Chapter Text
One thing that Virgil had kept from the light sides was that whenever he got overwhelmed Thomas mind would shrink him. Shrink him to about 2 inches tall. As anxiety, this was incredibly anxiety inducing. But he figured this helped Thomas remain calm, a way for him not to affect Thomas as much. Some sort of coping mechanism Thomas mind had developed subconsciously.
With that said the only way to grow back was for Virgil to stay in his room. Which the side did anyway, he knew the light sides hated him. Even if they didn’t straight up say it, Virgil wasn’t dumb. He could see how the mood would die down as soon as any of them spotted him. The other sides thought of him as a nuisance. What would the others think if they knew about this? Roman would definitely laugh at him and Logan would probably want to dissect him. And Patton? Virgil didn’t know, morality wasn’t the type to be cruel on purpose. But perhaps by accident or for the greater good of Thomas?
It was so much easier when he lived with the dark sides, of course they weren’t always the best but they treated him as an equal. Like his opinion was worth something. But Thomas’s mind just had to move him to the light side for some god forsaken reason. He tried his best to protect Thomas but it was so hard to tell the real dangers and paranoia apart. And now being moved into the light side he affected Thomas much more. It didn’t help that no one here really trusted him.
And why would they? They don’t even know your name.
A voice in Virgil's mind hissed.
Virgil shook his head. He needed to stop spiralling. It would only make this state last longer. This bout of shrinking had started when Thomas had woken up late and was thirty minutes late to work. This in turn made Virgil work on overdrive.
Thomas boss was going to hate him
Surely he would fire him now?
What would Thomas do without a job?
Would they become homeless
With the state of this economy were all on the verge of homelessness
Would all Thomas co-workers think he is lazy
Would they hate him for making them work more?
Almost causing Thomas to have an anxiety attack. Just as they had both started hyperventilating, Virgil had begun to shrink. Quickly in the panic of Logan and Patton helping Thomas, Virgil escaped into his room. Virgil knew as soon as he started to shrink that Thomas's anxiety would subside, but his in turn would increase.
Breath come on!
Virgil sat down on his bed as he felt the world grow larger around him. As the room closed in around him, the sheets towering like ominous cliffs. It looked like a sea or purple. He crawled toward the top of the bed near where the pillows were. Everything felt like too much. His body felt like there was a large weight on it. When Virgil looked down at his hands he could see them shake. It felt like the world wasn’t real, like he was playing a really life-like game. And that it was still loading. Or maybe it felt like the game was glitching? Like he didn’t have full control over his character. That it only allowed glimpses of what was really happening. Virgil tried to close and open his hands but his hands would not do what they were told.
As the dissociation continued to intensify, black spots danced in Virgil's vision, clouding his sight and ushering him into darkness. The overwhelming sensations of panic and exhaustion finally overwhelmed him completely, and Virgil succumbed to unconsciousness. The world faded away as his body sought refuge from the tumult of emotions and the relentless strain on his mind.
—
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
‘What the hell’ Virgil thought
His head was killing him and that sound wasn’t helping. Virgil opened his eyes to nothing but the purple of his sheets. He was still small. Virgil covered his head with his sheets and waited for whoever that was knocking to just go away.
“Doom and Gloom open up the door, or I will”
Virgil's heart sank as he heard Roman's distinctive knock on the door, a harbinger of unwelcome intrusion. Of course it was Roman, he just needed to show up now. Dread washed over him; this was the last person he wanted to encounter at such a vulnerable moment. Panic surged anew as he realised, with a sinking feeling, that he hadn't even locked the door. How could he have been so careless? It was his most crucial secret, and now it lay exposed due to a simple oversight.
He could hear Roman pause for a moment mumbling something under his breath. The door just about muffled it enough that virgil couldn’t make out what he said. But he figured that it was nothing good.
“Nightmare on Elm street? I'm coming in”
The doorknob gave a hesitant turn, as if Roman wasn't entirely certain whether it would yield. Virgil's heart raced with each small movement, hoping against hope that maybe he remembered wrong and that he did lock the door. But then, with a soft click, the door swung open, revealing Virgil's reduced form and the distress etched across his face.
Romans eyes searched the room for a couple of seconds before it finally landed on to virgil. The larger side started to walk towards Virgil; each step shook virgil’s world like an earthquake.
Virgil's world spun as a giant hand descended upon him, each finger towering over him like pillars of a daunting fortress. The grip tightened around him, squeezing relentlessly, the pressure feeling like it would leave bruises on his tiny form. Caught within Roman's grasp, Virgil felt as though his entire existence was now under the control of those colossal hands. No he didn’t just feel that way, it wasn’t opinion- it was a fact. His entire being was in Romans single hand.
He struggled against the vice-like grip, his efforts proving futile against Roman's overwhelming strength. Panic surged within him as he gasped for air, feeling the confinement of Roman's grip tightening around him, restricting his movements and his ability to escape.
"Roman, please..." Virgil's voice was strained, barely audible amidst the overwhelming sensations of being ensnared by someone he had hoped to keep his vulnerabilities hidden from. The weight of Roman's scrutiny bore down on him, intensifying the already suffocating fear that gripped his heart.
"Holy hell... how are you so small?" Roman's voice rang out, a mix of curiosity and amusement evident in his tone. He peered down at Virgil with an expectant expression, his eyes filled with a curious wonder.
Virgil's heart sank further at Roman's reaction, feeling the weight of vulnerability magnified by Roman's incredulous gaze. The combination of curiosity and amusement in Roman's voice only heightened Virgil's discomfort, intensifying the sense of being exposed in this diminished state. Oh god Roman is going to kill him. Or he’s going to tell the other sides and everyone is going to know.
Struggling to find his voice amidst the overwhelming emotions, Virgil managed a strained reply, "It's... it's just something that happens sometimes." He averted his gaze, unable to meet Roman's eyes directly, the shame of his vulnerability palpable in the air between them.
“Why?” Roman tilted his head like a puppy looking at some sort of bug, one that they were about to pounce on.
Virgil hesitated, the words catching in his throat before he managed to stammer out an explanation. "Wh- When T-Thomas gets overwhelmed h-h-his mind shrinks me. S-s-so I don’t affect him so much. I-I need to stay in my room to grow back."
“Oh really… then we should leave”
As Roman started to exit, Virgil's body tensed with a sudden surge of panic. He began to violently struggle within the confines of Roman's grip, desperate to break free. The giant hands around him allowed a slight leeway, a deceptive semblance of freedom, before Roman swiftly clasped both hands together, enclosing Virgil within his grasp. It was incredibly dark and uncomfortably warm.
Virgil's diminutive form bobbed up and down in sync with Roman's strides, his flesh prison jostled by the movements. As Roman continued forward, Virgil felt a pang of helplessness, his small frame tossed about within the confines of Roman's grasp. The bruises that adorned his body throbbed with each movement, a reminder of his vulnerability and the physical toll of his predicament.
Virgil's mind raced with apprehension as he wondered what Roman intended to do with him. It was evident that Roman was deliberately keeping him small, maintaining his reduced stature by forcing him out of his room. The sound of a door opening and closing only added to Virgil's unease, presuming it to be the entrance to Roman's room.
Suddenly, Virgil was unceremoniously plopped onto a desk, the abrupt movement jarring his already tender body. He glanced around, his surroundings unfamiliar yet undeniably Roman's domain.
Virgil's heart pounded with a mixture of fear and confusion. Why had he brought Virgil here, placing him on this foreign terrain like an object to be examined or manipulated?
Roman continued to loom over Virgil, his presence imposing as he prodded at Virgil with unsettling intent.
"Sorry to be so abrupt, Anxiety, but I didn’t want you to grow back," Roman remarked, his words sending a shiver down Virgil's spine.
Virgil's fears were confirmed with Roman's statement. The realization settled heavily upon him, the implications sinking in.
"If you being in this form helps Thomas, then why not just stay in this form?" Roman posed the question with a disturbingly casual tone, as if the idea of Virgil remaining in this diminished state was a simple solution to a complex problem.
With a small tap on Virgil's forehead, Roman's actions were unassuming to him but nearly knocked Virgil off balance in his current size.
"B-but Roman, you c-can't—Thomas needs me!" Virgil stammered, his protests laced with desperation.
Virgil's voice wavered as he struggled to convey the gravity of the situation. The thought of abandoning his true form, his agency, for the sake of Thomas's well-being was a notion that filled Virgil with dread and uncertainty.
Roman's demeanor remained unsettlingly calm as he continued to press his case. "Well, he might need you... but not all of you," Roman asserted, his tone taking on a disturbingly gleeful edge. "When you're just like all of us, you just cause harm. But like this, oh ho ho! It would be so easy to push away Thomas's fears. You're really the only thing that keeps getting in the way of Thomas, so don’t you see? This is really a good thing."
Virgil's mind reeled with disbelief and apprehension. He couldn't fathom what would become of him—or Thomas—if he remained in this diminished state outside of his room for an extended period. Would he perish, or would he simply remain trapped in this small form indefinitely? The uncertainty gnawed at him, his anxiety heightening with each passing moment.
Roman's laughter sent a chill down Virgil's spine, his dread mounting as he realized the extent of Roman's misguided intentions.
"But we will have to keep this a secret from Logan and Patton. They're just too nice to carry this through, but I will always slay Thomas' monsters! It's for the good of Thomas," Roman declared, his conviction unwavering.
Hearing Roman’s full plan stunned Virgil into silence. There was no one here to help him. If he yelled or cried out it wouldn’t do anything- no one was coming to help him. And no one would come looking for him; the other sides didn’t care enough to. Maybe they would even come to the same conclusion as Roman. Was Roman right? Was this better for Thomas? Virgil didn’t want to think about that. All he knew was his whole life was going to be decided by Roman.
"First things first, we need a spot for you—somewhere you won't escape. Stay put while I look," Roman commanded, tapping Virgil's chest with a force that knocked the anxious form off balance.
Virgil struggled to regain his composure, his heart racing with a mixture of fear and defiance. He watched helplessly as Roman assumed a thoughtful pose, the creative side taking charge as he contemplated the design of Virgil's confinement.
He put his hand on his hip and the other tapped thoughtfully against his lips. When he finally decided he put his index finger up, and then conjured a fish tank. Roman then put a blanket inside covering the whole bottom then a handkerchief.
Virgil's heart raced with panic as Roman grabbed him by the back of his hoodie, the fabric pulling tightly around his neck and threatening to choke him. He was lifted abruptly, disoriented and struggling for breath, before being unceremoniously dropped into the fish tank. The impact jarred him, the walls of the enclosure closing in around him like a suffocating embrace.
As Virgil landed inside the tank, the confines of the glass walls amplified his sense of confinement. He pressed against the sides, trying in vain to find a way out. Roman swiftly closed the top of the tank, sealing Virgil inside with no means of escape.
The air grew thin within the enclosed space, Virgil's breathing quickening as a surge of claustrophobia washed over him. The world outside the tank blurred, replaced by the distorted reality of his captivity.
Outside the tank, Roman's face loomed, his expression unreadable. Virgil's eyes pleaded for release, but Roman's resolve remained unyielding.
“Okay well I must go have breakfast with glasses and popstar! I leave you to… sit in gloom or whatever you do”
And with that Roman left Virgil alone in his new prison.