#qpp analogical au

[oatmealdaydreams]

Polyamory in MY Fanfic? It's More Likely Than Ya Think.

Working on a lil something for the qpp analogical au I mentioned. Got plenty of side characters n such, some ocs. There's a polyamorous triad/throuple (idk what it's called?), and they three are married. It's this short and big woman who co-owns a bakery with one of her husbands, a taller and worry-prone guy w/ a deeper voice who also co-owns the bakery w/ his wife, and this sailor guy who can be a lil reckless sometimes on his trips and worries his partners. He's a hopeless romantic kinda guy. He also gets very blushy when hearing his husband's (co-baker) voice cause he's a bi diaster.

I love these three. They're side characters to the analogical fic, but they're my fav. The woman is Maria, the co-baker guy is Galen, and the sailor is Justin. Maria is aspec, and she laughs at her husbands as they flirt w/ each other and fluster the fuck outta one another. She finds it fuckin' hilarious. She's a total queen.

When I say Maria is a big woman, I mean she's fat. She's a fat, short woman and her partners love her to death. If anyone tries making neg comments about her, those two would beat their ass. Would fight for her, would die for her, would kill and live for her. Love me some mutual healthy devotion in relationships. And they three would do the same for each other.

Yeah, so Maria/Galen/Justin is a canon ship of my ocs. They'll appear for a bit in Chpt 1 (I'm writing it rn). Maria & Galen may appear later? Maybe, maybe not. TBD.

What should I call these three... I need some sort of ship/pairing name for 'em. Hm. BakerSail? Cause bakers and sailor. Or... idk. If ya any ideas for them, put it in the comments pls.

[not-sure-what-im-feeling]

I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM

💙💜💙💜

Soo uhmm pony analogical :) their names are Star hoof and Violet Storm and for funsies i put them in an infection au

And they are queer platonic!!

[ironwoman359]

Sanders Valley AU???

So the "Sanders Valley AU" doc is a very sparse idea document that contains notes for a Sanders Sides Stardew Valley AU (I might have talked with @teacupfulofstarshine or @stormcrawler75 about this, I honestly don't remember, the document is two years old). The story would focus Farmer Thomas moving to Stardew Valley and befriending the local populace, helping the valley's pining residents confess their feelings for each other, all while falling hopelessly in love with the valley's resident hopeful author Elliot Nico. This is the casting list I made:

Thomas = Farmer 

Nico = Elliot

Virgil = Sebastian 

Logan = Harvey

Patton = Penny 

Roman = Leah 

Remus = Maru

Janus = Abigail 

Emile Picani = Emily 

Remy (Sleep) = Sam 

Kai (cartoon therapy) = Alex 

Elliott (cartoon therapy) = Shane 

Missy (Misleading Compliments) = Hailey (this casting is open to change)

Dot and Larry = Pierre and Caroline 

Main ships would have been Thomas/Nico, Analogical, Royality, and Dukeceit, all which become established over the course of the story, while Remile is already established. I had no plans for ships involving Kai, Elliott, and Missy, though I was open to the idea of a ship or qpp developing between them. Also, as stated, Dot and Larry would take the place of Pierre and Caroline, and I had thoughts of replacing all the villagers, including the kids, with Shorts characters. I never actually outlined any plot or anything, but that was the idea!

WIP Title Ask Game

[soysaucevictim]

I had a few random Gymrat!AU thoughts earlier.

So. Roman and Janus have chronic illnesses (CKD and psoriatic arthritis, respectively). They're both aro and and very into each other, if you know what I mean. They usually try to navigate where each other are at when it comes to fatigue/pain levels and all that jazz.

But sometimes on a high spoons day for both... they misjudge it and both crash out after a particularly intense adventure. Leading to humor and angst (Roman > Janus) and dorkiness and all that, while they recover in the next several days.

(At least Jan has help they can hire so they can get through it alright. It just do be like that sometimes.)

-

Since Remus and Logan are both in IT... and always had a prodigal understanding about how tech works. You can bet they were The Obligatory Free Tech Support in their respective families, growing up.

(And given that Ro is kinda hopeless with tech, you can bet Remus having to come in to save the day was a FREQUENT occurrence.)

Virgil's a gamer, his level of tech literacy is mostly on the level of "did i turn it off and on again?" and "Is it even plugged in?"

Outside of those measures, I could def could see him get those services from his partners (Romantic Dukexiety + QPP Analogical) there. He probably doesn't need to try very hard at all.

[rosesisupposes]

Objections, Your Honor

Two lawyers are across the aisle in open court once more. But today something is off, and no one is happy with the result.

read on ao3

characters: mainly Logan & Janus; background Virgil, Patton, Roman, Remus, Remy, and Emile

pairings: soulmate Loceit; QPP Analogical; QPP Moceit; romantic soulmate Royality; romantic soulmate Dukexiety; romantic soulmate Remile

content tags: non-traditional soulmate AU; courtroom drama; arophobia and acephobia; shameless self-pandering with legal arguments about the MCU; gushing about QPPs; couples therapy

reader tags: @royally-anxious @jemthebookworm @arandompasserby  @sparkly-rainbow-salt @astral-eclipse​ @thelowlysatsuma @adorably-angsty @max-is-tired @almostoveranalyzed @potestessemagishomosexualitatis  @mariniacipher @vintage-squid

word count: 10,386

⁂

The day it happened was no normal day for Logan. But not, of course, because of that.

He cared because it was a trial day. Months of motions back and forth, weeks and weeks of preparation, and today was oral arguments. He normally avoided open court, particularly against such an opponent, but nothing could be done.

His case files were impeccably arranged in his padfolio, his grocery list of arguments annotated in precise writing, blue ink dotting the page with emphases and connections, his notepad prepared at his left.

He glanced to his right out of the corner of his eye at his opposing counsel. He didn't want them to see him looking. But he sneered internally at the haphazard stacks of papers spreading across the table and the garish gold ink that looped and curved across sticky notes.

The judge finally came out, and Logan stood, crisply buttoning his tailored jacket as he did so. At the signal, he identified himself clearly. "Logan Finch for the appellant, Your Honor." 

And then, from his right: "Janus Alighieri for the appellee, Your Honor."

Logan rolled his eyes internally. Janus was, unfortunately, a very familiar foe at this point. But then, they were two of the most respected lawyers in their state, with opposing specialties and reputations for innovative tactics.

Logan was self-aware. He had another reputation, too: as a black-and-white thinker, unshakable, unalterable. He preferred to think of it as a particularly strong conviction. Versus "The Snake" against him, who coiled and twisted the facts of his cases to benefit his clients.

And of course, that was the issue today - Logan strove to show that his client had a straightforward, airtight argument that should clearly prevail, while Janus found miniscule details that he said should be enough to distinguish the case at hand and make it different from previous decisions, enough so to allow the case to be decided in his favor. He'd charmed the jury at trial, and now argued against Logan's appeal.

Logan prided himself on keeping a cool head, but listening to Janus' speech just got under his skin. His neat handwriting started to get messier and messier as he furiously scribbled notes of counterarguments and responses to his opponent's points. Then Janus turned slightly, just enough to see frustration's color burn in Logan's cheek, and he smirked.

Logan barely heard the gasp from the observers behind the bar, because he'd just snapped his pen in his grip.

He looked straight ahead, somewhere slightly to the left of the judge's head, but he saw very little, his furious thoughts too loud to allow any else to be processed. But the audience was murmuring and talking, far louder than any judge usually allowed - what was going on?

A clerk from behind him hurried up to the judge's dais and whispered urgently in her ear. Logan had yet to look around, but he was slowly coming back to himself, enough to be confused at this disruption in normal procedure. He refused to look over at Janus' probably-still-smirking face.

The judge cleared her throat. "Counselors, we will recess for the day. Please join me in my chambers now."

Logan frowned, but cleaned up the broken pen and gathered his file neatly back into his leather briefcase. He didn't look over, but he heard the flurry and crinkling of papers as Janus threw his notes into his own bag. Without glancing over, Logan followed the judge to the small office at the back of the courtroom.

"Mr. Finch, Mr. Alighieri. I do hope there's a good explanation for this breach in propriety, not to mention the code of conduct," she said sternly as they both stood before her heavy desk.

"Breach, Your Honor?" Janus asked. He sounded just as confused as Logan felt.

"As barred attorneys, you are expected to know the code as well as I," Judge Kasel said severely. "No soulmates may be involved in a trial together, except as co-counsel."

Logan's ears roared. "Your Honor, I apologize, I must have misheard. Soulmates? How is that relevant-"

"Mr. Finch, don't play dumb with me - the entire courtroom saw!"

"Saw what?" Janus asked. His voice was oddly distant and strained from its normal silky tones.

Judge Kasel stared at them in disbelief. "You mean to tell me you both managed to not see that? I'm quite certain the entire county saw the glow just now, through even the back of your suits!"

"Glow?" Logan asked. His chest was suddenly very, very empty, a vacuum of air or substance, and had he not been sitting he was sure he would have fainted.

"Yes, glow, both your marks on your shoulders. Given your mutual surprise, I will assume that this was indeed unknown, and will not declare this case a retroactive mistrial. But you will both need to send in replacements from your firms."

Janus spoke up, his voice tinny. "Replacements, Your Honor? I should think even in light of this- development, only one of us would need to withdraw-"

"Mr. Alighieri, while I appreciate your dedication, I will not delay this trial for the entirety of your bonding. I will give you both 3 days to propose counsel to take over, and scheduling will proceed with them."

Oh fuck. Bonding, Logan thought, unable to speak. That absolutely ridiculous expectation.

The clerk poked her head in. "If they need to speak privately, this side office is empty."

"Yes," Logan responded robotically. "Yes, I believe we need to speak."

They filed into the small room. The clerk closed the door behind her, whispering "Congratulations!" as she disappeared.

Janus sat in one of the chairs heavily. Logan remained standing, staring blankly at the bookshelves built into the wall.

"I can't believe this," Janus said finally. "We've known each other for years, how could we possibly be...?"

"Soulmarks frequently emit a barely visible glow from proximity alone, particularly when located on skin that is generally covered. Heightened emotion or situations with high levels of stress lead to brighter glows that were invisible or unnoticed previously," Logan recited dully.

"Oh yes, how could I forget, I'm talking to Encyclopedia Brown," Janus said, rolling his eyes. "Of course you've memorized that too." He unbuttoned his suit vest dexterously despite his trademark yellow gloves, slumping forward in his chair as he threw his vest over the arm carelessly.

"At least one of us actually has a factual basis for this event, rather than us both being in the dark," Logan snapped back.

"Yeah, your vast knowledge of facts really helped! Did your misguided quest to know everything somehow miss the detail of who's your fucking soulmate?" Janus said, nearly whisper-screaming.

Logan whirled to face him, a fiery reply already on his lips, when he suddenly saw a blue light showing through Janus' white shirt, bright enough to glint off the polished chair back and off the glass of the picture frames on the wall.

He closed his eyes, breathing out slowly. "Yes. That was a detail I had not learned. It felt trivial, unable to affect my work. But now that it has, we're better off resolving this."

Janus deflated too. "Yeah. We should. If we can just get through this part, at least we'll stop glowing like horny teenagers."

Logan focused on a tiny flag displayed on the desk as he spoke, not looking over. "I know of a very respectable landlord who rents bonding apartments in the city. Nothing overdone or kitschy, no 'honeymoon' suites, just furnished apartments for indefinite stays."

"Fine. Not like we can't afford it, whatever the price."

"I have some arrangements to make at home-" Logan began

"As do I, unless-"

"Unless what?"

Janus took a breath. "How would you feel about living with a snake?"

"I rather thought that was the entire idea," Logan replied coolly.

Janus shot him a withering glare. "I mean a python, you absolute cotton-headed ninnymuggin."

"Ah, my mistake," Logan said calmly. "That should be fine. A pet, I assume? Or your chosen co-counsel?"

"Let's get one thing straight, Finch," Janus said, rising to his full height, looking down at his infuriating opponent. "I don't like you. I don't expect or particularly want you to like me. We are going to be residing together up until, and only until, our illogical marks have decided in their weird cosmic energy to stop lighting up like neon signs whenever we experience strong emotion in each other's company. I fully expect to be pissed off the entire time, which will make figuring that out easier. But you do not get to speak to me that way, or I'll-"

Logan looked up to meet Janus' eyes. "Or you'll what, Alighieri?"

"I'll report you to the bar for breaking the code, and convince them you already knew," Janus replied smoothly. "And you of all people should know- I am very persuasive."

Logan's eyes narrowed, but he nodded. "Fine. And yes, you may bring your python. I'll be leaving my cat at home, however."

"Fine with me," Janus said curtly, deflating back into his normal slouch.

"I will send you the details of the landlord I mentioned. I can make the arrangements within the hour."

"Sure. Wait-"

"What?"

"How are you going to send me the details?"

Logan paused. Their only real contact over the years had been in person or by professional communications. He could hardly use a process server or subpoena to give Janus his key. "Ah. Right. Your contact information, then?" He pulled out his notepad.

Janus pulled out his gold pen and scribbled his phone number at an angle, entirely crossing the college-ruled lines. Logan cringed but took it.

"I will contact you shortly, then. And I will may sure to look for pet-friendly apartments."

Janus nodded. "Right."

"Right."

They both paused.

"Uh. See you soon, then," Janus said, and left the room abruptly.

⁂

Janus had to hand it to him - the apartment was all Logan had promised. Clean, sleek, and spacious. The landlord had even left a spare heat lamp, so Janus' sweet Monty would be comfortable.

Best of all, there were several separate rooms in the suite - two bed, two bath, and two offices.

The kitchen was also well-furnished, and came stocked with staple foods. Logan had arrived, however, with extra bags of groceries.

"I brought my own additions," he said. "The landlord is a friend, but he doesn't buy from the shops I prefer."

He proceeded to pull out several large jars of kimchi, what looked like at least a gallon of soy sauce, and various bright packages that Janus couldn't read.

Janus resolved to take pictures and look up what these things were later. Not while Logan was standing here, glaring up and over as if daring him to comment.

"I've picked the smaller bedroom," Janus informed the shorter man calmly. "Monty is set up in there, so if you're weird about snakes, just avoid it. Actually, feel free to avoid it anyway. I've got a brief to write."

Logan made a noncommittal sound in response.

Hours later, Janus emerged from his office to eat something. His brief was finished, sent off to his senior partner. He hadn’t yet told the firm about the day’s events- only that the appeal would need to be handled by another partner with his associates’ help, he needed to take emergency leave, and he would let them know soon how long he expected to be unavailable. H

e found evidence in the kitchen that Logan had prepared, eaten, and cleaned up dinner for himself.  That was fine by him. He made his own food, grabbed a bag of candy, and retreated back to his room.

The next morning, he woke up at his normal late time, stretching in the sun. The kitchen once again showed evidence of Logan's presence- particularly the currently-soaking coffee pot.

When the sun started to descend once more and Janus had yet to see his new roommate, he grumbled. Guess he'd have to be the fucking practical one.

He blew Monty a kiss for good luck and stumped down to the rooms Logan had claimed. He rapped on the door. "Finch. We need to talk."

He waited. There was silence, then a slow drag of a chair. The doors cracked open.

"Yes? What about?"

"No. We need to talk. Or, fuck, I don't know. Be in the same room occasionally."

Logan sighed deeply, and opened the door more. "Fine."

Janus went to the living room and sat on one side of the couch. Logan followed him and settled on the chair facing him.

"So." Janus began.

"So what," Logan replied flatly.

"Sew buttons," Janus replied automatically.

"What?"

"Just something one of my friends says," Janus muttered.

"Ah. So what was it you want to discuss?"

"I don't know!" Janus snapped. "But I'd really like to get back to my life, eventually, and that can only happen if we bond." His lip curled.

Logan sighed heavily. "And how, exactly, do you propose we do that?”

Janus fell silent. He had very few ideas. Pop culture made it very clear that bonding was an extremely romantic event. First kisses. Proposals. Or, in the less sappy movies, it seemed to consist purely of falling into bed together. None of which appealed in the least, particularly not with Logan.

Logan stared expectantly. "Nothing? You just pulled me out with no ideas?"

"If you're the fucking brilliant one, you come up with one then!" Janus spat out the suggestion with a glare, but then he saw it - a soft gold glow shining through Logan's tee, reflected in the tasteful mirror behind him.

They both deflated again, glows reducing down to hidden beneath their clothes. 

Logan adjusted his glasses. "I. Ah. Apologize. I realize you are attempting to resolve this issue."

"But you're right. I have no idea how to," Janus admitted.

Logan took off his glasses to rub his eyes. "Unfortunately, neither do I. Perhaps just coexisting will be enough."

"How long will that take, though?"

"I haven't the foggiest."

They lapsed into silence.

Finally, Janus suggested, "Maybe we can do our work in the same room. Set up in the dining room with all our stuff. Coexist but in proximity."

Logan glanced over. "That seems relatively painless. Let us make an attempt, then."

⁂

Logan had not had any particular expectations for how well they could share a work space.

And yet, it was still far worse than he'd expected.

Janus talked to himself. As he read, as he wrote, as he researched. Not loud, but a constant stream of soft muttering, disjointed words and full sentences. 

It was the most distracting thing Logan had ever been suffered to experience.

"Will you please be quiet," he said tightly, after an hour passed with no signs of letup. 

"What do you mean?" Janus asked.

"That infernal whispering, please, could you stop?"

Janus looked at him quizzically.

"You're talking under your breath," Logan said. He felt a headache coming on. 

"Oh, am I?" Janus asked. "Sorry. I'll be quiet."

It lasted all of half an hour, and then the muttering started again. "SCOTUS said yes but that was a city sidewalk, 2nd says no but that was Lincoln Center, hm, decoration, use, separation, intent?" 

"You're doing it again!"

Janus looked slightly guilty. "It's barely conscious, it's how I process things. Could you just wear headphones?"

"I need silence."

"Noise-canceling, then?"

"Fine. Do you own a pair?"

But the headphones didn't help. The sensation was too odd, of being closed-in, and he kept bumping then as he went to lean against his hand. Finally, Logan stood. "I'm going back to my office. This experiment has failed."

Janus' eyes narrowed. "Well, thanks for deigning to sit in my presence for a full three hours before giving up."

"I'm not giving up, this is just not tenable!" Logan insisted. 

"Well, you asked for ideas, and I came up with one. If it's not working for you, you come up with a better one. Come find me when you're done thinking, I know it could take you a while."

He stood and grabbed an apartment key, and stalked out to walk off his frustration.

As he walked, he called his best friend.

"Hey Pat, it's me."

"Jan! Hi buddy, how are you?!"

He sighed heavily. "I want to go home."

"But you only just got there?"

"Yeah, and it's going shi- I mean, badly. Really badly."

"I'm sure you'll work it out," Patton said confidently. "You're a brilliant and wonderful human, and anyone smart enough to argue against you will be able to see that!"

"Thanks, hun," Janus said. "The fact remains that I also don't like him."

Patton hummed tunelessly. "It doesn't have to be instant, Jan. These things usually take time."

"Unlike you and Ro."

"Well, yes, but that's because we were meant to be!" Patton soft, his voice taking on that soft, besotted tone it always did when he talked about his soulmate.

"Isn't the whole point that all soulmates are meant to be?"

"Well, yes..." Patton faltered. "But it doesn't have to look like us, we're just hopeless romantics!"

"I know. How's wedding planning going?"

"We started watching movies for inspiration and got distracted with a Disney marathon," Patton said fondly. 

"But you had fun?"

"Absolutely!"

"Good," Janus said, meaning it. There were very few people, in his opinion, who deserved happiness the way Patton did.

He was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Pat- what if it was a mistake? What if we just have defective marks or something?"

"I'm sure that's not true!" Patton insisted.

"It just seems like - I mean, we're not even friends. Most people get to start from strangers at worst, but we've been antagonizing each other for years, what if, I don't know. Neither of us had a soulmate and so they glitched out?"

"You just need to find some common ground," Patton said confidently. "You can't both be so passionate about being lawyers without something more in common. I believe in you, buddy!"

Janus sighed. "Thanks, Pat. Say hi to Roman for me, tell him Monty misses him."

"Will do, nephew! Call any time you need, okay?"

"Love you, Pat."

"Love you tooooo!"

Janus realized he'd circled the block and was back at the apartment entrance. He steeled himself, then went back up. He repressed the petty urge to bang open the door to disturb Logan's quiet as much as possible.

Logan wasn't in the common spaces, but emerged not long after Janus returned.

"I feel I must apologize," he began. "It wasn't my intent to denigrate how you work. It is just clear that sharing a workspace is not going to be preferable for either of us."

"Yes, I'm aware I had a bad idea," Janus said, overly patient. "Kind of an odd apology, but I accept. Can I have lunch now?"

"Yes, of course. May I join you?" Logan asked.

Janus raised a distrusting brow.

"The idea of spending time in the same space was a good one. I thought we might try a context in which we don't need to focus."

"Fine."

They prepared food around each other, both managing to bite their tongues when they needed the same counter space or cooking implements, which Janus was proud of himself for. They ate in silence.

Janus heard Logan sigh in exasperation and braced himself for yet another snippy comment. Instead, he heard an unexpected question.

"Do you enjoy superheroes?"

"To eat? No, they upset my stomach," Janus replied drily.

"I mean to watch. Superhero movies and shows."

"Occasionally, yeah, why?"

"Perhaps we could watch one this evening. At the same time."

"Sure."

And they parted to continue working on their own.

⁂

Logan had been correct that, as far as superhero movies went, the MCU was a safe choice.

In retrospect, though, perhaps Civil War had been... less so.

It had started when Steve first objected to the Sokovia Accord plan- and Logan had scoffed.

Quick as a cat’s pounce, or an adder’s strike, Janus’ head whipped around. 

“You disagree?”

Logan glanced over briefly, screen light blinking off his glasses. “Well, of course. Didn’t New York and Sokovia show that some control is needed? Lawlessness leads to more civilian casualties.”

“And yet, if supers are controlled so much that risk of liability keeps them from acting at all, casualties would be just a tad higher, don’t you think?”

Tony and Steve’s voices raised on the screen as Logan replied, “What would the difference be of the villains and heroes if they all act with complete impunity?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did we lose mens rea when we switched over into Marvel-land?” Janus asked, voice clipped. “Isn’t the entire basis of our modern penal system based on culpability, not just the act or harm done?”

Logan looked down his nose. “Of course culpability matters. But you well know that one of the factors for absolute liability is when an act is inherently and extremely dangerous. Say, for instance, displays of superhuman force in a densely populated area.”

“So you don’t think there can be any space for personal judgment on the heroes’ behalf?” Janus asked incredulously.

“Look what that space did already! Does the name Ultron ring a bell?”

“So of course, the one who made a terrible call is the one who now wants to be restricted? That sounds like asking for the global government to save him from himself instead of taking responsibility.”

“Better that those with actual accountability be the ones bearing the responsibility!”

“Oh, yeah, and we can definitely trust this government’s judgment! A Hydra infestation was all part of the plan!” Janus’ voice was raising, far louder than the movie that still flickered on, ignored.

“There still needs to be rule of law! Steve wants to abandon it all for one person, and a war criminal at that-!”

“And that’s incomprehensible?”

“Of course!”

Janus fixed his supposed soulmate with a glare. “And you mean to tell me that there’s no one, no one, that you would be willing to burn the world down for?”

Logan opened his mouth to respond, but Janus continued quickly before he could. “No one who won’t fight for themselves, because they think they’re not worth it, but you know they’re so worth it that you would be willing to kill for them?”

Logan, about to spit out an impulsive reply, paused, momentarily speechless. As clearly as if they were sitting on the edge of the couch next to him, his best friend from childhood filled his mind. Virgil, who never believed their worth no matter how many times Logan and their soulmate Remus told them so.

Janus saw the pause and continued softly. “I’m not saying rule of law isn’t important. But the trouble with laws is they’re only as tailored as legislators make them. And they’re human, and therefore fallible. We need exceptions, for those situations that they didn’t imagine.”

Logan struggled for moment, then replied, just as quietly, “You’re right.”

Janus’ mouth fell open in shock, but just as he did, the tv’s faint blue glow throughout the room was washed over with two beacons in blue and gold, blazing from their backs.

At the sight, Logan’s face went from contemplative and open to stony. He stood abruptly and stalked off into his room. The door closed behind him with a decisive click, and Janus was left staring at the wood in confusion and anger.

⁂

“I just don’t get it!” Janus whisper-screamed into the phone. He was power walking through a nearby park, moving so fast he’d passed a skateboarder and a particularly leisurely biker. “Does he want to keep on glowing forever? What is his problem?!”

Patton made sympathetic noises in response, quite familiar with the sound of Janus in full rant mode. Roman was lying with his head in his lap, listening on speaker, so Patton was settled in to be as receptive to his friend’s complaints as he needed.

“I mean, we finally agreed on something, besides the fact that we want to get this fucking resolved, and then he just, what, shuts me out? Literally and figuratively? I literally can’t even catch him leaving to the kitchen for food now!”

Patton winced. “Not since? But it’s been two days!”

“Two and a half, yeah,” Janus replied. His voice suddenly sounded weary. “I can’t keep doing this. The trial’s going on without us anyway, I might as well just give it up and make sure I never have to argue against him again.”

At that, Roman sat bolt upright. “Janus, my dear esquire! You cannot abandon your quest! This is your soulmate!”

“Yeah, well. Maybe some soulmarks are broken. Or we just met at the wrong time. Maybe if we’d met in law school we would have been a team, but now it’s too late.”

Janus sounded contemptuous, but Patton could hear a distinct note of regret.

“Maybe...” he started, but trailed off, thinking.

“Maybe what, Pat?”

“Well, it’s just that I’ve heard of soulmates who, you know, take an abnormally long time to bond, or manage to un-bond after years together, but they can fix it. Do you remember my old roommate?”

Janus wrinkled his nose. “Patton, are you suggesting couple’s therapy? I’m fairly certain that only applies to couples.”

“Well, you’ve kinda been forced to be one, right? At least to figure out bonding? They could probably help, or at least let you know if it’s not worth the effort.”

Janus sighed. “No, you’re right, it’s a good idea. I just have no idea how I’ll get Finch to go along with it.”

“Might I make a suggestion?” Roman asked politely. 

“Sure.”

“Perhaps try calling him ‘Logan.’”

Janus rolled his eyes. “Worth a shot, I guess. Love you both.”

“Love you Jan!”

“Best of luck with the love of your soul!”

 Back in the apartment, Logan was pacing in precise squares in his bedroom. He half-expected the rug to be worn down by the repeated impact at this point. 

“L, I don’t know what to tell you, buddy,” the gravely voice on the phone said. “You really have only two options here: find a way to avoid him forever, which will probably involve having to turn down cases you’d like-“

“I bet he’d stay on them just to force me off,” Logan interrupted, growling. 

“That is a possibility,” Virgil replied, their voice overly patient. “The other option, though, is to work this out,” they continued. 

Logan scoffed.

“Lo, that doesn’t mean you’ve gotta turn into a Hallmark movie! But it’s clear this isn’t just going away, and it’s not like you’ve got nothing in common.”

Logan groaned. “Virge, I don’t-“

“I know, man. I know. But you can’t just hide in your room until he just decides to move out, which means you’re gonna have to talk to him at some point.”

Logan didn’t reply, just continued pacing. 

“You know I’m right, Lo,” Virgil said patiently. “You don’t have to say it, just promise me you’re not going to keep being a hermit, okay?”

Logan sighed. “I promise.”

“There we go. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

About to hang up, Logan heard a voice in the background and Virgil asked him to wait.  Then, “Reme wants to say hi.”

Logan let out an exasperated sigh, but he was smiling. “Fine, I’ll allow it-“

“Loooogggyyyyy! How’s the soulmate boning going? Have you figured out that you’re a power bottom yet?”

“Hello, Remus. I take it you’re well.”

“Let’s just say I’m glad you’re my brother-in-law because I may have some need for a lawyer soon.”

Logan couldn’t conceal the grin from his voice as he replied, “As I know you know, I am not a defense attorney, nor would I ever be so unwise as to take you as a client.”

“Aww, you’re such a smart cookie! And by cookie I mean a snack, because mmmm-MMMm you’re a snacc!”

“Always glad to know I’m appreciated,” Logan replied drily. “Goodbye, Virgil. Goodbye, Remus.”

“See ya, L.”

“Byeeeeeeeeeee!”

⁂

When Janus returned, he was a bit taken aback to see Logan sitting in an armchair, reading. At the sound of the door, he looked up. 

“Ah, Alighieri. I- I wanted to apologize for my behavior.”

Janus paused. It was a good sign, but still so unexpected as to be unsettling.

Logan cleared his throat. “I shouldn’t have left you in a lurch. You did not cause this situation anymore than did I, and you have not been unkind. I have a suggestion for how we might move forward.”

Janus winced internally, thinking of another disastrous attempt at a movie or workspace. “I actually had a thought on that as well, but um. What was yours?”

Logan cleared his throat again. “Well, since we have been... brought into this situation together, but as a pair are struggling to adjust, it seems logical to consult with an expert, much as we would in our work. Therefore, we should consult a professional on personal relationships.”

“Oh, thank god,” muttered Janus. “Yeah, I was gonna suggest a couples counselor too. I think that would make sense. And I actually have a personal reference to a very experienced therapist.”

That settled, they found the earliest possible appointment, only two days later. 

“I do need to warn you-“ Janus said as they walked up to the office. It was their first time out of the apartment together, and it had been a very quiet walk over. “The methods of this therapist are- unorthodox. But they are highly acclaimed in their field.”

“Oh, are they an enby?” Logan asked. 

“Yes and no,” Janus replied. “You see, there’s two of them.”

“Two?”

“Yeah, they’re a couple therapist that is also a couple.”

“I don’t- well- I mean, that’s odd, right?”

Janus grinned. “Yeah, odd is a common word to describe them. But they’re highly praised and like I said, they were recommended personally.”

“Right,” Logan said, squaring his shoulders. “An open mind is helpful for effective therapy, after all.”

“That’s the spirit! I think,” Janus replied, holding the door open.

A gothy receptionist showed them to a private room with a comfortably large couch. Logan looked around in trepidation and slight alarm at the decorations. There were countless Funko-Pops, posters, stuffed animals, and an alarmingly high number of travel mugs from what looked like every single cartoon that had ever existed.

Janus was slightly more prepared then Logan, but he still jumped out of his skin by the sudden singing coming around the door. A deep voice was booming, “Duhhh duh-duh-duh-duh-da-DUH!” in a building crescendo that went on and on, until both lawyers were staring in a mixture of confusion and irritation.

Then a tall, lanky man slid in the door and lowered his glasses to wink at them both. “Hey babes. Welcome to therapy.” 

The singer followed him through the door, their bright pink hair a sharp contrast to their warm brown skin. “And thank you as always for the intro, honey!”

They smiled, big and toothy. “Welcome indeed! I’m Dr. Emile Picani, pronouns they/them, and this tall drink of coffee is my partner, Dr. Remy Picani, pronouns he/him! And you are Janus and Logan, correct?”

Logan looked a bit stunned still, so Janus took the lead. “Yes, I’m Janus Alighieri and this is Logan Finch, pronouns he/him for both. And I was referred by Patton Corwan-Augustus.” 

Emile smiled even bigger, if that were possible. “Oh Patty! Best roommate ever, I still miss his brownies. It’s lovely to meet you both!”

“Best roommate? What am I, chopped liver?” Remy asked, hand pressed to his chest. 

“Best friend, best coffee-maker, best of men and best of husbands,” Emile replied, and said husband immediately blushed.

Logan coughed politely. “Have you been married long?”

Remy smiled, still pink around the edges. “We’ve actually been married almost 10 years. The minute we graduated university, actually, when we knew our parents had not a shred left of financial control. We went through our PhDs together, which is why, of course, we’re qualified to help out other couples, because let me tell you, would not recommend.”

“Which brings us, of course, to you two!” Emile said brightly. “What is your goal in coming to therapy?”

Janus and Logan both began speaking at once.

“Well, it started in court-“

“It was completely unexpected, we’ve known each other for years-“

“-dreadfully embarrassing, not to mention the professional ramifications-“

“-it just feels like something’s missing-“

“-really want to just sort this out-“

“-just want to figure out the disconnect-“

“-and we can forget about the whole thing.”

“-want to make this work.”

They looked at each other, shocked, as their words both sank in.

Emile was tapping their Powerpuff Girls pencil topper steadily against their lips, eyes wide behind their pink-framed glasses. 

Remy, at their side, leaned back and took a long, loud slurp of his iced coffee, rattling the ice around until the room’s attention was on him. Then he looked up and said, “Hoooo-wheee.”

“So I’m getting a lot of differing goals here,” Emile said delicately. “Let’s start with you, Janus. Can you expand, please?”

Janus tried to speak, but felt like his voice had dropped into the cold pit that was suddenly his stomach. “I, um,” he started with a shaky breath. He barely noticed when Remy pushed a cup of ice water into his hand, but a sip steadied him somewhat.

“You can look just at me, if that helps,” Emile said softly. “Or at my buddy Kaa here.” They gestured to the stuffed snake on the shelf behind them. 

He looked like a fuzzy little Monty. That would do. 

“Thank you, Doctor,” Janus said, acknowledging the water from Remy. “So. We’ve been rival lawyers for years, because we’re both the best at what we do. It was shocking, to suddenly be glowing in open court, but I thought we just needed to find common ground that’s not arguing. That’s why I’m here, at least.”

“And Logan?” Emile asked, still in that kind voice. Logan wouldn’t meet their eyes, though, or anyone’s.

“I thought- we both seemed so upset by the news. Or at least, I was, and perceived you to be as well.” He didn’t look up as he addressed Janus, but his eyes shifted over and took root on Janus’ polished loafers. “My plan was to spend whatever time was needed to stop glowing, then get back to our respective lives.”

“Do either of you have a question you’d like to ask of one another?” Remy asked. “It can be as large or small scale as you’d like, serious or frivolous.”

Both men looked up at the lanky therapist, who’d actually removed his dark glasses, revealing slightly foggy-looking irises. “Logan, it looks like you have one.”

“Oh- yes. So, Alighieri- I mean, Janus. To be clear- you were not upset by the news?”

Janus took a breath. “I mean, I was shocked, and upset to be removed in the middle of a case. But not about the soulmate thing, specifically. And I have a question too?” He looked to the therapists, who both nodded.

Janus looked over, and saw the Logan was watching him in his periphery. “When you say you were upset about the news- was it about the soulmate thing, or about me as your soulmate?”

Logan actually sat up, looking shocked. “Oh, goodness gracious. Absolutely about the concept of ‘soulmate’ in general, not personal in any way. Did I-?”

“Well, yeah, a bit,” Janus said.

“I am- I am so sorry. I would have absolutely have been equally upset, no matter who I found to be an accidental soulmate.”

Janus felt his stomach unclench just a bit.

“Logan, what about soulmates in general upsets you?” Emile asked.

Logan’s mouth pressed into a thin line, and he stayed silent for a moment, then two. Finally, he said curtly, “I never asked for one. And no one asked if I wanted one, either.”

“No one asked if I wanted to be trans, and yet here I am,” Emile said with a cheeky grin. “We don’t always get a say over the circumstances of our birth.”

“But Emmy, you’ve found self-acceptance and happiness deriving from coming out,” Remy put in. “Logan, were you content with life before this reveal?”

Logan nodded. 

“So there was no sense of dysphoria prior, or absence of a euphoria that was gained since.” 

Again, Logan nodded.

“Couldn’t-“ Janus began. His throat felt a bit stuck. “Couldn’t there be something to be gained, though?”

Logan picked up a small figurine of Dexter from the table next to the couch, and fiddled with it in his lap as he spoke. “It’s not impossible, there could certainly be gains from a better acquaintance with you. But that’s not what a soulmate is supposed to be, is it? They’re supposed to complete you,” he said, his voice dripping in disdain. “Because you were incomplete before. Because you weren’t enough, alone, you were just waiting for the One. And of course, you can’t be trusted to find them yourself, some cosmic force determines it for you.”

Remy rested his hand in his hand, elbow propped on his knee. “Spill it, sis.”

Logan stared in confusion. 

Remy smiled. “It means, approximately, ‘continue, you’ve got something good to say’. I’m getting a lot here- but a lot of the frustration seems to be with the idea that forces you can’t control are messing with your life, is that fair?”

Logan shifted. “Well, yeah, but that makes me sound like a control freak.”

“Not at all,” Janus interrupted. “Of course you don’t want something incomprehensible to make decisions for you. That’s not controlling, that’s perfectly understandable and human!”

Logan managed a small smile in response.

Emile beamed. “I couldn’t have said it better myself!”

“But I am def gonna poke some holes in your thought bubble,” Remy said cheerfully. “Starting with this: what do you mean when you say a soulmate is intended to be The One?”

Logan stared in disbelief. “Come on. Really? Look at, I don’t know, any piece of media ever. Or at you two. Or at my- friend and his husband. Or any other pair of soulmates!”

Janus added, “I mean, that’s what’s intended, right? With the whole ‘marked from birth’ thing?”

Emile looked at them both very seriously. “Did you know that Remy isn’t The One for me?”

“But he’s your soulmate?” Janus gasped out.

Emile nodded gravely. “He is my soulmate. But he is not my only soulmate.”

“I was designated female at birth to very traditional parents. They wanted me to marry my soulmate at 18, like they had, and they assumed he’d be a man. But my other soulmate was a girl, and I loved her with all my heart. And when I realized I wasn’t a girl, I thought my parents might accept us more. I was wrong.” They took a breath. “We were separated. I don’t know what happened to her. But it was enough to know that my parents didn’t care about my happiness, soulmate or no.”

“I’m so sorry,” Logan said quietly, and Janus nodded, swallowing a lump in his throat. 

“I was lucky, though,” they continued. “I found Remy only two years later. And he accepted me as I am, both my gender and my other soulmate. And the cartoons, of course.”

“I never got to meet her,” Remy said. “So we will never know if she was my soulmate, too. I choose to believe she wasn’t. I think she could have been Emile’s one and only, had they been able to stay together. And that doesn’t make me feel any less lucky to be Emile’s husband, nor any less loved by them.”

“And not to shock you even more, but not all soulmates are romantic,” Emile said. “I know that’s the media portrayal- but well, the media is also pretty straight. And cis. And white. And neurotypical. And-”

“What they’re getting at,” Remy interrupted, “is that common portrayals miss a lot of the variety and complexity of humanity as a whole, let alone the complexity of relationships.”

Logan was sitting very still, and not speaking. Janus was trying to wrap his mind around this, and spoke with uncharacteristic uncertainty as he asked, “So- for instance, um, you could have soulmates who are, uh, queerplatonic partners?”

Logan’s head snapped up, staring at Janus with wide eyes.

Remy grinned. “Yes, of course! I was worried I was going to have to do a vocab lesson, but you both seem to know what that is.”

“But-“ Janus began, brows furrowing.

“But that means-“ Logan muttered to himself.

“Why isn’t he my soulmate?” Janus asked, at the same time Logan asked, “Why aren’t they my soulmate?”

Lit by the twin glows reflecting against the wall, the therapist couple exchanged a pregnant look. Emile reached out and took a hand of each patient. “I know this is a lot to process, but I really want you to keep something in mind: a soulmate is not the only way we can love someone. It’s not the ‘best’ way or only valid way to love someone. The same way the platonic love you clearly both hold for a significant person in your life is no less valid than romantic.”

Remy sat up straight. “I want you both to think about this when you go home. Your love for your QPPs is wonderful, and worth cherishing. And I know you are both lawyers, so here’s a question for you to brief. We cannot know the actual intent of whatever force gave you marks that respond to each other. So I want to you look for what evidence there might be, in each other, for your connection.”

Emile added on, “You have a link, and it’s worth exploring. It doesn’t have to ever be more important, more meaningful than another connection you have. But understanding it is critical to bonding successfully.”

“I think we should wrap there, for this week,” Remy added. “But you can talk about this, of course, without us.”

Janus and Logan nodded, and left. The walk home was as quiet as the walk there had been, but this time the air thrummed with thoughts and ponderings.

⁂

Janus and Logan made dinner with relatively little talk, only quiet asks to pass a spice or a cooking implement. It wasn't an uncomfortable quiet, but one where their minds were far too loud to vocalize just yet.

Janus quietly suggested putting on TV, and picked the game show network as a neutral, unobjectionable option.

They ate as they watched, still burdened with their own thoughts, but slowly started to murmur the correct questions under their breath before the Jeopardy contestants were able to.

Final Jeopardy, as luck would have it, was on Latin - but specifically, Latin as used in law. Both attorneys chuckled at the contestants' answers, some of which weren't even close to correct.

Janus directed a cautious smile in Logan's direction, and found it reciprocated. But as he saw that familiar glow start to reflect off the walls, he tensed, waiting for Logan flee once more.

For the first time, though, he didn't. His eyes widened as he took in the lights, but he didn't move to stand or leave.

"About today-" Logan began. "I don't know that I am quite ready to discuss it all, but I did want to once again apologize for my handling of this situation, and its emotional impact on you. It was entirely unintentional, but I regret causing you distress."

"Thank you," Janus replied softly. "And thank you for being willing and open to go to counseling. I learned a lot today, all of it important."

"I'd like to talk about it tomorrow, if you'd be willing," Logan added. "There are some additional details I need to share, but I don't think I'm able at the present moment."

"Sounds good," Janus nodded. "I'm going to turn in for the night. Sleep well."

"You as well."

But despite feeling tired, Janus found he wasn't at all sleepy. He ended up sitting up until the wee hours of the morning, stroking Monty gently and thinking a great deal.

⁂

The next morning, Janus woke up much earlier than his usual habit, but he needn't have worried - Logan was clearly waiting for him in the kitchen, sipping coffee and idly solving the entire Sunday crossword.

He looked up at the sound of Janus' door, and indicated the mostly-full coffee pot with a nod. Janus gratefully filled a mug for himself and lightened it thoroughly with cream, drinking deep as he stood angled so that he could offer critique and suggestions on the crossword.

"No, shush," Janus said, though Logan had not spoken. "It's gotta be White. Y'know, Betty? C'mon. Most-loved Gold? It's obvious."

Logan just smiled and penned in “White” in the horizontal boxes, immediately able to fill in the Down clues crossing them.

Once the puzzle was complete, Janus refilled his coffee and sat properly at the kitchen island. 

"So, if you're amenable-" Logan began. "I believe I'm prepared to discuss yesterday in more detail."

Janus nodded. "Did you want to start off?"

"Yes, I think I must. Because there was one detail that I wasn't quite prepared to share that I think will be quite helpful in securing a full understanding."

At Janus' encouraging nod, Logan closed his eyes to take a breath, and said, "The truth is, I'm an aromantic asexual. That's why the concept of a soulmate was so upsetting to me, particularly because up until this week I had assumed I didn't have one."

Janus looked down. "I'm ace, too, but not aro, and... yeah, same boat, mostly. I thought I wouldn't have one, but when we started to glow, I assumed it must be romantic. But that must not be the case."

Logan tented his fingers together. "So you're not aro, but you do have a QPP?"

"Yeah - I definitely can experience romantic attraction, but what I feel for Patton has always been stronger, and different."

"I'd like to hear about him, if you'd be willing," Logan said softly, and was rewarded by a smile that seemed about to glow as brightly as his soulmark on Janus' face.

"Oh, he's just the best," Janus gushed. "I met him at the perfect time in my life. I'd just been dumped by an asshole because he couldn't deal with the fact that the asexual part wasn't just me being a tease. I was feeling pretty low, post-college, all alone in a new apartment, and then this beam of sunshine turns out to be the kind of neighbor who brings cookies as a greeting. Even though I wasn't exactly receptive, he just kept coming back, even just to check up on me, and soon I found myself looking forward to it, and then inviting myself over in return."

Logan paused. "Wait, your ex broke up with you because you were ace? Was it a surprise?"

Janus rolled his eyes. "No, not in the least. I'd told him, and reminded him, and he'd just been assuming I would 'get over it,' the fucker. Right after the breakup, there were times I wondered if he was right, if I should have just powered through my repulsion to make him happy. But Patton was amazing about that, too. When he heard what happened - oh my goodness, he was so angry on my behalf, he looked like he was going to Hulk out. And then he made it his mission to make sure I was being validated in my identity and knew that I was eminently lovable both in spite of and because of my aceness."

Logan smiled. "That's wonderful. I can see why you love him so much."

Janus sighed happily. "And it hasn't changed even though he's met his allo soulmate. Roman knows that our bond isn't and will never be a threat to theirs, and he makes Pat so happy. They're planning their wedding right now, but they've already signed all the papers and it'll just be a party where they gush about each other in public."

Janus sat for a moment, basking in the glow of his affection for Patton, before he turned to Logan and asked, “You have a QPP too, right?”

“I do,” Logan said, a smile stretching across his face unconsciously. “Their name is Virgil. And they’re also married to their soulmate.”

“Tell me about them,” Janus said, when Logan fell silent. 

“They’re- they are just amazing. They’re my best friend, have been since about fourth grade. ” Logan’s eyes went a bit misty as he considered his childhood. “We bonded over being surrounded by idiots, after a debate simulation where we were on opposing sides.”

Janus smirked. “You mean I’m not your first? I’m heartbroken.”

Logan shot him a glare, but it had none of true anger’s heat.

“I guess we always had the feeling that we weren’t quite like everyone else. Besides the introverted tendencies, it wasn’t really a shock when they came out as nonbinary. They’d been online, discovering new terms, and in learning about their identity I ran into the aro and ace labels. I felt seen, do you know what I mean? And then Virgil just compounded that feeling by immediately understanding and accepting me. They call me a brother, just to explain that our relationship isn’t “just” friends.”

“What was it like when they met their soulmate?” Janus asked. 

“It wasn’t nearly as smooth as your experience seems to have been,” Logan admitted.

“Their husband is... unique. Prone to rather odd fixations and interests. But he’s also demisexual, and like us, had thought he wouldn’t have a soulmate. And part of his defense mechanism against that kind of rejection was, well. Embracing his off-putting side. Being disgusting for the sake of it. Grossing out others before they could judge him for his orientation.”

Janus grimaced. “I know that feeling, all too well. Donning a mask, so that a rejection won’t be of you, just your persona.”

“Exactly,” Logan said, nodding. “I don’t think it helped that both Virgil’s and Remus’ soulmarks were in their hair. They’d both dyed their hair many times over the years, but it wasn’t enough to hide it. And once they had shown up- there was no more pretending.”

“Was it hard for them?” Janus asked. 

“Accepting it was. But then they started actually talking and then it just- clicked. All those macabre interests that overlapped, the mutual obsession with MCR. They fell in love the minute they both let their walls down. And like you said- it never really changed what I had with Virge. They didn’t meet Reme until college, and didn’t get married until last year. So Virge told Reme that I was here to stay, and part of their life, and he accepted it without a blink. He’s a forensic archeologist now, to Virge’s forensic detective, so they’ve actually both been helpful in cases, too.”

“That’s... kind of adorable, in a weird way,” Janus said, scrunching his nose. 

Logan chuckled. “‘Adorable in a weird way’ is the best possible description for their relationship.”

Janus tapped his finger on the island. “That sounds so familiar, though, and I can’t quite place it.” He closed his eyes, murmuring under his breath. “Wait! Is Virgil’s husband an Augustus?”

“That was his surname, yes, though now it’s Angelico-“

“Oh my god!” Janus burst out. “That’s Patton’s brother-in-law!”

“What?”

“Roman Augustus! That’s his soulmate’s name! And he had a twin, but they had a falling out and haven’t been in contact for a couple of years. But he said he’d been in forensics!”

Logan blinked. “Well, it is certainly a small world. Not that Remus has ever talked about his brother, but I knew he had one.”

“That’s kind of crazy. What are the chances?” Janus asked, laughing. 

Logan looked pointedly over. “Do you really want to know? I could calculate them-“

“Thanks, calculator watch, but I’m good.”

They both chuckled quietly, sitting side by side at the kitchen island. 

“Hey, uh- thank you for trusting me, with the other day, and with this,” Janus said softly. 

“I owe you thanks as well,” Logan replied. “I don’t frequently have the opportunity to talk about Virgil in detail and it’s- it’s nice.”

Janus just beamed, returning the sentiment without words. 

In that moment, the sunlight of the room was tinged with colored light, gold and blue overlapping into rich emerald.

Logan hesitated, seeing it, but after a moment lifted his arm. Janus smiled and leaned in, accepting the offered side-hug.

“Hey Finch- I mean, Logan?”

“Yes Janus?”

“I may not be sure yet why we’re soulmates, but I’m definitely not disappointed that we are.”

A beat.

Then a soft murmur replied, “Neither am I.”

⁂

Later that afternoon, Logan returned from stocking up on more food to find Janus lying upside-down on the couch, lanky legs dangling over the back. His face was red enough to show that he’d been sitting there for a while as the blood rushed downward.

“I cannot imagine that is at all comfortable,” Logan commented drily, neatly putting away the packets of noodles and snacks he’d purchased.

“It helps me think,” Janus replied. “Especially when I’m trying to see something from another perspective.”

Logan’s eyes narrowed. “This better not have been a set-up just to make that terrible pun.”

Janus looked over, grinning. “It actually started that way, not gonna lie. I’d been venting to Patton about an oral argument simulation in law school and he suggested this as a joke. And then it actually helped.”

Logan huffed in what sounded suspiciously like a muffled laugh and came to sit more normally in a chair next to the couch. “So what is it that you’re trying to change your perception of so literally?”

“Our case, actually - Gomex.” At Logan’s quizzical look, he replied, “The partners aren’t letting me onto new cases until they know I’ll be back in person. I’m getting bored. So I thought, you know. Why not figure out what I was missing in this one.” He shrugged, an odd contortion for an inverted torso.

“You were missing something? But you won at trial.”

“And I was caught off-guard by your appeal - or at least, the part where it survived my motion to dismiss.”

Logan allowed himself a satisfied smirk. “Surprised you with my impeccable research, did I? All my rock-solid precedent pointing out the clear error in the original jury instruction?”

Janus’ legs kicked idly in the air. “Your research is always impeccable. Of course you were able to find precedent on-point for the general issue, you’re good at this. But the facts of the case are just so different that how could any of those past rulings be definitive?”

Logan leaned back in his chair, tapping the arm pensively. “Wait, so you really believe that? It wasn’t just a tactic to make Gomex feel like they’re getting their money’s worth for your legal fees?”

Janus finally righted himself, sitting upright with a leg balancing on the coffee table. “Well, yeah , of course I do. I don’t take the time and effort to go to trial for bullshit unless the client can’t be talked down from combat mode. Racking up charges for unnecessary trial prep is only fun when they don’t take my advice.” He looked quizzically at Logan. “So you really didn’t see the difference between Gomex and, what, Sourgoutsis?”

“No material difference, no. It’s in the right circuit, it’s recent and binding, and it established a test that clearly applies here.”

“But the test requires knowledge!”

“Knowing includes reckless disregard for the truth, and Gomex had that.”

“Oh, you can hardly say it’s reckless when all the claims were paid without issue for a decade!”

Logan leaned forward, counting off points on his fingers. “The guidance is updated each year. The commentary points out the changes. Gomex has to certify as a company that they accept all current guidance and direction. If they didn’t actually know they were submitting false claims, they should have known, and had a duty to know.”

Janus’ eyes were flashing, but more with excitement than anger. “But even the commentary didn’t clarify that these specific claims would no longer be accepted in the future. Doesn’t the agency have a duty to be clear about changes in accepted policy when the code is so vast and companies used past claims as standards for future approval?”

“But the companies are the experts in their own industries. They should know that these kind of differences are significant and material.”

Janus sat up fully straight, pointing enthusiastically. “That’s it!”

“What’s it?”

“I figured it out! It is a matter of perspective. But not the perspective of side versus side, like I was thinking. It’s time.”

Logan leaned in, leaning his elbows on his knees. “Expand, please.”

Janus nodded, mirroring Logan’s pose even as his hands remained free to gesture. “So you’re looking at this as: company knows their procedures best, they’re the ones making profit off it, so their duty to know details is higher than the public agency. Right?”

Logan nodded.

“Here’s where I’m coming from - it’s not a question of if this company knew or should have known this distinction, or even if this industry has the expertise that the agency lacks. It’s about what this case would do to the Sourgoutsis test for cases in the future. If the agency doesn’t have to clarify a policy change now, why would it ever? If it’s not enough that companies rely on a long history of approval here, when will it ever be? Do you follow, Logan?”

Logan linked his fingers, tapping the tips of his forefingers gently. “So your concern is about using a history of compliance as evidence of good faith?”

“Exactly, yes.”

“But Gomex knew that the change meant the compliant history was no longer relevant.”

“Only because they had insider knowledge of the change process. Not from the public information.”

“Wait, so you agree that Gomex knew?”

Janus grinned sheepishly, baring all his teeth. “Well, we’re both off the case now, so- yeah. They knew or should have known their claims would get rejected and banked on the agency not noticing for just long enough.”

Logan gasped. “But you still went into court and got the jury to agree with you that they didn’t!?”

Janus shrugged pragmatically. “It’s not about Gomex, it’s about the precedent this will set. I’d rather one bad actor get away with it now than have who-knows-how-many claims get screwed in the future for a good-faith misunderstanding.”

“Especially if that bad actor is paying you millions to help them get away with it?” Logan asked with an eyebrow raised.

Janus raised one of his own. “So you’d rather let a bad test become binding because the agency is paying you millions to get it set in stone?”

Logan, about to respond hotly, paused. “I suppose that’s a fair assessment. I didn’t think it was that bad a test until now - I assumed the insider knowledge would be baked into the standard.”

“You gotta think cynically, Mr. Finch,” Janus said with a chuckle. “Picture the worst-faith application and work backwards from there, cause you know it’ll end up happening.”

“Hmm,” Logan said with a quiet laugh. “When you’re right, you’re right.”

Janus fluttered his lashes. “The great Logan Finch thinks I’m right about something. My life’s goal is achieved.”

“Hey, I think you’re correct quite a lot!” Logan objected. “Infuriatingly precise and pedantic, sure, but ultimately right. There’s a reason my firm sends me against you - no one else wants to fight what’ll be a losing battle half the time.”

“Only half?”

“Even you must admit I’ve been correct on more than one occasion,” Logan said with a smile.

“That is true,” Janus admitted. “Knowing that you’re going to be the opposing counsel always makes me up my game.”

“The feeling’s mutual,” Logan said wryly. “I’d never admit it to the other partners, but you make me a better lawyer, Janus.”

The flattered glow of Janus’ grin was immediately dwarfed by two other, brighter bursts of light. Gold and blue pulsed from their backs in a flash, then settled into steady light. The colors lit the stylish room, blending to emerald as they pulsed in time with each man’s heartbeat. Logan looked at the glow reflected on the white couch cushions with wonder as he realized that Janus’ back  was no longer shining blue, but green. He caught his eyes and realized his own glow must have changed colors as well.

The lights pulsed more and more gently until they dimmed and went out, leaving Janus and Logan sitting across from one another just as the last of the sunlight fell below the horizon and the room went dark. 

The silence stretched for several moments, until Janus finally broke it with a bemused, “Huh.”

“So that was-”

“I think so.

“So now we’re-”

“Bonded, yeah. I think.”

“That would be a logical assumption.”

The silence returned, each man lost in his own thoughts. When they spoke again, it was at once.

“Maybe we should-”

“Perhaps we could still-”

“-make sure it’s permanent?

“-take a few days more?”

They shared a grin.

“A couple more days couldn’t hurt,” Janus said. “After all, it could be a fluke. We wouldn’t want to set a standard from a mere fluke.”

“Oh, of course not,” Logan responded with the same tone of amusement. “We want to confirm the integrity of the test.”

Janus stood to flick on a light, then turned as a thought occurred. 

“Wait, Logan - even once we go back, we won’t be able to be opposing counsel anymore. The soulmate code will still be applied, even though we’re not romantic or QP soulmates.”

Logan’s face fell for a moment, then lit up once more as he stood. “Well, we’ve got a couple days at least. I think the two best lawyers in the state might be able to argue that every precedent has an exception, don’t you, Mr. Alighieri?”

Janus’ smile mirrored Logan’s own as he replied, “Why yes, Mr. Finch, I think we might.”

[chocococo16]

A fake dating AU between Logan and Virgil.

But in the duration Logan thinks he’s fallen in love with Virgil because he enjoys the newfound closeness. And that’s what the internet says.

This leads to him confessing to Virgil who is actually demiromantic and figured it out during this fake dating but hadn’t yet told Logan. So he tells him.

And then Logan’s like oh, nevermind I’m aromantic. This makes everything make much more sense. It’s a squish, not a crush.

So they become QPP’s.

[uwillbeefoundtonight]

Pool - QPP Analogical soulmate au

Summary: Logan didn’t expect to almost die and meet his soulmate at the same time and Vigril hoped he would never have to meet his soulmate at all. 

Triggers: Drowning, sex mentioned but just the word once, romance metioned, tiny bit of self hate, hospitals mentioned, one thing that is kind of swearing 

Tag list: @shadowhunter-notmundane @actually-al @metaphoricalpluto2 @patchworkofstars

Ships: QPP: Analogical, Platonic: Moxiety, Logince

Logan looked up from his book ad over towards his friend Roman who was attempting again to drag him into the pool. Logan rolled his eyes, looking at the chaos surrounding the water park, children and teens jumping in at all sides, cheering and screaming and giggling. Beach balls flying around in and out the pool followed by a wave of children and adults all muttering “sorry” as they passed.

“Come on specs! What’s the point of coming if you don’t do something fun” Roman insisted, dragging Logan along towards the slide with a giant smile. Roman’s rainbow hair flew back in the cool wind as he ran along, his brown eyes concentrated on the slide.

“Roman it is illogical to run and highly dangerous, I will come with you if you desire but I will not partake in this dangerous part of it.” Logan insisted, pulling away and looking unamused and returning to a walking pace.

Roman sighed, walking back to walk beside Logan “Fine, but enjoy yourself a little you microsoft nerd, live a little and be free.” He replied, spinning around in a circle with his arms out.

Virgil was looking again for Patton, who had jumped in a second ago. He smiled slightly as he spotted his best friend, waving at him before heading towards the stairs. He wasn't one for jumping in, it was too dangerous in his opinion and scary even though the water was barely a few centimeters below him on the side. Too many variables, too many ways it could end in disaster.

Out of nowhere the man he was walking past began to spin, hitting Virgil in the shoulder. Quickly Virgil tried to grab onto the closest thing be could find, trying to reach  pole. He grabbed onto something but couldn't hold his footing, falling in with a splash and taking it with him, quickly panicking under the water and swimming up, letting go of whatever he grabbed.

Not whatever, whoever. Virgil realised as he let go and the person began to sink, the shock keeping them from swimming up. Virgil dived back under, reaching them and pulling them to the surface and pushing them onto the side and climbing out himself.

“Please don’t be dead” He muttered as the man started to cough. Virgil looked over at the man, noticing the writing on the arm, his soulmark. “...Oh shit” Virgil added as he began to read it, sliding back slightly.

“Logan!” Came a shout as Roman ran over, taking the man’s side. It all started to sink in, its his soulmate, the man he just saved. Logan. Virgil heart sank as he wanted to run, he felt sick. He had hoped this day would never come, soulmates were always supposed to end up together and Virgil hated it, he hated his mark. Ever since he was a child he hated everything about romance.

“Get a car or ambulance or something dumbass” Virgil shot Roman a look, recognising the man instantly. Roman nodded, quickly moving and grabbing his keys and phone.

“This is not ideal” Logan spoke, sitting up slightly, and looking over at Virgil who gently showed him his wrist where the words were written, “It appears we are soulmates.” Logan added before both began to speak at once.

“I’m romance repulsed”

“I’m aro”

“I can never love you that way”

“I am sex repulsed, yes it's a little illogical”

“I can’t give you hats expected”

“I’m sorry you deserve better”

“Wait…”

Both feel silent.

Virgil sighed in relief “You’re aro?” He asked again, not quite believing his luck. All his life he was terrified of being forced into a romantic relationship, of being seen as the bad guy and outcast, no matter how many times Patton promised would stay by Virgil’s side. Patton would find his soulmate and then he would be alone.

“Yes, you are apothiromantic?” Logan added, explaining after confused looks from Virgil “It means repulsed by romance, I am Apothisexual, as in repulsed by sexual intercourse.” He added.

“You mean….We’re not romantic soulmates?” Virgil added, looking down as he said it.

“No, it seems we are not, platonic soulmates are also a thing, As well as platonic life partners.” Logan added, placing his hand of Virgil’s shoulder “Is that what you wish?”

Virgil looked up and pushed his wet purple hair out of his eyes and nodding “May I hug you?” He asked, wiping his eyes.

In response Logan opened up his arms and Virgil fall in, wrapping his arms around the other gently and leaning on Logans shoulder. Logan wrapped his arms around Virgil as well, playing with Virgil’s hair.

“I’m Virgil by the way” Virgil said softly “And you should get to the hospital, can’t have you almost dying twice.” He added, moving out of the hug.

“If you come with me, Queer Platonic Partner?” He asked, looking up almost hopefully.  

“Queer platonic partner” Virgil replied, helping Logan up gently and placing him around his shoulders. Virgil looked over at Patton who was coming this way with a small smile “You were right pat, my soulmate was platonic all along,” and Virgil couldn't be more happy, letting his mind finally imagine the life they could have together.

[themysteryofwriting]

Masterpost

Sanders Sides OneShots

What Happened Before Accepting Anxiety - what I think happened that caused Virgil to sink out

The Creativity Split -my interpretation of the Split.  Warning for slight U!Pat and gaslighting

Analogical Clothes Prompt - some fluffy Analogical with Logan stealing Virgil’s clothes

Moceit No Mom prompt - fluffy Moceit prompt with a bit of demiboy Patton or Patton in a skirt where Patton is oblivious til the end

Royality short Pat prompt - no further explanation needed

Can’t You See It - Analogical One Shot. Virgil wants the others to know about how loving Logan is...and that he’s a giant memelord.  Is that so bad?  Hints of background Roceit And Remus being himself

Who say you have to leave your past behind you - my first one shot with Rachel. Some stuff has changed about her since this but it has a special place in my heart.  Hinted at Past U!Pat and Remus being himself. Dee speaks in lies ofc.

This is the Worst Ending - oh boy.  okay this is what I call my angst :tm: If you are senstive to any of the following: don’t read Unsympathetic Patton, multiple major character deaths, blood, Sayori like scene, string imagery, gore, depression, brainwashing, emotional manipulation,murder, strangulation, eating disorder(kinda), stabbing, gaslighting There was a part 2 but......it didn’t last long, i wasn’t proud of it

Puppet!Ray Origins - the first part of my fnaf au! (i literally only have this part and the end so far).  Warnings for U!Pat (he’s Afton), along with child death. However some cute Logan and Ray interactions

Puppet!Ray: End of Everything: continuation of FNAF AU.  This time the Henry scene at the end of FNAF 6.  The fic I got to use the tag ‘is it still fluff if everyone dies’ on.  TW: Hinted Unsympathetic Patton because of who he replaces

And They Were Roommates - a hurt/comfort fic writen for the sanders gift exchange last year.  LAMP fic, nonbinary Dee, college AU, supportive boyfs all around

Prinxiety Prompt - takes place post DWIT, Virgil and Roman talking/flirting

Moxiety, Mobster Patton - again, nuff said.  no death, actually pretty fluffy for the prompt.  maybe a little kidnapping?

Movie Night: cute fluffy LAMP

Logan Prevents A Murder: QPP Analogical, Virgil debating murdering Roman

The Bane of Protectiveness: Ray was there when Roman....and she couldn’t stop him   TW: Suicide, Self-deprecation, self-hatred

MM3: The Murder: based of a Murder Mystery from a discord server, how Talyn’s death played out  TW: death, murder, vomiting, planned murder, drugging a drink, Unsympathetic Logan

How Ray Became Anxiety: Little clip from an au of mine where Ray becomes anxiety, along with keeping protectiveness. TW: character death, Virgil ducks out, Patton and Roman are jerks

Fighting the Dragon Witch isn’t Therapy: after POF, Roman will do anything to prove himself  TW: Temporary Major Character Death

Random Fandom One Shots

Peter Meets Angel - short one shot about my oc meeting Peter (Marvel)

Mitsue Goes Off:  Mitsue was already having a bad day, so when the LOV kidnaps her, she’s going to give them a piece of her mind (MHA)

We Have Mic - Mic gets kidnapped, Aizawa has something to say bout that (MHA)

Scar to Remember - Overhaul left a mark on Mitsue (MHA)

Demise Of A Gamer (DR) - Chp5 of SDR2 from Chiaki’s Pov

Friends Protect Each Other- Tubbo goes to visit Tommy during his exile...and finds Dream with him  TW: manipulative Dream

Original Writing

Saving The Moon - a short story I wrote for a contest a few years back

Never Trust A Newbie- short story written for a writing camp

The Hug Wizard- if you know, you know

Spiritfarer Hug Wizard: o w o

Soulmates Don’t Have to Be Romantic (finished :D )

my platonic soulmates series, starring my oc Ray

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Soulmate GC

Based off my soulmate story, a gc with the members messing w/ each other. Crack fic.

Chp 1

Chp 2

Bad Things Happen Bingo

The Collector - Logan collects people. TW: U!Logan, Kidnapping, Taxidermy on a person, blunt force trauma, character death, implied use of a date rape drug, major character death

Pressure Doesn’t Always Make A Diamond: Reminding a side for their mistakes was never a good idea.  Especially when they feel guilty about it like Patton did.  TW: Unsympathetic Deceit, Unsympathetic Logan, constant guilt-tripping, self-hatred, self-deprecation, blaming someone for something that isn’t their fault 

 He’s Not Yours: Patton’s parents....aren’t the best  TW: emotional abuse, yelling, numbness

Keeping Them Pure: Patton just wanted to make sure his kiddos wouldn’t get corrupted by those nasty dark sides  TW: Unsympathetic Patton, Kidnapping, Forced holding, chains

The Past Can Haunt You: Remus keeps getting left by those he cares about  TW: Abandonment, Self deprecation, Childhood Trauma,  the split, implied unsympathetic light sides

Snakes Don’t Like the Cold: Dee is part snake...so what happens when he gets trapped in a freezer  TW: Unsympathetic Roman, locked in a freezer, hypothermia

All It Takes Is One Mistake: It’s very easy for the Ego to crack  TW: Roman angst ,cracks, roman needing to talk to people

A Game of Paranoia: Something seems off to Rantaro as he goes through this game

You Just Need a Push to be Good: Patton couldn’t let those dark sides keep corrupting Thomas  TW: Unsympathethic Patton, using shock collars as punishment

‘I’m Fine’ And Other Lies: Introduction of Mitsue, my bnha oc.  Mitsue gets hurt in a fight and doesn’t realize how bad it is until it’s too late  TW: mention of blood, hospitals

They Never Saw It Coming: a small one shot with my own sides.  Warning, the title is a really bad pun.  TW: graphic eye injury

The Collector: What Happened Before: a sort of prequel to The Collector, Patton thinking over what happened TW: hypnotism, mind control, U!Logan

Replaceable?: takes place post POF, Logan’s reaction to what Janus did 

Those Left Behind: Ray was there when Virgil left them

You’ll See: From my given to Overhaul AU: Why Mitsue works with Overhaul  TW: Forced Starvation, Kidnapping, Parents not caring

Why Roman’s Sword Isn’t Allowed In the Common Room: All I’m gonna say is this is not as much as a crack fic as it sounds. TW: stabbing, coughing up blood, fighting

Scar To Remember: Mitsue wasn’t left okay after Overhaul got a hold of her

We Have Mic: Someone kidnaps Mic to get to Aizawa.  TW: Kidnapping

Don’t Hurt Ray Or Else: Even while with the lights, Virgil is going to protect his sister  TW: Morally Grey/Unsympathetic Patton, Outing Someone, not Accepting someone,  Transphobia?, mentions of fighting someone

Even In The Face Of Death, Logan Ignores His Feelings - a day to relax goes wrong when Remus decides to mess with Logan  TW: blood, stabbing

Trapped- Virgil gets kidnapped while out in the imagination.  It doesn’t go well. TW: kidnapping, panic attack, flashbacks, claustrophobia, implied pranking, implied fighting

Who Knew Sleep Paralysis Could Be Deadly?- Talent Swap AU with Makoto and Kyoko  TW: stabby stab, K-nife, sickness, sleep paralysis

Kokichi’s Sacrifice - Kokichi’s POV of Chp 4  TW: major character death, strangulation

A Well Needed Lesson - Byakuya has had enough of the Ultimate Lucky Student, Kyoko responds in return

Oh Look, A Yandere - Mic gets kidnapped by a yandere and has to try to escape TW: Yandere, kidnapping

Bad Things Happen Bingo Part 2: New Card, New Category

To Manipulate A Protector -Orange goes after Virgil? Or is that just a trick? TW: Kidnapping, implied fighting, manipulation, being controlled

Some Apologies Go Nowhere - after chp 4, Kokichi tries to apologize to Shuichi. Key word there is try

No One Noticed...- What if Shiro hadn’t been the only one Replaced? TW: Abandonment, heavy doubt, replaced and not noticed

Of All People Why’d it have to be Deku? - Bakugou and Midoryia switch bodies. Chaos ensues. TW:… cussing I guess?

A Broken Disc- Spoilers for the March 1st Tommyinnit Stream  TW: Major Character Death, Attempted Manipulation, Flashbacks

not again...: Nagito gets kidnapped...again  TW: kidnapping, locked in small place

Goodbye Green- Who ever said the Creativity twins were supposed to be separated?  TW: Morally Grey Patton, having to leave someone you care about

One Step Behind: Phil’s POV of what happened that fateful day  TW: Major Character Death, Stabbing, Bleeding Out, Explosions

Adrien’s Realization

Lila Bashing fic where Adrien finally realizes that ‘Hey what Lila is doing to me isn’t good’

Chp 1-  TW: Unrequited flirting, unrequited crush, Lila hate(?)

Chp 2- TW:Self doubt, bad advice

Another Path

After All Might tells Izuku he can’t be hero, Izuku decides it might be better to take another path to help people. Planned mix of actual story and chat fic

TW: slight All Might bashing

Prologue

Chp 1

Chp 2

[hopelessly-aro]

Day the Universe Took Things Into its Own Hands

Soulmate September Day 10: Tattoo-like mark you share with your soulmate

Pairing: queer-platonic Analogical

Tags: soulmate au, college setting, queer-platonic relationship, aromantic Logan, aromantic Virgil, "just friends" to QPPs, mild angst, platonic love confessions, fluffy ending

Words: 2960

Summary: Logan and Virgil have been closer than best friends for years but Virgil can't work up the courage to tell Logan how much he loves him, and Logan doesn't know whether it needs saying. They have been dancing around the subject of their relationship for months. Eventually the universe takes the problem into its own hands.

Notes: I had the very vague idea for something like this for a while and when I saw the prompt decided I had to do this with analogical. QPRs of this relationship have a special place in my heart for reasons that are many and varied so I hope I did this justice. And in case it's not clear, they are in college, sharing an apartment.

Warnings: cursing, panic attack, lack of communication (but doesn't cause conflict)

AO3

"Today's the day" Virgil spoke to himself, running the shower. "I'm gonna tell him today. No backing out this time. No false starts. I'm going to do it."

It was the same thing he'd said to himself yesterday morning...and the day before that...and the day before that...and...

Ok to be honest he'd been planning to say it every morning for over a month but today felt different. Never mind that every day felt different, that wasn't the point.

It wasn't his fault he hadn't been able to tell Logan yet! Stuff just got in the way. Like sudden illness, or the time the bathroom flooded, or when Logan lost his favourite tie, or when Virgil's black ring went down a drain, or emailing back and forth with the student welfare team about repeat soul-status discrimination. Or all the times Virgil had just flat out lost the tiny amount of courage he'd been able to muster up while giving himself a pep talk in the shower.

About a week back, he'd gotten very close to succeeding, getting as far as "Logan, we've been best friends for five years now and-" before Logan suddenly realised they were both late for their next classes and asked to postpone the conversation for another time. Virgil had been very guilty relieved about the interruption. It was such a cliché way to start a conversation like that and he didn't want Logan to think he was a complete dork.

Yeah that was totally the reason. Virgil wasn't a coward at all.

No, today he was going to tell Logan just how much he loved him and that he wanted an official relationship with him. Logan wouldn't take that the wrong way would he? God, that would be really awkward if he thought it was a romantic confession. But, Virgil reassured himself, any misunderstandings would easily be cleared up and once it was done, it was done. They were already closer than best friends, lived together, knew each other better than anyone else, were really emotionally close. All Virgil was doing was saying a few little words they hadn't said before, and putting an official label on whatever society-defying thing their relationship was.

It wasn't that terrifying. He could do this.

-----

Virgil could absolutely not do this.

Nuh-uh, no way, not in a million years, never.

What if Logan didn't actually love him the same way Virgil did?

(That was ridiculous, of course Logan loved Virgil. Why else would he have moved in with him, and stayed through all the shit the two of them put up with, and hung out with him basically 24/7.)

What if Logan didn't want to put an official label on their relationship?

(Logan loved labels and definitions, and he said so often.)

What if he secretly thought that only soulmates should be in official relationships and soulmate-less people like him and Virgil were meant to be alone in every way?

(Highly unlikely given literally every one of Logan's previous actions and loudly vocalised opinions, ever.)

But Virgil was very tired and also a college student so you can imagine the kind of stress he was under.

Clearly it was just not meant to happen, he decided, lying face first on his bed and trying not to scream. It was useless to try. Obviously in not giving Virgil a soulmate, and then sending Logan his way, the universe had decided he was destined to a life of being with his best friend and platonic love of his life without ever actually being able to tell him how much he loved him, or being able to ask if living together and understanding each other and occasionally falling asleep curled up together was actually classed as a queer-platonic relationship.

By this point the universe was getting fed up.

-----

Logan was very confused.

It was rather difficult to tell if he was platonically in love with Virgil when all the descriptions and parameters of "true love" he had been able to find were centred around romantic love only and usually assumed the person you were in love with was your soulmate. Society's definition of love was highly inconvenient for two soulmate-less aromantics like them.

Was wanting to spend the rest of your life caring for another person enough to say you loved them? Probably.

Did Virgil feel the same way when he declared that socialising and affection sounded fake and then promptly spent the rest of the day lying on top of Logan, on the sofa, listening to music, and napping? Possibly.

Was it safe to assume the two of them were already in a queer-platonic relationship or should Logan check? Was that even what Virgil wanted? Logan had no fucking clue.

This was a problem Logan had no idea how to address. What should he hypothesise and how should he go about testing it? What data should be collected? When Virgil had said "Logan, we've been best friends for five years now and-", what on earth was he about to say?

Logan's only current plan of action was "wait and see" and it was a plan he hated.

Oh boy was the universe getting fed up. They needed a push in the right direction.

-----

Virgil wasn't even going to bother trying that day. His undying platonic love for Logan would have to remain unspoken.

He got into the shower and focussed his pep talk on how he was not going to even open tumblr until he'd done at least one class assignment, and he was going to go to bed by midnight. Virgil wasn't really sure why he bothered with all these promises to himself if he knew full well he wasn't going to keep them.

He'd make a good politician he thought sardonically.

As he climbed out the shower, and tired to throw on a towel without freezing, out the corner of his eye Virgil caught sight of a purple bruise on his shoulder. Odd. He didn't remember hitting his shoulder on anything recently.

Virgil turned to the mirror, twisting to get a clear view of the mark...and froze.

That was not a bruise.

If Virgil didn't know better, he'd say it was a soul mark, but that couldn't be right! He was twenty years old, these things were supposed to appear at like age 12! Why the hell would the universe give him a soulmate now of all times? Had it been waiting for him to give up trying to tell Logan how much he loved him? And now it had tied him to some other person he would never want to be with?

But there was no other explanation. It was a muted purple-grey cloud with a thin silvery moon in front of it and four stars in a sort of zig zag shape filling in the space where the rest of the moon would be, and a sort of navy blue smudge around the edges of the whole thing. Unless someone had tattooed it on him in the night, Surprise Soulmate was the only explanation.

After years of fighting society's prejudices against those without soulmates, and forging a relationship closer that anyone believed he should have with the one person who had ever understood him, Virgil had a soulmate. His most important defining feature, according to the rest of the world, had changed over night leaving Virgil completely lost.

What was he supposed to do?

Virgil was distantly aware that he was sitting on the bathroom floor, with his back to the wall, and his breathing was far to fast but also not fast enough. And all he could think was who even was he anymore?

He'd tried not to let his soul-status define him for so long but now it had changed how was he supposed to think of himself now?

Why had it happened?

And how would he tell Logan?

-----

Logan stared at his forearm, a litany of curses running through his head. It was unprecedented, completely illogical, that a soul mark should appear this late in life. That was the only reasonable explanation for the strange image of a cloud and celestial objects that had appeared on his arm.

Why, in the name of every scientist who had ever studied soul marks, himself included, did the universe refuse to give him a soulmate until after he had fully accepted himself as soulmate-less? He had completely settled into his life with Virgil, and was just starting to think maybe they could stay like this forever, and now this had happened. Fate had left him alone for so long, why was it paying attention to him now?

He felt like it invalidated every single struggle against prejudice and bigotry and self-loathing and fear he'd ever had to overcome. His entire life, Logan had struggled to be accepted by the rest of the world, but what was the point now? It felt like everything had been for nothing.

Even his friendship (or whatever it was) with Virgil had been built on the fact that they were both ostracised from society for the same reason. It was their mutual lack of soulmates that brought them together in the first place and the relationship had been built from there, and grown into so much more. And now Logan had to tell Virgil it was all a mistake because apparently the universe wanted Logan to be 'normal' after all.

There was a thud from the bathroom.

Virgil!

Suddenly all thoughts of cosmic authority were gone as Logan rushed across the tiny apartment to the bathroom. The shower had stopped running but the gasping from inside instantly told Logan that Virgil was either having or about to have a panic attack.

"Virgil! Virgil! You need to breath. Can you hear me? Knock on the door if you can. Virgil?"

There came a single knock but the breathing didn't clam down.

"Ok I'm going to come in. Knock now if you don't want me to."

There was another knock and that only worried Logan more. It seemed Virgil would have been able to grab a towel to cover himself if he were indecent so Logan didn't know why he didn't want to let him in. But that wasn't the priority right now.

"Alright, I shall help you as best I can from out here. Just listen to my counting and try to breath in time."

For several minutes Logan just counted: to four, then to seven, then to eight, and start again, until eventually Virgil was able to breath in time with the counting. He didn't stop until he heard a very small "thanks L" through the door.

"Would it be alright if I came in now? I need to check that you are not injured in any manner."

"Nah, I'm ok Lo. Y-you gotta got to class soon." He took a very unsteady breath and Logan frowned.

"I am not so dedicated to punctuality that I would be comfortable leaving you alone after an anxiety attack. However, I can see that right now you wish to have some space, therefor I shall cease pestering you...but please note I will be willing to listen if and when you ever want to talk about what happened. I presume I shall see you at lunch as per usual?"

"Jeez Logan, you can just say "suit yourself" you know. But yeah I'll see ya later."

"Indeed. Ahem, "see ya"." Logan's words had a slight rising inflection as he wondered if that had been the correct use of the phrase. From Virgil's shaky chuckle from the bathroom, he surmised he must have been at least partially correct.

Logan left for class, knowing he would be worrying about his definitely-not-just-a-friend at least until lunchtime.

-----

Lunchtime arrived far quicker than Virgil would have liked. He sat on the bench in the tiny campus park, bouncing his leg in anticipation of Logan's inevitable questioning. The bouncing increased when he spotted said man making his way over with two takeaway coffees.

"If the anticipation of telling me what caused this morning's panic attack is so stressful, you do not have to tell me anything. It is no problem if this is too personal."

Virgil was surprised. "You know, Logan, for someone who claims to be bad at reading people, you can always tell exactly what I'm thinking."

"I suppose that is what happens when one live for someone for two years."

That sent a stab of guilt through him. This morning he'd woken up to a sure sign from the universe that he was destined to end up closer to someone else than he was with Logan. What would Logan say if he knew? Would he think Virgil had been lying all this time? Would he insist that they stop being...whatever they were? Was Virgil going to break his heart when he told him? Or maybe Logan wouldn't care at all. That would probably break Virgil's own heart.

Keeping it secret from him was out of the question: Logan would know Virgil was hiding something and would probably assume he had done something to upset him. Besides, communication was important in any relationship, including ones so undefined as theirs.

"Logan...something happened this morning-"

"Is anyone hurt, mentally, physically or emotionally? Including you?"

"N-no! Not really. No, not hurt just...ugh this is so hard. Right. Okay. I just got to say it. Okay." He took a deep breath, and then another for good measure. "LoganIhaveasoulmark!"

There was a pause.

"I just found it this morning when I was having a shower it must have appeared over night I'm sorry I don't know what to do I don't want a soulmate I...Logan?"

He had that face on that meant he was processing a lot of thoughts far too fast for Virgil to tell what he might be thinking. It was a long minute before he spoke.

"Virgil I have a hypothesis I wish to test but whatever the outcome I want you to know that this development does not have to signal a change in our relationship or dynamic whatsoever unless you wish it to. Do you understand?"

"Oh yeah thank God I thought you might hate me or something-"

"That is preposterous Virgil, I could never hate you. Now, please describe what this soul-mark looks like."

"I..um...okay. It's a purple cloud with a moon and some weird ass stars and a bit of blue around it...L? You ok there buddy?"

As Virgil had spoken, Logan had become somehow more stiff than usual.

"Did-" he swallowed. "Did it look like this?" Logan pushed up his shirt sleeve to show...a soul mark...exactly the same as the one on Virgil's shoulder.

"Oh my God! It is! Fucking hell, look!" Virgil shrugged off his hoodie turning away to show Logan the mark on his shoulder, not covered by his tank top. "Oh thank God! Thank fuck it's you! My best friend is my soulmate! My best.... Logan? What's wrong?"

As Virgil turned back he saw Logan's face. His whole expression had closed off, the pain and confusion somehow clear as day. He looked...heartbroken.

"Is that all we are?"

"What?"

Logan swallowed. "Are we just friends?"

"O-oh...well I didn't think...I thought we were...what else would we be?"

"I...well I guess I thought we might be...q-queer-platonic partners. We never discussed it and I wasn't sure but I thought it was supposed to be obvious and that was why we never said anything..." he trailed off. Virgil had never seen him so speechless.

"Oh. I...yeah I mean shit Lo, I love you, platonically I mean, but I thought maybe you didn't or you didn't want our relationship to have that label..."

"If I have ever done anything to make you think I don't love you in the same way then I sincerely apologise. You have been much more than just a "best friend" to me for a very long time. It seems as though we may have to seriously work on our communication."

"...oh..."

"And Virgil what part of my essay on the importance of labels and micro-labels was unclear to you?"

"Cut me some slack here! I'm not the rational one in this relationship."

"Quite. So, to confirm: we both love each other-"

"At this point I'm basically platonically in love with you L."

"We are both in love with each other platonically, we both desire to label our relationship as queer-platonic, and we are also now soulmates for whatever reason."

"And we're both idiots."

"Indeed. I believe the phrase would be "why are we like this", correct?"

Virgil snorted. "You've summed it up pretty well there L."

"In that case, I suggest that queer-platonic relationship should be how we describe...this and we should refer to each other as our queer-platonic partner, though I do think 'my person' has a nice ring to it, and a certain sappiness which I find quite appealing at the moment, if you are amiable?"

"'My person'. Sounds perfect, L."

"Satisfactory."

Virgil leant into Logan's side and took a sip of his now very cold coffee.

"I love you."

He spoke so quietly he wasn't sure Logan heard until he put and arm awkwardly around his shoulder, making Virgil tuck in closer beside him.

"I love you too." Logan murmured back.

The universe sighed fondly. A day's work well done.

~~*~~

Frick I love these two and I always think a QPR suits them so well. I hope I conveyed their relationship ok. Thank you for reading!

I did a little drawing of the soul mark by the way, here.

@tsshipmonth2020

[mariniacipher]

Okay, but I especially love logan and virgil here, because for logan, expressing himself like that would mean that he's way more comfortable with who he is, and feels way less pressure to act a certain way than he is now, and to see that executed, and how he'd come to relax around those things is so interesting to me? Especially in relation to virgil, who I could totally see as getting into sports because it helps to get the jittery energy of his overactive anxiety out of his system, and makes him feel better, but then he actually has acquaintances? Maybe friends? And he's too awkward to really tell them no at first, and eventually he uses them as a distraction when his thoughts are too loud, uses the feeling of belonging to calm his nerves, even though none of his friends know all there is to him, know anything more than the wry, black-humoured athlete.

Like, this could work so well with analogical, maybe in a setting where logan tutors virgil, or they meet over a mutual acquaintance, or over the internet, and you could explore themes of self-expression and it could be really fun and emotional.

Also, now that I think about it- roman as the one doing props and stuff is??? Really cool??? Like, maybe he's nervous because at his high school he was overzealous and arrogant and never got picked, or he's just nervous in general, or some other reason, but that he could find security in participating behind the scenes, befriending all the others, maybe even gaining the confidence to audition for a main role, who relies on his friends to help with lines, and whose friends rely on him. Who will ramble and ramble and discuss and just has so much fun being in theatre and with the people there, who grows thanks to this environment.

And Patton... Sweet patton, he's the only one where I'd make small adjustments, because, for me, I think he'd wear neon clothes, tacky clothes that scream 2000s, probably wears heelies, and looks like a walking fashion disaster all the time, maybe with sone eighties thrown in for flavour, or even seventies. But it's something that brings him joy, as are his jokes, and with his brain sucking up joy the way it does, he's gonna embrace any and all joy and happiness he can get, even if it's superficial and fleeting. Who has a notebook filled with his dark thoughts so they won't drive him mad, trying to walk the line between dealing with, and getting lost in his emotions. Patton who tries so hard to be upbeat and happy as to not worry people but who comes off as weird and freaky, as "too happy" and who is rejected so often because of it, because he's so much in fear of becoming nothing, and who has online friends but is still so lonely, because it's been so long since he has been hugged.

If we'd also want to tie his and Romans stories together, to accompany the analogical bit, maybe pat would join the theatre after Romans been there for a while, maybe roman even proposed it, sharing a class with him and having discussed something that brought Patton’s love for upbeat musicals to light, as well as his love for dancing. And roman would get pat to participate in dance routine stuff, and he has so much fun even with his voice only being average, and he gets to know roman and the other people better, and finds friends for the first time in so long, finds something light to write about.

And eventually they become confidants, they trust each other so much, and if patton didn't before, roman would be the one to get him to therapy (I think he went at least during high school tho) and they would both find camaraderie with each other, someone they can trust and love, a partner.

You know what I want?

I want a Sanders Side’s high school/college au where the stereotypes are switched.

Instead of Jock Roman, give me Roman who is a bit of a nerd. Roman who geeks out about Disney and musical theatre to anyone who will listen. Roman who has overlarge glasses that are bright red and bright colorful sweater vests. Roman who is a bit too introverted to be considered for the main roles in the school plays and musicals, so he works on sets, getting his creativity out in the only way he can.

Instead of Pastel Patton, give me Patton who wears only blacks and grays. Patton who grew out his hair to cover his eyes. Patton who writes angsty poetry that is also very poignant. Patton who is never without his huge headphones, which he uses to block out everyone else’s words about his dark demeanor and bad jokes. Patton who, no matter his own depression, always tries to cheer others up with his dry humor, even if it doesn’t work all the time.

Instead of Goth/Emo Virgil, give me Virgil who plays sports. Virgil who, despite his scrawny stature, is surprisingly good at running. Virgil who has an overlarge letterman jacket to replace his hoodie. Virgil who plays football, baseball, swimming, or whatever else. Virgil who’s popular and tough, hiding his insecurities behind his large group of almost friends.

Instead of Nerd Logan, give me Logan who wears bright colors and flowery patterns because they’re calming, and self expression is good for mental health. Logan who wears soft blues and pinks and mint greens, and always has at least one butterfly clip in his hair, to hold his bangs back while he studies. Logan who hates that he’s made fun of for his choice of style, because he’s not a joke, alright?

[anxiously-unsatisfied-world]

Sanders Sides Masterpost

This is a list of all of my Sanders Sides stories I’ve ever written sorted by platonic/romantic. The format is title-pairing-summary. Hope you enjoy!

Platonic:

Loneliness - Logicality - Logan’s feeling a bit lonely. Patton helps.

Moments - LAMP - A few moments cause the sides to realize just how much they care for each other.

Burned Out - LAMP - Roman is experiencing a creative burnout. The others help cheer him up.

Soft Comfort - Moxiety - Virgil’s parents are fighting (again) and he needs an escape. Patton willingly provides one.

Autumnal Decorations - LAMP - The sides decorate the mindscape for autumn/Halloween.

What Was That? - No real pairing - Virgil hears a spooky noise. Turns out he’s not the only one.

Where’s the Crofters?? - Platonic Anxceit/Platonic Analogical - Virgil takes the Crofters to get revenge on Logan. Logan tries to solve the mystery.

Trick-Or-Treating - It’s technically Pre-Logince but Platonic Prinxiety & Platonic Logicality - Patton and Virgil go trick-or-treating with their dads.

Christmas Season Debate - LAMP (w/ focus on Logicality & Logince) - Patton and Logan discuss when exactly the Christmas season starts.

Friendsmas Party - No real pairing - Roman throws a Friendsmas party (with bonus karaoke)

Exchanging Presents - No real pairing - The six of them (w/ Remy & Deceit) exchange their Secret Santa presents.

Cuddle Pile Heaven - Platonic DLAMP (kinda pre-romantic) - Deceit’s having trouble sleeping so he goes to cuddle the other sides.

Overwhelmed - Platonic Logicality - Sequel to Loneliness - Patton is feeling overwhelmed. Logan helps.

Frustration - Platonic Logince - Same Series as Loneliness & Overwhelmed - Roman’s having a creative block & Logan helps 

Romantic:

Pet Names - Logince - Roman flusters Logan with cute pet names.

Playing the Villain - Prinxiety - Roman and Virgil play heroes vs. villains. Roman has some doubts.

Llorona - Royality - Roman sings La Llorona to Patton and explains the lyrics to him.

The Sun to My Moon - Logince w/ background Moxiety - a product of watching too many Disney proposal videos

Soothing Strings - Prinxiety - Virgil can play the violin. This is how Roman finds out.

Loving Looks - Prinxiety - “Why are you looking at me like that?”

The Pampered Prince - Royality - Patton wants to treat Roman like the prince he is.

A French-Filled Date Night - LAMP - Logan plans a date for them. He speaks a lot of French.

Anxiety Performs - Analogical - Logan comforts Virgil before his first performance.

Playing in the Leaves - LAMP - They play in the leaves (tickle warning)

Halloween Hayride - Logince & Moxiety - The four go on a hayride full of festive decorations.

Costume Uncertainty - LAMP - Virgil gets a little insecure about his costume right before they’re about to leave for a costume party.

Pumpkins and Sunsets - Analogical & Royality - They carve pumpkins outside and then watch the sunset, all wrapped up in warm sweaters.

Afternoon of Apple-Picking - LAMP - The boys go apple picking and Virgil worries as usual.

Afternoon of Baking - LAMP - They take the apples they picked and bake several kinds of treats with them.

Fall Extravaganza - Logicality & Prinxiety - At a local fall festival Patton and Virgil make some crafts while Logan and Roman play some games for prizes.

Halloween Candy - LAMP - They go shopping for Halloween candy for the trick-or-treaters. You can probably guess what happens next.

Hocus Pocus Maze - Logince & Moxiety - They go to a corn maze themed to the movie Hocus Pocus.

Pumpkin Spice Promises - LAMP - Roman and Logan go to Starbucks to get coffee.

Friday the 13th? - LAMP - Roman’s had a bad day. Is it because of Friday the 13th or just bad luck?

Fall Pranks - Prinxiety - Roman wakes Virgil with a prank. Virgil gets him back.

Disney Couples Costumes - Analogical & Royality - They’re wearing couples costumes for a costume party.

Not-So-Spooky Movie Night - LAMP - They have a movie night to watch Horror Movies, but plans change.

Monster Boyfriends - LAMP - Roman gets home and they start working on dinner.

The Haunted House - Logince & Moxiety - They go to a haunted house.

Spooky Carnival - LAMP - They go to a Halloween carnival.

Rainy Sleepiness - Prinxiety - Rain is very relaxing.

Graveyard Photoshoot - LAMP - A graveyard isn’t the most orthodox location for a photoshoot. But it works.

Walk in the Dark - Logicality - Patton walks back home late at night after watching horror movies.

Telling Ghost Stories - Analogical & Royality - Patton gets the idea that they should spend an evening telling ghost stories.

A Ghost Hunt - LAMP - They go hunting for ghosts. Logan is skeptical.

Comforting a Snake - DLAMP - Deceit (Lyle) has a nightmare. His boyfriends comfort him. 

Horror Movie Night - Logince & Moxiety - Roman and Virgil play horror games. Their boyfriends comfort them.

A Picnic Gone Awry - Prinxiety - Roman sets up a picnic for his boyfriend. However, a certain Dragon Witch gets in the way.

Disney Villain Surprise - LAMP - They go to Disney for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. But something’s not quite right.

Angelic Vision - Moxiety w/ Background Logince - Virgil’s a regular at the cafe Patton works at and Patton happens to be crushing on him.

A Snow Day to Remember - Analogical & Royality - The four get a day off school due to the snow - much fun is had.

Holiday Movie Night - Logince, Sleepxiety, Moceit - The family has their first movie night of the holiday season.

Decorating Day - LAMP - It’s their first time decorating the mindscape for Christmas since they started dating.

Abundance of Mistletoe - Logicality & Prinxiety - The mindscape is covered in mistletoe, which can actually be pretty helpful.

Christmas Baking - LAMP - The title - they bake treats for Christmas

Snow-Caused Sickness - Analogical & Royality - Virgil & Roman end up sick after the snow day - Logan & Patton care for them.

Requited Love - Analogical - fake relationship for the holidays prompt

Snowed In With Good Friends - Logince & Moxiety - Logan and Roman get snowed in at Patton and Virgil’s house.

Give it a Chance - LAMP - Logan’s never seen snow before. Patton convinces him to give it a chance.

Time to Recharge - LAMP - Logan’s been stressed out recently. His boyfriends help.

A Perfect Day - Moxiety - Patton wants to pamper Virgil on Valentine’s Day but it doesn’t quite go to plan.

Patton’s Plans for Valentine’s - Royality & background qpp Analogical -- Usually, Roman goes all out for Valentine’s but he’s busy. Therefore, it’s Patton’s turn.

Untitled Kiss Prompt - Prinxiety - Roman gets insecure and Virgil helps out.

Untitled Kiss Prompt - Logince - Roman takes Logan stargazing.

A Disney Adventure - LAMP - The others find out a secret Roman’s been keeping, leading to a bunch of Disney marathons.

White Carnations - Logicality - Soulmate AU

Take a Break, Lo - Logicality - Short prompt fill

Not Quite Okay - Royality - Patton is sick and still trying to do his usual chores. Roman reminds him to relax. 

Missing Hoodie - Anxceit - Virgil’s hoodie goes missing, but he knows who has it.

Incredibly Lucky - Losleep - Logan and Remy are stargazing and Remy thinks about how lucky he is.

A Coffee For Here (So I Don’t Have to Leave Yet) - Sleepxiety w/ Background Roloceit - Coffee Shop / Tattoo Shop AU - Virgil’s the barista, Remy’s the tattoo artist.

Please Hug Me - Prinxiety - Roman goes to Virgil for comfort after Putting Others First

Wooing a Snake (Who Thinks We Love Someone Else) - Anaroyaliceit - Janus overhears Roman, Virgil, and Patton talking about their mutual crush and assumes they’re talking about Logan. 

Multi-chaptered:

The Heart’s Home: Main Four Sides / Other Characters; Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5,  Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8 - Patton gets adopted by Logan and Roman

It Takes Two to Tango: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter Six, Chapter Seven, Chapter Eight, Epilogue - Prinxiety dance/time travel au

Headcanons/Imagines:

Logince cuddling

Logan knowing French + Latin

Royality affection ficlet thing

Analogical ficlet

[oatmealdaydreams]

Uhh... so I made an au.

(based on this post)

[image has alt text]

[ts-unsolved]

sliding in to compliment the mod! i rlly love your art style and so far this au seems super complicated and im v impressed with your dedication! :) - hypocrite-say-what

((ghjdhgj thank you both so much!! tbh i’ve thought about this au a lot but i also just get side-tracked really easily so forgive me for that, and thank you for sharing this journey!! it’s much appreciated 8’)

the endgame pairings are roceit and potentially qpp analogicality))

[twofacedbelief]

did y’all ever doubt that I have an AU problem

Ongoing Fics

Roman, Virgil, and Deceit Too (roceit, dukesleep, abusive!patton)

Read on AO3

Blessed Warmth (dlamp, soulmates)

Read on AO3

AUs with drabbles

Belief!Dee AU (familial anxceitmus,qpp kingceit, roceit)

Read on AO3

Local Cryptids AU (lomile, sleepxiety, creepxiety, roceit, tobus)

Read on AO3

Magic AU (anxceit, andy/dee, andy/remy, dice/deceit, rosleep, roceit, dukeceit, moxiety, logicality, intrulogical)

AUs without drabbles

Toddler Dee AU (background qpp analogical, intruality)

Space Explorer AU | Space Mer AU

The High School AU (anaintrulogical, royaliceit, mythological beings/cryptids/magical creatures)

Pride!Roman AU (roceit, anaintrulogical, unintentional unsympathetic remus)

Garbage AU (dukexiety, rosleepceit, demon!remus, angel!roman, tattoo shop)

Welcome to NightVale AU (intruloceit)

Become Human AU (roceit, remile, unsympathetic logan)

PowerSwap AU (anxceitmus)

Sunflower AU (familial thomceit, autistic!dee, thomile)

Parent/Teacher AU (anxceit, intrulogical, analodemus, kid!remy)

Crazy Ex-Boyfriend AU (rosleep, moceit, roceit, anxceit, loceit, dayd/real, anxiety^2, unsympathetic patton)

Tangled AU (dlampr)

Frozen AU (roceit, dukexiety)

Dead Spouses AU (anxceitmus, dukeceit, villain!roman, inspired by corpse bride/coco)

Monster Hotel AU (dukexiety, roceit)

Steven Universe AU

Pet AU

Hogwarts AU

Mythology AU (thviceit)

[soysaucevictim]

And now I'm zoning out.

Kinda want to write again. But I'm gonna reserve some energy for Horrorfest stuff, whenever they get everyone pairing up.

Debating on writing something short for the Gymrat!AU (probably some QPP Analogical... probably.)

Even though there's a part of me going. Take. This. Break. Don't go burning yourself out.

Hmmm...

[incorrectsanders]

is there maybe a post or something explaining all the relationships (romantic, qpr, ect.) for the au? I'm a little confused

I don’t think there are but I can make one

LAMP - QPR (The Forbidden Love)

Lamp is in a QPR after Logan and Virgil and Patton and Roman get married. They’re all QPP’s, and nothing is off the table for them. They kiss, they love on each other, they take care of each other. When they move out of the same house, they move in next door to each other and break down the fence in between their backyards. The relationship has gotten them in trouble many many times because of Roman’s fame. They were extremely confused about what they were at first, and didn’t know how to deal with their feelings. They rely on each other to the point of developing separation anxiety.

Analogical - Romantic (The Starcrossed Lovers)

Analogical pines after each other for nine years but eventually start dating and get married. During the time that Virgil turns eighteen until the time they get together, they have this agreement that they are going to end up together, Virgil just has to grow more because Logan doesn’t want him to feel trapped. Logan gets pretty jealous pretty easily, and the only ones who he’ll never get jealous with (even before they’re in a QPR) are Roman and Patton.

Royality - ???? (The Understanding Lovers)

They don’t know themselves tbh. It started out as a QPR, but Roman always had romantic feelings for Patton as demiromantic. After a while, Patton started developing romantic feelings for Roman and since he’s aromantic, it freaked him out. The two of them will occasionally refer to each other as boyfriends/husbands but they prefer to stick to ‘partners’. They’re very loving and affectionate with each other, and Roman has never been bothered by the fact that Patton doesn’t understand his romantic feelings. Patton feels a little guilty about it, though.

Prinxiety - Best Friends/QPP’s (The Twins)

The two hit it off the second they met each other. They’re extremely fond of each other and refer to themselves as soulmates. They’re basically attached at the hip when they’re together and when they enter the QPR, they’re the pair that kisses the most outside of Analogical and Royality. They love showing each other affection and kisses is the easiest way to do that for them. Will pair together to tease Logan and Patton even before they’re in a QPR.

Logicality - Best Friends/QPP’s (The Boys Next Door)

They’ve known each other the longest out of any of the group. Logan will do anything for his Small and Patton will do anything for his Logi-bear. Because of the younger two, they started callling each other soulmates. They’ve lived together since Patton’s freshman year of college, so they know literally everything about each other. In the QPR, they mostly pair together to tease Roman and Virgil back. They were always very touchy feely with each other, though.

Logince - QPP’s (The Power Couple)

Logan and Roman are very similar. They’re both quick to defend what matters to them without any thought. Logan once decked Dee without a second thought because he made Roman cry. (Before Dee was their friend) Even before they were QPP’s, Roman was Logan’s baby (along with Virgil and Dee). He’s always been extremely protective over him, barely a step down from how he is with Virgil. After they become QPP’s they take it upon themselves to make sure the other stays sane with work.

Moxiety - QPP’s (The Sunshine Pair)

They’re the most playful of the pairings. Before they’re in a QPR, they spend lots of nights cuddling and watching cartoons, they play video games together, they bake together. It’s fun activities between them. Behind Logan, Patton is the best at calming Virgil down from a panic attack. After they’re QPP’s, they just get more playful with each other. They’re light hearted kisses and afternoon snuggles and wide smiles and giggling at nothing.