A Million Worlds Apart

The Ghost Days

Six months passed while Patton was in the Underworld.

Up above, Remus continued to lead Demeter throughout the mortal world in search of him, and she still hadn't caught on that he was deliberately stalling her. Janus considered the entire situation hilarious as always, though Virgil constantly reminded them that it wasn't going to last forever... despite the fact that he was the one who suggested it.

Meanwhile, Patton had really found his place. He'd started give Logan advice on judging the souls, which actually seemed to pay off. The souls who already resided in the City of Asphodel had begun to get used to him---some of them even bowed when he wandered through the streets, and most of the time, Logan wasn't even with him. He still hadn't eaten anything from the Underworld, keeping Logan's warnings in mind. Though, when he saw Janus practically devouring a pomegranate, he'd admittedly been a little confused.

"Me, Remus, and Virgil work here, so we can eat whatever the hell we want," Janus had explained. "We keep on returning to the Underworld anyway, right? So it's not an issue."

Patton still didn't entirely get it, but he'd let it slide.

Logan seemed to getting busier, though. More and more souls streamed in every day, and Patton had an inkling as to why. He knew that when his mom was angry or heartbroken, the world suffered along with her---he'd seen that firsthand when he was only about a century old, when Demeter had fallen for a mortal who Zeus had killed for some reason. The world had withered for a few months until she'd gotten over it.

He felt a little guilty, if he was being honest. People were dying because he wanted some freedom. People were dying because he wanted to be with Logan.

Was he just being selfish? Should he go back?

"Hey."

Patton turned around to see Logan standing in the doorway, giving him a smile.

"Hey, Lo-lo," Patton said, returning the smile. "Nice to see you."

"You, too." Logan came up next to him, resting his hands on the balcony. "Virgil said I'd probably find you here. How are you?"

"Mixed," Patton admitted.

Logan reached over and took his hand. "What's wrong?"

Patton sighed, squeezing Logan's hand in response. "It's just... all of the spirits that are coming in---they're dying because my mom's starving the world, aren't they? Because of me?"

"That... that does seem to be the case, yes," Logan admitted.

Patton looked down, biting his lip. "I don't want to be responsible for them dying, but at the same time... I can't go back to living under lock and key. I just... I just can't."

Logan paused. "Well, what do you feel like you should do?"

"I should do the right thing, shouldn't I?" Patton murmured. "It doesn't really matter how I feel, in the end. If people are dying because of my choice, then maybe I should go back to her."

"Patton, I---" Logan stopped, then let out a sigh. "I'm not going to make your decision for you, but you should know that your feelings always matter. You can't afford to always be selfless---you're going to get hurt that way. And..." He trailed off.

Patton nudged him. "And what?"

Logan closed his eyes. "I don't want to see you get hurt. By Demeter or by anyone. And I'm worried about what she'll do to you if you return."

She'll probably chain me to the wall so I can't run away, Patton thought. Maybe she's just claiming that she thinks I've been kidnapped, so the gods will make Logan take me back.