Patton looked down as he tried to put into words what he wanted to say. "Logan, I don't know. I want to help you but..."

"But you're worried I'll hurt you." Logan said, nodding. He understood. "Patton, have I ever lied to you?"

"I..." Patton hesitated. "No."

"Why would I start now?" Logan crossed his arms over his chest.

"Because... Because isn't that how people manipulate?" Even as he spoke, Patton knew what he was saying wasn't connected with Logan at all. "They tell you the truth and then lie and you believe them because you have no reason not to be."

"It's how some people live." Logan said, his grip on his arm tightening. "It's how my father lived. But it's not how I live. I was brought up in a world where lying was punished and that's stuck with me. As far as I can remember, I've never lied to anyone, not with words. Lies of omission are a different case." Logan looked up at Patton quickly. None of this was reassuring him. "But I've not lied to you, Patton, I swear it."

Patton twisted his hands in his lap. He could trust Logan, right? Logan had been his friend for years, even when they hadn't been together. But so much about him had changed... what if the same thing had happened with Logan?

"Do you remember when we were younger?" Patton asked. "And you fell over and ended up with a cut on your knee?"

"I insisted you never tell my father." Logan said. "You never did. And I always wondered why."

"Because I trusted your judgement." Patton said, reaching up and playing with the curls at the nape of his neck. "I didn't get why you didn't want your dad to know but I trusted you. I trusted you knew what you were doing." Patton hesitated, took a breath, before carrying on. "And I still trust you now."

Something in his tone must've told Logan because the merman looked up in surprise. An almost unbelieving smile crept onto his face. "So you'll help me?"

Patton nodded. "It'll cost the crew," he said, looking up at the brig ceiling, "but they shouldn't have kidnapped you in the first place. You mess with someone I love, you mess with me."

Logan felt a bubble of warmth burst in his chest and spread to the tips of his fingers and tail. There it was again, the word love. It seemed so important and yet so futile at the same time.

"Thank you, Patton." Logan couldn't have put more sincerity and gratitude in his voice if he tried. Patton met his eyes with his own - his own beautiful, glowingly warm honey eyes - and smiled a little.

"Besides, there's no one on The Mermaid's Pride left for me. Janus' been gone and now Virgil's gone too." Patton usually would've looked down as he said this but he held Logan's gaze with a kind of steeliness Logan had never seen. "If you get out, then that'll be the last person I care about gone. But at least it'll be another person I care about happy."

I have mixed feelings about this chapter so I'll just say this
STOP FUCKING SCREAMING, PoetTheyThem! IT'S VERY CONFUSING!
Bye,
Blaize