Sunsets in Paradise (Sanders Side's Simulation AU)

Simulation reprise.

The first place they ran too was the endurance of the school. Roman was right by Virgil's side, clinging a little to his jacket.

Virgil knew he was scared, but at least Roman was here with him.

"Remy," Picani said. "Do you have Deceit?"

"Who's Deceit?" Roman asks.

"Oh, I suppose you might know him as De." Picani hums, putting his hands in his pocket as he turns away from us. "He's a little... slippery to catch. Like a snake, if you would. Are you getting him, Remy?"

"I'm gettin' him." Remy replies, typing furiously on his phone. Picani turns to the other two, observing Roman clinging to Virgil's jacket and trying to act normal.

He gives a slow nod and looks off.

"What park are they in?" Picani asks, pulling out his own Phone-like item from his pocket. "Do you think we could get there in three hours?"

"It's barely even a fifteen minute walk," Virgil says, moving Roman's hand down and into his own somehow subtly. "If you know the right shortcuts to take. And I do."

"Good," Picani nods. "Then we'll be able to head back."

Remy sighs. "He'll be here in a bit." Remy says. "He's just getting out of class."

Virgil squeezes Roman's hand, hissing a little at the thought of having to see him. Roman squeezes back, smiling softly.

Deceit appears at the school's doors, slowly walking towards Remy. He's taking forever.

"Hurry up," Picani mutters to himself. "Three hours could go by and then we're stuck here until who knows when!"

Roman moves a little closer to Virgil, putting his arm around him, as Deeit shows up next to Remy.

"Finally," Remy smiles. "Come on, De."

And then they're walking. Or, more specifically, half-walking, half-running to the park. Something about Picani's urgency in his footsteps makes Virgil lean a little further into Roman's side.

They get there only to realise they have no clue where the two of them are. "Oh my stars," Roman sighs. "We're going have to search under every tree."

"No, we aren't," Picani says. "If I'm correct, they're under the last tree to experience a coding anomaly in which Thomas contacted them."

"How do you know that, P?" Remy asks, now holding Deceit's hand.

Picani sighs. "I just do," he says. "I believe that Thomas would contact them last."

And suddenly they're on their way off to the tree, jogging a little even if Virgil is struggling. It's surprisingly long, and Virgil shrugs his mind away from the artificial sway of a nearby bush to focus on the current objective.

They stop at one of the three bigger trees, with Picani holding a branch for them to all go under the tree.

When they do, it's silent.

"I think this is the wrong tree," Picani says, humming to himself. "Seeing as there is no Patton, nor Logan."

"Right, way to go," Deceit remarks. "Should we tree the other two or are you positive it's somewhere else?"

"Let's try the other one," Picani says. "To the right of this one."

And so they do.

The branch is easily pulled away from the other, making a curtain like door entrance for them. Picani holds it as they all pile in to a tree that seems to be moving slower than the rest.

"Logan? Patton?" Virgil is the first to call out. "Are you in here?"

There's a few moments where the tree seems to erupt into Code, and then Patton and Logan are standing there, hand in hand, with Patton looking a little more than averagely shaken.

"Are you real?" Patton asks, his hand squeezing Logan's.

It's quiet.

"I'm as real as I'm going to get," Virgil chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. "But I'm certainly not part of the simulation."

And then, as if no other thing in this place had ever happened, Patton was giving Virgil one of the biggest hugs of his time. Logan watched, carefully smiling, as Virgil returned the hug and the two teary eyed sides clung to each other.

"Kiddo," Patton said. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Virgil mumbled. "It's alright."

Then they broke apart.

And Picani stepped in. "Though I hate to intrude upon this... lovely display of affection, we need to get back."

Patton nodded, linking hands with Logan again as Virgil shifted over to Roman in complete default.

"Wait," Logan interrupted. "Will we remember any of this?"

"Of course," Remy swallowed. "You can't forget it."

Picani took out his cellphone like device, throwing it down onto the ground in front of the group. It shone with a bright light before displaying a group of signals on the lead covered floor beneath them.

"Patton, you go where the heart with glasses is," Picani said, looking over the circle. "Logan, you're on the right of him with the brain with glasses figure."

"Virgil, you've got The storm cloud on the left of Patton," Remy added, observing the circle carefully. "And Roman, you're on the left of Virgil with the emblem thingy."

"That would mean I go on the snake and you go on the Starbucks, right?" De contributed, taking his place on the snake symbol.

Remy nodded, taking his place. Picani looked over the last symbol before stepping on it, a singular cartoon star on the floor for him.

As Picani stood, each of their symbols seemed to turn a different shade of the rainbow. Starting with Roman as red and ending with Virgil, on his right, as violet.

The sensation of being pulled out of a simulation was less painful than having your being forced into a dimension where it would be made of code and nothing else to hold your body together, Picani noted.

It was like being pulled down by this rope that laced your legs, this roller coaster sinking feeling in his stomach and arms.

And then they were released and flung up in a beautiful, endless abyss of black. Three bright round star like objects sat in this middle, and if Picani and Remy had learned anything from their three weeks of briefing, it was that some people just can't let go of things... even for family.

But there was one piece of the puzzle left: Thomas.