Chapter Text
3 years later...
Patton was in a state of panic. It started with a friendly game of hide and seek with their added on toddler before turning into the man freaking out when he couldn't find the child. He looked in every spot of the broken down house as that was the set rule- not to leave the house. The kid knew what the dangers of sunlight could do even if he didn't experience it apart from the tests on his hands- still gradually healing. There were no clues of where they could be apart from the kitchen. The man's favourite cookie jar the boy had painted for him just recently was smashed on the floor. It left many shards of blue-painted glass and even some home-made cookies.
Additionally added on top of the mess was a tiny, purple note with scribbled handwriting. It was very difficult to read the toddlers handwriting due to the lack of education however there were improvements. One word, to which Patton presumed to be mistake, was scribbled out over and over. It seemed like the boy always missed out the letter and replaced with another vowel.
'Sory didnt meen that, it wes a mistake'
The man chuckled at the boy's innocence. He knew everything the child did there was an apology at the end of it. Even simpler accidents like using a fork instead of a spoon or leaving the bread in the toaster for too long. There were other deeper mistakes but the toddler wasn't in control at those periods- making there be no fault to blame.
Carrying on to the stairs, Patton crossed his fingers and hoped the child would be hiding somewhere he was able to notice. His last option was to give up but it wouldn't make the boy happy with that result. The creaking of the floorboards echoed throughout the landing top and out into the other rooms that suspiciously had their doors open.
"Oh, Virgil?" He called, attempting to get the boy's attention. It wasn't surprising when he didn't get a response. The child always loved to play and if he was winning, he wouldn't try to break that streak. If serious problems occurred in the game they would still keep hiding and waiting for when the seeker found him. It worried the man slightly at the boy's unrecognisable response into caring for others however it did land into Dee's arms. Dee was like another father to them. It wasn't the best idea to have that kind of species telling the boy about he survived as one of them yet there was no other solution. They did become protective of the toddler throughout the years and it did get a little annoying. Every question that was aimed at them was either argued with or denied to the point of ignorance.
As Patton continued up the steps and down the hall, he abruptly stopped when a little creak rattled through his dog ears- perking up in response. His eyes wandered at every open door and his hands reached out and turned into tickling machines. He knew all of the child's weakness spots like under the arms and even the souls of their feet. Letting out a dark chuckle, he turned behind him swiftly but nothing was there apart from the staircase and empty shelf of the side.
Suddenly, a gentle droplet of water dropped onto his head- spreading all over their forehead. Looking up at where the splash came from, his eyes locked onto the child he was searching for, who was happily crawling on the roof. Terrified, he pulls his arms out to try and catch the baby from falling. His eyebrows cross together angrily as he starts putting on his harsh dad voice, "You get from off the ceiling right now mister..."
"But why...?" A little pout poked from the child's lips sadly. He hoped the man below him would be persuaded by his antics however, feel a tinge of ache as his body wasn't used to climbing up so high. The biggest thing he's ever had to go up was a wall and so his bones couldn't handle the sustainability of the cobwebbed roof for much longer.
"Because you'd hurt yourself kiddo"
"I won't, you would catch me"
"What if I'm not here Virgil, What would happen if you fell and I wasn't around to catch you...?" Patton looked down onto the floor due to his neck being strained. He rubbed it gently in all the most tired patched. The man had thought of that specific question for a long time. Usually, the only figure in this house that would play games with the boy was himself. If he had accidentally forgotten the game entirely, the kid could be waiting hours on the flat surface ceiling- ready to slam into the ground at any moment.
"Then I would catch him" A new voice loomed over the man's shoulder. It was like connecting two pieces of sandpaper and scratching them together recently. The once calming voice had become rusty over the couple stages of ageing with a child.
"You might not be with Virgil either though Dee...Then what could the kiddo do?"
The other figure looked down at Patton with a sharp, harsh stare. His tongue slowly clicked under his long pointed teeth while his gloved hands squeaked a little as they formed into fists. One single strand of hair swan out of his hair and dangled teasingly. The pupils in his different coloured eyes blended out into a bold, blurry dot, "I will be here, You know I've never let the child out of my sight"
"Still"
"Still what?"
In an instant, Virgil dropped from the ceiling and landed directly into Dee's arms- snuggling him tightly. His bare feet dangled freely into the air, causing an array of goosebumps to trickle down the kid's backside. He closed his eyes for a brief moment. The long, tinted eyelashes fluttered as they hit the boy's warm, rosy skin.
"Maybe something happens and you can't control it...There's no way you could survive" Patton mumbled, attempting to look at the pair, however, as he looked around the room, both figures had disappeared without a trace. He knew, Dee being Dee, that the man could die from literally anything if he isn't careful. The thought of Virgil never came into mind because the child already had other pupils in the house that would protect him. His main worry was that boy wouldn't be able to cope with another death just in the space of 3 years. It wasn't fair. Shaking the question off with a breathy, nervous sigh, he headed back down the stairwell.
=0=
Virgil whined as his clothed feet began kicking the embracer's stomach with a gentle force. His face scrunched uncomfortably and the redness in the boys face started to bloom. He wanted to continue the risky game that he and Patton were playing yet wasn't able to move the force around his chest region.
Avoiding his gaze to the figure, he noticed that they weren't in a recognisable area of the house anymore. The messily plastered walls were chipping at the seems and some of the stripey wallpaper had already fallen off. Only two doors were placed in this dark corridor. One door was neatly polished with a shimmery colour of gold. The rustic hinges complimented well with the sleek, black opening handle. Barely noticeable cracks were left due to the thick layer of pictures and poems- stuck on by a little amount of sellotape. The other entry was completely shadowed by the lack of lighting. A lime green loom clawed its way out from under the blank, modern-looking door. It intrigued the boy to the point of finally breaking free.
"Virgil!" Dee whispered harshly, quickly following the child to meet Remus's door. A long, hushed groan escaped his already snarling lips before grabbing the child's arm with a subtle grasp, "You know Remus's anything is off-limits. Who knows what the weirdo is up to..."
Right on time, the door flew open. It loudly hit the inside wall and caused a puff of dust to fall onto the broken, creaky floorboards. The room was blocked off by the man himself as well as another figure. His arm unconsciously moved away from the boy and up into a fancy gesture, "Remus..."
"Hi, Dee-Dee! I finally finished my new project, I used some of the parts I've gotten from over the years and came to a breakthrough!" The extra limbed figure grabbed the said project and pulled them forward, "I used over 12 people and there still seems to be things missing...You know I thought this wasn't going to work let my past experiment~" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively before continuing, "BUT! I think I've done it for sure!
Dee's eyes widened as he made contact with the recognisable, now dead looking face- Logan's. His body was more built from the last time he saw him. More oddly coloured skin was either stitched or stapled on to create the figure standing. The man was tightly dressed in an overly large suit, black dress shoes the tie that was around the scientist's neck before the killing. His eyes were creamed coloured without any gleam of life insight. Over his piercing pupils were sloppily placed, thick-rimmed glasses. The nose part was plastered together so they weren't completely snapped in half.
Angrily, His eyebrows furrowed and his gloved hands clenched into tight fists. They squeaked in pain. A dark, dangerous shine struck his eyes like a shimmering lightning bolt. His razor-sharp teeth scratched his lower gums intensely before figuratively blowing steam out of his ears, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING!?"
"What?"
"WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHAT? YOU KNOW!"
"You didn't say to do it and I also don't think the child would even be upset-"
"Daddy!" Virgil giggled happily. Both the men, who were surprised by the outcome, watched how the boy ran up the blank staring monster and hugged him tightly- only reaching to the thigh section. His flush cheek was squished against the silk, black pant leg. Sparkles glistened on the toddler's big pupils as they squealed with joy. The supposed dad stared at the bouncing figure with a blank, cold expression. At first, Dee was going to interfere when the man raised a hand but stopped when the palm was gently placed on the child's head,
"I missed you!"