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Patton liked to crochet. It kept his hands busy and usually he had something useful at the end of each project. He’d made scarves for Logan, Roman, Remus, and Virgil in the past, each one made in that Side’s colors with their name on one end and their central function on the other. The scarves had been Christmas gifts last year, but he hadn’t been able to make one for Janus, since he didn’t know Janus’ name at the time.
Now, he was working to change that.
Patton put the final touches on Janus’ scarf, looping the final strands of edge work into place and making sure they were secure. The scarf was a longer one, much like the one Patton had made for Virgil, so he could loop it around his neck a couple times and just snuggle into it. As for the colors and pattern, Patton had used a yarn he’d been saving for Janus’ scarf; a soft, warm yarn dyed in a yellow and yellow-green pattern. He’d used a stitch that made the scarf look like it was made up of scales, and used black for the stitches that made up Janus’ name and function. The edge work had been done using both the yellow and black yarn, and Patton was ultimately very happy with the result.
Patton had thought of waiting until Christmas to give Janus his scarf, but decided against it when he saw the scaled Side curled up in a blanket under a heat lamp in the commons. An early gift wouldn’t do any harm.
The cardigan-wearing Side set the finished yellow scarf in a simple white gift box and set the lid on top. He didn’t wrap it or anything, he just put it into the box so that it would still be a surprise. Once the scarf was in the box, he picked it up and made his way out into the commons to find Janus.
Janus was right where Patton had expected him to be; sitting on the sofa in the spot under the heat lamp that was set up. He had on a black turtleneck with his logo embroidered on the left side of the chest -much like how Patton and Logan’s logos were stitched into their polo shirts- rather than his usual shirt and capelet, though he still wore his yellow gloves, slacks, and bowler hat. Janus was reading a book Patton had seen him with a couple of times, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd , a book Logan had stated was his favorite at one point, if Patton remembered correctly. It seemed Janus was borrowing it from Logan’s collection.
“Janus?” Patton softly asked, wanting to get the other Side’s attention without startling him too badly.
“Hm?” Janus hummed, looking up towards Patton. “Do you need something, Patton?” he asked. He was clearly relaxed, considering Patton could pick up a little hint of Janus’ old lisp when he spoke. Janus had long since gotten his lisp under control, but occasionally it could still be heard, especially when the Side was tired or just relaxed and comfortable.
“Oh, no,” Patton replied, shaking his head. “I just, wanted to give you something,” he said, offering the small gift box in his hands to Janus.
Janus marked his page with a snake bookmark and shut the book he was holding, setting it aside. He seemed cautious as he took the box from Patton, his movements lacking their usual confidence. Patton knew that Janus was doing his best to be honest with them and find his spot in their little family, and was well aware that he wasn’t one to trust easily, so the caution wasn’t surprising in the slightest. The fatherly Side simply watched with a subtle smile as Janus set the box in his lap and glanced up at him. He gave a small nod, silently encouraging him to go ahead and open it up.
Janus opened the box and seemed to pause for a moment. With the way Patton had folded the scarf, only part of the yellow body was visible. Patton watched as Janus lifted the scarf out of the box and unfolded it part of the way, enough that he could see one of the ends, the end reading Deceit .
“Patton, this is…,” he began, seeming uncharacteristically unsure of what to say.
“Before you say anything,” Patton stopped him, “turn it over. There’s something on the other end,” he said.
Janus seemed unsure, though he did as Patton instructed, turning over the folded scarf so he could see the other end, where his name was stitched in. “You…”
“I made scarves for everyone else last year, with their function and their name,” Patton said, fiddling with the sleeves of his cardigan. “You didn’t have one because, well, we didn’t know your name. Well, Roman, Logan, and I didn’t know. Virgil and Remus wouldn’t tell me what it was, so, I just waited. I had the yarn and pattern, so, I just set it aside, until you trusted us enough to tell us on your own,” he explained.
“You had… You had already planned on making me one?” Janus asked, seeming surprised at this new information.
“Well, of course! Everyone else already had one, and I didn’t want you to be left out,” Patton answered. “I wasn’t going to push you for your name. If even Remus wasn’t going to tell me, even though he knew what it was, then I was going to respect that it was something you needed to come out and say when you were ready.”
“I… I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t need to say anything,” Patton assured. “You trusting us with your name is enough. I know Roman’s reaction was, less than acceptable, but I appreciate you finally letting us know, Janus,” he said. Patton gave Janus a friendly smile and simply left, going off to take care of whatever he needed to do.
If he had waited just a moment, he would have seen Janus crack a genuine smile and wrap the long scarf around his neck a couple of times, before he settled down and went back to his book, enjoying the soft warmth of the new scarf he now wore.