Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

They’re at it again, Roman sighed and propped his head up on his hand. 

It’s not as if borrowers were rare, but having enough money to get one was. Only a handful of people in the school had ever held one, until his wealthy classmate procured one over the weekend.

He’d been talking about it non-stop all week, passing around pictures and printing a few to sell. Roman saw one in passing, a group of girls were fawning over one photo in particular. He peeked over their shoulders out of curiosity and was horrified to see the little guy half naked and bawling.

“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Patton said woefully from beside him.

“What do you suggest, we steal it?” Logan replied sarcastically, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

“What about the police?” Patton offered.

“He hasn’t done anything illegal.” Logan shook his head and sighed. “As I’m sure you’re well aware, borrowers’ rights are limited to cases pertaining to physical abuse or harm.”

“There’s bruising around his waist, though,” Roman frowned and buried his face in his arms. “And he’s skinny as hell.”

Logan furrowed his brows in Roman’s direction. “Where did you get that information?”

Roman grimaced as he recalled the dehumanizing photo. “Saw it in one of his hand-outs.”

Logan paused, but did not press further. “. . . If asked, Jackson could blame the borrower’s weight on its metabolism or the fact that it won't eat what its given. You can't prove he's starving it. Not only that, bruising around the torso is common."

“Why?”

“Because of how they’re held. Frankly speaking, so long as it’s ribs are intact, there’s nothing we can do. Borrowers go for large sums of money, so what people do with them is hardly a concern.”

That’s fucking bullshit. Roman sneered. It was sickening.

“But they’re just little people!” Patton folded his hands and pleaded as if Logan had the power to change how they were treated. Patton had always been kind at heart, so it was only natural his paternal nature got the better of him on the subject of those smaller than him. Stray cats, crying kids, and in this case, a helpless borrower at the mercy of a spoiled brat.

Roman had initially tried to tune him out, but Jackson’s incessant “I thought it was mute until he fell out of my pocket and started screaming”, “I get the feeling they lied when they told me I was its first owner. Either that, or they did a piss-poor job of training it”,  and “All it ever does it clamp up. It doesn’t respond when I ask it something, and it hardly eats whatever I give it” had him losing patience. 

“I’ll be 18 soon, . . .” he muttered to himself, but Logan caught it.

“Your point?”

Roman stood from his desk. “Might as well beat the shit out of someone while I still can, right?”

“He’ll sue you for all you’ve got,” Logan deadpanned.

Roman shrugged. “And? His family might be rich, but a broken nose won’t go on my record.”

“Roman, no.” Patton-the-Pacifist frowned disapprovingly. “This isn’t the way.”

Roman clenched his fists and growled, voice low, “Then tell me what the hell I’m supposed to do. I can’t just take him, he’s probably got a chip or something. I’m dirt broke, too; I can’t buy him from that bastard either. My only option is to try and knock some sense into him.”

Logan seized Roman by his shoulders and locked eyes with him. “You beat him and I can guarantee he will take it out on the borrower. Do you want that?”

Roman faltered, shook Logan off, and slumped back into his seat with a groan. “What the hell am I supposed to do then?”

Logan paused for a moment. “I’m sure I could remove the chip, given I knew where it was.”

“It can’t be that simple. He’s probably had it for a long time, it could’ve fused with his nerves.” 

“And if it isn’t an implant?”

This seemed to give Patton some form of hope. “What do you mean?”
“It could be a collar.”

Roman remembered seeing something like that in the picture. “Yeah.” he said. “It wasn’t just a collar, it looked high-tech, like a dog’s shock collar.”

This made Patton want to cry. “Shock collar?” He gasped. “Oh, Logan, we’ve gotta get that little guy outta there!”

“At this rate, it’s only a matter of time before he sneaks the borrower into school. We could do it then.”

“Got a plan?” Roman inquired. 

Logan smirked. “Really, Roman, I thought you knew me.”

That Friday, Jackson brought his borrower just as Logan predicted he would. Now all they had to do was distract everyone long enough to sneak the tiny out of school. Easy, right? Well, Roman makes for a good spectacle.

Janus had agreed to stage a fight with Roman in the hall, so long as he got to initiate the fight and win. Logan would be the one to call for help, thus luring everyone out into the hall. Lastly, Patton will leave five minutes before the fight starts, enter the classroom when everyone is gone, and leave before anyone returns. Simple. What could go wrong?

Time Skip ~

Patton waited in a nearby bathroom until he heard Logan yelling for help. He waited another ten seconds before stepping out, but never made it inside the classroom. Something went wrong. Something went very wrong.

They considered Jackson might bring the borrower with him and they’d have to give up, but they hadn’t considered Jackson would drop him.

Patton hurried over to the borrower, but stopped at a distance and tried to get his attention. “Oh honey,” he bit back a sob. He was bleeding. “Honey, are you okay?”

The borrower whipped its head around, tears pouring down his face. Its leg was injured, and Patton thought he might’ve hit his head, but he still tried crawling away at the sight of a human.

Patton got down on his knees, folded his hands, and begged. “Nonono, please don’t go. It must hurt a lot. I won’t come any closer, so please don’t go.”

Instead, the borrower desperately continued to drag itself across the floor in an attempt to escape someone who wasn’t even pursuing him.

“Oh, hon, please. I wanna help you, but you have to come with me.” He pleaded. “Come with me and I promise, you won’t ever have to see him again.”

The borrower stopped to peek at Patton over his shoulder. Patton was crying. A human was crying in front of him for no apparent reason. He wasn’t bleeding. Why was he crying?

“You don’t have to come with me,” Patton cried. “You don’t have to do anything. You don’t have to trust me, either. But I can’t let you stay.” His voice hitched. “I can’t watch him hurt you anymore.”

The borrower’s tiny frame shook with every attempt not to make a sound. Patton could tell just looking at his leg, it had to hurt a lot. It could be broken. And still, the little borrower refused to cry out. 

The sound of footsteps shook Patton from his daze. “Oh, no.” He breathed. “We’re running out of time, we have to go. Can I pick you up? I promise I’ll be careful.”

The borrower looked horrified, face twisted in pain and fear. He looked down the hall, back to Patton, then down and back again until finally he turned to Patton, let out a tiny sob, and raised its arms as if to say, “Hurry.”

Patton smiled in utter relief and quickly but quietly closed the distance between him and the small figure lying helpless on the floor. Careful of his leg, Patton scooped him up and wiped all his blood off the floor with his sleeve. Then he got up and hurried to the infirmary. “M- maybe we can use something for stilts. Or gauze. To stop the bleeding. But we can’t let the nurse see. Oh, I hope they’re out right now.” He rambled on. “I wish Logan was here, he’d know what to do. I hope it’s not broken. Does it feel broken? Oh, hon, I’m so sorry you got hurt. You weren’t supposed to get hurt.”

The borrower said nothing, but took notice of how Patton avoided running and cradled him so that his leg was elevated. He clung to Patton’s sleeve and buried his face in the material to quiet any sounds that might’ve escaped him. It hurt. It hurt a lot. So much that he wanted to chew the whole thing off. 

Chapter Text

They arrived at the infirmary soon after. Fortunately, the nurse wasn’t there. Unfortunately, the only thing they had for makeshift stilts were q tips and toothpicks. Patton set the borrower down on the counter and decided to check the wound first. “Um,” he began. “Can I take a look?” Patton gestured to the borrower’s leg. He didn’t know if he should be angry or glad he was only partially dressed in a hoodie. 

The borrower eventually nodded, but never took its eyes off Patton’s hands as they grew near. And that was fine. Patton just had to see it. 

He reached around to support the borrowers back as he lifted his leg and examined it from various different angles. Then he sighed and let out a little sob in relief. “Well, I’m not Logan, but I don’t think it’s broken.” Then he frowned a little. “But it is swollen. I’d say we should ice it, but you look freezing already and I don’t know how much pressure your leg can take right now. Oh gosh, I really wish Logan was here.”

But he couldn’t do nothing. “You’re still bleeding.” He pointed out decisively. “We have to clean it.”

The borrower flinched at that and frantically tried pulling its leg away.

Patton immediately took his hands away and stepped back. “I’m sorry,” he said, hands in the air for the tiny to see. “I thought I might wet a paper towel and dab the wound, I absolutely didn’t mean to scare you. I won’t use sanitizer, I know it hurts. But I should use a little soap if you wanna keep it from getting infected.”

The borrower considered his words, looked around, and pointed at the sink. 

“Water?” Patton guessed. “Are you thirsty?”

At first the borrower shook its head, but changed its mind a moment later and nodded. 

“Okay, I’ll get you some water.” Patton made sure not to make any sudden movements as he reached for the small paper cups and filled one with cold water. “But what were you trying to say about the sink? Did you want me to wash your leg?”

Patton turned to find the poor little guy shaking his head with wide eyes, little whimpers escaping his throat. Patton felt himself tearing up again as he handed the borrower the paper cup. “Were you worried I might wash it in the sink?”

The borrower took a sip and hesitated before it nodded and greedily gulped more water down before Patton could take it away.

A new wave of despair hit Patton in the form of ice in his chest. How many times had Jackson bathed him in the week he had him? It only took one incident to traumatize someone. What if he nearly drowned?

Patton squared his jaw, blinked back his tears, and put on a smile. “I’m gonna put some soap on a wet paper towel and wipe your leg down, but I’ll stop the minute you want me to, okay? Tell me if it hurts.”

The borrower hugged the cup and nodded slowly. Patton eyed the cup. “Did you want some more water first?” He asked.

This seemed to startle the borrower, who then looked from Patton to the cup a number of times before handing it over and nodding again. 

Patton smiled and took the cup. “Okay. More water, coming right up!”

Soon, the borrower’s leg was caked in neosporin and wrapped in gauze. “Does that feel a little better? The nurse doesn’t have anything for swelling besides ice packs.”

The borrower tried moving his leg and winced, but was thankful enough to offer another small nod and a thumbs up, which Patton couldn’t help but giggle at.

“Oh no, sweetie, I’m not laughing at you!” He tried keeping his voice down, but still startled the tiny as he frantically tried to explain himself. “It was just unexpected, that’s all! Um, the nurse should have some crackers somewhere, did you want some? Are you hungry?” He tried and succeeded in changing the subject as the borrower’s eyes lit up at the mention of food. He didn’t need confirmation as he began scouring the cupboards for something to eat. 

By the time the nurse arrived, Patton had already called his parents and secured a ride home. He hid the borrower inside his jacket to make it look like he was holding his stomach. 

He sat out in the hall with his phone to his ear so he could talk to the borrower without looking suspicious. “It might not be super comfortable right now, but I wanted to keep you warm. Feel free to hit my arm or pinch me if I move and it hurts your leg, okay? I’ll stop right away.” He assured him. “And I’m sure my parents wouldn’t mind, but I wanted to ask your permission before I introduce you. Um, . . . maybe hit me once for yes and twice for no? You can hit my hand, just give me a little tap. Is it okay if I show you to my parents?”

After a few long seconds, Patton felt the borrower shift in his arms and tap his hand. Pat, pat.

“Okay. No worries, we’ll just have to hide you until we get home. We’ll have to decide whose house we’re going to this weekend, too.”

Pat, pat, pat, pat, pat! The frantic tapping on his hand had Patton worried. “D- did I hurt you? I don’t think I moved though,” he fretted. 

Pat, pat. No. 

After a moment, Patton realized what he meant. “Oh, um. Then was it something I said?”

. . . Pat. Yes.

“I don’t think it’s about hiding, so. . . . Oh, I forgot! I mentioned Logan earlier, remember? He’s a friend of mine. Logan, Roman, and I thought up this plan to rescue you from Jackson. Logan is really smart, so I want him to take a look at your leg and any other boo-boos you might have. And Roman reeeally wanted to help you, so I think he’ll be glad to see you safe and sound, too.” Patton smiled. “He cares about you a lot.”

Patton felt the borrower shrink back into his arms a little. 

“Hon?” He whispered. “Are you tired?”

Again, he felt the borrower moving around, but it took a minute before he felt any tapping. 

Tap. Yes.

“Oh, okay, I’ll stop talking now. You go ahead and get some rest.”

This time, instead of a tap, Patton felt the borrower nuzzle into his shirt. He pretended not to hear the quiet sobs that followed.

Chapter Text

The car ride was quiet, for the most part. Patton’s parents fretted here and there, but didn’t ask for more information than necessary. His parents insisted they stop for sprite and soup. Patton agreed on the condition they got it from the store and made it quick because “his stomach hurt so much”. 

When they got home, Patton made a swift beeline for his bedroom and laid the borrower down on his bed. “I’m sorry, hon, was it too hot in there?” He whispered, kneeling at the bedside. “I didn’t think you’d be in there so long.”

“Patton, honey,” his mom called. “I’m gonna make you some soup, okay?”

Patton distanced himself from the tiny, worried he might startle him, and called back, “I’m not really hungry, mom!” And he turned his attention back to the borrower on his bed, surprised to find him staring right back. He thought back to the crackers they found in the infirmary. Was that enough?

“Are you sure, Patton honey?” His mom tried again.

“Um, on second thought, I’ll come make it! I wanna stay on my feet, it hurts to lay down!” He locked eyes with the borrower and lowered his voice, “Are you still hungry? Want some soup? I’ll get a little sauce cup for you, you won’t have to eat from the same bowl as me. I won’t feed you, either.”

After a moment’s consideration, the borrower nodded his head and Patton left without another word. He knew the little guy couldn’t leave on that leg, and if he tried, he wouldn’t get far. He thought it might be good to give him some time alone.

The borrower spent his time achieving optimum comfort, having accepted the fact he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Patton returned after ten minutes with a bottle of sprite and a serving tray topped with a mountain of napkins, a large bowl for himself, and two empty ramekins. “Okay!” He whispered cheerily. “It’s just chicken noodle, but I hope you like it. Make sure you blow on it before you- ”

Patton began using his spoon to pour a portion of his soup into one of the metal ramekins, but stopped to process what he saw when he looked up from the platter.

“. . . Hon,” he finally said, voice small. “What are you doing?”

The borrower sat up on his knees despite his injury and balled his hands into fists like paws under his chin. It didn’t take long for Patton to realize he’d been conditioned to beg like a dog for scraps.

Recognizing his displeasure, the tiny floundered to try another trick. Patton reached out to stop him before he could roll over. “It’s just soup,” he said. “What are you doing with your leg like that?”

Patton hadn’t picked him up, but he had cornered him with trembling hands. The borrower closed his eyes and waited for the hands to close in on him - to discipline him. Instead, he curled in on himself without thinking when Patton touched the top of his head. The sudden movement of his leg had him crying out and rocking back and forth on his side. 

“Oh, hon,” Patton frowned sympathetically. “I’m sorry, I should’ve asked before I touched your head like that, are you okay?”

The borrower let Patton help him into an upright position before backing away a little. 

“I wasn’t going to hurt you.” He tried to explain. “I was just going to pat your head. Can I show you?” When he didn’t hear or see any indication the borrower didn’t want him to, Patton slowly reached out to ruffle the tiny’s hair. He flinched at first, but eventually relaxed enough to close his eyes and lower his head. When Patton retracted his hand, the borrower reached out and grabbed his finger. 

“Um,” he hesitated, eyes flickering around the room but never landing on Patton. 

Patton smiled and gave his head a few final pats before taking his finger away and returning to their lunch. “Come on, our soup’s getting cold.”

He finished serving the borrower some soup and poured some sprite in the second ramekin. “You don’t have to drink it if you don’t like it, it’s really carbonated.”

The borrower took up the ramekin and sniffed the soda before eventually taking a sip. His eyes went wide and he continued to sip until there was more air than pop and he gave a small belch. Patton couldn’t help but giggle. Evidently, he did like it.

Chapter Text

An hour later, there was a knock at the door. Patton’s mother answered, “Boys, what are you doing here?”

“We heard Patton was sick,” Logan answered simply. “May we come in?”

“Well, I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. You boys might get sick too.” She hesitated.

“We have masks,” Roman insisted. “Please. We’d like to see him.”

Another door opened from within the house and Patton came bounding into the room. “It’s okay, mom! It was just a tummy bug, I’m feeling a lot better now that I’ve had some soup!”

“Oh, alright dear.” Patton’s mother gave in to her son and opened the door to his friends, who greeted her briefly and followed Patton to his room down the hall.

Patton stopped at the door and turned to the other two. “I’m glad you guys are here, but it’s really sudden and I didn’t get a chance to warn him, so please don’t crowd him. He’s very skittish and I’m afraid too many people might overwhelm him -” Patton rambled in his concern until Roman took hold of his shoulders.

“We’ll follow your lead.” He assures. “Just say the word.”

Patton took a breath to relax himself. “Um. Okay, so, I haven’t actually introduced myself yet. I think we should start there.”

“Good idea,” Logan chimed in. “You head in first. It’s best that a familiar face is the first he sees.”

Patton nodded and opened the door to be met by the borrower’s alert and fearful gaze. Patton realized he must’ve heard Logan and Roman outside the door and assumed the worst. 

“Logan and Roman are here.” He began. “They’d like to meet you, is that okay?”

The borrower seemed to relax a little and eventually gave a small nod of his head.

Patton smiled. “I warned them not to crowd you, but if they make you uncomfortable at all, go ahead and shoo them away, okay?” He gave a stern pout. “Like flies.” He could’ve sworn he heard a little giggle, but made no comment.

Patton peeked his head outside the door and gave one final warning, “No sudden movements” before he let them inside.

Two new faces filed into the room and began looking around until they settled on the little figure on the bed. Their eyes went wide at the sight.

“Patton,” Roman’s voice was low, almost a growl. “What happened to his leg?”

The borrower shrunk down into the blankets at the amount of rage he assumed was directed at him.

“Roman, you’re scaring him,” Logan scolded.

After a moment, he took a breath and went to stand in a corner of the room to calm down.

“That’s Roman,” Patton explained. “He’s just upset you got hurt. I promise he’s not mad at you.”

“Patton,” Logan approached slowly. “If we’re going to introduce ourselves, we should do so quickly. It’s only a matter of time before Jackson goes to the police to initiate the search.”

Patton nodded anxiously. “I- I know this is late, but my name is Patton.” He offered a smile.

“And I am Logan,” he bowed a little. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Logan’s formalities had the borrower bowing to him in return, albeit confused, and yet thankful for the gesture. He’d never been greeted as if he himself were human before.

Eyes closed, Roman turned and bowed deeply with his hand over his heart. “Allow me to apologize, it was not my intention to startle you earlier. Please forgive me.” He repented.

The borrower was at loss for what to do in such an unfamiliar situation. Never before in his life had a human shown him such penance. He though back to a time when Patton apologized in tears over the tiniest things. It was the first apology he’d ever received from a human, and now a human he’d only just met sought his forgiveness for something that wasn’t even his fault.

He flinched when Logan smacked Roman upside the head. “Introductions, Roman. You’re confusing him.”

Roman shot up and immediately apologized again. “My name is Roman. It’s a privilege to meet you.”

Logan sighed. “You and your theatrics. This isn’t the middle ages.” He shook his head at Roman’s dramatics before once again turning his attention to the tiny borrower on the bed. “I am here to remove your collar, but before that, may I ask if you have a chip?”

The borrower tensed, but shook his head.

“That’s good, then this’ll be quick so long as you hold still.” He took another step forward, but the borrower scrambled to maintain their distance.

“Logan,” Patton admonished and stood between the two. “Do you know what you sound like? Apologize and explain yourself!” 

Recognizing his error, Logan tipped his head and apologized. “Forgive me, I misspoke. I simply ask that you sit as still as you can whilst I remove the collar. I would appreciate your cooperation.”

The borrower looked to Patton for reassurance. Patton kneeled and spoke softly, “I won’t lie, it’ll be scary. Logan will have to use some sharp and scary-looking tools to get it off. But if he doesn’t, Jackson will use it to track you down and take you away again.” The borrower shivered at the thought. Patton went on, “You don’t have to trust us, I know that’s a lot to ask. And you can still shoo him away if Logan scares you. But I promise his tools won't so much as graze your skin and after he’s done, you don’t ever have to see him again if you don’t want to. Sound good?”

A brief silence filled the room, glances were exchanged and anxiety made them jittery until the borrower crawled to the edge of the bed and uttered the word “Okay” in a voice so small they might have been mistaken.

Patton smiled wide, tears welling in his eyes. “Okay.” He repeated breathily.

“Patton,” Logan began. “I should start now.”

Patton nodded and got up out of Logan’s way. Roman watched anxiously as he took out the tools he’d prepared in advance and got to work.

Chapter Text

With the collar gone, Logan suggested the three of them step back and provide room for the borrower to relax. After all, he just sat still for a good five minutes with needles mere centimetres from his neck.

Carefully, the borrower reached up to paw at his neck and found nothing but the raw and tender flesh once hidden beneath the collar; now made bare and susceptible to the cold air of Patton’s bedroom. Then, as if afraid the collar may reappear, he wrapped his little hands around his neck and began to tremble with stifled sobs.

Patton wanted nothing more than to hold him close, but resisted knowing he’d only make matters worse in doing so. Logan watched silently as the borrower’s tiny frame shook and bounced as he cried. Roman took one look around the room, snatched some tissues from Patton’s shelf, and knelt beside the bed.

“Make as much noise as you want.” He said and presented the tissues to the borrower in front of him. “We’ll leave the room if that’s what you want. It makes no difference to me. But I want you to know, whether you choose to believe me or not,” he gestures to Logan and Patton behind him. “None of us could give a shit less how loud you cry.”

“Roman!” Patton chastised, but Roman went on.

“You could scream for all I care. I’m not gonna lay a hand on you for it. And neither are they. I promise.”

The borrower sniffled, offered Roman a glance, and reached for the pile of tissues that were comically big for his nose. Then he looked to the door.

“We can leave.” Roman repeated. “If that is what you want, we'll leave without complaint.”

“Roman,” Patton shook his head. “You’re too dramatic. You’ll scare him with all your serious talk.”

“He’s overwhelmed as is, don’t make it worse,” Logan seconded.

Roman shrank under their accusations. “I just want him to feel safe.” He grumbled.

“I don't like blowing my nose in front of others either, so we'll wait outside for a few minutes until you've calmed down. And don’t worry about calling us back in, you don’t have to talk until you’re ready.” Patton offered a smile and ushered the other two toward his bedroom door. “Okay? We’ll knock before we come back inside.”

The borrower hardly had time to process any of it before Patton was pushing the other two out the door and closing it behind him. 

Alone at last, the borrower sat to process the events that transpired that day.

He’d been forced into a schoolbag, toyed with in front of a group of unfamiliar faces, and sustained an injury upon hitting the floor. He was then promptly liberated by a stranger who proceeded to cry for him, apologized, and ask his permission to touch him. Not only that, Patton’s friend basically swore life and limb to him and the other removed his collar.

They introduced themselves to him as if he were a human being and never once asked his name. It’s not as if they know it, either. If they did, they’d have used it by now. Since meeting them, they haven’t once put him in a position where he felt obligated to respond verbally. Logan had inquired about a chip, and Roman asked if he wanted them to leave, but either could be resolved with the shake or nod of his head. 

He wasn’t sure he trusted them, but he was getting a little too comfortable on a stranger’s bed. He found it funny.

I should introduce myself when they get back, he considered. And thank Patton for the soup. He allowed himself to smile as he rubbed at his neck for the second time since he was purchased. And Logan for freeing me. He paused to hug the tissue to his chest as if it were something precious. And Roman, too.

He'd go on to rehearse. “H- hi,” he’d stutter. “My name is Virgil.”