Chapter Text
A cozy warmth floated lazily throughout the house and the kitchen air that was filled with the smell of fresh sweet pumpkin pie. Roman had eventually returned after Thomas's conversation with Patton, carrying Logan bridal style despite the continuous protests. After a bit of convincing from Patton, Logan had begrudgingly listed the recipe for said pie to Thomas, who realised that was actually the first time he'd heard that ghost talk. He wasn't energetic or emotional like the other two, more monotonous, it caused a spike in his interest that's for sure.
"There we go, one fresh pumpkin pie. I hope I followed the recipe well enough, thank you, Logan." Thomas smiled at the other, recieving a semi-satisfied glance in return before their eyes diverted back to anywhere but him.
"Oh my, it smells better than I remember! It's been so long since someone's actually baked in this kitchen, right, Roman?" Patton looked to Roman with a teasing tone for Roman, elbowing him playfully in the side.
"Hey I had a very busy schedule! Also, I'm not the most recent one here to die so blame nerdy over there, right specks?" Roman shook off his offence and shifted it into a half playful half self-justifying tone as he tried to shift the blame onto the quieter of the three ghosts in the room.
Logan sighed at the other two, glancing at a confused Thomas then back to them before muttering quietly.
"I do not see the point in partaking in such activities..."
"Then why did you have a recipe for pumpkin pie memorised?"
Thomas's question was met with irritation as Logan immediately shot a glare his way, well... Thomas thought it was a glare. It was hard to tell, the other man's face barely seemed to move when it came to expressions.
"Now now, Logan, what did we talk about? You don't need to hide your humanity," Patton giggled a little at that, considering he knew the other was just shy, "Thomas was just being curious. Besides I think it's nice that you have it memorised since it's your mother's old recipe-"
Patton's glee was quickly outshined by the amusement given to him and the other spectators as the ghost grew an embarrassed face, it was the strongest most openly shown emotion Thomas had seen so far. He was also honoured to have been taught someones family recipe, he had no idea what he was being told meant so much to Logan! Now he really did hope he followed it correctly.
"Wow, Logan. I'm honoured that you shared such a precious thing with me! I know how much a family recipe can mean to a guy. Were you close with your mother?"
Thomas sat down and put his head in his hand, the way you do when you're invested in a story. He watched as Patton and Roman also smiled and leaned in to listen, in unison no less. Logan shifted uncomfortably before muttering yet again,
"Yes... My mother and I were quite close. She used to teach me how to cook and bake, vital life skills that any mother should teach her child." With that, he glanced at Roman with a slight smirk, showing the other he was joking at the jab.
"Oh that was uncalled for, I know how to cook! I only set my food on fire once!" Romans protests were met with raised eyebrows, he looked over to Thomas, unamused. "I set pasta on fire once and they have never let me live it down! I also don't appreciate the fact you spied on me when I was alive, or the fact you told Logan about this!"
Patton burst out laughing, it was true that he had made Logan aware of Romans miserable cooking skills since Logan was one of the most recent to join their party.
"I did not spy on you Roman, I promise," He couldn't stop laughing between every few words, "oh my goodness you're too funny, I just happened to be in the room when it caught! Anyways, Thomas, you should probably leave that mouth watering pie to cool down a little. Say, it's lovely outside! Why don't you explore the gardens for a bit, get some fresh air?"
"That's a nice idea, thank you, Patton. I think I'll do just that."
And with that, Thomas walked out the kitchen to the front door and left to the gardens Patton had mentioned.
Thomas had never imagined them to be so beautiful, even if they were extremely overgrown. Hedges of all different sizes lined the paths, unkept yet vibrant flower beds were scattered here and there too. The air was clear, the smell of fern and pine wafting through.
He sat himself down on a weathered bench surrounded by flowers, admiring the view of the house. His ears were filled with the sounds of birds singing, leaves rustling in the wind, and... Footsteps...
Thomas immediately looked around.
He was supposed to be alone here, who's footsteps could that be? They were getting closer. Next to him? No... Behind him? He couldn't tell anymore. There wasn't anyone appearing anywhere in his oeriferal vision, it had to be behind him.
With a moments hesitation, he shot up and spun around, immediately addressing the figure that appeared.
"WHO ARE... you?"
The being Thomas was met with had given him the impression of a deer in headlights. They seemed absolutely terrified so Thomas tried to make himself seem less intimidating. He made note of their appearance: a short stature (about 5'5 maybe?), fairly skinny like how he'd imagine a Victorian orphan, messy black hair that partially covered their face, worn down shoes, scruffy trousers, and a black hoodie with what looked like a messy repair job since it had purple plaid patches scattered around it with messy stitching. Was this another ghost? Probably, no living person could be that pale. He hadn't been told of any that existed outside though.
"Hello, my names Thomas. Are you a ghost?"
The being immediately vanished into thin air. Thomas looked around confused, wondering where they could go so suddenly. He hadn't seen any of the others vanish like that, in fact he had never seen a ghost vanish that quickly in his life. It always took at least a few seconds, not the blink of an eye.
"Hey wait! I'm not here to hurt you or anything, I don't even know if that's possible! Please come back, I just want to talk."
With bated breath, he waited as patiently as he could for this new person to reappear, glancing around every now and again. About 5 minutes passed before a quiet, slightly hoarse voice was heard. Thomas nearly jumped out his skin but immediately looked in its direction to see the small pale creature had reappeared on the bench next to where he was now standing, sitting on their feet in a crouch position.
"Hey..."