you’re into! – Remus’ smile grew ridiculously wide, almost too childish considering their newfound topic of conversation. – Is it bondage? I bet you’d love to get all tied up.
- Remus!
Oh no.
- Will you please just let me talk before—before you make all of these accusations?
The air in the Common Room seemed to get thicker as Patton’s lungs struggled to breathe. His sudden outburst of emotions was enough to shock the duke into silence, at least for a little while, but Morality couldn’t shake away the feeling that had crashed into him when Remus blabbed on and on about his apparent secret reasons for deceit.
- I was thinking about things you might like! – his voice cracked as he failed to get his heart to settle down. – For the sleepover tonight.
Surprise washed over the duke’s face as he leaned back, staring up at Patton with wide unblinking eyes.
- I-I know you never really agreed to it, or—I don’t know if you were planning on doing it tonight, but I just—
A loud yelp cut through his monologue as Remus all but threw himself into his arms. Rather, moved very quickly in his direction, and then somehow found just enough self-control to gently wrap his arms around Patton. The fact that he hadn’t assaulted him with affection didn’t make the father figure feel any better, his tense shoulders basically touching the tips of his ears, but when Remus peered up at him with those shiny innocent eyes, something inside of Patton crumbled.
With a will of their own, his arms moved to come wrap around the duke as well, his sweaty hands resting across the glittery shirt that he frequently wore for videos, and Patton found that it was just as scratchy as he had expected it to be, although not enough to stop him from returning the gesture.
- That’s okay – the dark side chuckled almost too softly, nuzzling his cheek right on top of his beating heart. – You got excited. I can understand that.
Gosh, where was his notebook again? Patton swore he was holding it just now, and then...
Morality looked down, to the top of Remus’ head, and felt his body unwinding a little. Like this, the duke seemed like the most harmless facet of Thomas’ personality. Like a little kid in his father’s arms. Patton certainly couldn’t sense any ill intentions coming out of his actions. He definitely could have tried to climb onto his lap or feel at his butt if he really wanted to.
- I’m sorry, kiddo – the moral side ignored his pounding heart as he rested his fingers on top of Remus’ head. – I lost my cool for a second there. You can—I’ll let you peek at the things I was writing down, alright? See what you think of them.
- Can I really?!
The face staring up at him stole his breath away. Patton wasn’t allowed to see it for too long, given that Remus dived right for his secret plans the millisecond it took for Patton to blink, and by then, it was too late to really feel embarrassed about his messy handwriting or his silly little doodles. If anything, the duke only seemed to smile more at the sight of them.
- You really thought of everything! – Remus plopped back down on the couch, slipping away from his arms, and Patton tried to ignore the pang of sadness that echoed inside of his chest at the lost. – Well, almost everything. What’s the dress code for this?
- Dress code??
- Duh – the creative side sneered, wiggling his eyebrows. – It’s a special occasion!
- Oh, well – Patton squirmed in place, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. – We usually bring out our onesies and just relax, but you can use whatever makes you the most comfortable!
Remus hummed in response, petting his mustache thoughtfully as he stared down at his notes again. The look in his eyes was so undeniably serious that Patton doubted for a second if he was actually reading his silly list of sleepover activities.
- I usually just sleep naked – the duke admitted with a heavy tone. – Bet that’s not allowed.
The air was suddenly so dry. Patton wanted to laugh, to disperse the weird feeling stirring inside of his chest, but the thought of seeing Remus naked was... It wasn’t even sexual, but still, it felt like something really important and personal and just. He was only the first person Remus was ever going to have a sleepover with.
- If... If clothes make you feel uncomfortable, then...
- You know you don’t have to do that, right?
A flinch wrecked through Patton’s body at the intensity behind his voice. He hadn’t even realized that he wasn’t looking his way anymore until his eyes finally focused, dropping to the trembling hands curled on top of his lap, and Morality had to force himself to loosen his grip, pretending like he had just heard it wrong.
- I can be respectful. – the pout was audible in his voice, alongside something that sounded like disappointment. – You’re doing something important for me here, why would I try to ruin that?
- You’re not ruining anything – Patton was quick to say.
- Nope, don’t get me wrapped up in your twisted ways – Remus got up from the couch, carelessly throwing the notebook he was holding onto the spot where he had been sitting moments prior. – There’s this neat little thing called a boundary? I can go get Thesaurus if you want to be run by the definition.
Patton had to screw his eyes shut before he could make this get much much worst.
- No, I know what a boundary is. But... if, if you’re comfortable like that, I can—
The loudest, most demonic honking shattered his thoughts, piercing through his ears and into his brain until the moral side couldn’t hear himself think anymore, and he had to press the heels of his hands against the sides of his head to stop the dizziness that Remus’ attack had brough, his heart thundering in his ears.
- Wanna try that again or do I need to make you deaf first?
Patton slowly cracked one eye open, panting as he glanced up at the other side in the room. His white teeth were showing, which should have meant that he was smiling, but the way his lips pulled back and his face twisted with strange emotions was the furthest thing away from a grin that the father figure had ever seen in his life. In fact, the way Remus was glaring down at him showed so much pain that for a second, Patton assumed that his own screaming had injured him too somehow.
- I just thought... You double down whenever any of us try to avoid a topic, so I thought...
- You thought wrong.
- I’m sorry...
- It’s okay, Papa Bear – Remus sighed, stepping closer for a moment before thinking twice of it. – I’m gonna go see if I got something appropriate to wear for tonight.
Morality didn’t have the time to react before he was met with an empty Common Room, his eyes staring at the spot where he had been once, and a soreness Patton couldn’t put into words spread across his chest. No matter how badly he was feeling right now, one thing was certain: Remus had just admitted that he was coming over that night, and no amount of self-deprecation could stop Patton from welcoming a fellow Side into his room.
There was a lot to do to prepare for a sleepover.
Movies and games pilled up next to the tv, pillows and blankets arranged across the floor. There were still a couple of hours to go, but Morality simply couldn’t will himself to relax. He had changed into his cat onesie sometime after barging in through the door, even doing as much as walking down to the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea instead of just conjuring one into existence, but it served very little to calm him down.
Usually, he’d feel excited for a sleepover. The harmless banter, the movie playing. Being surrounded by his family put him at ease like nothing else could, and the popcorn and the cuddles were mere extra bonuses added to an already incredible evening.
But this wasn’t just any normal sleepover.
This was Remus’s first sleepover, and Patton wanted to show him just exactly what he had been missing.
The guilt that had pierced through his heart once he realized the error of his ways had yet to leave, so his intentions weren’t completely selfless, but this should be okay, right? It’s not like he was a bad person for wanting to be a good friend...
There was a sudden knock on his door, jolting him out of his thoughts.
- C-Come in!
Remus’s wide smile was the first thing his eyes saw, his body quickly slipping into the room. He was wearing a onesie alright, the hood puled over his head in a way that covered his eyes completely, and Patton vaguely wondered if he could see where he was going before he understood what he was trying to do.
- I found The Most perfect attire for our nightly escapades! – he proudly announced, his shrieking voice gaining a strange reverberance in this room. – What do you think?
Patton blinked helplessly, thrown back by his enthusiasm.
- Who, me??
- Who else could it be, silly? – Remus threw his arms in the air, and the father figure noticed that a piece of green fabric connected his wrists to the sides of the onesie, something that resembled those cute flying squirls and their skin flaps if it wasn’t for the drawn tentacles crowding up underneath his arms. – I put a lot of effort into imagining this thing!
- You, made it just for tonight?
- Of course! – the duke said with no hesitation, his eyes suddenly appearing from underneath the hood with a violent shake of his head. – What, you thought I was lying about this being important?
- No—No, of course not...
Patton shifted in place as his hands rubbed nervously against the fabric on the inside of his paws. It was a little difficult to understand what animal Remus might have chosen, but the color scheme was very nice. Most of the onesie was made out of velvety black fabric, long enough to bunch up around his feet and hands, and then of course, the green wings full of tentacles drew his eyes in. It was hard to tell, but it seemed like the inside of the hood was also green, the color lost to the mop of hair wildly ruffling on top of Remus’s head, and that’s when Patton noticed that he wasn’t wearing any makeup, his eyelids completely colorless as his brown eyes stared right at him.
His heart skipped a bit.
- Uhm, I think. I think it’s really nice, actually! – came Morality’s poor excuse of a compliment, hoping the other couldn’t hear the way his voice grew higher. – I’m, not exactly sure what I’m looking at, but it seems very soft. I bet it’s really comfortable.
It was quiet for a moment, Remus’s unblinking eyes never leaving his. It was a little too intense of a stare considering how sensitive Patton was feeling right now, especially when Dark Creativity was just so unpredictable, but really, he had meant nothing bad by it. It did look like those fuzzy fabrics where you brushed your hands across it and it took every inch of your self-control to not bury your face in it, and those were his favorite!
- You can have it, if you want.
Patton blinked, unsure he had heard that right.
- What?
- We can switch, if you want – Remus said a little louder, taking a step forward. – That’s something friends do, right? Change clothes, sneak a peak at each other’s asses.
- Don’t we all have the uh, the same b-butt?
The moral side had to crank his neck back just so he could keep looking at Remus’s face. With all of the light in the room, the shadows that would draw down his face weren’t there to add to his too wide smile, the lack of makeup serving to make him look far less intimidating, and Patton found himself realizing that this was perhaps a bigger problem than if he had been scared of Remus.
- Technically yes, if you wanna go with the boring answer – the duke scoffed, promptly dropping down to the floor space right in front of Patton. – But if you wanna go with the fun answer, I think yours is particularly round. Very squishy. Probably would make a very good pillow.
- Thank... you...?
- You’re welcome!
Remus suddenly bowed down, the speed at which he bent forward sending the hood of his onesie flying right back to the top of his head, and Patton couldn’t stop his feelings from reacting once the dark side straightened his back, a toothy grin peering back at him as his messy hair fell right into his eyes.
- Come on now – Morality grumbled softly, bringing his knees forward before scooting closer. – I can understand when Virgil’s hair falls into his eyes, but you can’t see a thing like this!
Remus’s smile fell a little, his gaze boring holes into Patton. Ignoring all of the times the duke had jumped at him, this was perhaps the closest they had ever stood to each other, and the father figure was trying his damn hardest to keep his heart from exploding as he gently pushed his hand under the hood, combing his fingers through his hair to get it to stay back.
The dark side stayed surprisingly still through the entire thing, lips slightly parted as his expressions molded into something more relaxed, and Patton couldn’t contain the urge to cup his cheeks, bringing his face into his line of sight.
- Much better – the moral side smiled through his heavy blush, giving Remus’s cheek a light pat before trying to pull his hands away.
Focus on the trying.
At a speed that was quite frankly fear inducing, Remus grabbed ahold of his wrists, refusing to let him pull away. It only served to confuse Patton, at first, shy giggles falling from his lips as he experimentally tugged his hands back towards himself, but when the other’s grip didn’t falter, the smile on his face melted a little, something cold squirming in his chest.
- Remus? – he called out, awkwardly patting his face again. – You doing okay, buddy?
- Why did you do that?
Morality frowned at his quiet voice, sitting back over his ankles.
- What do you mean?
- Why did you...
- Pet your hair? – he finished for him, some confusion slipping away when Remus nodded. – I just felt like it! I’m usually very touchy with the others, when they let me. But, if you didn’t like it, I—
Patton cut himself off as soon as he caught a glimpse of the other’s face. His eyes were red and glossy, his mustache quivering as he forced his lips to stay pressed together, and the sight punched a hole through Patton’s stomach, his own eyes getting a little wet as he tried to pull his hands back again. The duke didn’t try to stop him this time around, only breathing in shakily once he fully escaped from his grasp, but he wasn’t left alone for long, Patton’s arms crowding up around him.
Remus wasn’t even sure why he was crying, why his entire body prickled when he wasn’t being held by Morality, and his brain only caught up to what was happening by the time his head was pushed against Patton’s covered chest, and he couldn’t help the broken sob that fell from his lips at the gentleness of it all, his hands quickly bunching up around the back of his cat onesie.
- Oh, kiddo... – the father figure cooed, hurriedly scooting closer so that he could comfort him better. – It’s alright, let it all out.
- I’m not crying – Remus muttered with a sniffle, quickly rubbing his wet cheeks against the fluffy fabric over his shoulder. – It’s r-really dusty in here. You got dust in my eyes, you son of a bitch.
- Oh, I’m sure I did – Patton responded softly once he got over the shock of hearing him swear. – You know how I get, with all of the memories lying around.
The duke nodded as if what he had said made any sense at all, and the moral side didn’t try to push for a conversation to keep happening, distractedly rubbing circles into Remus’s back to get him to relax. When Thomas was younger, Patton remembers how grouchy Remus got when he’d help Roman to his feet after a fall, or how he laughed more at Roman’s jokes than his, and just like before, it hit him all at once, that there was never anyone patching up Remus’s scrapes when he got back from the Imagination, how Virgil hissed and pushed him when the duke scared him.
For how long had he gone on without a friendly hand to hold, a warm welcoming hug, a kiss on the forehead?
Just thinking about it broke Patton’s heart.
- Tell you what – Morality gestured to pull away, and to his surprise, Remus actually let him. – I’ll go make us some popcorn, and you can pick what we are going to do next.
His round, innocent eyes followed him as he got up to his feet, promptly dusting his onesie of any lint that might have been stuck to the carpet.
- Anything you want! – Patton quickly added, petting the top of his head for further reassurance as a wide smile cut across his cheeks.
If Remus had a tail, he’d be wagging it right now.
There was no one else around once he showed up downstairs, a bag of popcorn thrown inside of the microwave before the expected little beeps sent the machine into action. The kernels wouldn’t start popping for another few seconds, the plate inside of the appliance making the bag slowly rotate as to heat it up evenly, and Patton watched it move around as his brain wandered. The plan had always been to let Remus decide what they were going to do for the night, with the exception that his options might be harmful or impossible to execute, but since he had read the list he had written down and he himself had created an entire story based on this night alone, there shouldn’t be any worries Patton had to focus on.
Even when the microwave stopped buzzing with working electricity, the moral side couldn’t shake off the feeling that he needed to do something to make this night memorable. Remus deserved as much.
He didn’t have all of the answers as he quickly rushed up the stairs, snacks shoved into his pockets as he carried the warm bowl of popcorn in both hands, and by the time he walked into his own room, Remus was quietly looking through his DVD’s, tired eyes barely taking in the titles.
- Found anything that tickles your fancy? – Patton asked, putting on his best smile as he kicked the door closed behind him. – I got us that popcorn! And some chocolate bars I really should be saving for some baked treats, but you know, what better opportunity to munch on something sweet other than the present!
His excitement rang in his own ears as Remus dramatically dropped across the pillows on the floor, letting out a quiet whine.
- ‘m sleepyyyy – he complained, angry at himself. He knew he always got tired when he cried and he went and broke down anyways!
- Well, this is a sleepover – Patton pointed out, coming closer. – I can dim out the lights for you if you wanna take a nap.
The duke suddenly snapped his head in his direction, his wide eyes fixed on his every move. It was weird enough that it made Patton hesitate, one hand hovering in the air from where he was about to place it on the ground, but because he wasn’t as young as he’d like to be, his knees quickly started screaming at him to hurry, to stop being such a silly goose when Remus was still looking at him. Patton sat down on the carpet, ignoring the shame brewing low on his stomach.
- Is cuddling you to death an option on the list?
- Erh, only if it’s not literal.
Remus didn’t even offer him a smile first before scrambling into a sitting up position, crawling the small distance that separated him from the other side in the room. The onesie made his journey a tad more difficult than it had to be, the extra fabric turning his sleeves into tripping hazards, and the moral side could only watch as he slipped for multiple times, wincing quietly with every single one.
- I’m going to hug you now. – was the only warning Patton got before Remus threw himself at his lap, the popcorn saved by a hair as the moral side hoisted the bowl out of Remus’s collision course, and he did them both a favor by stretching out his legs in front of him, giving him a flatter surface to rest his head on.
He let out a sigh, his eyes falling closed as his covered arms wrapped around Patton’s waist. For someone that was always so loud and eccentric, it turned out to be a little refreshing that Remus had a side like this to him as well, vulnerable and grumpy as he nuzzled up to Patton’s belly, and it was the moral side that first thought something dirty of it, only then realizing just how close his entire face was to his private parts.
Thankfully for everyone involved, the duke mumbled out an order through his tiredness, telling Patton to put on Lilo and Stitch just before he succumbed to his exhaustion, and if he was drooling a little onto his lap by the time the DVD was magically slotted into the player, Patton pretended to not notice it, throwing a handful of popcorn into his mouth as the movie started.