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Chapter Text

(Picture above is baby Logan)

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Emile Picani had just finished tucking in his little orphan kiddos when a sudden knock from downstairs catches his attention. He glanced at the clock near the door, seeing it read 10:47.

He hummed in confusion but quietly exited the children's room, slowly making his way to the front doors of the orphanage.

Turning the knob, he opens the door and looks out into the quiet night of the village, seeing no one in sight.

Well, until he looked down and found a baby peacefully sleeping in a fairly average-sized basket. Judging by how they were able to fit in such a small carrier, Emile guessed the child was no more than a few weeks old.

"Oh dear, who would have the heart to leave you here all alone in this chilly weather?" The orphanage owner says, bending down to pick up the child.

It was winter time, and even he himself couldn't stand being out in the cold for so long. He wondered how the little human seemed unfazed by the freezing cold of this wintry night.

As he brought the baby into his arms, a single piece of paper falls out from the blue blanket bundling the little infant. He quickly snatches it up before bringing the baby inside and up to his room, leaving the basket on the floor by his bed.

He sat himself down in front of the fireplace and let the warmth surround the young child, smiling softly when the baby stirs awake and gazes at him with bright, blue eyes.

"Aww, hello there, buddy." Emile coos, emitting a soft gurgle from the child. He readjusted the glasses on his face before reading the content of the note he had found.

"Name: Logan
Age: 3 and a half weeks old
Gender: Male

Please take care of my child.

Due to the lack of financial income and a proper living environment, I have decided to leave my little Logan within your care. I know you are more than capable of giving him the life he deserves, just please, be cautious of his... abilities.

Thank you.

~ Elizabeth F."

Emile frowned in confusion at the last bit.

Abilities? What does she mean-

His trail of thought is suddenly interrupted by a cool breeze blowing past him and a thin sheet of ice beginning to cover his bedroom's window.

He looked down at the infant in his arms with wide but wonder-filled eyes. The baby, Logan, giggled at him but stopped when his face scrunched up and he let out the cutest little sneeze Emile has ever heard, a single snowflake appearing right before his eyes.

By that, the orphanage owner now understood what Logan's mother meant from her note.

Logan possessed magic.

And he must be protected.

Both from the world, and himself.

Chapter Text

-2 years later-

Emile rushes around the orphanage looking like an absolute mad man as he tries chasing after the two orphans who think they're playing a game of tag with him while, at the same time, reprimanding the other two.

"Kai, honey! Get down from there! You might hurt yourself!"

"Elliott, please put away your toys before someone accidentally steps on them!"

"Corbin! Sloane! You two are really giving me the work out I so desperately need but please, for the love of all things sweet and pure, stop runni- oH DEAR!"

Emile braces himself for impact as he loses his footing and slides across a wet puddle of, what seems to be, orange juice.

"Hey Emmy, do you have a sec- OH SHOOT HOLD ON!"

Instead of hitting the wall, Emile crashes into a pile of pillows that were, thankfully, conjured up just in time to save him from most likely a bruised elbow and a concussion.

"You alright, Em?" The voice of his savior asks, holding out a hand to help pull him up from the mass of soft pillows.

A relieved sigh escapes the orphanage owner as he nods and accepts the hand, heaving himself up and dusting off his clothes before finally facing the man in front of him.

"Thanks for the save, Thomas." A grateful smile etches upon Emile's face at seeing his mage friend, "The kids are beginning to be a handful these days, I tell ya."

"O-oh, is that so?" Thomas stutters out and awkwardly looks down at the bundle in his arms. Emile follows his gaze and gasps at the sight.

"Now who do we have here?"

Thomas let's out a sigh and smiles weakly before answering, "This is Patton. My son, Roman, found him by our house, hidden in the bushes." He explains, "Enrique and I would have loved to take him in but... There are certain rules us mages must obey. One of those being we are prohibited to house a non-magic user."

Emile nods in understanding, "How are you and the family, by the way?"

"We're doing great, actually. Enrique and I are still very much in love, and Roman is-"

"Papaaaaaa!!!" Thomas cringes at his son's loud screeching.

"Roman Nicholas Sanders! What have I told you about screaming in public places?"

"T-to not scweam in pubwic pwaces." The mage's one year old mutters as he toddles over to his father.

Emile chuckles lightly and casts his gaze over to where Roman had screamed, finding a shy Logan peaking out from behind the stairs' banister, looking unsure of what to do.

"Oh! Hey, Lo-Lo! Come over here and say hello to your uncle Thomas and his son, Roman."

Logan stares at the two strangers timidly but does as told, slowly walking over to Emile and standing just behind the adult's leg.

"Hello, uncle Thomas... Roman." The two year old greets with a small wave.

Realization sets upon Thomas' face as he recalls Emile mentioning an orphan with abilities from the last time they talked.

"So you're little Logan, hmm? Nice to meet you, bud." Thomas waves a hand towards Logan, emitting a few sparkles from the base of his palm which emits a gasp from the two year old.

"You have magic, too?" The boy says with his mouth gaping in awe, never having encountered anyone else who possessed magical abilities as he.

"Ooh! Ooh! Can I, Papa? Pweaseeee?" Roman turns to his father and begs with his big, doe green eyes.

A sigh escapes the older mage but he nods towards his son, granting him permission to use his magic.

"YES!" The young boy exclaims as he shoots Logan an excited smile before throwing his hands up towards the ceiling, a variety of flowers appearing in mid air accompanied with a red, glittery glow.

"Whoa..." Little Logan stares in awe at the pretty display of Roman's magic.

"Ooohhh!" Another voice speaks up, but it was smaller and clearly did not belong to anyone in the room except-

"Oh hey, Pattycake." Thomas coos at the infant still cradled in his arms, the baby showing much interest towards the bright colors of Roman's magic demonstration.

"Is that a baby?" Logan asks, craning his neck upwards to get a view of the bundle in Thomas' arms. The mage notices the boy's curiosity and bends down so the child could get a better look.

"Ooh, that's Patty! I fwound him in bushes!" Roman pipes up, walking over to stand beside Logan to gaze at the baby in his Papa's arms.

"His name's actually Patton, but we like using nicknames for him like Patty or Pattycake." Thomas adds to his son's explanation.

Little Logan hums in contemplation before bringing one of his hands up, allowing a single snowflake to appear on the palm of his small hand. The act emits an overjoyed giggle from Patton as he stares at the snowflake, then to Logan in such wonder.

"Looks like these two already like each other, Emmy." Thomas softly says, not wanting to disrupt the precious moment being shared between Logan and Patton.

"It seems so..." Emile replies, but looks to be deep in thought.

"What do you say? You alright with taking in one more kiddo? I'll gladly provide you certain baby necessities if it'll help-"

"Thomas, you are really persuasive, you know that?"

A gasp leaves the mage's mouth as a grin creeps up on his face, "So, is that a yes?"

Emile gestures to Logan and Patton still bonding, "I can't separate these two now, can I?"

"Thank you so much, Em! I promise to come by more often to help-"

"Uh... Papa?" Roman's voice cuts off his father's rambling.

The smiles that were once plastered on the adults faces immediately disappear the second they see the mess that is Roman, covered in white feathers that were most likely from the pile of pillows still littered against the wall.

"Hehe... Oopsie?"

Thomas all but smiles at him tiredly as Emile lightly laughs and places a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"He's quite the handful, hmm?"

"Oh you don't know the half of it."

Chapter Text

~4 years later~

As the years went by, the bond between little Logan and Patton only strengthened. Both boys have developed a certain fondness for one another. In fact, they will literally refuse to be separated from the other's side.

Emile's heart warmed at the pure happiness radiating off of the two whenever he would see them together. Even Thomas could see that both boys completed one another. He visited more often like he promised, providing his friend a helping hand in managing the orphanage while also looking after the kids.

Roman would tag along everytime his father would visit Mr. Picani. He loved playing with the orphans, especially Patton and Logan since they barely had an age gap. Their constant play-dates resulted in all three of them becoming the best of buds.

"Do the magic! Do the magic! Pleeeaaase!" A now four year old Patton pleads with his signature pouty face and puppy dog eyes.

Logan and Roman share a look before smiling and shooting their hands up, letting their magic do their thing.

A mix of snowflakes and flowers danced in the air, filling the area they were in with a cool and fragrant atmosphere.

"Oooh! This is amazing!" Patton squeals in delight, pulling both Logan and Roman by the hands so they could dance around together.

Their laughter resonated throughout the small area they claimed as their own. A place hidden away from the public eye, but not too far off from both Emile and Thomas' residency.

Due to the orphanage and some of the orphans being planned to be adopted, Emile couldn't stay and watch over them, so Thomas casted a spell around the small area, creating a translucent barrier that prohibited anyone other than the kids to enter or even step a foot in their playing ground. The mage would gladly watch over them himself, but he had important matters to take care of.

"Watch this, Pat!" Roman calls out to the younger, getting his attention easily as he waved his hands around to create two small dogs that yipped excitedly once their paws touched the ground.

"Oh... My... Gosh! Puppies!!!" Patton shrieks, turning into a giggling mess when the pups bounded over to him and attacked his face with licks.

"You're getting really good at that." Logan comments, making the young mage smile widely.

"Thank you, Logan. My Papa is a pretty good teacher."

"What about uncle Enrique?"

Roman makes an 'eh' expression before answering, "Father is quite strict when it comes to teaching me magic. He wants me to know all sorts of defense mechanisms and attacks because..."

Logan faces his friend with a concerned look when he all of a sudden trails off, "Roman, you don't have to tell me-"

"No, no, it's alright. You might as well know." The young mage sighs before continuing, "It happened when my Papa was still pregnant with me. A mysterious smoke-being attacked him and Father after one of their... Uh, meetings, I think?"

Logan nodded for him to continue while also keeping an eye on little Patton, the bubbly boy still playing with the puppies Roman conjured up a few feet away from them.

"Father tried fighting off the strange creature with his magic, but he only knew a few attack spells at the time. When the thing took him down, it immediately went after my Papa and started to suck out his life force."

Logan gasps, taking in all the information told by his friend.

"If it weren't for Mr. Starr, me and my Papa wouldn't be alive today..." Roman feels two arms wrap around his waist, and when he turns to see who was doing it, he finds Patton looking up at him sadly.

"Why are you sad, Ro-Ro?"

A small smile forms on the five year old's lips, "I'm not sad, Patty."

Patton huffs and shakes his head, "Yes, you are."

"No point in lying to him, Roman. He knows exactly when someone is feeling down." Logan informs.

So Roman told Patton what he had previously explained to Logan, the younger actually understanding everything he was saying and even provided him comfort via his warm Patton hugs.

"If you don't mind me asking, Roman, who's Mr. Starr?" The eldest of the three questions.

"He's apparently a dear friend of my dads. I haven't met him yet, but I hope I can soon. I'd like to thank him for helping my Father save my Papa an-"

"AAHHHHHHHH!!!" A high pitched scream startles Roman and Logan.

They frantically look around and gasp when they find their youngest best friend being pulled out of the safety barrier by a-

"That-... That's the thing that tried to k-kill my Papa." Roman shakily breathes out, remembering the image his Father projected with his powers as he told him the story.

"Hold on, Patton!" Logan shouts, running towards his friend and taking a firm grip on both his wrists.

The young mage finally snaps out of his thoughts and uses one of the attack spells his Father had taught him. He hits the thing a few times, being careful not to harm Patton in doing so. Thankfully, after the sixth hit, the thing lets go of the younger's leg, causing both Logan and Patton to stumble back.

Logan accidentally lets go of the younger boy's wrists and tries to reach for him again before he ends up falling right into a pile of rocks.

Time seemed to go in slow motion as Logan's magic acted up out of sudden panic, hitting Patton on the head which caused him to pass out before he could even hit the ground.

Seeing the boy collapse on the soft, green grass instead of the sharp-looking rocks only a few feet away doesn't settle the nerves and dread the older boy is feeling.

"P-Patton?" Logan stutters as tears begin to well-up in his eyes, "Patty, come on, wake up. Wake up, please!"

Roman had a hand over his mouth at what he had witnessed, but he knew they couldn't stay here, so with a determined look, he kneels down next to Logan and places a hand on his shoulder, "We have to bring him to my Papa, he'll know what to do."

With a sad nod, Logan braces himself and holds Patton close to him as Roman teleports them to his house. The second they appear, Thomas rushes out of his study with a serious expression.

"I felt the safety barrier falter, what happened?"

"We got attacked by the smoke figure..." The older mage visibly pales at the mention of the creature.

Roman briefs his Papa on what had happened to them before gesturing to Patton, "Logan didn't mean to hit him with his magic..." The six year old nodded in agreement but felt guilty nonetheless.

"Please, Papa, can you help him?"

Thomas furrows his brows in deep thought before nodding and pointing to the couch, "I'll do my best."

Roman watched his Papa work with steady hands and closed eyes, a light pink aura emitting from his hands as he did so.

Logan had his head bowed down as his mind was plagued with sadness, worry, and most of all... Guilt.

Thomas finishes healing Patton, but he had a sad look on his face.

"Is he okay now, Papa?" Roman asks softly.

"Yes... But I had to erase all his memories that were traced with magic."

Logan looks up at Thomas once hearing that, "So uh, he won't remember we have magic?"

"I'm afraid so, Logan." Thomas sighs, "It's for the best, I promise. We mustn't let Patton –or any none-magic user for that matter– know about what we possess. You both are still too young to know of the reason why, but trust me when I say that it is for all of our safety."

The young boys nodded in understanding, swearing to keep their magic unknown to Patton.

"Okay, that's go-"

"Thomas! My love, we have a problem." Roman's Father, Enrique, appears in the room looking frantic.

"Let me get the kids to safety first." Thomas tells him, before turning to Roman, "Honey, I want you to stay with your uncle Emile for the night, okay? Your Father and I need you safe while we handle things, alright?"

"Okay..." The young Sanders son replies.

"Your Papa and I love you very much, Roman. Never forget that."

Roman weakly smiles at that, "I love you and Papa, too Father."

"Be safe, my little prince."

Thomas kisses his son's forehead, letting his lips linger there for a moment before teleporting him, Logan and Patton right in front of the orphanage.

Roman had Patton in his arms when Mr. Picani opened the door, the older man gasping at the sight of one of his kiddos looking paler than usual and is passed out.

"Lo-Lo, what happened?" Emile asks in concern, but doesn't get a reply as the young boy only walks past him, looking conflicted with himself.

"It's a long story, Mr. Picani." Roman answers instead.

The older man gently takes Patton from the boy's arms and ushers him inside, allowing him to slowly fill him in on the previous events.

Once Emile had Patton tucked in his bed, he lead Roman to a spare room right beside Logan's, "Get some shut eye, kiddo. Thank you for telling me."

Roman smiles at the older man as he changed into his pyjamas with a wave of his hand, "You're welcome, Mr. Picani."

Chapter Text

~15 years later~

Ever since the incident, Logan and Patton's bond slowly withered away. The once inseparable duo now couldn't even be in the same room as the other.

Patton, like Thomas said, had no recollection of anything magic-related, so he was confused and evidently hurt when his dear friend avoided him like some sort of sickness.

He tried getting the older boy to play with him, but his efforts were never successful. He didn't even know why Logan became so distant towards him. Did he do something wrong? Was it something he said?

He. Didn't. Know.

Patton was just thankful that Roman remained close with him, although he seemed to be more cautious around him.

Currently, the now nineteen year old sat at the front desk of the orphanage– well, not really an orphanage anymore. By the time all the orphans were taken home by their new families, Mr. Picani decided to become a therapist, holding therapy sessions in the renovated children's room– now his office.

And before you ask, no. Emile couldn't bear parting with his two little kiddos (not so little anymore), so he took them under his wing and became their official guardian.

The bell at the door jingled loudly, making Patton snap his head up towards its direction to see who had arrived.

"Oh! You must be the couple Mr. Picani was talking about!" Patton flashes them a bright smile, "Dot and Larry, yes?"

"That's us, dear." The woman nods, returning his smile, "We scheduled an appointment with him today. Can you point us to where the session will be held?" She asks, linking her arm with her husband's.

"Of course! Just head down that hallway over there and turn left, you won't miss it." Patton gives the directions with much enthusiasm.

Nodding gratefully, the couple began walking towards Mr./Doctor Picani's office, leaving the bubbly teen by himself again. Well, until a boisterous voice startles him from his seat.

"Oh, shoot! Sorry, Pat." Roman apologizes quickly, helping the younger up.

"It's alright, Ro." Patton waves his hand dismissively, shooting the boy a reassuring smile, "I thought you were auditioning for a play today?"

"Ah, yes. About that..." Roman let's out a nervous laugh, "I um, backed out."

"You? Back out?"

Patton couldn't believe his ears. He knew how much Roman loved being onstage, his passion for singing and acting made him a perfect candidate for musicals and such.

"It pained me to do it, truly, but my parents are in need of some assistance in their business so... Who am I to refuse helping them?" The twenty year old mage thanked the heavens that he was such a good actor, making it easier for him to lie about the real reason.

"I see your point, Ro. Family must always come first." Patton says, smiling understandingly, "So why are you here? Did you forget something?"

"No... I kind of– um... need to talk to Logan."

"...Oh." The younger teen's expression changes at the mention of his name.

Roman saw the frown forming on Patton's lips and immediately wrapped him in a hug.

"Hey, come on now, Pat. You know he doesn't hate you, right?"

"Then why does he avoid me?" Patton whispers sadly, willing himself not to cry.

The young mage couldn't help but feel pity for his friend, wanting desperately to just tell him everything but... He couldn't allow him to get involved in the situation he and all magic users are going to face.

"To protect you." He mutters quietly.
______

By the time the sun had set, sessions were finally over, and Patton could finally take a break from his job at the front desk. Logan had most likely finished doing the paperwork a few hours ago, so Patton wouldn't be surprised if he's locked himself in his room again.

Both boys wanted to help out Mr. Picani, even though the older man insisted they didn't have to. So after much persistence, he caved in and gave the two boys jobs. One managing the front desk while the other handled paperwork.

"Hiya, kiddo." Emile greets, still in his semi-formal attire which was basically a beige cardigan over a white button up shirt, a pink tie, brown slacks, and dress shoes.

"Heya, Mr. Picani. How does beef stroganoff for dinner sound?"

Emile gasps in delight, "That sounds delicious, kiddo."

"Better get to cooking then-"

"Oh! Greetings, uncle Emile! Hi again, Patton." Roman says as he descends down the stairs. His conversation with Logan must have been really serious if it took almost 2 hours for them to finish.

Patton wondered why they didn't want to include him in their discussion.

"Roman! Good to see you, bud!" The therapist gushes, pulling the teen in for a hug. Roman chuckles and returns the sweet gesture.

Neither of the two, nor Patton, notice the dark figure now looming in the shadows.

"How are your dads, hmm? Haven't heard from them in weeks!"

"They're okay, uncle Emmy. If not a bit stressed is all."

Emile hums in understanding, "That's to be expected. Don't worry, Roman, once the issue is taken care of, you guys won't have to struggle for much longe-"

"AAHHHHHHH!!! ROMAN! MR. PICANI! HELP!!!"

Roman and Emile snap their heads towards Patton and gasp.

The nineteen year old was struggling in the grasp of the smoke-being, it's long, sharp fingers digging into the teen's arms, causing him to scream in agony.

"LET GO OF HIM, MONSTER!" Roman shouts in anger, his hands glowing a fiery red as his magic acted up on instinct.

A low grumble sounded from the thing's mouth as it breathed out a nasty green gas, causing Patton, Roman, and Emile to fall unconscious in seconds.

The smoke-being disappeared, just as Logan reaches the foot of the stairs, looking horrified out of his mind.

"NOOOOOOO!!!"

---

This is what the smoke-being looks like:

Yes it's a dementor but in this story it's called a smoke-being/smoke creature. You'll learn more about it further into the story.

Chapter Text

"NOOOOOOO!!!" Logan screams as tears rolled down his face, a clear memory of what he and Roman talked about a few minutes ago replaying itself in his head.

---

"Logan, we're not safe anymore! Not only will society try to get rid of us, but the smoke-being that attacked my Papa and Patton is somewhere out there mercilessly killing our kind!"

"Then what do you propose we do, Roman?"

A look of determination crosses the mage's face, "If we can't fight them off, then the best course of action we can take is to go into hiding." Roman proclaims. "We can take refuge in my parents' safe house."

"But-... But what about P-Patton and Mr. Picani? We can't just leave them." Logan's eyes fill with sorrow at the thought of leaving behind his friend and guardian.

"They'll only be in danger if we stay here. It's only till we're safe, okay? From both society and that smoke-creature."

The twenty-one year old hesitated, but knew his friend had a point, so he reluctantly agreed.

"...Fine."

"Okay, good. I'll come by to get you tomorrow. We can just say my parents offered you a job in their business so Patton doesn't get suspicious."

Logan could only nod sadly, "I hate lying to him, I really do. But if it's to keep him safe, then so be it."

---

A million thoughts raced through Logan's mind as he panicked, unsure of what to say, do, or think.

"Lo? Ngh, what's wrong, kiddo?" Emile speaks up as he regains consciousness, seeming to have forgotten what had went down not even a few minutes ago.

"He-... I-... Shit. He's gone. It took him. He's GONE!"

"Who's gone, Logan?!" Roman cries out impatiently, also seeming to have forgotten what had happened.

"PATTON. Whoever and whatever that being was TOOK PATTON and I-..." The older teen's knees buckle under him as his emotions took over, "I feel so guilty for shutting him out all those years!" He sobs.

At hearing the words that left Logan's mouth, realization suddenly dawns upon both mage and therapist.

"Oh, my poor boy!" Emile places a hand over his mouth to suppress a gasp, but wasn't able to stop the tears that were streaming down his face.

Roman cursed under his breath, angered at himself for not being able to stop the smoke-being from taking away his friend.

"We can get him back, Specs." The mage says, kneeling next to his sobbing friend, "Patton needs us."

A beat of silence passed before Logan looks up at Roman with determination, "...Then we mustn't waste any more time. I need to get to him and apologize... Before it's too late."

Roman nods sadly, "Come on, we have to get to my parents. They'll most likely know where that monster is."

______

"Absolutely not, Roman."

"But Father! It took Patton!" Roman argues, but his Father wasn't having it.

"Roman, it's too dangerous!"

Thomas sighs and interjects, "I'll go with him."

Enrique turns his head towards his husband, looking at him as if he were crazy, "Thomas, no."

"Patton is in troubl-"

"And you will, too if you go on this expedition to go find him! Thomas, dear, please understand that I can't let you or our son do this. I almost lost you once, I won't let that happen again and end up almost losing Roman, too." Enrique's voice got quieter at the end, but Thomas heard every single word and how pained it sounded.

"I know, hun, but-"

Someone clearing their throat catches the attention of both adults. Roman and Logan were already looking towards the person who did so.

"I'm surprised you two haven't asked me for help with your dilemma." The man wearing sunglasses indoors says nonchalantly before taking a sip from his coffee, "I gotcha covered, Thomathy."

"Er... Papa?" Roman says in a questioning tone, side-eyeing the man who looked to have no care in the world.

"Oh! Let me introduce you to-"

"Remy Starr, at your service." The man, Remy, finishes with a smirk.

Thomas and Enrique glance at one another skeptically, unsure of whether they could allow their son and Logan to go off with their friend or not.

Remy senses their unease and sighs, disposing his empty cup of coffee with a snap of his fingers, "I get that you're scared, alright? But the two of you need to stay here to manage the facility. Our kind is being hunted down and killed by the government. I'll keep these kids safe while I help them rescue their friend from that smoke-...person thing-?"

"His name is Fumus." Another voice says. This time it belonged to a mage wearing a dark hoodie with an orange beanie on their head.

"You know him, Joan?" Thomas asks questioningly.

"No, but I've read about him." They reply, "Apparently Fumus used to be a King named Josef during the medieval times." Joan casually shrugs as they continue, "Due to his constant hunger for power, he became corrupt and mentally unstable. He died from falling into a deep fiery pit of fire. It was said to be an accident, but the people knew otherwise. A brave wizard who wielded the element air pushed Josef in with a harsh gust of wind, sending the King to his burning hot doom. The kingdom thought they had ridden him for good, but they had failed to realize that he possessed dark magic."

Everyone listened to the non-binary mage intently.

"His body may have turned to ashes, but his spirit remained and took the form of the smoke that was produced by the fire. He planned to continue his reign, but found that he was locked out by a barrier that prohibited any dark entity to enter the kingdom's grounds. All he could do was watch as the wizard responsible for his death became the new King, and he vowed to avenge his honor by killing every single family the wizard had, till there wasn't anyone left."

"...That's fucking messed up." Remy says after a few seconds, breaking the silence they were once left in.

"Why does he kill other magic-users?" Logan questions.

"To gain power and keep himself alive. By sucking the life forces out of people like us, he's able to strengthen himself and his smoke-form."

Thomas gulps, visibly shaking at the information shared by his friend. He and Enrique would go save Patton themselves, but there was a factor holding them back from doing so. He himself almost forgot about it; their presence is needed in the facility. They keep the whole area hidden with their magic, so if one of them were to leave, it would weaken and make them easier to hunt down.

"Uncle Thomas, believe me when I say that I am aware of all the risks and dangers that may come with rescuing Patton, but I cannot just stay here and allow Fumus to take away my dearest friend that I've been neglecting for years... I need to get him back." Logan begs desperately, "I want to apologize for making him feel like I never cared about him because in truth, I do. Very deeply, actually." He confessed with a small blush.

Roman smiles sadly at his friend, remembering the many conversations they had about Logan's blooming feelings towards the younger teen.

"And I'm going with him because Patton is my friend, too. He's practically my own little brother." The young mage tells his parents.

Enrique and Thomas sigh, knowing there was nothing they could do to change the teens' minds.

"...Alright," Enrique finally gives in, "Remy, I am entrusting you to keep these boys safe."

"I'll protect them with all my being, Ricky." Remy swears, walking over to Roman and Logan, "They're in good hands."

Thomas quickly pulls his son in for a hug, unable to hold back his tears as he says, "I love you, my sweet prince. Take care, alright?"

Roman nods, feeling a warm sensation course through his veins before he pulls away to lock eyes with his Papa.

"I love you more, Papa."

"I love you most."

Chapter Text

"Listen up, you two." Remy halts to a stop and faces the teens with a serious look.

They had left the safe house not so long ago. Joan had strictly warned them not to teleport due to Fumus being able to sense when one steps foot in his territory using magic, so they had no choice but to trek there on foot.

"This Fumus dude? He isn't an easy opponent." The older mage admits with a shake of his head, "It took me more than just a few strikes to get him away from Thomas that one time. I need you both to stay out of danger at all costs, you hear me?"

Roman and Logan nod in understanding.

"Alright, good. Now let's get back on track."

The three continue forth with their mission, being wary of their surroundings to make sure no one was watching or following them.

Remy claims they're getting closer to Fumus' lair when he notices the sudden change of scenery. The moon's light did little to help them see the path clearly as they kept walking through the fog clouded forest.

Logan had been deep in thought when he accidentally bumps into Mr. Starr's back, resulting for him to stumble into Roman who, thankfully, steadied him to prevent him from falling on the ground.

"Why'd you suddenly stop, Mr. Starr?" The young Sanders son asks.

"Sh... I heard something." Remy hushes, slowly taking off his sunglasses to survey the area.

Trees. Trees. Dirt. Moss. Puddle. Wolf. Trees– wait

"Don't. Move." He tells the teens behind him while keeping a close eye on the growling animal that began creeping towards them, its teeth sharp and fully on display as its eyes glowed an odd color of purple and yellow.

Taking a careful step back, Remy readies his hands for when the wolf suddenly advances.

But it doesn't.

At seeing the green aura summoned by the older mage, the wolf visibly let's out a relieved sigh before transforming into a human wearing a green turtle neck and black jeans.

"Oh thank goodness, you're magic-users." He says in a quite deep yet sophisticated voice.

"And you are...?" Roman questions, taking a step forward towards the stranger.

Instead of answering with his name, the guy replies with, "Needing your h-help." His voice cracks at the end of his sentence.

"With what, exactly?" Remy cuts in, putting his sunglasses back.

"M-my younger brother... He's been taken by that wretched smoke-creature!"

Remy, Logan, and Roman glance at one another with sudden panic, then returning their gazes to the shapeshifter who was staring at them helplessly.

"Please... He's the only family I have left! I can't lose him..." The desperation in the stranger's voice was enough to make Logan agree to helping him.

He knew what it felt like to lose a loved one after all.

"Alright, you may join us."

The guy looked up at Logan with a relieved, teary smile, but it quickly fell at hearing him say "join us".

"Was someone taken away from you, too?" He asks softly.

Logan sighs and nods his head sadly, approaching the guy who looked to be a bit older than he by a few years.

"Yes... And like you, I would do anything to get him back."

Remy interrupts them by mentioning how they needed to get going, so with a burst of determination, they continue their walk with a new companion alongside them.

As they walked, the trio introduced themselves before asking their new-found accomplice some questions so it would seem less like they were traveling with a complete stranger.

"My name is Demetri Janus Lancaster." The guy starts off, looking down at his feet while doing so, "I'm twenty-five years old and live with my younger brother, Virgil, who's eighteen."

"If you don't mind me asking, kid, what happened to your parents?" Remy questions.

"Society happened." Demetri's voice suddenly became deadly as he spoke, "I was ten– whereas Virgil was three –when our parents got killed before our eyes... I knew I couldn't let them hurt my little brother, so I shifted into my wolf form and had him hold on to me as I ran as far away from those evil men as possible... I became more than just his brother by then. I was his mother, his father, and his guardian..." A look of sorrow and guilt overcame Demetri's face as he continued.

"It was me and him against the world for fourteen years... All it took was a heated argument that made my brother run off and–... I was too late to have stopped the smoke-creature from taking him away from me..."

Logan thinks about Demetri's situation and comes to realize how similar yet different it was from his own with Patton.

One thing was for certain though.

They needed to get them back.

Before it's too late...

______

When Patton came to, he found himself trapped in a dark and eerie looking cave.

His wrists and ankles were in shackles and he had no clue to how he had gotten here nor why he was here in the first place.

Squinting in the dark, the nineteen year-old searches for any sign of life, a frightened look plastered on his face.

Surely he wasn't left here all alone, right?

Patton was going to try pulling at his restraints but a cloud of dark smoke suddenly appeared right before his eyes, a ghost-creature-thing smirking down at him.

"Ah, you're awake." It– er... He said.

"Wh-... Who are you? Why am I here?" The young teen attempts to interrogate.

The thing chuckled and shook his head, "You're pathetic, little boy."

"Hey! That's not nice!" Patton shouts back, a pout forming on his lips, "I'm a little lost here, uh... Sir, and I would like to know why I'm chained up in this... Place."

Narrowing his eyes, the smoke-being inched closer towards the nineteen year old and stared at him with such intensity Patton thought he would have been obliterated by it.

"You, young foolish one, are to die a painful death just as I did."

"WHAT?!" Patton shrieked, his eyes widening in fear, "What did I ever do to you?!"

"It is not of your doing, child, but the cruel fate I had to endure because of your ancestor. The wizard who overthrew me and has taken what was rightfully mine. The wizard who I vowed to take vengeance on by taking down every last trace of his bloodline... And luckily, you are the last descendant I will need to kill before ruling over this land once more!" The dark being cackled evilly, sending chills down Patton's spine.

Wizard? Vengeance? Rule?

What the hell did Patton miss out on?

"You know, I could simply kill you by taking away your life-force, but what's the fun in that? You are, after all, the last descent to face my wrath so, I might as well make it long and insufferable."

The young teen gasps when a boy his age appears next to him, shackled up like himself but unconscious.

"Enjoy your last few hours of living, Patton, because once I come back, your life will finally come to an end."

Fumus disappears, leaving Patton a complete and utter mess.

So much is happening so quickly, he barely has enough time to process what was going on or what to feel at that moment.

Magic is real?

His ancestor was a wizard?

Does... Does that mean he has magic, too?

All that new and surprising information made Patton's head hurt just from thinking about them.

All he could do was hope and pray that someone– anyone, was coming to his rescue because...

He still hadn't confessed his feelings to Logan, yet.

---

Here's what Janus and Virgil look like:

Chapter Text

Patton leaned his head against the cave's rough surfaced wall, eyes closed and mind swirling with a bunch of questions he might not even get the answers to.

What does he do now?

Wait for his impending doom?

Attempt to escape?

He doesn't know what to do...

If-... If Logan were with him. The intelligent twenty-one year old would have thought of a plan by now and he and Patton would've been out of the situation in no time.

But to the younger's unfortune, he wasn't.

Patton wondered if Logan was coming to his rescue. Would he care enough to do that? Risk his life for someone who he barely even talks to? Roman always reminded him that the older boy does care, but Patton was struggling to believe that.

They were so close back then, what changed?

His memories may be a bit messed up, but he knows that Logan was always there for him. The smiles, the laughs, the cuddles... Those were all real. He's sure of it.

Whatever happened that made Logan drift away from him, he hoped it was for a good cause.

What was it that Roman said?

"To protect you"

He had a feeling he wasn't supposed to hear that, but he did anyway.

To protect me? From what? Patton questioned to himself.

His trail of thought was then suddenly interrupted by a groan that came from beside him.

Oh yeah, the boy.

He turned his head to look at him, seeing him whimper when his eyes caught on to the sight of shackles on both his wrists and ankles.

"W-what? Why am I– " A horrified gasp escapes the boy at realizing something, "Oh no... No no no no no oh my god I shouldn't have run off oh fuck–"

"Hey, take a deep breath, pal." Patton cuts him off, tentatively reaching a hand out so he could somehow comfort the panicking boy next to him.

"W-who are you?!" The anxious teen stared at Patton in frantic confusion, "I– ... I can't be here! I need to get back to my brother!"

"You need to calm down first, buddy. Come on, breath with me, in for four... Hold for seven... Out for eight... That's it, keep going." Patton needed to thank Elliott for teaching him that breathing technique, "My name's Patton, by the way. Would it be alright if I know yours?"

"I– um... I'm Virgil."

______

"Thomas?" Joan calls out, weaving through the crowded area of the safe house in search of their friend. They needed to talk with him about doubling the safety barrier due to the increase of refugees they were taking in.

There were at least a hundred magic-users in the facility if Joan were to guess, all ranging from mages, witches, and wizards, to faes, shapeshifters, and elementals. A few of them having lost friends and/or family to the cruel hands of the government.

The non-binary mage had to hand it to both Thomas and Enrique for doing everything they can to save the remaining of their kind. If it weren't for them, they'd all be goners.

Looking around once more, Joan spots Enrique by the entrance, looking to be monitoring the safety barrier with his magic.

"Yo, Ricky!"

The other mage snaps his head towards the direction of Joan's voice with alertness, but once seeing their calm demeanor, he visibly relaxes and gestures them over.

"Hey, Joan. You need anything?"

"Well, I was looking for your husband a few seconds ago to tell him about doubling the safety barrier, but it seems to me you've already done the job."

Enrique nods, "Yeah, I noticed it faltering around noon. No need to worry now, though, the barrier's been doubled and is sure to be stable for another week or so. So long as Thomas and I are here to maintain it."

"Speaking of Thomas, where is he?" Joan came to ask, "I haven't seen him around the safe house like usual..."

"He might be on the rooftop getting some air. Might be best to leave him to it." Enrique answers with a hint of sadness, and the non-binary mage could tell why.

"I take it that he isn't quite handling well the separation anxiety from Roman?"

Nodding with a sigh, Enrique averts his gaze to the mass of people occupying the facility, each being different from the other. From height, to age, to magical capability and strength– all had one thing in common: they're here to be safe.

And safe they shall be.

______

Thomas breathes in deeply through his nose and tries relaxing his mind. After a few seconds, he exhales slowly through his mouth and lets his body slouch once more, not caring if he'll get a backache due to how long he's been sat on the roof like that.

Ever since his son left to help save Patton, he's been worrying about him like a stressed mother hen. The thought of him never coming back makes Thomas sick to the stomach.

Pulling out something from his jacket, the mage smiles sadly at the picture of him holding a little baby Roman, wrapped up in a red blanket and cradled in Thomas' loving arms. Enrique had taken the picture without him noticing because, at that moment, he was focused on lulling their son to sleep. And what better way for him to do so than singing to him.

~FLASHBACK~

"THOMAS!" Enrique calls out while bouncing a crying baby in his arms.

Said mage exits the kitchen and gasps at the sight of his disheveled husband and sobbing child.

"Oh, honey... Here, let me take him." Thomas says, carefully taking Roman from Enrique. Immediately, the child's crying settled down to quiet whimpers.

Enrique sighs sadly but smiles in relief, admiring how well his husband is at soothing their son.

"He likes you more than me, Thomas."

Thomas shakes his head at that, "No. He loves us both equally. Right, my little prince?"

Baby Roman only looks at his Papa with teary eyes and a runny nose.

Cooing at his son, Thomas begins singing to him softly as he summons a handkerchief to wipe at little Roman's cheeks and nose.

"Baby mine, don't you cry...

Baby mine, dry your eyes...

Rest your head close to my heart,

Never to part,

Baby of mine..."

All while he did so, Enrique watched on lovingly.

Thomas swayed from side to side, keeping his eyes locked with Roman's as he continued the song. He faintly hears a click of a camera but didn't pay much mind to it, too focused on getting his son to sleep.

"From your head to your toes...

You're so sweet, goodness knows...

You are so precious to me,

Cute as can be,

Baby of mine..."

By the time he finished the song, little Roman was already fast asleep with a peaceful look on his face.

"I love you, my little prince." Thomas quietly whispers, pressing a gentle kiss to his son's forehead, feeling so much warmth and love swell up within him.

~End of FLASHBACK~

Thomas allows a single tear to roll down his cheek as he holds the picture close to his heart.

"I will do everything I can to keep you safe, my little prince." The loving father promises. He was thankful that no one noticed him cast a monitoring spell on Roman when they hugged. It would help him keep track of Roman's whereabouts and inform him when he's in danger.

Call him overprotective all you want, no one messes with his son.

Like he said, he will do everything he can to keep him safe.

"Even if it kills me..."

---

This is what the safe house looks like:

Chapter Text

It had been a few minutes after Virgil had calmed down. Patton's presence seemed to have eased his nerves as he slowly regains a steady breathing pattern again.

"It's nice to meet you, Virgil." The nineteen year old says, a light chuckle escaping his throat, "I wish it were in better circumstances, though."

"Y-yeah, me too."

Virgil's eyes flicker to his restraints, then to the one's on Patton, and he wonders how the other ended up in this place.

"Did the smoke-creature take you, too?"

"Yeah... I'm apparently going to be killed for the actions of my ancestor." Patton answers with a shrug.

Not that he wasn't fazed by it– He's terrified out of his mind! But the situation didn't make all that much sense to him yet. He blames his own lack of knowledge in both magic and his own origin.

The younger teen's breath hitches at the familiarity of Patton's situation.

He knows that story...

"You– ...you're a descendant? Of the wizard?"

"I mean, that's what I was told..." Patton answers back, "I was orphaned as an infant, so I've never really known my parents, nor do I know the entirety of my family tree."

Virgil's eyes soften at Patton's sudden confession, "I'm sorry." He says, bowing his head low. The nineteen year old though was quick to assure him that it was fine and that he didn't really feel any sadness towards it. After all, he got to grow up under the roof of a caring guardian alongside his dearest friend, so why should he worry about what he could have had when everything he ever wanted was with Mr. Picani and Logan? Might as well include Roman and his fathers.

"What about you, Virgil? Where's your family?"

Said teen kept his eyes downcast when he answered.

"Both my parents are dead. Demetri is the only family I have left..."

"Demetri is your brother, right?"

"Yeah..."

Patton, being the optimist that he is, smiles reassuringly at the other boy, "Don't be sad, Virgil, I bet your brother is on his way to save you right now!"

"Ugh, that's the thing! I don't even know if he is coming to save me!"

"Oh don't be silly, he's your brother!"

Virgil shakes his head and tries burying himself deeper into his hoodie, "I'm sure he's happy that I'm gone... All I ever was to him was a burden anyway..."

The nineteen year old frowns at that, "How are you so sure about that?"

"B-because I am!" a single tear rolls down the young shapeshifter's face as he explains why, "He's always the one looking out for me. And whenever I try to do the same for him, he gets mad!"

Patton nods and remains calm as Virgil vents to him.

"I just don't understand why he won't let me do things on my own... I'm not a kid anymore! I can handle myself..."

"I'm sure you can, Virgil." Patton starts off, "But have you ever thought of the reason to why he treats you the way he does?"

"I-..." The young shapeshifter purses his lips in deep thought, "N-no... I guess not."

The nineteen year old continues, "Well, try reversing your roles. Instead of him, you had to take on a parental role at a young age. You had to fend for both yours and your brother's survival. And after years of only having each other, it's impossible to think that you two would ever be separated."

Virgil listens intently to every word spoken.

"But then came the fact that your brother is also growing up. And he wants to do things on his own because, like you said, he's not a kid anymore. You want to allow him, of course you would. But the trauma left by the loss of your parents has made it difficult for you to let him go..."

"Oh..." is the only thing the younger man could utter as the information settles in.

"Your brother doesn't see you as a burden, Virgil." Patton rests a comforting hand on other's leg.

"He's just scared of losing you."

"...And that happened."
______

After an hour of walking in silence, Demetri stops in his tracks to survey the area and sniff the air.

"I smell him..."

Remy turns to the turtleneck wearing shapeshifter with a raised brow.

"Smell who?"

Taking in a deep breath, Demetri closes his eyes and concentrates.

"My brother... And someone else."

"Patton..." Logan softly says.

Roman's eyes figuratively light up once he spots a cave not that far from where they stood, "Over there!"

Not wanting to waste anymore time, the group makes a run for it.

Hope fills the air.

Adrenaline beginning to course through each of their veins as they're almost to the entrance.

But then...

"Ah, what a wonderful surprise."

A chilling, sinister voice emanates from a cloud of dark smoke. It then taking form of the evil spirit himself.

Fumus.

"Mr. Starr, come to finally meet your demise?"

The sassy mage all but crosses his arms, "Not today, Fungus."

"Very well, killing you it is, then."

Letting out a gurgled growl, Fumus let's out a nasty green gas from his mouth.

"Don't breathe that shit in, boys!" Remy warns as he uses his light powers to distract the angered smoke-creature.

"I'll sneak in and find them." Demetri informs before shape-shifting into his wolf form and sprinting towards the cave's entrance.

"Logan, can you make an ice barrier around us"

The 21 year old stiffens and looks at his hands in worry, "Roman, I've never done that before. I don't know how-"

"Sure you can! I know you can!" The younger man encourages, "Just focus and let your powers do the rest!"

"But- "

"On my signal!"

Fire erupts from Roman's hands as he makes an aim for the green gas.

"Mr. Starr! Get behind me!"

While Fumus is temporarily blinded by the light rays, Remy rushes towards the two teens.

"Logan! NOW!"

Roman shoots a flaming ball forward, just as Logan closes his eyes and makes an upward motion with is hands.

An ice barrier is made just in time to save them from the massive explosion that happened seconds later.

Fumus screams and dissolves into smoke, leaving behind nothing but small patches of fire in the place he had stood.

Logan is met with proud smiles from both Roman and Mr. Starr.

"Didn't think you had it in ya, kid."

The younger mage chuckles and lightly punches his friend's arm.

"I knew you could do it."

Returning their smiles, Logan nods forward and says with new-found determination,

"Let's go save our friend."

Chapter Text

Virgil and Patton jump at the sudden explosion that came from outside the cave.

"What was that?" The young shapeshifter whispers in fear, his heartbeat quickening as the seconds go by.

"I'm not sure-"

A wolf howl echoes through out the cave, causing Patton to stiffen, while Virgil's breath hitches at the familiarity of the howl.

The sound of running clawed paws reaches their ears, and it was getting closer and closer until...

"Demetri...?" Virgil says in disbelief as the tall, black wolf that had stopped in front of him and Patton transforms into his brother.

"Virgil!" Said brother tackles the young shapeshifter in a hug, "Oh my god, you're okay! I thought I'd lost you!" He sobs in relief.

Virgil immediately wraps his arms around his brother and burrows his head in Demetri's shoulder, "I'm sorry..."

The older boy shakes his head and places a hand on his younger brother's cheek, "You have nothing to be sorry for, pup. I'm just glad you're alright."

Virgil tearfully smiles up at his brother, "I love you, Dee."

"I love you, Vee."

Patton had been quietly watching the two siblings from where he was, a sad smile on his face when he realizes no one had come for him.

Or so he thought.

Not a second later, rushed footsteps rung throughout the cave.

And then appeared Roman, Logan, and another man Patton didn't quite know.

"PATTON!"

The nineteen year old bursts into tears.

"Oh, Patty! Thank goodness we found you!" Roman tackles his friend in a hug.

Beside him, Logan clears his throat.

"Right. He's all yours, Lo." The young mage smirks as he gives his two friends space.

At the sight of his long-time best friend and crush, Patton has to force himself not to get too excited or he might just end up embarrassing himself.

"Patton?"

"Y-yeah...?"

"I-... I love you."

Well, that was definitely not what Patton was expecting.

Logan blushes as he tries to compose himself, "I have for quite some time now. And I feel terrible that it took you getting kidnapped just for me to finally muster up the courage to confess my feelings for you."

"Oh, Lo-Lo... I thought you hated me." The younger man admits with a saddened look in his eyes.

Logan is quick to interject, "No, no! Gosh, I never hated you, Patton. The only reason I distanced myself from you is because I couldn't let you find out about my powers!"

Patton's eyes widen in shock, but also in understanding.

Guess that answers one of the few questions he has on his mind.

"You love me?" The younger man asks with wonder-filled eyes.

"I do, Pat. I really do."

And for the first time in forever, Logan breaks into a smile.

While everyone else was having their reunions and confessions, Remy got to work on getting rid of the restraints.

"Need any help, Mr. Starr?" Roman asks as he approaches the sassy, older man.

"Know any spells that can free these two?" Remy gestures to Patton and Virgil still chained up.

"Hmm..."

It took a few trial and errors to get it right, but once it did, the imprisoned boys were imprisoned no more.

"Everyone ready?" The older man asks the five younger men, readying himself to teleport them all back to the base.

"Yeah." They respond in unison.

"Alright, let's get- AGH!"

The others gasp as Remy gets thrown against the cave's wall.

Hard.

"Mr. Starr!" Roman shouts, attempting to approach the now unconscious man, but is stopped by another scream.

"DEMETRI!" Virgil cries out as dark smoke surrounds his older brother.

"You thought you could kill me that easily?"

Fumus chuckles sinisterly, manifesting into his spirit form with Demetri struggling in his grasp. His voice has become distorted and echoey.

"Virgil! Everyone! Get out of here! Save yourselves!"

"I'm not leaving without you, Dee!" The young shapeshifter shouts back.

"How pathetic."

Without warning, Fumus begins to suck out Demetri's life-force, emitting a pained cry from his victim.

"AAGGGHHHH!!!"

"Demetri!" Virgil sobs and tries to go near them, but is stopped by Patton grasping his arm.

"Virgil, no. He could kill you, too!"

"I don't care! I'm not losing my only family!"

Roman glances towards the broken boy sobbing his eyes out.

Then to Fumus.

Once the evil spirit let's go of Demetri, Roman attacks.

"THIS IS FOR ALMOST KILLING MY PAPA!"

A huge ball of fire hits the wretched smoke-creature head-on.

"THIS IS FOR KIDNAPPING MY BEST FRIEND!"

Another ball of fire shoots out from Roman's hands. This time, engulfing Fumus in flames.

"ARRGGHHHH!!!"

"And this is for you, Virgil."

Clasping his hands together, the fire rages forcefully before turning the dark entity into ashes.

Virgil was in awe at the heroic act displayed by the redheaded mage.

The boy was practically a stranger!

And yet...

He fought someone for him.

"Thank you..."

Roman offers the purple haired boy a smile before he watches him run towards his brother on the ground.

"Dee?" Virgil kneels down and grabs hold of his brother's hands, "Dee, please... Wake up."

"Mnngh, V-... Vir-ge?"

Demetri's voice was barely a whisper, it coming out weak and drained.

Roman begins to walk towards the brothers, unaware of the dark magic that was beginning to swirl around the smoke.

"My Papa knows healing magic. He can help him."

Virgil nods slowly and helps his brother sit up, him having to hold most of Demetri's weight as the latter didn't have enough energy to even move.

Logan and Patton had gone to fetch Mr. Starr, the man still out like a light.

"How do we get out of here now?"

"Who says you're going anywhere?"

Roman curses under his breath.

"I admire your strength, young mage."

Fumus smirks as he forcefully grabs Roman by the throat.

"Agh!"

"ROMAN!" Both glasses wearing friends shout in worry.

"But it will take more than a little fire to get rid of me."
______

Sadness...

"Excuse me."

Anger...

"Sir?"

Fear...

"Um, hello?"

"Oh! Uh, yes?" Thomas sheepishly apologizes to the person in front of him. He was too busy pacing around the empty hallway of the fourth floor to realize that someone had spotted him.

The worried father is met with the sight of a woman around his age, having light blonde hair and icy blue eyes.

"Is everything alright?" She asks.

"...To be completely honest? No."

Thomas saw no point in lying to the woman.

So he spills the beans.

"Whoa, wait... Smoke-creature? Fumus?"

Thomas looks at her in confusion, "You know him?"

The woman let's out a bitter laugh as she answers, "I would know the monster responsible for my husband's death, and is the reason I had to leave my one and only child on the doorstep of an orphanage to keep him safe."

"Oh goodness, I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault..." The woman sighs sadly, "I just wish I could see my son again. Even for a little while."

Thomas tries to push down the rising fear building up in him (caused by Roman) as he asks, "What's his name?"

"Logan." The woman replies with a sad smile.

"My little Logan."

Chapter Text

"My little Logan."

Thomas freezes and looks at the woman carefully.

Could it be...?

"You don't happen to remember the orphanage you left him at, do you?"

"I do, but I heard the orphanage owner has become a therapist after all the kids found homes. " The woman frowns.

That was all the information Thomas needed.

"Ma'am..." The mage offers the other a small smile, "My name is Thomas Sanders, and I believe I know who and where your son is."

Hope fills the eyes of the forlorn mother.

"I'm Elizabeth Frost... And, do you really know my son? C-can I see him?"

This was risky.

Thomas knew something would go wrong.

But the fear building up within him is getting far too strong to ignore.

So he takes a chance.

"We have to go save him first." He says while holding out his hand.

"Do you trust me?"

The woman, Elizabeth, takes Thomas' hand without hesitation, "Yes."

In a quick flash, the two were gone.
______

"Patton, I need you to stay with Mr. Starr, alright?" Logan whispers to his childhood friend.

"What? Logan, what are you going to do?" Worry etches the face of the nineteen year old.

"I'm going to save our friend."

Patton goes to stop him, but is too late since Logan is already running towards Roman and Fumus.

"Let go of him!"

An intrigued smirk stretches across the spirit's face.

"Ah, you must be the orphaned child of the widowed Frost, correct?"

Logan only glares back, his past never being something he dwelled on.

"Oh, apologies. You were merely an infant when I killed your father."

A low chuckle escapes the spirit's throat.

"Leaving poor Elizabeth no choice but to leave you at the doorstep of a small orphanage."

"How do you know that?!" The twenty-one year old demands, the knowledge of his father's death somehow hurting him for some reason.

"Why, I know all. Just like I know this one's Papa is coming to his rescue," He gestures to Roman, "With the accompaniment of your very own mother dear." He returns his gaze to Logan.

At the mention of his Papa, Roman panics even more, "You're wrong!"

"Oh, am I?"

"ROMAN!"

To the young mage's horror, his Papa does appear, along with a woman who he guesses is his friend's actual mother.

"Papa! Why–?!"

"FUMUS! YOU LET GO OF MY SON RIGHT THIS INSTANT OR I SWEAR TO ALL THINGS HOLY THAT I WILL PERSONALLY END YOU MYSELF!"

Patton and Logan had never seen Roman's Papa this furious.

That also includes Roman himself, who makes a mental note to NEVER get on his Papa's bad side.

"I'd like to see you try, Sanders."

With a loud battle cry, Thomas surges forward and shoots various attack spells towards Fumus, making sure not to hit his son with every attack spell he casts.

One particular spell causes the smoke spirit to accidentally loosen his grip on the younger mage, enabling Roman to escape his grasp and join Logan who was a few feet away from his Papa.

"Uncle Thomas! Let us help you!"

"No! You are to leave this place right now and head back to base!" The older mage orders while keeping Fumus at bay.

Roman, being the stubborn boy he is, ignores his Papa's order and stands right beside him, helping him attack the smoke creature with his own spells.

"Roman! I'm serious! I am not going to risk losing you!" Thomas scolds his son.

"And I'm not about to lose you either, Papa!" Roman answers back.

All the while that was happening, Logan had averted his gaze to look at the woman kneeling next to Patton and Mr. Starr (who's still unconscious).

Is that her?

Is that really his mother?

"Logan! Help me carry Virgil's brother over to Mr. Starr and Miss Elizabeth." Patton tells him as he makes his way over to the brothers.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Logan follows Patton and instructs him and Virgil on what to do. Together, they hammock carry Demetri over to the two adults.

"Oh goodness, I'm unfortunately unable to help this one." Elizabeth sadly admits, "He needs to see a healer mage."

Virgil frowns and squeezes Demetri's hand, "Hold on for me, Dee. Please..."

"Patton?"

"Yes, Miss Elizabeth?"

Ripping a piece of her dress off, Elizabeth uses it to wrap around the small block of ice she had conjured up with her powers, "Can you hold this against Mr. Starr's head for awhile?"

The younger man nods, "Sure thing."

"Thank you, dear." The woman flashes Patton a warm smile, "If he wakes up, keep him lying down. He'll be a tad bit nauseous, so you might want to step aside if he suddenly vomits."

"How do you know all that stuff?" The nineteen year old asks curiously.

"I'm a doctor." Elizabeth answers quietly, "I decided to pursue a doctorate after I had lost my husband and son in the same night." She explains, then steals a glance towards Logan, "I left my son at an orphanage twenty-one years ago, knowing that he would be much safer in the hands of a non magic-user, as I was still being hunted down by Fumus.

By the time he gave up his search for me, I tried looking for my son again..." She trails off as she casts her gaze to the ground sadly, "But I was too late.  The orphanage owner had already become a therapist after all the orphans were adopted, so I assumed my son had already found a new, loving home." Elizabeth sniffs as a single tear rolls down her cheek.

"I didn't want to take that away from him... So I stopped."

Logan soaked in every single word that left the woman's mouth, feeling something wet roll down his cheek.

"Logan, you're crying." Patton says softly.

"W-what?" Lifting a hand to his cheek, Logan realizes the wetness on his cheek was his own tears.

He has no idea what he's feeling right now.

His mind basically spiraling in a mix of emotions.

Elizabeth tentatively places her hand on top of Logan's, not wanting to startle the boy as she makes eye contact with him again.

It was then Logan felt a strong surge in his brain, causing him to gasp and squint his eyes shut.

Those eyes...

He's seen those eyes before...

And then a vivid memory plays~

A memory of himself as a baby looking up at two people.

A man with brunette hair and brown eyes.

A woman with light blonde hair and blue eyes.

Both staring at him with so much love and adoration.

"We love you so much, Logan."

And then a scream.

Chapter Text

Sweat begins to trickle down Thomas' forehead as he continues to use his magic against Fumus.

"Roman, my little prince..." The older mage pretty much begs as he takes a quick glance towards his son, "You and the others need to get out of here."

"No! I can't just leave and lose my only Papa!" Roman protests.

"Well I am not about to lose another child, either!" Thomas shouts back, immediately regretting it when he realizes his mistake.

"What do you mean 'lose another child'?" Roman stares at his Papa, visibly confused.

The dark spirit takes that as his opportunity to turn into smoke and re-form right beside the two, smirking at the guilty look that can be found on the older mage's face.

"Aww, your Papa never told you?"

"Tell me what?" Roman stares at Fumus with furrowed brows.

All Thomas could do was glare at the dark spirit as he began to open up a wound that had left him broken all those years ago.

"You have a BROTHER, little mage. A twin, in fact."

"WHAT?!"

The younger mage stares at his Papa in bewilderment, "Please, tell me he's joking!"

Thomas sadly shakes his head in response, willing himself not to cry.

Roman, however, was furious.

"I have a brother... And YOU NEVER TOLD ME?!"

"Had, Roman..." Thomas clarifies, facing his son with tears beginning to pool in his eyes, "You HAD a brother. But I lost him when Fumus tried to suck out my life force twenty years ago..."

The young mage instantly averts his anger towards the smoke creature.

"IF IT WEREN'T FOR YOU, I WOULD HAVE HAD A BROTHER!"

"You still do."

That reply caught both the father and son off-guard.

With a wave of his hand, a small necklace lands on the palm of the dark spirit.

"If you want him, you can have him." Fumus grins sinisterly as he holds out the necklace to Roman.

Thomas audibly gasps when he recognizes the stone.

It's a soul stone!

"Why are you giving this to me?" Roman asks suspiciously.

"A life... For a life."

Thomas screams.
------

Logan's breathing becomes rapid as he's hit with all sorts of feelings and emotions from the flashback.

Elizabeth goes to comfort him, but stops when she feels a sudden chill run down her spine. A cool breeze blows past her, along with a few snowflakes trailing in its path.

"Oh no..." She mutters under her breath.

"Logan, sweetheart, I need you to calm down for me, okay? Can you do that?" The mother tells her son with a gentle voice.

"C-can't... T-...too much!" Logan stutters out in ragged breaths, unable to control the blizzard that was slowly beginning to form around them.

Virgil holds his barely conscious brother closer to him, while Patton helps Mr. Starr sit up after he was sure the older man wasn't nauseous anymore after waking up only a few minutes prior.

"Ugh, what the hell is happening now?" Remy asks while surveying the area.

Turtleneck kid is down.

There's a random woman talking to glasses guy number one.

Wind and snow is swirling around them.

Fumus is talking to Thomas' son and– WAIT A SECOND

"Thomas?!"

"Mr. Starr, wait!"

And then Thomas screams.

"NOOO!!!" Both Roman and Remy cry out.

Fumus had conjured up a dagger and stabbed Thomas in the heart.

"PAPA!"

"THOMAS!"

Patton stumbles back in shock as Fumus approaches him.

"This is all your fault, little one."

The nineteen year old shakes his head with clenched fists.

"Stop."

"Are you really going to deny it?"

"I said... STOP!"

A sudden gush of wind pushes past the nineteen year old, catching the dark entity off guard.

"I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR ACTIONS!" Patton defends, a new wave of energy coursing through his veins, "YOU CAN TRY TO GUILT ME INTO BELIEVING IT," He stands up and takes a step towards the dark spirit, "BUT WE ALREADY KNOW WHO THE REAL MONSTER IS HERE."

Fear flashes in Fumus' eyes.

"I am not a monster like you..." Patton tells him firmly, "But if killing you is the only way to save my friends and family... Then so be it."

Shooting his arms out, Patton uses his new-found power to trap Fumus in a mini tornado.

"NOOO!!!"

Elizabeth averts her gaze from her son to the smoke creature and gets an idea.

"Patton, dear! Hold him still!"

"Will do!"

The ice-wielding mother shoots a freezing cold breeze directly at Fumus that begins to cover the dark entity in frost.

"YOU CANNOT KILL ME LIKE THIS!"

"Yeah... But we can trap you."

As Fumus' screams die down, Patton pulls his hands back, his knees then buckling under him.

He's never done that before!

What the heck?!

"Oh my gosh..."

"Logan, honey! I know you're scared! But you need to calm down before your powers get too out of hand!" Elizabeth shouts through the raging blizzard.

Looks like Patton still had one more thing left to do.

Standing up shakily, the nineteen year old pushes himself up and stumbles forward to reach Logan.

"Logie! It's me, Patton!"

The older boy continues to cry, but the winds were starting to settle down a bit, just enough for Patton to reach his long-time best friend and cup his face with his hands.

"Logan, listen to me." Patton says softly, "How you're feeling right now is perfectly normal. I don't know how long you've been keeping all of your emotions bottled up, but it's good that you're letting yourself feel them. You're okay, Logan. Just breathe."

Elizabeth watches the blizzard disappear in pure awe, never having encountered anyone who was able to settle down a magic-user that quick when they've temporarily lost control of their powers.

"Papa, wake up! Please!"

Roman's broken cries echo through out the cave.

Remy rushes to kneel down next to Thomas and places both his hands above the other mage's wound.

"Gurl, you are not dying on my watch." Remy closes his eyes and mutters a spell under his breath.

Roman holds on to his Papa's hand while he watches Mr. Starr.

In a flash, the wound was gone.

But Thomas didn't wake up.

"Papa?"

"He's okay, Roman." Remy assures, "Your Papa just needs rest. I managed to heal the wound from the outside, but his body has to heal on its own from the inside."

"Alright... Thank you for saving him again, Mr. Starr."

A smile creeps its way to the older mage's face, "What are friends for?"

Roman returns the smile, but frowns when he glances at Virgil still cradling his older brother, "Can you do anything for Demetri?"

"No... But I know who can. So let's get out of here."

------

The moment Remy teleports them all back at the base, they're met with a very worried Enrique and Joan.

"Uh... What's going on, Ricky?"

"What's going on-? THOMAS IS MISSING!"

"Er... No he's not."

Remy steps aside to reveal Thomas on the ground, with Roman looming over him protectively.

Enrique gasps and kneels down to pick up his husband, "What happened?"

"I'll explain everything, Father. But first, we need someone to help our friend." Roman gestures to Demetri still in Virgil's hold.

Enrique nods, "Joan, bring the boy to the clinic."

"Alright." The non-binary mage takes Demetri from Virgil, who hesitantly allows them take his brother.

"He'll be okay, bud." Joan assures with a comforting smile before teleporting himself and the boy to the clinic.

"Roman, lead Mr. Starr and your friends to my office. I'll meet you all there after putting your Papa in the spare guest room."

Roman nods and begins walking to the direction of his father's office, everyone else following him in suit.

"And uh, Remy?"

Said mage turns around.

"Yeah, Ricky?"

Enrique shoots him a grateful smile.

"Thank you."

Chapter Text

After placing his husband in the spare guest room, Enrique teleports himself into his office, where he finds his son and everyone else already seated and waiting for his presence patiently.

"So... Where should we start?" Remy questions as he leans forward in his chair.

Enrique hums in thought, "You could start with telling me who the unconscious boy was."

"He's this one's older brother." Remy says while pointing at Virgil, "Say, what was your last name again?"

"L-...Lancaster." The darkly clothed teen answers quietly, too shy to make eye contact.

Lancaster...

Now where have I heard that before? Enrique wonders. He glances at the young teen carefully. When he catches a glimpse of the boy's mismatched eyes, a light flickers in his mind.

The Lancasters.

The Shapeshifter family that was found and attacked by a group of people working for the government.

Damien and Vivian Lancaster were found dead in their home.

But their two sons were missing.

"Oh my god..."

He and Thomas have been looking for them ever since they found out that the kids managed to escape.

The search, unfortunately, was cancelled after three years, with no luck of finding them nor a single trace of where they could have gone.

But now, here they were.

"May I know your name?" The older mage softly asks the boy, as to not scare him.

"It's uh, Virgil... Mr. Sanders."

A small smile creeps upon Enrique's face, but it falls when he remembers the teen's situation.

"I'm sorry about your parents, Virgil."

This time, the purple haired teen actually looks at him.

"How-?" He stares at Enrique with wide eyes.

"Well..."

~FLASHBACK to 14 years ago~

"Thomas! My love, we have a problem." Enrique calls out frantically, entering their living room to find his husband with the kids.

"Let me get the kids to safety first." Thomas tells him before proceeding to transport the kids to the orphanage.

Once they were gone, Thomas turns to his husband with a concerned look, "What happened?"

"There's been another attack." The other mage answers grimly.

He quickly teleports himself and Thomas in front of a small house, Joan appearing from the doorway with a saddened look.

"Was it the smoke creature?"

Joan shakes their head, "Not this time. The family was stormed by a group of people working for the government."

Enrique curses under his breath.

"The Lancasters, according to their files, are Shapeshifters.  There's Damien, Vivian, and their two sons, Demetri and Virgil."

Thomas frowns, "Are they alright?"

The non-binary mage casts their gaze to ground, "We were too late to save Damien and Vivian. And the kids were long gone by the time we got here."

"No..." Thomas whimpers, feeling his heart ache at the thought of people mercilessly killing innocent children.

Enrique pulls his husband closer to him, knowing full well how much these tragic incidents affect his partner.

"Joan! We found something!" Another voice calls out.

It was Valerie, their witch friend.

Running up to the group, Valerie shows them the small, purple spider plushy she and Adri found a couple of feet away from the house.

A toy that most likely belonged to a child.

"We also found wolf paw prints leading to the forest." Davi adds as they approach the group.

Thomas knew what that meant.

"Honey, we have to look for them." The mage turns to his husband with a pleading look,  "Please..."

Looking into his husband's eyes, Enrique could see the desperation his other half had to finding the kids.

So of course, he agreed to organize a search party for them.

Joan conjures up a a folder with the kids' files, showing a picture of two boys.

The older having one purple and one yellow eye.

The younger having one purple and one green eye.

~End of FLASHBACK~

"We searched every single part of the forest for three years, yet we couldn't get so much as a sign that you two were still around." Enrique explains.

"That's probably because we lived as wolves for about eight years..." Virgil trails off as a vivid memory of his childhood replays in his mind, "My brother, Demetri, became extremely protective after our parents' deaths. He wouldn't even so much as let me out of his sight for even a minute."

Roman catches a glimpse of a smile on Virgil's face, before it falls into a deep frown.

"I couldn't blame him, though. He knew the dangers that would come if we were seen still alive in our human forms, so we found a cave on the side of a mountain and settled there in our wolf forms."

"It wasn't easy, but we had no other choice. Dee and I had almost lost hope of ever living a normal life... Until somebody finally found us."

Virgil fidgets with the hem of his hoodie as he continues.

"They figured out we were shapeshifters and offered us a place to stay. Even gave Demetri a job in their shop. Things were starting to look up for us... But then Fumus came along."

Enrique nods and makes a mental note to confront the two siblings once the other is alright. Knowing his husband, Thomas would want to make sure they still had a stable place to live in.

Oh, and speaking of Thomas...

"What happened to my husband then?"

Remy goes to reply, but winces when he's hit with a sudden sharp pain in his head. He forgot he had a concussion.

"I'll answer that, father." Roman speaks up, and decides to tell him all the events that had happened before and after his Papa arrived with Logan's mother.

"Fumus... He gave me this before stabbing Papa in the heart." The young Sanders son pulls out the necklace from his pocket, the green stone instantly catching his father's attention.

"A life for a life, he said."

"Roman... That's a soul stone." Enrique tells his son with a gentle voice, a little overwhelmed at the sudden thought of having his other child back.

"If Fumus wasn't lying, that stone may have your twin brother's soul inside of it... And with the right spell, we could actually bring him back."

A hopeful smile stretches across Roman's face, "Does he have a name?"

Enrique feels a rush of nostalgia hit him as memories of him and his husband (during Thomas' pregnancy) replay in his mind.

"Of course he does... Do you want to meet him?"

Roman couldn't believe his ears.

"Like, right now?"

His father chuckles, but nods.

"If you're up for it."

Logan and Patton give him encouraging nods, so Roman turns back to his father with slightly teary eyes.

"I'd love to meet him."

Chapter Text

After being dismissed from Enrique's office, Remy grumbles under his breath as the pain in his head worsens.

"Mr. Starr, you're coming with me to the clinic." Elizabeth informs the sunglasses wearing mage with a stern look.

"Ugh, whatever. Just call me Remy, though."

"Sure, Remy."

The woman then turns to Logan with a gentle smile, "As much as I'd love to get to know you better, I believe you'll need some time to process everything first. I will not force you or push you to accept me as your mother, for I am merely a stranger to you. But I do hope that you will allow me to be part of your life."

Logan nods understandingly and smiles back, "Thank you, mother."

Elizabeth turns back to Remy and steals a quick glance towards the young shapeshifter.

"Virgil? Would you like to check on your brother?"

The younger nods eagerly.

"Alright, let's go."

Logan and Patton watch the three leave.

"So... You're a wizard?" The twenty-one year old suddenly brings up with a sly smirk.

Patton rolls his eyes at his best friend- boyfriend? fondly, "And you have ice powers?"

"That I do." Logan chuckles before lacing his and Patton's fingers together, "Would you like a tour of the safe house? I've been here enough times to know my way around this place."

Patton giggles and leans his head against Logan's shoulder as they begin walking through the halls, hand in hand.

"I thought you'd never ask, Logie."

------

Roman wasn't sure what he was feeling anymore...

Was he nervous? Yes.

Excited? Yes.

Scared? Oh, most definitely.

Why?

Because...

What if his brother didn't like him?

What if... What if he didn't like his brother?

"Roman, if you're not trying to burn down my desk with that glare of yours, I suggest you relax and come over here." Enrique chuckles as he motions for his son to sit next to him.

The young Sanders son blushes, then hurriedly shuffles towards his father, who places a pointer finger on a specific page of the book he was reading.

"I've performed this spell before, but in order to do so, a soulless body is required for the trapped soul to transfer into."

"Oh..." Roman trails off, scanning the page's contents and taking in the information it contained.

"Where are we going to find a soulless body?" He suddenly asks.

"Well..." Enrique starts, "If you're okay with it, I can cast a duplication spell on your body."

Roman casts his gaze down to the necklace.

The necklace that contained the soul of his long lost brother.

"He's your twin, anyway. So having the same face wouldn't be weird."

With a curt nod, Roman agrees and allows his father to perform the spell.

Enrique instructs for him to stand in the middle of the room before muttering something under his breath.

The younger mage jumps when a magnetic light shoots out from his father's hands and covers his whole body.

"Just relax and stay still, son."

Doing as told, Roman breathes in and out slowly as he feels a sort of pulling sensation around him. After a minute or so, his father places his hands down and smiles.

Turning his head to the side, the younger mage's eyes widen in awe.

There, standing with their eyes closed, is an exact replica of his own body.

"Hold out the necklace, Roman."

Enrique silently prays for the best as he mutters another spell, where this time, he had his eyes glowing a dark green. He lifts both his hands out, one aimed at the soul stone while the other on the replicated body of his son. He takes a deep a breath, then closes his eyes as he channel's the stone's aura, it beginning to transfer into the duplicate body.

While that was happening, Roman notices a small change in his second body.

Where instead of having the red hair he has, it now had dark brown hair like his father's.

The soul transferring ended when Enrique heaved in a gasp as he pulls his hands back.

"Father! Are you okay?!" The younger mage asks his father in concern.

"Y-yeah... just... a little overwhelmed, is all." Enrique says in between breaths of air.

"Okay... did-... did it work?"

A tense silence falls upon the father and son as they stare at the now breathing duplicate body of Roman.

The silence is then cut short when the body's eyes shoot open, revealing bright hazel eyes that are now looking around in panic.

"W-what? Where-? How am I-?" The replica stutters out, shakily inspecting himself and almost doubling over and hitting floor, if not for Roman catching him before he could.

"Remus...?" The young mage whispers in disbelief.

"Is that-... is that my name?"

Enrique smiles tearfully as he approaches Roman and his brother.

"Yes it is, son."

Remus jerks his head up to look at Enrique, then to Roman, then back to Enrique.

"Father?" The brown haired teen breathes out, his vision beginning to blur as tears welled up in his eyes.

After 20 years of being trapped in that stone.

He was finally free.

Remus' lip trembles as he returns his gaze on Roman, "Brother?"

Roman nods in confirmation, wiping at the tears that were now trailing down his face.

"How did you know?"

"I-... I just do. Can't you feel the connection?"

Now that Remus mentions it, Roman does feel a sort of connection between them.

A connection that signifies a bond.

A bond that signifies that they are united.

"I do feel it..." The red haired mage turns to his father questioningly, "Is this a side effect from the duplication spell?"

Enrique chuckles and shakes his head.

"You're brothers. Twins, in fact. It would make sense that you both feel a connection towards one another."

A smile creeps upon Roman and Remus' faces as they faced each other.

"You are your own persons individually, but also the outcome of one cause..."

Roman already knew the answer, but he couldn't help but ask anyway.

"And what would that be, father?"

Enrique sighs fondly.

"Your Papa and I's love."