Sanders Sides (and more) One Shots

Rocking Nostalgia

Patton walked in the Imagination with Deceit without much tension between them. Everyone decided to attempt to give the sciurophobe the benefit of the doubt, but they haven't exactly reached the point where they would declare when they've hung out with Deceit on their own accord yet, so Patton felt the need to see if anyone was watching them walk. Earlier on, they were checking out cloud formations when Deceit could sense Patton having nostalgic feelings causing a swirl of emotions. As a result, they were walking to Patton's room for the sake of the snake man showing him a "surprise".
Once they arrived in Patton's room, they maneuvered through some old items and memories that Patton hoarded to get to a door Patton wasn't sure was there initially.
"Umm...Deceit, are you going to introduce me to one of Thomas's monsters in the closet?" Patton asked with concern.
With yellow eyes staring at Patton, Deceit said "Well, he's just dying to see you all since Thomas left the closet" before his eyes turned brown and he claimed "I actually made a section of your room where you can let out your nostalgia using slideshows and music".
Deceit opened the door and pulled a skeptical Patton in with him. It was dark at first, but Deceit snapped his fingers and it showed a white room with various screens and a few instruments on a low stage. Patton looked around at the room and was surprised that Deceit would do something like this for him.
"Wait, why would you do something like this for me?" Patton asked, still in awe.
"Simple, Patton: I missed the good ol' days, too. Back when Thomas was young and could get away with speaking his mind due to his age and not have to worry about being forced to lie due to the pressures of those around him because a kid allegedly doesn't know better. That was an era Remus and I grew fond of, but then Remus had to be shoved back and I had to help Thomas comform to the wishes of others or worry about staying out of trouble, worries Virgil would emphasize, and it would eventually reach the point where he'd lie to himself that he'll eventually like girls like the typical princes and jocks did."
Patton paid attention as Deceit was rambling and remembered those parts of Thomas's youth very well. Confusion, conflict, wondering if authority figures actually knew Thomas better than he knew himself; the paternal figure was there to guide him through all of it and just wanted Thomas to be the best person he could be. He couldn't see the grays within the black-and-white views let alone how the grays must've taken the journey.
Patton knew it wouldn't exactly be easy to build a bridge between them and the Dark Sides since their methods for Thomas weren't exactly the most agreeable, but he wanted to at least make some effort to get closer, especially since he of all people knew they couldn't keep Thomas sheltered from himself forever. He looked around and saw a drum set. He smiled before picking up the drumsticks and clearing his throat to get the attention of the scaled side who was staring into the distance.
"We both miss the past for reasons of our own. If I strum it loud and string it proud, will you drum it loud and sing it proud?" Patton asked his normally dishonest counterpart.
Deceit held Patton's hand with the drumsticks in them, turned his eyes yellow, and said "I would hate nothing more" with a smile.
Patton approached the guitar and observed it like Logan would a rubric cube before starting it. After getting a decent idea of how to use that particular guitar (different from a ukulele), Patton held it right and smirked in Deceit's direction. Deceit took it as the signal to tap his drumsticks together and Patton began to play the guitar at just the right moment. They both seemed to be familiar with the song thanks to Virgil randomly scrolling through Spotify and recognising the bits of their instrumental parts seemed to encourage each other. On the screens, they were greeted with clips of Thomas being more daring and adventurous as a child.
"You knew how to start a fire, didn't need gasoline,
Never took no time at all to get me on my knees.
The fruit just seemed to fall, never had to shake no tree
The door was always open and we didn't need a key,"
Deceit started the song and Patton could tell it was relevant to howthings were simpler for Thomas when he thought anything was possible and nothing could get in his way.
"Whoa, whoa
Take me back to those days of gold
We were young and said we'd never get old
No oh, no oh
Take me back to just me and you
Doing things that Momma said don't do
No oh, no oh
Take me back in time
Take me back in time"
Patton belted as he was strumming. He couldn't help but look at a clip of Thomas playing somewhere where he shouldn't be playing and remember that he interfered just as Thomas's parents did. Patton couldn't help but wonder what else he kept himself from experiencing due to the pressures placed on himself to fit into the mold of morality besides freely expressing negative emotions. He occasionally wondered what it would be like to do something that wasn't expected of him, but the only thing that kept him from doing so all those years was himself. He knew that, even though there were rules and restrictions that were best for them all, he shouldn't have to blindly observe all of them without taking them with a grain of salt.
"Didn't matter where or when, everything's anything goes
And time and time we'd cross the line
And watch that bomb explode,"
Patton sang out his frustrations.
As they watched Thomas run around and horseplay with his brothers, they both sang,
"Whoa, whoa
There it goes, there it goes," before Deceit continued alone.
"Take me back to those days of gold
We were young and said we'd never get old
No oh, no oh
Take me back to just me and you
Doing things that Momma said don't do
No oh, no oh
Take me back in time
Take me back in time
Take me back in time
Take me back in time"
Deceit belted and drummed with a lot of passion while Patton was jamming on the guitar like he was a Goofy Goober. As they were singing the chorus together twice, the slideshow showed clips of Thomas having freedom to goof around more than usual during his childhood and his experimental times on Vine, basically any part of his life where he had an excuse to goof around a lot. Eventually, the song and the slideshow ended and Deceit took off his gloves and summoned paper towels to dry his sweaty hands while Patton shook his hands due to strumming on the guitar intensely.
"Umm, thanks for doing this for me," the father figure said genuinely.
"Of course," Deceit responded while putting his gloves back on, "everyone deserves a healthy way to express their emotions."
Patton thought for a moment before his face lit up.
"Hey, Dee, if I feel, well, anything that would require me coming in here, would you like to join me?" Patton asked.
Deceit froze and his eyes briefly lit up at the sound of him doing a bonding activity with one of the Light Sides.
He cleared his throat before saying,
"Um, sure, I mean, if no one else will be free to do so".
"Oh, I trust you the most in here with me," Patton excused.
Deceit could see right through the excuse and felt his heart melt from the real thoughts he could track. Without prying, he nodded and helped Patton clean up before escorting him out of the room casually.