Chapter Text
“Hi.” whispers Thomas as everyone enters the room. He’s been getting better at talking, getting stronger every day. Nobody knows exactly why, but they’re trying to figure out why now, rather than forever ago.
But that’s not important- it’s the first session of their D&D campaign! Virgil apparently has a lot of plans for this campaign.
Thomas hisses again, after everyone has said their hellos, and Virgil and Janus hiss back. Logan remains confused.
They exchange pleasantries for a little while, Thomas regaling them with stories like Mrs. Applebaum and Mrs. Chase wearing each other’s coats yesterday night and walking away, hand in hand, giggling like teenagers even though they’re old ladies with grandkids off in college. Virgil and Logan proceed to then screech about the new Welcome to Night Vale episode, about Frank Chen, whoever that is and then Patton and Remus quietly announce that they’re in a QPR, and Janus and Logan need some explaining but it’s okay, and then when they finish the setup, everyone’s sitting with their laptops, character sheets loaded up and suddenly… nobody wants to play.
Someone else should be here, playing with them as Virgil (probably) shoves all their characters through the wringer (physically and emotionally) and gives them enough comfort to rest easy but that someone isn’t here, he’s in the corner of the Chemistry room, as far away from the chemical cabinet as possible, resting his voice a bit so that he can start talking again in about half an hour after chatting with them during setup, and they don’t know why, but D&D is not something any of them want to do right now.
“Actually guys, I really don’t want to do this right now. Not without Thomas” says Virgil, looking over to the ghost hanging around in the corner, who smiles at them and motions for them to all continue, even as Virgil starts putting their laptop back in their laptop case, then their bag, and everyone is already doing the same.
“Yeah.”
“Mmhm.”
“Thomas, what do you think made you so strong recently?” asks Logan, zipping up his bag after removing his translation notebook and morse code sheet from his bag. It’s honestly a better use of their time, finding out more about their new ghost friend, and perhaps he could come back for good, at the rate he’s going and that’s exciting too.
“I...don’t know? Maybe… naw, no way.” he responds, speaking but it eventually turning back into garbled hissing.
“Hmm? You can tell us- anything like a clue is better than nothing.” responds Logan, pulling out his pen and laying the sheet in front of him on the cold floor. It’s going to start snowing soon- they really need to stop sitting on the cold stone floor so much.
“Um, the people- the people who killed me” everyone winces, Thomas keeps tapping. “They died, in, the fifties I think. Drug overdose or something along those lines. That’s when I started hissing.” Thomas waits for Logan to finish translating, with additional help from Patton, before continuing. “So…” there’s a pause. “Maybe because everyone I loved back then is getting old? Dying maybe? That might be it.” Thomas doesn’t look very happy about that possibility.
“That doesn’t sound very nice, but that is likely the reason. Have you been noticing any recent changes to yourself?” Logan asks.
“Yes. I can hold conversations a lot longer, and sometimes I’m visible to mirrors. I try not to become too corporeal in class, though.” Thomas replies, clearing his throat- indicating he’s gotten some strength back. It’s only taken a few minutes this time, which is the least it has ever taken. He laughs a little, and it’s clear- he sounds like a kid, maybe around their age, which he is. He’d be a good singer, probably. It feels like Thomas is becoming more alive by the day, and maybe he is.
They go on like this for a little longer, forming hypotheses about Thomas’s condition and how to undo it, laughing some and wincing other times at painful memories and good ones, until Patton and Janus get a text from their foster parents telling them that there’s a fam-ily meeting about to happen, and they need to come home. Patton visibly tenses, and Logan doesn’t really know what to do, but Janus takes his hand, shaking a little himself, and tells them that they’ll be there tomorrow, even though he really doesn’t believe it, as much as he wants to. Thomas knows that feeling.
Either way, on that foreboding note, everyone else makes to leave too. Virgil goes next, saying that they have to speak to their friend Hildi (whoever that is) about something they don’t understand. Virgil doesn’t elaborate, though they don’t look very upset either.
Logan soon after, wrapping up his morse sheets after he and Roman engage with Thomas verbally some more. It looks like it may rain soon, the sky grey-blue outside and the phantoms in the schoolyard running for cover, forms sizzling under rain. In this way, Thomas is lucky he died indoors.
Roman and Remus seem to want to go the least, but the rain looks like it’s getting worse and Roman does need to go eat something- he hasn’t since dinner yesterday and it's not like there are edible snacks in a chemistry room- it’s literally lab rule one. Roman tries to put up something of a half-hearted fight, and Remus rebukes, routine, like they’ve done this before and will do it again. They have, they will. Roman argues like he’s convinced himself, Remus like he’s sad, trying to pull Roman to shore, more gently than his usual bombast. They go eventually, just as a light drizzle begins and the school heating turns off, with even the teachers leaving the premises. It’s cold, and it’s dark and at some point Thomas wouldn’t have minded, knowing that he was the dark and the cold and the static but now...
But now he knows that he is becoming more than that.
There’s a little bit of warmth, like that of a tealight within him, that he hasn’t felt in so long that he feel he has almost (almost) forgotten how to feel it but not yet, not yet and he cradles it close through the dark and the wet and the ever-approaching night.
…
Patton walks into the house full of dread. He knows what’s about to happen, and maybe he could have numbed it over in any other house, but he had let himself want, and this is where it got him.
Gosh, Janus really liked being here too, he’ll be devastated.
Janus, honestly, doesn't look very worried, and Patton worries for him.
They find Remy and Emile on the dining table, their designated coffee mugs full of tea this time- peppermint or chamomile or something, probably promotes calm or whatever. Emile had taught him that. Fuck.
What was he going to tell Remus? Roman? Virgil and Logan? Logan latched onto Janus like a drowning man seeing a life raft, and Janus had clung as hard.
Fuck, what about Thomas?
He’s sitting, all too aware of every little thing happening around him in his dread. He wants to take in all the furniture, where he hid when he had panic attacks and where he saw Janus being comforted after his own. He’s always wanted to reach out, take Emile’s hand or Remy’s shoulder and cry, but he didn’t, squashing the hope before it could go anywhere. Guess he was right then, he thought bitterly.
The chairs are arranged strangely- instead of being forced to face Remy and Emile when they got the news, the chairs were arranged in a row- one two three four with the dining table having their mugs in order of age- Emile, Remy, Patton, Janus.
Emile and Remy were already sitting in their seats, smiling at them patiently expectantly. Stop hoping. It’s over.
Patton gets in his chair first. The thought of drinking his tea, with the perfect amount of milk and sugar makes him sick. He doesn’t pick up the cup. Janus, once again not looking very concerned, takes his mug in one hand, the other still with a death grip around Patton's. It’s probably going to bruise. He doesn’t care.
“Hey there, kiddos! Sorry for the short text- traffic was the worst, today.” starts Remy, and Janus relaxes, smiling a little. Patton doesn’t.
“We really just wanted to ask you two something- though it is a bit personal, and you can say no whenever! All we’re asking you to do is try it first, okay?” Wait. What? The fuck?
“What… Do you want us to try?” asks Patton. It’s the first thing he’s said since they got the text, and he needs to know what is actually fucking happening. Emile’s probably figured him out (and Patton hate hate HATES that he’s let Emile do that, but he also doesn’t)
“Well, Remy and I have been talking, and we think it might be a good idea for both of you to see a therapist.”
A… what?
Therapists are expensive, and (usually) need to have you living in one place for a long time. They’re expensive, so they’re a long-term investment. If therapy’s something Emile is trying to do, then that means that they want him and Janus to stay. For a long time.
He thinks of the papers he sees Emile hiding. It all starts to make sense.
In his defense, Patton doesn’t cry. Until that breakdown with Remus on the phone the other week, he genuinely could not remember the last time he had cried- it’s not easy to get him to. But both Remy and Emile always, always seem to know that something is wrong, even if he doesn’t tell them that something is, and Remys takes his hand, even as he keeps his eyes on the teacup, and Patton’s still feeling a bit weird on drinking it, but it’ll be fine. Janus has already said yes, and has long finished his tea and is texting Logan on the couch, but Patton’s still on the table, and his tea is getting it cold, but he drinks it as it becomes lukewarm, reddish-brown liquid rolling down as one of his hands is held by Remy, and they don’t talk as much as Patton and Emile, but it’s nice to have him around- he gave both he and Janus their latest sewing kits.
Janus probably has figured out that Patton’s been acting weird this whole time, and he’ll have to talk to him, which is going to be one of those Emotionally Taxing Conversations, but apparently, those need to be had.
It almost hurts to hope, and every voice in his head is half screaming not to, but Patton is finding himself hoping anyways, and he opens his phone to text Remus to see if his therapist knows anyone.
…
“Di, what the actual fuck.” At least Hildi has the decency to look a little embarrassed.
“Sorry, sorry!! We were like, ten and I didn’t know that was a thing till maybe last year?”
That ‘thing’ being, Hildi’s particular brand of witch having Virgil basically absorb some of her magic… whatever like osmosis. Which is why they can calm people down through contact. Why can’t they calm themselves down through contact? That would be fucking nice.
“Uh… the thing is, it only works with women? Or basically, not men. Are you like… okay with that?” asks Hildi, taking their hand and rubbing in circular motions , which she knows calms them down. Well, it’s working.
Virgil thinks.
“Yeah I think so. My gender is still, you know, a bit fuzzy as a concept. For me it’s mostly a presentation thing. Besides men suck- you magic has a point.”
"Our magic."
Hildi laughs, putting her hand to her mouth as she shifts both their positions on the tree branch, thick and low, that they’re sitting in, able to watch the passersby, but too camouflaged by foliage to be seen. Logan used to be with them more often, back in middle school, hiding from stupid kids who kept trying to break his nose. (they didn’t succeed, but they nearly broke his heart)
But, now is not the time. There are more important things to do. Like figure out what to do with this… magic? And maybe see if it can help Thomas come back.
Virgil wonders what Logan and Roman are doing- Logan’s going to have a fucking field day.
…
“Mom?”
“Yes, Lolo?” replies his mother, tying her red hair behind her as she starts weeding their vegetable patch. It’s her little pet project, and it already looks really good.
“You wanted to tell us something this morning, right?” Mom had sat them down about ten minutes before he and Virgil had left for school, telling them that someone was coming over, and that they’d both get more details later. Well, Virgil was at Hildi’s, for whatever reason, so it was just Logan, probably.
“Well,” starts Mom, whacking her hands on her apron and getting herself a glass of water. “Grampa Ev-Your great-grandfather Everett is going to be coming over for a while.” Okay. Logan doesn’t know Great-Gramps Everett, because Mom doesn’t usually talk about her family. It’s nothing bad, but they’re all fairly distant people. But, from what he knows, Great-Gramps is a pretty decent person, and pretty much wholeheartedly supported both Mom getting married to Amma and Logan and Virgil coming out, which nobody had really expected.
“Okay.” says Logan, not sure about what else to answer with.”
“Logan, you see, there’s one caveat. Gramps is really, really old, and he’s going to be gone soon.” Okay. “So here’s staying here for a week or so to say goodbye. He’s been pretty sick for a while, and he doesn’t seem to be getting better.” Okay. That happens sometimes- Logan isn’t spectacularly sad, but his Mom’s going to be pretty torn up.
“Oh, uh, I’m sorry. It’ll… be okay?” Logan tries for some kind of reassurance, but it comes out as confused as he is with this scenario. Mom laughs, a bit wetly, as she takes his cheeks into her hands and looks him in the eye, or as much as she can with how teary her eyes are.
‘Oh, Logie-Bear” (Logan internally rolls his eyes at the nickname) “Don’t worry about me, it’ll be okay, alright? Grampa misses you, so he really wants to see us, now that he’s visited everyone else. I’ll be okay. Don’t you worry, now.” Mom finishes, picking him up even as he squacks light-heartedly, and he remembers the last time Mom cried and he’s so glad that they’ve all gotten better than they were from that day.
“Okay, I won’t worry. Amma and Virgil do plenty of that for everyone.” says Logan, trying for a somewhat lighthearted tone that Virgil sometimes uses with Roman to joke about issues. It’s not great, but it’s better than they were a year ago, keeping it all in.
Mom does laugh, however, still a bit wet, but happy either way. She puts him down on the couch as the next movie in their queue plays, UP or something along those lines.
“You know, Gramps had told me something once.” Logan turns to Mom a little, displaying interest.
“Back when he lived here- the twennies and thirties,” begins Mom, her accent coming in a little. It’s nice. “He had a boyfriend. O’ course, this town was hate crime central back then, but they were happy. Some rowdier kids at school killed his boyfriend, and he was the first to see the body. That's why he hasn’t been here since.” That’s… heavy, and it brings up some unfortunate parallels to Thomas- gay in the twenties, killed.
But that has to be a coincidence, right?
“What was… what was the boyfriend’s name?” asks Logan.
"Hmm?" Mom hums, talking her index along her chin. "Tommy or something. Could've been a nickname for Thomas." Oh, wow. what a coincidence. This also basically confirms Thomas's theory, and as upsetting as that is, Logan's going to think about it later, with his brother, thanks.
Thinking of which…
Logan gets up, suddenly enough to make Mom look up at him questioningly.
"Logan?"
"Sorry, mom- I just need to inform Virgil and the others about something." Seeing the (probably?) concern on her face, he adds on; "nothing bad, there is no need to worry- besides, Virgil would tell on me immediately."
Mom laughs a little. "That they would, baby. Go on- just remember to be back for dinner." She goes to the kitchen to get herself some food, before going back to the movie. Logan takes that as his due to exit, taking with him his carry-bag, which has a stim toy, his phone and charger, and earbuds. These days, it also contains the Thomas Book, and his Morse translation sheets, though he hasn't needed them for a while. He fills his water bottle, taken from his school bag and puts that in too, before leaving the house and going to Roman's, mainly because it's the closest and carrying umbrellas in this weather is a chore with all this wind and rain.
…
Roman's just managed to stomach something, that being pot noodles because mom and dad are not home at the moment, and is currently lounging around the living room, glad to be sitting there without the constant backdrop of yelling. With all this rain, he really was not expecting anyone to interrupt his rereading of Othello (for like, the fifth time, but Roman doesn't give a shit) , and especially not Logan, of all characters.
But there he is, gripping the bottom of his umbrella, and who is Roman to say no? Remus is at therapy with Patton, cheering him on, and mom and dad will not be here to yell. Besides, Logan looks really, really excited, nearly manic, and that's a fairly uncommon look on him.
"Roman, you are not going to fucking believe this."
.
They have a plan, now. It’s rough, and it’s not the best thought-out thing in the world, but it is a plan.
Firstly, tell Thomas the first thing on Monday about exactly what is happening. Secondly, tell Everett about what is happening, hopefully with photographic evidence and get him to Thomas. Both these steps are doable, as Thomas is notably more corporeal than he was a few months ago, and that can probably be attributed to the fact that all of the other people he cares about have passed away. This may be the final push, but god damn it is Thomas not coming back to life without meeting his boyfriend at least once.
This can work. probably.