Chapter Text
Sophomore year fucking sucked. Patrick groaned and slammed his head on his desk as soon as the tardy bell rang. He had to sit through another boring lecture before he could go home and fucking sleep the rest of the day away.
It sounded boring but Patrick thought that it sounded like heaven. Perfect bliss only came in the form of sleep. Especially since he's a fucking night owl and hates to wake up early.
He raised his head up and sighed, fixing his askew fedora. He watched idly as the last person in the class was someone he had never seen before. His nose scrunched up as the new person snagged the only open seat which just so conveniently had to be next to Patrick.
The person's hair was styled in a sort of crazy way and looked to have been previously shaved on the sides. The brown tuft had grown out obviously and gave him a more compulsive look. He was wearing an oversized band shirt and black skinny jeans with box frame glasses. Compared to Patrick's red cardigan and own black skinny jeans, he looked fucking hot. In a total platonic way. He thought the guy was attractive sure, but Patrick just wasn't attracted to him. He was more attracted to him as a friend.
The boy caught him staring and smiled, giving a little wave, "hiya, I'm Brendon."
Patrick smiled back his best angel smile and internally cackled as it did its job. Brendon's face shimmered and looked like he was seeing a fucking god, Patrick smiled brighter, "hey Brendon, I'm Patrick."
Brendon shook out of Patrick's beauty trance and smiled wide, "you're the only fucking person today who actually responded."
Patrick laughed and turned his body to face Brendon, giving him his full attention, "yeah well, this school sucks dick and is pretty much filled with homophobic assholes."
Patrick flinched internally at the look on his newfound friend's face, "shit, sorry I shouldn't have mentioned anything if it makes you uncom-"
Brendon hurried to interrupt him, "no no, it's fine, really. I'm actually bisexual myself so I guess it's good to know that I can't be out here."
Patrick smiled, "surprisingly, the cheerleaders are actually cool and so are the soccer and basketball players. I'm pretty sure that like, more than half of them are gay."
Brendon laughed hard and beamed at Patrick, "y'know, I think you're my new best friend. Welcome to the Urie fan club."
Patrick cracked up at that, "yeah right, like anyone would wanna join a fan club about a fucking forehead."
Patrick paused after he said it and waited for a reaction. He sighed in relief when he saw that Brendon was laughing as well. He didn't know why but joking around with this guy just felt so easy and natural.
It was like they knew each other before.
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From that point on, Patrick realized how annoying Brendon could actually be. But Patrick wouldn't fucking trade their friendship for the world.
Before Brendon, Patrick was a loner. Sitting alone, eating alone, working alone. Now, Brendon was everywhere with him. They were actually dubbed the 'Terrible Two' at one point, whatever the fuck that meant. Brendon and him would skip class to smoke weed or party together and Patrick was usually introvert as fuck, but Brendon just made him show himself more. Patrick thought it funny how their teachers scolded them all the time for skipping or doing something stupid but they were both still passing with a 3.4 gpa.
Patrick's mother disapproved of his friend choice but he didn't care, as long as they didn't do something actually horrible, he was fine. Brendon's mother loved Patrick and everything about him. She was actually a spiritual guru. Brendon said that his mother was a witch one summer and Patrick just brushed it off, thought it was nothing. His Mother did in fact own tons of spell books and secret 'witch stuff' as Brendon called it.
Patrick lived with Brendon most of the week, hating to go home to his own homophobic and strict parents. It made him sick to know how much they used to belittle him. Brendon's Mom was like a surrogate mother to Patrick and always said how him and Brendon were different in so many ways but alike in just as much.
It was the summer after their junior year when Patrick went over to the ice cream shop with Brendon, chatting idly the entire way.
Apparently, if Patrick was following the rushed story correctly, Brendon's friend Spencer introduced him to a really hot guy who was pretty much all legs and was named Ryan. Patrick smirked at Brendon's love eyes and cleared his throat to get his friend's attention.
"So you gonna ask him out or...?"
Brendon flushed red and stopped in his tracks, "how-? I- no! Of course not! I've known him for literally three days!"
Patrick raised a brow and stopped walking to stand in front of Brendon, "so? You said that he's flirting with you every second. Do it."
Brendon groaned, "I over exaggerated, it wasn't really every second it-"
"Shut it Bren. He was still flirting right?" At his friend's nod Patrick continued, "then he thinks you're attractive. Wait a week if you want, or two whatever, but if he doesn't make a move, then you need to because you both obviously like each other."
Brendon bit his lip and nodded, starting to walk again. Patrick internally grinned and matched pace with him, quickly drowning out the rushed and excited story that Brendon was telling him, honestly Brendon shouldn't be this worked up over someone. The entire school knows that Bren is a total slut, if he wants someone, he goes out of his way to get them.
"Patrick."
Patrick jumped at the soft and unfamiliar voice, whipping around in the sidewalk to check for anyone. No one was there.
"What the-?"
"'Trick? You okay?"
Patrick swallowed and nodded, "yeah I just thought I heard something..."
Brendon nodded and Patrick continued to walk with him, not forgetting about the strange voice calling his name. They reached the parlor and Patrick smiled at the Baskin Robbins worker, frantically ordering cotton candy ice cream like a little kid. Brendon had gotten mint chocolate chip and paid for both of them.
They sat down in the back and Brendon continued his story about fuck knows what, the same tale that Patrick wasn't listening to. Brendon started getting into it and used hand gestures, making Patrick smile and laugh.
"Patrick."
Patrick nearly choked on his ice cream and quickly recovered before Brendon noticed.
"Patrick, don't freak out. I need your help."
Patrick felt the back of his neck tingling and his palms shaking. He gripped his ice cream cup harder and squeezed his eyes shut, willing the voice away. When he opened them Brendon was looking at him concerned and opened his mouth to say something but before he could get a word out, Patrick was rushing to speak.
"Is your Mom home? I have to ask her an important question."
Brendon raised his brows skeptically and nodded, "uh, yeah? She's doing some weird witchy spell thing at home, why you asking TreeStump?"
Patrick shrugged and didn't respond to the nickname. His nerves were buzzing and his heart rate was fast, blood pumping vigorously through his body. He really hoped that the voice wouldn't return yet.
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"So," Brendon's mother was sitting across the long dining room table and checking both Patrick and Bren over, "what seems to be the problem?"
Brendon shrugged and made a pointed look over towards Patrick and the shorter only ignored him, instead giving his full attention to Mrs. Urie, "um, you're an actual witch right? I-I mean Brendon has told me of your guys' heritage and I just-"
"Patrick, I'm not a witch." At this she gave Brendon a pointed look and he sunk deeper into his chair, "I simply have a special connection to the Earth. I'm more like a medium than anything.." she trailed off with a laugh and Patrick only barely heard Brendon murmur under his breath.
"That's the literal definition for witch, though..."
Patrick could've laughed at the look Brendon's Mom was giving him if their situation was less serious.
"Anyways, what were you telling me 'Trick?"
Patrick fiddled with his thumbs and swallowed hard before speaking again, "I think..."
Brendon looked up with interested eyes and his Mom leaned in closer. Patrick bit his lip and shook his head, "I'm sorry, I just wanted to know if Brendon was telling the truth."
Brendon huffed and Mrs. Urie looked unconvinced, "of fucking coarse I was telling the truth I-"
"Brendon! Language," she turned towards Patrick, "are you sure that's all you wanted to know?"
Patrick squirmed in his seat and nodded, subconsciously pulling his fedora down to try and hide. Honestly, he felt strangely guilty for not confiding in her and a lump grew in his throat. He just felt that since the voice hasn't said anything since the hour before at the ice cream shop that he was just hearing things. Or maybe the summer heat was getting to him, yes that could be it.
Mrs. Urie sighed and looked at the clock before hurriedly standing up and shooing the boys from the room, "quickly, quickly now! I've got a client coming in about three minutes and he can't know you're here!"
Brendon chuckled and Patrick snorted, knowing immediately who it was, "is it the priest again?"
Brendon laughed and his Mother only smiled at their behavior before closing the door behind the two teens.
"She does realize that a priest can't really date anyone, right?"
Brendon nodded, "yeah, she's not into him or anything, hasn't been attracted to anyone since Dad."
Patrick recalled Brendon telling him that he never knew his father because he had died of lung cancer two years after he was born. Brendon had told him that his Mother would hypnotize herself sometimes to think back hard and grasp onto forgotten memories of her husband. Patrick had asked if that was dangerous and Brendon had told him that she was a professional, and yes in fact, it was very dangerous. Apparently, ever since she started to really channel her 'abilities', as Bren had put it, she had started a little on-the-side business next to her job as a waitress.
Her job was to help people get closure with dead loved ones or make potions and spells for the helpless. Patrick always loved to watch her work when he was younger. Mrs. Urie was the closest thing he had to a Mother.
"Anyways," Patrick was snapped out of his mind and back to reality, "she only likes the Priest's stories."
Patrick hummed, "Frank seemed like a good kid."
Frank was Father Iero's gay as fuck son. Patrick recalled him seeing the kid once or twice at school. They could've been friends if he'd had known Brendon sooner. Brendon would hang with Spencer and Spencer would hang with his gang and sometimes Frank. Brendon didn't know the guy well enough, they both didn't. Not until the priest started coming over to their house to confide in Brendon's mother about how his son was demonic.
The priest had said that he'd thought his son was just going through a phase before he had learned that his deceased wife was actually a fucking demon, making his son part demon as well. Patrick was young at that age and confused, but he guessed the priest to be crazy. Brendon's Mom believed him though and eagerly waited for the days when the priest would come over.
Only recently had Frank gone missing and Father Iero thought that his son 'summoned' his 'buddies' and left. Patrick thought it was pretty stupid of an explanation and it was the only part that Mrs. Urie ever disagreed with. Still, he couldn't help but wonder if that voice he had heard had been Frank's.
"Are you staying the night again?"
Patrick thought about that one, he had stayed here since the beginning of summer vacation which was around May 25. It was June 6 today. He sighed and shook his head, he knew that he wasn't a burden, that the Uries loved having him, it was just the matter of his own Mom.
"Nah, Mom's probably wondering why I haven't come home in over two weeks."
Brendon rolled his eyes, "its her fault she's always a dick to you."
Patrick wanted to protest, wanted to say that no matter what she acted like that she was still his Mother, but those days were long gone. She had her chances.
"Still, I better go. I'll text you later."
Brendon smirked, "want a ride home?"
Patrick narrowed his eyes, "why?"
"Because I'm on my way to Spencer's anyways. I'm gonna go say hi to Ryan and him."
Patrick rolled his eyes, "you're making it obvious, don't go there just for Ryan."
"Shut it! I'll acknowledge Spence for the most part and then I'll talk to Ryan!"
Patrick chuckled, "yeah sure, gimme a ride home."
Brendon grabbed his arm and pulled him inside the front room, walking through beaded drapes before they reached the door. Brendon let go of him and walked ahead and outside, stopping to say hello to Father Iero who was on his way up to the porch. The younger teen rushed over to the driver's side of the light blue jeep and Patrick ran to the passenger side.
"Okay! So does your Mom still hate me or what?"
Patrick sighed, "I dunno, I think that she thinks you're a bad influence towards me but I don't think she hates you..."
Brendon grinned, "great! I'm gonna say hi and then I have something really important to show you before I head over to Spencer's!"
Patrick startled, "no! Bren, she hates it when I invite someone over without permission first!"
"Then I'm telling her that I went inside against your will."
"Then she'll hate you even more."
Brendon narrowed his eyes, "I thought you just said that she doesn't hate me."
"She doesn't, I mean I don't know, at least I think she doesn't...but she will."
"I don't really care though, so deal with it."
Patrick rolled his eyes and sighed, squirming in his seat as he saw his house looming in the distance. This would be a very tense conversation with his mother and Brendon. Both were very determined people when made out to be.
Brendon pulled into his driveway and immediately hopped out, racing to the front porch. Patrick frantically undid his seat belt and ran after him, wanting to make sure that Brendon didn't just happen to run into his mother without him being there.
"Brendon! Stop it!"
Brendon's cheery laugh sounded from the front of the house and Patrick shot up the porch steps to come face to forehead with Brendon Urie.
"I swear to fucking god, move so I can open the door."
Brendon chuckled and stepped aside, allowing Patrick to get by him and jam his house key into the lock. Patrick twisted the doorknob and swung open the front door, walking inside ahead of Brendon. The delicious smell of spaghetti and garlic bread flooded both the boys' nostrils, Brendon hummed in appreciation.
Together, they walked into the kitchen to be met with the back of Patrick's mother.
"Hey Mom..."
She swung around and stared at Patrick before looking over at Brendon and glaring, "Patrick, glad you've decided to come back...and you brought company?"
Patrick sheepishly nodded and Brendon smiled wide, "hi Ms. Stumph! Patrick told me that you might be worried for him cuz he's been with me since the start of summer so I brought him back, and I'm only here to show him something important to me, it'll only take a moment and then I'll be out of your hair."
Patrick's mother thought hard before narrowing her eyes and Brendon hurried to speak, "I swear that it's nothing illegal or bad! It's just something I read..."
She glared before shaking her head and nodding, "alright, don't influence him more than you've already have..."
Patrick smiled at his mother's kind tone of voice. She had wrong beliefs but she was still a wonderful woman and even she couldn't deny that Brendon had changed her son for the better. She still remembered how small and fragile he had been, how lonely and sad. It broke her heart. It was possibly the only reason why she still tolerated Brendon.
"We'll be right upstairs Mom! If you need us for anything just knock!"
Brendon grabbed Patrick's arm and pulled him up the stairs and into the shorter teen's room, settling both of them on the ground.
"Okay," Brendon crossed his legs into Indian style, "give me your hand."
Patrick raised a brow, "what are you gonna do?"
"Just give it to me, it's nothing bad I swear!"
Patrick but his lip and thrust his arm out toward Brendon, shivering when the younger's cold hands grabbed ahold of him.
"Okay, so apparently I happened to inherit it as well and that's totally fucking awesome because I called my mom a witch as a joke but now I know that she isn't a fucking fraud and I have what she has so this is cool and-"
"Brendon, slow down and get to the point."
Brendon's head shot up and he furrowed his brows, "I think I'm a witch."
Patrick just stared at his friend. A million questions were running though his head. This is it, Brendon was officially fucking crazy. His Mother wasn't a witch, she specifically said she wasn't. Which, Patrick thought, was her joking around and leading him on that it was all a rouse. He only asked her if she was a real witch that day because he didn't want to obsess over a simple voice in his head, he had to come up with something else to say. Patrick blinked once, then twice, then shook his head and bit out, "what?"
Brendon swallowed, "I know! Well, I've been doing research and apparently I'm a hearth witch? Like that's pretty fucking cool and-"
"Brendon, shut the fuck up for a second."
Brendon's mouth closed like a steel trap and Patrick sighed while rubbing his temples, "Brendon, you're not a witch."
Brendon just gaped, "what? Of coarse I am! Look, I'll show you."
Brendon pulled Patrick's wrist closer and Patrick tried to wrestle his arm free but Bren held on tight.
"This is gonna hurt at first and I'm sorry in advance but it's the only thing I know how to do at the moment and apparently you need to see it to believe it."
Patrick still kept trying to pull away and Brendon eventually grabbed his forearm and tucked it between his armpit, making Patrick's arm twist weirdly and have a view of Brendon's back.
"Brendon seriously! Fuck, dude stop!"
Patrick gave up fighting only when Brendon kept twisting his arm backwards, "Bren, dude you're gonna pop my shoulder out of socket."
Brendon didn't give Patrick a response and the older started freaking out, "Bren?!"
Brendon continued to twist Patrick's shoulder, stopping momentarily when it wouldn't go any further.
"Patrick," he spoke carefully and Patrick was internally panicking, "do not scream or your mother will come in here and you'll never be allowed to see me again."
Patrick scoffed, "then don't do whatever you're about to do," Patrick had a vague suspicion about what was about to happen but he kept his mouth shut.
"Grab a sock or something and bite down on it...sorry in advance..."
Patrick's brain addled with confusion and with his other shaking hand, he reached out and picked up a clean sock, stuffing it in his mouth. He tapped Brendon on the shoulder, a hint saying he was ready, and he heard Brendon take a deep breath.
With one jerk of a motion, Brendon twisted Patrick's arm the rest of the way and a sickening pop sounded throughout the room. Tears welled up in the strawberry blond's eyes and he muffled a scream. Brendon hurried to turn around and carefully set Patrick's arm on the ground. The taller man clamped his hands over the strawberry blond's mouth, effectively shutting out the scream.
When Patrick was now only taking big and shuddering breaths, Brendon straddled the other and tucked the injured extremity into the teen's chest. Patrick's vision was tunneling from the pain and small whimpers were making their way out from the sock.
"Patrick."
Patrick's eyes flickered up sleepily to a tall figure standing above him. The owner of the unfamiliar voice was a man who looked in his mid twenties. His form was translucent and flickering. Brendon didn't see the third person in the room.
"Patrick, trust him."
Patrick shook his head, tears streaking down his face.
"He can help you, he can help us."
Patrick didn't know what the figure meant by saying 'us' and was about to ask but when he looked back up, they were gone.
"'Trick, I'm sorry...are you still there?"
Patrick nodded through the pain and listened to Brendon breathe a sigh of relief, "okay, this is the fun part but I'm gonna need you to sit up and give me your arm again."
If Patrick wasn't in huge amounts of pain he'd probably yell at Brendon, tell him that nothing about this was fun and most certainly argue about giving over his arm again. Instead, he sat up with the help of his best friend and hissed when his arm was jostled. Brendon was beaming and Patrick had half the mind to punch him in his face.
"Watch this."
Patrick watched as Brendon reached out with both hands and gently placed them on his wounded shoulder. Patrick whimpered when the other teen started chanting something in Latin under his breath. Brendon's eyes were glowing a strange gold and the area where his hands were touching was starting to feel tingly. Kinda like annoying pins and needles.
And just like that, the pain stopped and Patrick could move his fingertips again. Brendon pulled away and his eyes went back to their normal chocolate brown, smiling wide as he saw the look on Patrick's face.
"So...?"
Patrick swallowed hard, "you're a witch."
Brendon laughed, a boisterous and joyful laugh that made Patrick smiled before Remembering what Brendon did.
"You fucking dick!" He reached over and punched Brendon with his still tingling arm, "you dislocated my shoulder for nothing! You could've just pricked my finger with one of the many tacks in the room!"
Brendon smiled sheepishly, "uh yeah, I guess I could've?"
"You dramatic piece of shit."
Brendon smiled and stood up, offering Patrick his hand. Patrick accepted it begrudgingly and followed Bren out of his room and down the stairs. Patrick's mother was on the phone and Patrick grabbed the brunette's shoulder, steering him out of the house. They went out the back porch and Patrick pulled Brendon into the woods, not stopping until they reached their favorite spot.
"Y'know, my Mother always said that these woods were mystical. Never believed her..."
Patrick rolled his eyes, "that's great Brendon, look I think you're in a little over your head here with all this witchy stuff."
"How so?"
"You literally just dislocated my shoulder I mean-"
"Ugh, you're still milking that?"
Patrick gaped, "it was ten minutes ago!"
"So...?"
Patrick scowled, "don't go messing with shit you're not supposed to. Hell, I'm not even quite so sure what happened back there but I was five seconds away from passing out and I swear to god your dumb magic thingy made me see a god damn ghost."
Brendon huffed, "it's not dumb and-wait...did you just say that you saw a fucking ghost?"
Patrick scoffed, "I don't know! I think!"
"That's impossible."
"..."
"I'm gonna fucking punch you in the dick."
"Okay, okay! Are you sure it was a ghost?"
"Fuck if I know! I literally only started hearing him today!"
"Have you heard him more than once?"
Patrick recalled the ice cream shop and the sidewalk, "yeah, before we went to your house."
Brendon's eyebrows shot up, "was that what you wanted to talk to my mom about?"
Patrick nodded once and Brendon scratched the back of his neck, "okay, so you have the sixth sense and some ghost guy is trying to contact you...any idea why?"
"Well, he said earlier that he needed help and that you were kind of a vial part in that helping scheme."
Brendon's head snapped up and he scurried over to Patrick, "he wants both of us?"
"Uh, yeah."
Brendon started pacing and pulling his hair, "oh this is bad, so very bad. Never ever fuck with the afterlife!!! Rule number fucking one of this supernatural shit!"
"Uh...Bren?"
Patrick was honestly so confused.
"Was that time when I fucked up your shoulder the only time you saw his form?"
Patrick nodded, "yeah it was flickering though, almost like he-"
"Was losing his connection... but since you heard only his voice earlier and now you're seeing his form....your connection's getting stronger."
Patrick swallowed, "I think he wants us to help him."
Brendon shook his head, "or he wants something from us..."
Brendon walked over to Patrick and pulled on his arm, steering him out of the woods and back around towards the front of Patrick's house. Neither said a word until Brendon shoved Patrick into the passenger seat of his jeep, "Brendon what the fuck?"
Brendon's fingers flew across his phone and Patrick guessed that he was telling Spencer that he might be a little late, or that he won't show at all. He put the key in the ignition once done and huffed a breath of air. Brendon started the car and quickly backed out of the driveway, speeding towards his own house, "my Mom should still be there, she'll be able to help us."
"Bren...?"
"I need to know what the fuck kind of witch power is so important to a dead guy and you need to sever that connection quickly, before it gets too strong."
Patrick gulped, "and if we don't?"
Brendon growled, "then you're stuck with the spirit until we found out what it wants."