Broken (Prinxiety)

8

      TW: Panic Attack

      Virgil began to build his walls once more, slowly becoming more distant from the other sides. Depression's words were on a constant loop in his head, and he could hardly stay around them for long without feeling bad. 

      The others--even Logan, which was surprising--did question the sudden change, but Virgil would just wave them off and change the subject. He didn't want to get them involved in his struggle with his brother. He would hate for them to get hurt, too. 

      Depression would show up anywhere and anytime to torment Virgil, causing him to be constantly on edge. He was afraid of them catching sight of him and getting drawn into the conflict. He was going to deal with him alone. 

      Everything seemed to be okay despite his encounters with Depression, or so he thought. 

      Then, Deceit showed up, taking the form of Patton.

      Virgil had completely panicked, all of his feelings towards him resurfacing. He hadn't realized that Deceit was impersonating his friend until Patton had called him a friend. Patton never referred to him as a friend; he always called him his son.

      He felt awful. He had a feeling that something had been off, but the possibility of Deceit showing up had never crossed his mind. He was an idiot. He had grown up with Deceit; he should've known that the snake had something to do with it. 

      Deceit was a dark side. Does that mean that Thomas was starting to lean towards listening to them over the main sides?

      Virgil hoped not. It was an awful idea. He knew that if the dark sides took over, then he would have problems keeping Thomas safe. He was already failing. 

      He had left the room as soon as he could.

      As soon as they had left Thomas's living room, Virgil had gone to his room. He barely had time to close his door before the wave of panic hit him. 

      A sudden wave of dizziness washed over him, and he fell to his knees. The panic grew worse, threatening to swallow him whole. Tears started to form before falling down his face. 

      He could feel his heart racing. His breathing was short and erratic, and he let out soft sobs. 

      He couldn't breathe. 

      He was going to die. 

      He was trembling as he reached up, clutching his hair tightly. He was shaking and gasping for air. 

      Virgil was vaguely aware of someone entering his room. He assumed it was Patton, but was surprised as he saw a pair of boots that definitely didn't belong to the fatherly trait. He whimpered and shied away from the intruder, his panic only growing. He was feeling nauseated. 

      "You don't need help..." 

      Virgil was shaking like a leaf when he recognized the voice as Deceit's. 

      "Don't focus on your breathing," Deceit told him, his voice soft. It scared him; he didn't know if the snake was being genuinely caring or not.

      He did what Deceit told him anyways, taking a shaky breath. 

      "Not good," Deceit encouraged. "In for four, out for four." 

      Virgil tried to do as he said, but a new wave of panic hit him and he gasped for breath. 

      "Can I not touch you?"

      He gave a slight nod, and felt Deceit's hand on his back. He began to rub soothing circles on it and repeated what he had said about taking deep breaths.

      Slowly but surely Virgil began to calm down. He wiped his eyes with shaky hands, turning towards Deceit, who had an unreadable expression on his face. 

      Virgil took a shaky breath, before averting his eyes. "Thank you, Deceit." It felt weird for him to be thanking the person who had caused the attack in the first place. He was thankful that he had decided to help him, though.

      "You're not welcome." Deceit offered Virgil a hand and helped him stand up and make his way to the bed. "I didn't come to warn you."

      Virgil groaned softly as he settled down on top of his dark comforter. "Warn me about what? And stop speaking in lies. I don't feel like deciphering what you're saying."

      Deceit visibly swallowed, and took a few moments to speak. 

      "I--I'm sorry." He put a lot of effort into saying these two words and grimaced, as if it pained him to speak the truth. "I truly did--didn't want to cause you to panic. I really do care about you."

      Virgil raised an eyebrow at him and motioned for him to go on. He stifled a small yawn, feeling exhausted.

      Deceit sighed, and scratched at the scales on his cheek almost nervously. "It's Depression. He won't listen to me. He did--did not tell me what he plans on doing. He really hates you."

      Virgil nodded, looking down. "Yeah, I already knew that. He makes it quite clear that he doesn't like me. So?"

      Deceit closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. Virgil could practically see the strain it was causing to tell the truth. "He wanted us to help him out. He d--asked Remus and I to help get revenge on you. He told us that we could rule Thomas if we didn't---if we helped him. We refused." 

      Virgil almost felt bad for making Deceit tell the truth. Almost. 

      Because Deceit wasn't telling the truth.

      "Uhuh...I totally believe that." His voice was dripping with sarcasm. "You're a liar, Deceit. I know how you are. You would love to take control, and if given the chance you would do it in a heartbeat. Now leave me alone, you snake."

      "But--"

      "Go." 

      Deceit just stared at him for a moment. He gave a soft sigh before calling out, "Patton! Roman!" With that, he sank out. 

      A few seconds later, the two summoned sides had appeared in his room, looking confused. 

      "Virgil? Why did you--" Patton cut Roman off as he gasped. 

      "My son has been crying!" He rushed to the bedside and settled down, pulling Virgil into a tight hug. 

      Roman walked over and sat down as well, taking Virgil's hand. "What happened?'

      Virgil tensed at first, but soon relaxed, enjoying the contact. He reluctantly began to speak, though he made sure to leave out the parts that included talk of Depression. 

      "I'm so sorry that I wasn't here for you!" Patton ruffled his hair affectionately. "Don't be afraid to summon me if you need help, okay?"

      "Or me," Roman added. "I want to help, too."

      Virgil gave them a soft smile, though he didn't believe that they were being sincere. "Thanks, guys."

Hey guys! I'm going to be leaving for vacation on Tuesday, so I have no idea when I'll be able to update next. I'll try to update when I get back.