Patton cooed at the spirit squid that sat on his shoulder, curling it's tentacles happily at Patton as it chittered. This was not out of place, people smiling at or petting animals that seemed non-existent to the rest of the world, it was just how soul animals worked. Only you and your soulmate would be able to see the animal and that's how you knew. At a very young age, for Patton it was 4, an animal appeared by your side. It would always be there comforting and protecting you until it was your time to meet your soulmate.

When Patton's little pals appeared it wasn't just one like all of the stories he had been told, he had two. Squish, his squid, was normally a chaotic little bastard, floating around and trying to nip at people even though he couldn't actively interact with anyone other than Patton; and Hoots, who almost seemed to roll his eyes anytime that Patton called him that, was calm and collected. There was a part of Patton that felt bad for the childish name but that's what happens when you let a four-year-old name animals.

Despite his distaste for the name, Hoots was very helpful in corralling Squish. If Patton's soulmates were anything like his soul animals, he was so excited to meet them. Though, the nagging fear in the back of his head wondered if they would get along better and not need him. He had a deep-seated fear of meeting his soulmates and just being the third wheel. He didn't want to be abandoned again. He tried to ignore that thought as his eyes wandered over to a man sitting not too far from him. Both of his legs were tucked under him and he was sticking out his tongue, just a little bit, as he braided dead flowers into a flower crown. It was adorable but so was the golden retriever pawing at the man's leg. Patton wanted so much to pet the dog, but also didn't want to disrupt the man. He had to wait patiently as the man finished the crown, plopping it on his head before giving Patton a sideways glance.

"Oh, um, sorry for starting, can I pet your dog?"

The man's eyes lit up as he jumped from his seat, bounding over to Patton. "Only if I can pet your squid."

Patton's eyes lit up excitedly and nodded, because if this man could see Squish, then that meant Patton had finally met one of his soulmates. Happiness absolutely filled him as he pushed back the thought of being left behind when they found their third. "By the way, I'm Patton."

"Remus, and you are adorable. Like an abandoned duckling."

'Abandoned,' Patton's excitement faded quickly as the worry filled him.

"Do you have another soulmate?"

"Yep," Remus replied, curling his finger under the chittering squid.

"Have you met them?"

"Nope, not yet."

Well, at least there was that. Patton could make this work. He forced a smile as he pet the dog. Everything would be okay.

Everything wasn't okay. Remus was great, and Patton adored him, but there was something missing, something that balanced them out. The relationship wasn't perfect and they didn't meld together in perfect harmony like the movies and TV shows he had seen. Sure he loved Remus, but Patton learned how much work a relationship was, learning to communicate and work together. It was hard, but the two of them grew together through it. It had taken time for Patton to learn that he was being too strict, pushing his fears and insecurities onto Remus. At the same time, Remus learned to listen more to Patton's concerns, not mixing science experiments in the kitchen because that was where they prepared food, but Patton never told him about his abandonment issues. He didn't want to say something encase it became true. It began to eat at Patton, the guilt, the fear, and Remus was typically too manic to help. They needed more. They needed their missing piece, but Patton was afraid.

It had been a rough week emotionally, and he couldn't even explain why. There was nothing specifically wrong but maybe it had all just been too much. Things were going well at work, and things were going well with Remus, but Patton just felt hallow. He sat gently petting Hoots. Squish had disappeared a few weeks after he and Remus had moved in together and that didn't help Patton's feelings of being abandoned. Remus had held him as he cried that night but it just wasn't the same.

"I apologize if I am intruding on your musings, but I believe I might be able to see your spirit animal. That breed of owl is not one of the two breeds that are diurnal."

"Diurnal?" Patton forced a smile, but he didn't know if it reached his voice. He was tired, so very tired.

"Apologies, active during the day." He said, "May I sit?" his hand reaching out, gesturing to the bench.

"Of course Kiddo."

"We are about the same age." He said but slowly sat down nonetheless, gently petting the owl that hopped over to his shoulder." Patton looked at the golden retriever that walked over to him; he looked just like Remus' dog, murder machine. They would have to actually get a dog together because Patton missed the giant ball of fur and fluff.

He got lost in his own head and thoughts and was surprised when he realized this new man hadn't said anything. The two just sat in silence and the quiet comfort was exactly what he had needed. Just having someone be by his side and not expecting anything.

"Thank you." He said softly after a while, "For just sitting with me. My name is Patton."

"Hello Patton, my name is Logan, and it was my pleasure. Are you feeling adequate now?"

"Yes, thank you. So, um... soulmates?"

"It would seem that way if our spirit animals are to be trusted. Though I must warn you that I do have another soulmate."

"I thought you might," Patton smiled softly, "I have a boyfriend."

"I see, are you open to a relationship with multiple people, if he is my soulmate as well?" Patton could see the slight bit of worry that Logan tried to hide but he was able to maintain his calm and it was so sweet.

"I am, would you like to go meet him? I'm not sure if you have time right now?"

Logan looked at his watch, "I have time, and that would be delightful."

Patton smiled and led Logan to his house with Remus, talking along the way. When they opened up the door Remus shot up. "Patton, look at this section of the horror novel I'm writ- who's the stud."

"This is Logan, my other soulmate, and possibly yours."

"Really? Okay, Dr. Frankenstein, you look at it." He shoved a small stack of papers at Remus and Logan seemed confused at first but began to read the papers.

"This is very creative, I can see the suspense elements you have put in place as foreshadowing, but I don't believe this would practically work. See, because of the wait the arm joint works if it were to twist in the way you described you would most likely dislocate it on a normal human."

Remus' eyes lit up. "Tell me more science man."

They got along perfectly, of course they did, and the worry began to set in until Remus called him.

"Come on Patton Button, come sit on my lap while the nerd reads my novel." His heart skipped and he walked over to them. It wasn't perfect. It would take work, but he would be okay. Patton smiled weakly. He would be okay.