#so janus is rushing it

[ask-nico-and-the-sides]

Ooooh boy. This is going to be intense

[oatmealdaydreams]

Violets & Shy Gladioli

I was going to write this a long while ago, but I forgot. Whoops. So yeah, here's the nerdy!Roman & skater!Virgil oneshot thingy. It's more of a crackfic/drabble. Not something very serious but still fun to write!

EDIT: whoops, not a drabble. It got plot now. This turned into something else, my bad. Hurt/comfort alert. If y'all want a part two or something, just put in an ask.

{@goldnskyart hey, hey you. Yes, you. I did a thing. I hope you like the thing.}

Prompt: here (from @goldnskyart)

Pairings: romantic Prinxiety, platonic Dukeceit, Creativitwins

Trigger/Content Warning: borderline stalking? (kind of??), sexual commentary, very brief mention of vague past trauma, bullying, panic attack, slur (twice very briefly; censored at my own discretion), brief dissociation, murder threats (towards the bullies)

Description: Virgil is a skater at the local skatepark. He notices he has a lil nerd watching him.

Extra: Human AU, Highschool AU; set in goldnskyart's Skateboards & Jam AU; idk romance works, so it'll be kind of bad. I've never written a kiss scene before, so prepare for sappy cringe.

[Masterlist] | ao3 link

[Read under the cut]

Roman is so unbelievably gay, like holy sh*t. Holy sh*t. He is so helpless.

Why must boys be so attractive?

At least, that's the reason he settles on as he watches a specific boy from behind a tree. It's at the local skatepark, where all the shakers and troublemakers tend to hang out. There are benches and a small playground nearby. The whole place is surrounded by oak trees and flowers. It almost feels like you're in another world there, but the sound of cars from the nearby road kind of ruins that.

It's very beautiful, oh indeed it is, and Roman is certain that the boy on his mind just makes it even prettier. Cause this skater boy is very pretty, and funny and kind- and oh, does Roman have it bad.

So yeah, there he is, watching the boy of his dreams from behind a tree near the skatepark.

No, it's not stalking- okay, it's close, but he promises that's not what it is. He's just nervous, okay? He's even tried talking to him at school, but it always ends with unintentional bickering and insulting jabs at each other. He hates how his nerves mess with his ability to function around boys. That, and the gay panic every time he sees him.

Virgil Cleome, a perfect array of purple jackets and snide smirks.

A skilled skater, by highschool standards. A baseball hat put on backwards in a cool fashion, a purple-patched jacket always on his shoulders, the one person who can wear eyeshadow under his eyes and make Roman fluster just from that. His eyes- oh, his eyes- are a heterochromic beauty. One dark green, the other something close to hazel or purple. Roman doesn't know if you could have a purple iris, but Virgil's is damn well close enough.

God, when he concentrates on something? When he's focused? Yeah, Roman could just die at that cute face he makes. The classic tongue-slightly-stuck-out. He also does this thing where he scrunches his nose up. Like, when he doesn't like something or when he's confused in a mocking kind of way. It's just- ugh. How dare he be so f*cking attractive and funny. And have you heard his laugh? Roman heard it once in passing, and he couldn't function for almost five gay minutes because of it. Like, holy hell. Jesus.

Like I said, Roman is helpless.

He feels like Eliza when he's around Virgil, and he wants him to be his Alexander.

So yeah. He's got it bad. He is entirely hopeless.

And that's why he hides behind a tree, watching his seemingly unrequited love have fun at the skatepark.

It's not like he ever notices, right?

...right?

~~~

Virgil definitely notices every time he's being watched by the cute nerd, too shy to actually approach him.

The fact that it's Roman kind of confuses him, since almost all their interactions are borderline hostile on a good day. At least, that's how it feels. Perhaps it's a rivalry, of sorts. Just bickering, insults, and weird nicknames that could pass off as pet names if you were an innocent bystander. But they aren't pet names, okay? Of course they f*cking aren't. Why would they be?

So then, why does Roman watch him shyly from a tree? He just... stares. It's borderline creepy, but that's not the issue. The issue is the fact that Virgil doesn't mind it. That he might like being watched by Roman- not in that way, don't make it weird- and likes his attention on him.

Also, how can Roman ever be so... nervous? Is that the right word?

Normally, when in school, he's always this pompous princely nerd with confidence pouring out of him. He knows what he's talking about. He's not very studious, not exactly, but he knows practically everything about theatre and its history. He knows a lot about history in general. And he's pretty great at the Creative Writing class they're both in.

His glasses are pretty cute, too. His smart little face, the red streak in his hair. The faintest of freckles on his cheeks and nose. The small moles on his neck. He's just so adorable-

Ack. Just f*cking- ugh. Why must Roman be so adorable yet so frustrating all at once?

Virgil is too gay for this sh*t. F*ck this. F*cking hell. Just- okay. He needs to chill out.

Just focus on skating. Ignore the cute little prince who keeps watching you. Just- jesus. Yeah, cause that's f*cking easy.

Virgil tries, he really does, but his mind keeps drifting to red bowties and clever comebacks. His skating buddies already know about his crush- not a crush, he tells them, he just thinks he's neat- and are frankly very tired of the obvious pining.

Hey, it's not pining- okay. Just- ya know what? F*ck you. Shut up.

Roman f*cking Solana.

Jesus.

It doesn't help that one of his friends, a fellow skater, is Roman's twin brother. So, he already sees Roman enough at school, but he also sees him whenever he hangs out with Remus at their house. They don't stay at the house for long, usually, and just go to the skatepark and meet up with Janus.

Yeah, being friends with Remus is always a new adventure. That also means the ungodly amount of innuendos and teasing just gets worse. Of course it f*cking does, it's Remus. As soon as he first heard about Virgil liking Roman in any romantic capacity, he would not leave the poor spiderling alone. That is, unless it got too close to a boundary line. Remus may have poor impulse control, but he'd never cross a boundary with his friends or family. He's not a monster.

He's a self-proclaimed freak, but not a monster.

Which brings them all to right now, a teasing Remus at the ready as Virgil messes up the same trick for the fifth time in a row.

"Dude, what's with you lately? You usually don't mess up that badly," an unnamed skater comments as Virgil gives up and sits down at a nearby bench.

Virgil rolls his eyes at the unnamed skater. Not worth his time. It's not like they're a part of his inner circle, anyway.

"He can't help it, little Virgey's distracted," Remus teases, wiggling his eyebrow.

"Shut up, Remus," Virgil grumbles.

Remus snickers at him.

"Aww, but it's so fun f*cking with you."

Virgil rolls his eyes again, this time at Remus.

"Then again, I know who you'd really like to f*ck with. Well, more like who you'd like to f*ck."

Virgil chokes on air for a moment, his face now burning red. The unnamed skater turns bright pink in second-hand embarrassment and shuffles away, deciding now is a good time to go back to skating. Virgil glares at Remus in his own embarrassment as the green-coded dumbass cackles at him.

"Remus," he scorns, voice cracking at the implication.

"Listen, you're so easy. I just- ha! You're so red!"

Virgil hides his face in his hands, groaning loudly in annoyance.

Where is Janus when you need him? God, the one time he gets too sick to come and skate with us. God f*cking damnit. F*cking bastard.

Janus is usually the one who Remus would listen to. Those two had been through thick and thin, in a lot more ways than Virgil had been with them. There are just some things, some very bad things, that unite people together in such a close bond. Going through trauma together is... it's something they hope Virgil will never experience. It's something that brought those two so close together, but both of them still wish it hadn't happened. The world tends to be a truly cruel place to those who just want to be.

Anyway, after a while of Remus tormenting Virgil, they go back to skating. Remus tends to do more dangerous stunts as if they were at a beginner level. Virgil sticks with what he knows, what he can't mess up, being what his friends call 'stupidly safe' and 'boring'.

Virgil still thinks back to Roman, who is currently hiding behind his signature tree. What he'd never admit is how Roman's attention on him makes his heart beat out of his chest. How his voice makes his heart flutter like a bunch of dumb little moths. How he makes him laugh and let himself exist. How this damned nerd makes him... just smile. He doesn't just smile for anyone. The stupid f*cking cherry-red bowtie. The spotlights in his eyes.

He and Remus may be twins, but they don't exactly look like twins. And that makes it so much easier to feel so cheesy about him. He could never feel cheesy, in any romantic capacity, about Remus or Janus. They're more like family than anything. Oh, but Roman...

God. He wanted to be the Jack to Roman's Sally.

Like I said, he feels so f*cking cheesy about Roman.

After a while of f*cking with each other like they always do, Remus decides to abruptly leave. Virgil asks where the f*ck does he think he's running off to, only to get a one-word answer. That reasonably excuses him.

"Janny!" Remus shouted as he skated away on the sidewalk in the park, heading towards the neighborhood.

Virgil shakes his head fondly. Janus doesn't even need to text or call Remus for the octopus-loving weirdo to know he needs him. A friend instinct, Virgil supposes. Part of their uniquely close platonic bond. Some weird ass sh*t.

Not wanting to skate without one of his friends, cause that just feels weird, Virgil decides to retire early for the day. He goes back to the bench he sat on earlier, setting his board wheels-up by his feet. Finally resting there for a moment, sighing as his back relaxes. He glances over at where Roman probably still is, but-

But he's... not there?

Maybe he had to leave for some reason? Like, his mom called him or something. That happens. Right? Yeah. It's probably fine.

I wish he was still here, though.

Virgil stops himself before he can pout.

Stop, stop it. You're not even friends. This shouldn't f*cking bother you. He's fine.

Why does it bother him?

It just feels wrong. Odd. He's just normally still there, and...

And he's grown attached.

Ah, f*ck me.

~~~

Roman is in theatre. He's almost always the star of the show, the central sun in a musical. When he's on stage, he truly becomes a prince. Whatever his role is, he is. It's a nice sight to see.

So yeah, he's in the Drama club, of course. What thespian wouldn't be? And they always meet on Tuesdays after school. So, as far as Virgil knows, Roman is still at school afterhours on Tuesdays. So is Remus, but that's only because their mom makes them walk home together.

Today is no different. 

Virgil somehow managed to get an after school detention. He'd been too 'disruptive' during class (he was having a panic attack, how the f*ck-), and now has to stay in the library until all the clubs got out. Great. Just f*cking great. Another reason why he hates his dumb math teacher. Because of course, of course being emotionally distressed is less important than f*cking algebra.

Anyway.

So, there's very few people he knows who have after school activities. I mean, he's not the only one ever who gets detention, but apparently today is an exception because he's the only student there that isn't a library tech. He simply listens to music with his headphones on, doing homework so he doesn't have to deal with it later. He has one headphone out, but only so the librarians can't yell at him for it. They usually don't care, but detention students are some sort of disease or something because they eye him like a pack of f*cking vultures. To be fair, Virgil isn't ever really in there unless he has detention. And, you know, your classic stereotypes and narrow-minded assumptions you see from people who need a large heap of therapy. So yeah, not a great time.

Being watched by the librarians isn't helping Virgil focus, and he's two seconds from f*cking decking one of them. The library tech doesn't seem to care. They're just shelving books and minding their own damn business. Virgil likes the tech better.

Aside from the dumbass Karen librarians, there's some sort of commotion coming from the hallway. It could be the theatre kids; the library is close by the Theater. It's all shouty and sh*t, loud and all that. The future scholars in dramatics, otherwise known as actors, tend to always be loud and mildly disruptive. It's not anything new.

Virgil tries to scribble the last of a science formula down, wanting nothing more than the school day to be over. It's not over until he gets to leave. And he can't f*cking leave yet. Stupid b*tch of a teacher. Just- ugh. Math sucks.

Virgil startles when he hears something that sounds like a slap. He sharply turns his head to the doors, which are left open until the clubs are over.

What the f*ck.

He knows his school has bullies. In fact, he's had his fair share of dunderheads picking on him for sh*t he can't control. But most of the students are gone, and only ones who aren't are the theatre or art club kids. And the art room is all the way at the other end of the school. So, the only kids who'd be here... would be the theatre kids... but he's never known any of them to- well, he's seen more gay-ass motherf*ckers in there than he can count, and they sure as hell aren't ones to be assholes unless someone actually deserves it. Or to be funny, in a sassy and dramatic way. Which is the reason why Virgil doesn't mind them. They don't really bother anyone.

Another suspiciously violent sound and a cry of pain, and Virgil flinches. He stops his work. He can't focus with all that noise, and the fact that someone could be getting hurt right now.

"Stop being so dramatic. God, you'd think he'd learn by now?" one voice complains.

"I know, right? He's so annoying! You wouldn't be in this situation if you kept your mouth shut," a second one adds.

A poorly-concealed whimper.

"Okay, that's it. We're being nice, you know we are. But I am two seconds from making your day a whole lot worse," a third one threatens.

Virgil feels stuck in his seat. God, he wants to get up and march over there, and just- what poor kid are they tormenting? It sounds like there's three of them- bullies always travel in groups- and their victim sounds so hurt.

He hears frantic mumbling, and he wishes he isn't so anxious because he'd like to help now, thank you. The worrying thing is he recognizes the first voice. It's familiar, but also not, and that's not a good sign. It's familiar in a bad way, in a 'oh god please not be them' kind of way.

"You were just saying how we shouldn't do what exactly? Hmm? Aww, why so quiet now?" the second one continues.

"I think he's scared, Jackson," says the third one.

"Oh Kayla, I think so, too."

The second one, Jackson, snickers at whoever the victim is. More mumbling. Something happens, and the first one seems to speak again, but it's muffled. The third one, Kayla, laughs at whatever the victim's reaction is.

Jesus, what's f*cking wrong with them? I need to get up and get someone. What do I do, what do I do? I don't know what to do.

Virgil still feels frozen to his seat. He hates how he doesn't know. How he can't f*cking move. Why must his own anxiety paralyze him like this? He's not even the one getting bullied. It just reminds him... of someone. It's getting kinda triggering at this point, even though he can't pinpoint who it reminds him of. He just feels so f*cking stuck.

Someone shushes Jackson and Kayla. Probably the first voice, who's probably the leader of their cruel trio.

"Hush now, stop being a baby. You asked for this when you got in my way, you stupid attention wh*re," the first one lows their voices in such a cold, cynical way.

Virgil loses it when he hears that.

Omg, omg, omg. What the f*ck. They called them a f*cking slur.

He feels so mortified for whoever their victim is.

Okay, that's it. F*ck this, f*ck my stupid anxiety. That's not okay. Those f*cking b*tches.

Virgil blindly bolts to his feet, leaving his headphones and everything behind on the table. He ignores the librarians' steely eyes and quiet shouts for him to sit down. He runs out the f*cking library, nothing but pure adrenaline fueling him. It's all of a blur of him running over there, but luckily- or unluckily, cause how are no adults handling this- the commotion isn't that far. In fact, it's near the Theater. In the hallway in-between that separates it from the library. Where anyone could see.

Out in the open and no one's helping, dear f*cking god.

And Virgil isn't exactly quiet as he runs over. So, the bullies hear the footsteps rapidly approaching them. One of them mutters something like hey, maybe we should not get our asses caught, and what sounds like three pairs of footsteps scatter around. When Virgil gets there, all he sees is a heap of white and red crouched on the ground. They look shaky and small, so damn small, and their bowtie looks a little f*cked up.

Wait, bowtie? Red bowtie. Wait- omg. Oh sh*t.

That's Princey, the cute little nerd, looking small and terrified on the hallway floor. His glasses are the only thing that don't look damaged. His clothes look scuffed up. Tears are pouring down his face, from eyes that look too dazed. A hand mark on his cheek-

Those little assholes. I'm going to f*cking kill them. I'm going to sink Remus on them, and he's going to kill them. I-

Wait... if Roman is here, then...

Where is Remus?

Virgil shoves his thoughts away as he carefully approaches the poor little thing, crouching down to his eye level. He looks distant, almost like he's somewhere else. Maybe he is. Maybe he's mentally somewhere away from all that just happened. Somewhere that feels safer.

When Virgil puts a soft touch to Roman's shoulder, however, he flinches hard. He startles, turning sharply to face Virgil. His eyes are now very aware of where he is, frantic and panicked.

Oh, Princey...

Virgil takes his hand away, going slowly so Roman can see his movements. The poor nerd is panting like a cornered animal. Scared, he looks so scared.

"Hey, it's okay. You're safe now, Princey. It's just me, Virgil. You know me, yeah?"

He keeps his voice low and soft, easing just a little bit of the panic out of the poor thing's eyes.

That's better.

He still looks a little scared, though. It takes him a moment, but then recognition lights up in his eyes. He whimpers.

"Oh sweetheart, it's okay. I'm right here. You're safe now."

Virgil carefully cups the nerd's non-hurt cheek, thumbing away unnoticed tears. Princey flinches as soon as he feels touch- it's less, but still- but calms down as he realizes it's just Virgil.

Virgil would never hurt him. Virgil is safe. Virgil is good.

They may tease each other, but it's never to go as far as intentionally hurting someone.

Roman remains tense, but slowly melts as Virgil moves his other hand to card through his hair. He lets out an undignified whine, leaning into the touch.

"There, I've got you."

Roman leans against Virgil, resting his unhurt half on his shoulder. His face squished against him, letting himself relax a little more. Virgil moves his hand from his face, wrapping his arm around the poor prince. He holds him now, keeping close and cuddled in his lap. Roman's head falls until it rests against Virgil's chest. He can hear his heart beating. It sounds a lot calmer than his own. A hand still cared through his hair.

"You need to breathe, sweetheart. C'mon, breathe with me, okay?"

Roman slightly nods. He listens to Virgil's heart, trying to match his breathing to it. His lungs stutter a few times, but the constant stream of comfort and reassurance helps. After a while of finally breathing, he just collapses into a limp lump of exhaustion into Virgil's arms. He doesn't tremble or shake anymore- hardly at all- and instead focuses on the feel of warmth that his rival-friend-person gives. He doesn't know how to categorize them quite yet, but it seems pretty friendly right now.

Which makes him wonder why they aren't usually friendly like this. Maybe Virgil's just being kind. Maybe it's pity. At this moment though, he doesn't find the energy to care. He basks in the safe, safe, safe person holding him.

"There you go. Good job, sweetheart. You're okay. I've got you, I promise."

They just breathe together for a moment. Just co-exist and the world feels frozen, halted. Like nothing could get them, no harm could come their way, no evil could touch them. Roman's eyes droop, very much ready to fall asleep like this. He's all relaxed and calm now. He's okay. He's safe in Virgil's arms. His glasses screw up a bit as he somehow melts further into the purple-themed skater. He hears a soft chuckle from somewhere.

"You relaxed, Princey? All nice and cozy?"

"Mhm."

"Good, that's good. As long as you feel safe, sweetheart."

Had Roman been more awake than he is, he would've blushed at the pet name. But he isn't, so it flies completely over his head. He feels warm and floaty, and just all light. He likes this feeling. He doesn't want it to go away. Secure in safe arms. Safe, safe, safe.

A text beeps off somewhere. Roman idly wonders if his phone. He gets answered, unfortunately, as he feels Virgil move slightly against him. Probably pulling something out of his pocket. By the sound of it, it's his phone. Another text beeps. Sounds of typing. Virgil sighs, something like relief, and types more. Sends whatever he types to whoever texted him. Another text comes in. Virgil makes an idle hm noise. He puts his phone away.

He holds onto Roman tighter, a protective huff slips out. He pauses for a moment, glancing down at Princey.

"You comfortable like this, Princey? Not hurt anywhere, are you? Besides the, uh, the face."

Roman hums.

"Jus' the face," he provides.

The mark on his face still slightly burns, but it's manageable. Tolerable. Not hurt that much anymore.

"'Kay, good."

He readjusts to hold him tight again. Roman finally closes his eyes, nearly passing out from the sh*t that just happened. It doesn't process in his gay mind that he's practically sleeping against his crush. Yeah, a little too exhausted for the thought to even cross his mind.

"Hey, sweetheart. Remus is on his way, okay?"

"Mm, Re?"

"Yeah, Re. Your bro's on his way to help."

"'m fine, though."

"Princey."

"Mm, really. Safe now."

Virgil smiles at that, warmth spreading in his chest. And not from the fact that he has a body against him.

"Good that you're safe. But you went through something scary. We gotta talk about it."

Roman groans sleepily.

"If it makes you too uncomfortable, we won't. But we need to know who did the sh*t, so they can get their asses whooped."

Roman huffs out a laugh at the mention of 'asses whooped'. Not something he thought he'd hear from Virgil, but funny nonetheless.

"Little sleepy head."

"Not little."

"Could've fooled me, all sleepy and small like this. You're just a little puddle."

Roman makes a half-hearted noise of protest, but just drifts off after that. His breathing evens out, and now he's asleep. Virgil's heart melts because he feels safe enough to sleep in my arms, omg.

After a few minutes, he hears a worried shout.

"Roman? Roro?"

Ah yeah, that's Remus. Worried Brother™ mode is activated, isn't it?

"Ro? Vi, where are- oh. Okay, good. Right there. Okay."

Remus spots them on the ground as soon as he turns the corner. He barrels down the hallway to them, muttering about how they're right there, they've got each other, Virgil ain't gonna let anyone hurt him. He nearly crashes into them as he runs and dives to sit by Virgil and his sleeping brother.

"Whoa, hey. Hey, he's okay. I've got him. He's also asleep, so be careful, Rem."

The light chide dies on Virgil's tongue as Remus growls protectively at sight of his hurt twin. Virgil sighs, knowing Remus isn't going to listen to him while Roman is like this. He doesn't blame him. Roman comes first, always.

Remus catches the mark on Roman's face, and his growl intensifies. Virgil stopped carding a hand through the poor nerd's hair a little bit ago, instead just holding him like something precious. That being said, he sees the pure and horribly overwhelming worry in Remus' eyes. And decides to hand over the sleeping prince.

"Rem, here. He's okay now. He's safe and okay. Right here."

Remus takes his brother carefully. The sleepy Roman whines in protest as he feels Virgil let go of him. The emo skater makes a comforting noise and mutters about what he's doing so the other will be calm. Once fully in his arms, Remus hugs the life out of his brother and holds him in his lap. Roman lets out a pleased hum as he drifts back into a comfortable slumber. He nuzzles into his brother, clinging onto his shirt like a little kid. Remus rests his chin on top of his brother's head.

"...who the f*ck messed with him?"

Remus' glare is deadly and cold, but he doesn't look at Virgil. It's not directed towards him, anyway.

Yep, there's the Protective Twin™ mode.

"I don't know. He hasn't said anything yet, looked a little scared to."

Virgil's voice nearly matches Remus' in cold venom. It's low and cruel, and he's going to do horrible things to the people who did this.

Virgil glances at Remus as he kisses his brother's hair softly.

"I told him we need the name of those f*ckers. I technically didn't ask him, but he still seemed... he's just so tired, Rem."

Virgil's voice almost cracks with emotion near the end. Remus grunts in response. His grip on his brother doesn't waver, not even for a millisecond.

"I heard names of two outta three, though."

Remus sharply turns to him, demanding the names with nothing but a look.

"I- I heard it from the library. One of them is, uh, Jackson. The other one is Kayla, I think."

Remus' eyes wide slightly for a second at the mention of Kayla, and it doesn't take basic observation skills to realize that he may know her. Probably not for a good reason. Virgil doesn't ask.

"There were three?"

"I didn't catch the third's name."

"And where were you, then? How could you hear names but not stop this sh*t from happening?"

Remus' voice cracks mid-sentence. Tears prick at his eyes, and he glares at Virgil like it could be his fault. Maybe it is. Maybe if he wasn't a little coward, he could've stopped it. If only he didn't fail at such an important time.

"I- I was in detention, and- uh, and I heard noise and voices, but I froze and I couldn't move-"

Remus' face softens, regret flooding in as his friend stumbles over panicked words.

"Hey, hey. Sorry. I know you wouldn't hurt him."

Virgil simply nods curtly, easing himself out of his own panic.

"I found him, dazed and on the floor. Rem- Remus, he looked so terrified."

I should've got to him. Goddamit, why am I so f*cking stupid? Just- what the f*ck is wrong with me?

Remus bumps Virgil's shoulder lightly, bringing him out of his thoughts. His own tears threaten to spill. He simply sniffles and wills them away. At least, he holds those stupid tears in for as long as he can.

"...I'm gonna beat and kill their asses."

"I'll bring the bat."

The duo lightly chuckles at each other for a moment. They focus back on Roman, who looks so peaceful in his sleep. Peaceful and safe. It's almost surreal, in a way. He was just hurt by some dumbf*cks, and now he looks like nothing's wrong in the world. They almost don't want to wake him up.

He beats them to it though, groaning and slowly opening his eyes. He first notices purple patches across from him. Then the fact he's being hugged into the Aether, hugged by someone strong and... is that green on their weird vest thing? Wait, green...

He sees Remus' signature skull necklace, and everything catches up to him.

Remus is here. Re is here and I am safe. Safe. Virgil's here, too.

He feels soreness creeping in as he wakes up more.

Ugh... goddammit.

He groans in slight pain.

Wait f*ck- Virgil is here. Holy sh*t. Omg, omg-

And then a little bit of gay panic sets in.

Roman feels his face heat up slightly, and he hides it in Remus' chest. Remus, being the ever-loving twin that he is, just snorts at him once he notices him blushing. Virgil raises an eyebrow at him, but Remus just ignores it and snickers.

"Mm, f*ck you, Re," Roman mutters.

"Yeah, he's okay," Remus says.

"Pft- you good, Princey? What's got you hiding?"

Virgil's own tears are long forgotten as he watches Roman groan pathetically, oblivious to the fact he's a little flustered because of him.

"Seriously though, are you okay?" Virgil's voice softens again.

Roman peeks out from his hiding place, nodding.

"Hm. Then why don't we talk about it, if you're okay and all? We still have asses to maim."

The princely nerd huffs, sitting up in his brother's lap. He avoids their gazes as he speaks.

"'s nothing to worry about."

Remus gives him a the f*ck it isn't look.

"Nothing to- Roro, they left a mark on you. They hit you. That's something to worry about."

"Re-"

"He's right, Princey. They shouldn't be messing with you like. No one gets to f*ck with you like that."

A few seconds of tense silence.

"it's not like it's anything new..." he mumbles.

"Wait, what?"

"I'm killing them-"

Roman tugs on Remus as soon as he feels him try to get up, telling him to stay. Remus rolls his eyes affectionately, staying put and keeping a hold on his hurt brother.

"Fine. Later, then."

"Princey, I- what? Have they been hurting you for a while?"

"...I should be able to take it."

"Oh, no- no, sweetheart, that's not what I meant."

Roman blushes lightly at the pet name, but Virgil ignores it.

"Yeah."

"Oh, Princey..."

"Ro, why didn't ya just tell me? Or us? I could've used Ma's hunting knife on them! Perfect practice!"

"She would kill you if you took her knife, dumbass."

"Not if she knew it was to protect you."

Roman rolls his eyes. Virgil is about ready to steal their mom's knife himself because who the f*ck do they think they are?

Then, he remembers something he heard back when he was in the Library.

Wait, didn't they call him a- oh, oh sh*t. I'm gutting them, omg.

"Sweetheart, how long have they... called you things?"

Roman shrinks, knowing exactly what he's asking. He sheepishly shrugs. Remus makes a concerned, confused face.

"What are they calling you? Bro-bro?"

"...'s fine. It's not that bad."

"Not that- Roman," Virgil's voice bleeds with horror and worry.

Roman huffs stubbornly.

"Ro? What are they calling you?"

He stays quiet, still avoiding their gazes. He feels embarrassed about this entire situation. He should be able to handle it fine, shouldn't he? He's smart and charismatic. He's a prince, if theatre is anything to go by. Aren't princes supposed to be strong?

Isn't he supposed to be strong?

"Roman- Princey, can I tell him? If you won't, then can I?"

That nickname is sounding a little too endearing, and Roman is on the verge of giving in just from that. He meets Virgil's eyes, not expecting the utter weight of naked concern on his face. He bites his lip before nodding and hiding his face in Remus' chest again.

"They called him a slur."

Virgil feels ready to cry again as he speaks, and he's not even the one who got hurt.

"They did what?" anger bleeds through Remus' voice.

He holds Roman tighter, if that's even possible at this point. Roman whimpers as the smallest echo of the slur replays in his head.

"I'm killing them, I'm f*cking killing them. I'm burying them ten feet underground, and I'm killing them."

Roman grips Remus' vest as he tries to push the faint memory of the bullies did out of his mind.

"They don't have any f*cking right to-"

"Not new."

Remus stills. He almost pales as he processes his twin's words. Virgil, in fact, does go pale.

"Roro?"

"Oh, God-"

"Ro, bro-bro, they- they f*cking what?"

"I got a role they wanted. I always get a role they want. They don't like it when I get what they want. It's... 's fine. Nothin' new."

"Oh sweetheart, that's not fine. They- they shouldn't be calling you a slur over a cast role."

"Those b*tches-"

"I should be able to handle it. I'm- I'm supposed to be a prince, aren't I? Princes handle things on their own."

Princes are supposed to be strong, he thinks but doesn't say.

"That's... sweetheart, no. No, princes can ask for help if they need it."

"...but I'm supposed to be strong. Mom calls me her prince, and I want to be strong."

"Asking for help is strong, sweetheart. Strong is being scared and hurt, but surviving anyway."

"Ma calls you her prince because you are strong."

"She also calls you a gremlin Dorito because you have a weird obsession with demonic triangles."

"Cipher is f*cking funny-"

"He literally rips teeth from a deer, what the f*ck-"

Virgil spares a snort as the brothers briefly bicker.

"Not the point, Ro. She also calls me her duke because she said I was meant to be different from you. That you and I are both her precious royals."

Roman hums in response.

Virgil shuffles closer, sitting against Remus' arm. There's more silence. Remus is plotting death for those b*tches who hurt his brother. Virgil is probably doing the same, though he keeps glancing at Roman to make sure he's alright. Today was just total sh*t, huh?

"...they called me an attention wh*re."

Roman's voice cracks as he whispers, curling up in Remus' arms and wanting nothing more than today to have never happened. Remus growls protectively, resting his chin on Roman's head again. Virgil takes one of the nerd's hands, squeezing it softly. He squeezes back.

"Logan's dad knows the principle," Virgil says, rubbing circles on the nerd's knuckles. "Patton told me. We could f*cking get them."

Remus nods sharply as Roman seems to drift off somewhere.

They three stay there, in the empty hallway, as clubs end and other students decide to avoid the murderous looks on Remus' and Virgil's faces.

~~~

It's not even two days later when Jackson, Kayla, and Jackass Number 3 get expelled from school.

Not only does Logan's dad know the principle, but he also seems to be old friends to the district's Superintendent as well. Apparently, his dad knows some friends in high places. Good thing Virgil is intent on remaining on Logan's good side.

Roman and Virgil walk to school together, mainly because Janus is feeling better and Remus wanted to go f*ck some fences up with him. Plus, Roman's mom is even more insistent on him having a walking buddy now that she knows he'd been bullied. As overprotective as she can be, his mom cares a whole lot more about her sons than anything else.

She sneaked a wink at Roman when Virgil came over to walk with him, since his brother couldn't take him anyways. Remus must've tattled on his gay ass because now his mom kept giving this look whenever Virgil visited.

So yes, now he walks with his crush to school. As Remus is being a little criminal and doing God knows what, Roman is fighting a gay panic. Virgil's hand has brushed his twice already, and he thinks he might die if it happens again.

He drifts off into thought for a moment, wondering about a couple of days ago.

"Hey, Virgil?" his voice stays surprisingly steady as his heart thrums in his chest.

"Yeah, Princey?" Virgil glances over at him, and oh god, gay panic, now's not the time.

"Uh, when you... I mean, back when you found me in that hallway and helped me out, uh- well..."

Virgil's gaze softens. He offers a hand, and Roman takes it hesitantly. He squeezes lightly, causing the nerd exhale his nervousness.

"Um, when that happened, you kept calling me 'sweetheart'," Roman couldn't stop the smile on his face. "What was that about?"

His chest burst into butterflies as they both stop walking, and Virgil gives a fond smirk. He avoids Roman's gaze now, a light blush on his face.

"I- uh, sh*t. F*ck, sh*t," he mutters.

Roman waits, though his eager heart beats loudly against his chest.

"I, um... I care about you. You're important to me."

Hi, yes, hello. Uh, Roman's not here right now. He's currently bursting into a million fireworks.

"You- uh, what way do you mean?" Roman can feel how red his face is.

This is when Virgil looks at him, anxious and biting his lip. Flustered, he's flustered the skater boy. His face is red too, though debatably not as red as the nerd. No, Roman's face almost matches his bowtie.

Virgil takes Roman's other hand, shaking slightly from nerves. He stops biting his lip. He risks a brief glance at Roman's lips, and- omg. Omg, I'm going to die.

Both of their faces are burning bright red.

"You... want me to be your sweetheart?" Roman is breathless, and honestly a little overwhelmed by the fact his crush stared at his lips, oh Jesus f*cking Christ.

"Yeah, if you'd have me..." Virgil is just as breathless as they glance into each other's eyes, baring their souls and hearts to one another.

"I'd, uh- yeah, I'd like that."

Virgil moves one of his hands to hold the back of Roman's neck, and Roman's now-free hand rests on Virgil's shoulder. They both glance at each other's lips, hearts pounding and butterflies swarming their insides.

"Can I kiss you, sweetheart?" Virgil looks at him gay in the eyes, and Roman nearly melts.

"Yes," is all the nerd can muster.

They lean in awkwardly, considering they're inexperienced highschoolers, brushing their lips together. They each pull back from some initial shock, slowly leaning back as they gain what little confidence they have. They quickly peck each other, nerves turning into bursts of explosive colour and excitement in their guts. Roman looks at Virgil, his heart fluttering as he recovers from that. Virgil smiles fondly at him. His sweetheart- omg, he's his sweetheart now- smiling back. They're both in a daze. Faces bright pink, heads feeling light like clouds, and hands stay surprisingly steady as they gaze at each other.

It takes them a few moments before they realize that they're going to be late for school.

"Oh sh*t- uh, school's about to start," Virgil cusses as he takes his hand from the back of Roman's neck and looks at the time on his phone.

"Uh, yep. Yep, we should probably go an'- and stuff," his nerd awkwardly stumbles over his words, moving his hand off of Virgil's shoulder.

Virgil pockets his phone as they continue walking to school, picking up the pace a little. They still hold hands as they go. Gay panic roaring in their minds, a swirling mix of emotions leftover from kissing and confessing.

They don't part until needing to go down separate hallways for class.

[where-are-the-spooky-gays-2]

Writer's block is legitimately killing me so I'm doing a whole mini character study on the tss characters in my au. Here's Virgil and Remus.

Virgil is the spymaster. Not the guy cloaked in shadows and riches who directs the spies — oh HELL no. He's the tattered servant that none of the rich people think twice about. He's paid very handsomely by the king (Thomas, in this) to listen in on conversations and gossip and report it back to him. Virgil loves his job. Nobody expects him to be the one who has all the secrets and yet he does. He reports them to Thomas and his advisor (Janus, in this case) and then they are the ones who send out the spies and handle their diplomacy based on the new news.

Think meek and shy man in one room absolutely shedding the facade and going back to confident and scathingly judgemental (like Janus stops pretending to be Patton in that one episode). He's obviously still himself but he's got a sensitive job.

Remus is Thomas' son — one of them, at least. He (along with Roman) are princes who are also training to become knights. Or maybe they're knights already. I haven't decided. But he's known for being the scarier of the two and the one you don't mess with. The rumors about him are WILD. He's truly harmless but there are rumors about him threatening someone for simply coughing in the same room... It's a fake rumor, but one nonetheless. He's really just a sort of interesting guy. He likes the macabre. He's also SEVERELY understimulated doing diplomat work so he usually doesn't. He does a lot of strategy in battles and is known to be quite ruthless. Obviously y'know save the innocent but the people coming against his own army? P i s s o f f.

Also they probably work together. Or the stuff Virgil tells Thomas gets told to Remus by Thomas.

Are they gay for each other in this? Haven't decided! Probably. I still need to iron out relationships and stuff. And everyone's jobs. And roles. And quite possibly the plot. Mostly the plot. Entirely the plot.

Help the writers block is so intense. I wanna throw myself against the wall like wet spaghetti. But like have my sillies^ and tell me what you think

— 👑

Holy shit this AU sounds S O fucking cool oml!!! L O V E how nobody expects Vee to have all the secrets manz has a role to play and he's gonna do it right XD Also L O V E Ree being a man of strategy and ruthlessness in combat he's gonna do everything in his power to protect his people but he does what he does regardless of false rumors he's just a soon to be Knight trying to get by <3 (King!Thomas is a very underrated concept and I'm O B S E S S E D thank you)

[pupplaylogan]

Logan loves 2 lick boots & heels

[sanders-sides-uncorrect-quotes]

Working on my own swap au because I thought it'd be fun

In my AU their colors and roles as light and dark will be swapped but their functions will not be, but their titles focus on a different part of their role

Their personalities (as in how the way they act, not DID) will also be a bit different but in some ways the same if that makes sense? Like certain parts of them are magnified and others are minimised (best way to describe it is the canon light sides' flaws are highlighted and the canon dark sides' qualities are too)

(some of the function names here may change if I find better words to describe them)

Dark sides:

Roman - green - Dark Creativity/Pride (egomaniac, uncaring of other sides, very insecure and takes it out on others)

Patton - orange - Impulsivity (overemotional and sensitive, very controlling and purist, gullible and naïve, pushes Thomas to be so selfless it turns into self destruction)

Logan - brown (blue is opposite of orange so 2 shades of orange instead of 2 shades of blue) - Obstinacy (super formal all of the time, believes he is always right and has a hard time learning new things that contradict the knowledge he already has)

Light sides:

Virgil - yellow - Anticipation (excitable but also cautious and nervous, sometimes gets lost in an adrenaline rush and has to reel himself in, can be overprotective in times of stress and is often jittery and fidgety)

Janus - purple - Self-Preservation (very kind and but also mature, manipulative but he has good intentions, focuses on self care and helping Thomas to become better for himself and then others)

Remus - red - Light Creativity/Wackiness (silly, kooky, gross but in a more cartoony way, encourages unconventional look-outside-of-your-dumb-tiny-catholic-box thinking)

Unrevealed side - blue - unknown (as orange is theorised to be wrath that could also link to like standing up for yourself when accused and stuff so maybe something to do with that?)

[creative-lampd-liberties]

But real talk time I'm loving the fact that they are trying to take care of each other because Thomas is trying to take care of himself, And the way that both Patton and Virgil started off trying to sort of force the good days the way they thought it should work, but also realized when what they were doing wasn't working and switched it up for Logan and Roman had me 🥺💖🥺💖😭😭💖

And can we talk about the fact that Janus knows Remus so well that he actually managed to keep Remus happy AND distracted him from anything he didn't immediately love?? They are friends and they love each other and no one can convince me otherwise

And like even though he rushed through it, all of Patton's choices for Logan were things he'd really actually enjoy and be able to relax doing, like Patton really just pays attention to what makes everybody happy, he's way smarter than anyone gives him credit for

And Virgil specifically picked the kinds of things he and Roman have bonded over before because the whole point was to give Roman quality hang out time and attention, and then at the end he really tried to give Roman the reassurance he needed even though it went against his own instincts, the Protector!Virgil agenda lives

Anyway, I immediately need part two where Patton, Virgil, and Janus get nice days and I *will* write it myself if I have to and that is a Threat™️

[dukeyeatsdeodorant]

Logan: Janus, can you translate Remus for me?

Janus:..Yes. Why do you ask?

Logan: He's been bothering me more than usual, he's been staring at me whenever we're alone together with this large unsettling grin.

Janus: Ohhh, that just means he's sexually attracted to you.

Logan, blushing: What?-

Janus: That or he wants to eat you.

Remus, appearing out of nowhere: Its both!

Logan, quickly walking to the door: Oh. Lovely, Thank you Janus. I must be off.

Remus, following him: Bye J-Anus! I'm gonna seduce this dork!

Logan: No thank you Remus!

Remus: Awwe! We can just cuddle if you want! Pleaaasee, I promise not to bite too hard!

Logan, rushing out of the room as Remus chases after him

Janus:

Janus: They're so cute together.

[analoceits]

do you have any more complicated polycule headcanons for sanders sides? seeing your post filled me with a sense of This Person Is Correct and now I want to pick your brain for more

oh fuck YEAH

post asker is talking abt here

prinxiety used to have a LOT of tension between them. everyone else thought they were OBVIOUSLY crushing and eventually convinced them to date. this lasted a week and went So Horribly it is never spoken of. virgil and roman have resolved to just make out when they feel like it and that deals with the tension.

logan tried to graph out the individual relationships in the polycule exactly Once, because they wanted to explain things to remy. the project kept logan awake for three days and she had to be physically dragged to bed.

moceit are the only two in the polycule to have ever actually been married. mind you, this was all an elaborate scheme by janus to get them married bc he was SO PISSED at patton from their last argument he NEEDED to divorce him. they have tried to get remarried, but logan ABSOLUTELY REFUSES to do all that fucking paperwork again.

logince is the only relationship in the polycule to have never broken up, to everyones BAFFLEMENT bc they get into explosive arguments on the regular. turns out, when they got together, they both agreed that whoever initiates a break-up "loses the relationship" and after everyone found that out it makes Complete Sense.

logan ALSO has their own boyfriend leaderboard, BUT hers is private and she never tells anyone the rankings. they only announce if she has changed the rankings. (janus has figured out that virgil is at the top permanently bc logan NEVER announces a change in rankings after virgil has done something.)

analogical broke up exactly One time. no one remembers why BUT everyone remembers that virgil and logan were both so fully DEVASTATED that everyone worked together to get them to start dating again. janus stopped trying to break up analogical after this.

anxceit dated pre-polycule but took a While to get back together once the polycule started. everyone predicted this would happen, to virgil and janus's annoyance. whenever anxceit did start dating again they both immediately agreed they could NEVER tell anyone else bc they would NEVER hear the end of it. this lasted a week, before they threatened to break up which each other in a public argument.

loceit is not dating, despite the fact they are obviously in love with each other and actively flirting. this is because logan is waiting for janus to confess, and virgil has promised janus he will Literally Kill Him if he gets with logan BEFORE managing to stay with patton for six months straight without a break up to prove that he can be a Mildly Functional Partner. this will never happen.

every single time moceit breaks up, no matter WHAT the reason, no matter HOW AMICABLE, virgil and janus get into a physical fight. after a while everyone realized they both just like the adrenaline rush of fighting and they use the break up as an excuse, so they just leave them to it.

[witchlingcirce]

In my opinion, I feel like the wicked powers would probably benefit if it was a four book series rather than three

Now obviously I cannot judge as the books are not out, so I will shhh but I think the dark artifices and the last hours would have benefited from another book. I feel like with these books, a lot of plot lines are started in the second and then the third book just becomes a lot bigger and convoluted.

I thought queen of air darkness had to many plots in it, and I thought chain of thorns was almost rushed in a sense and some plot lines where wrapped up to quickly and could have been better.

And again, twp is not out so this is just some pre-release judgment. But knowing the plots we already have, aka the fact that this series technically has three confirmed villains (the cohort, the prince of hell, Janus, and probs more along the way). I think this series would benefit from more than three books. Not to mention that it’s the series to wrap up all three book series !!

[delimeful]

just a little rush (3)

warnings: g/t, captivity, self sacrifice, injury/gore mention, fear

-

Janus still hadn’t been entirely sure what exactly he was looking for when he began picking the lock to the office of one of the richest men in town.

Logan hadn’t been very helpful in that regard, only able to echo the vague descriptions he himself had been given over the phone: small, delicate, and feathered.

“Oh goody, that’s only about every passerine in existence,” Janus had snarked at the time, but a lack of specifics wasn’t going to stop them from getting the unfortunate animals out by any means necessary.

They had to be a social breed, too, going by the sounds of things, which bumped the urgency up a little further. Improper conditions and careless owners were bad enough, but for most domesticated birds, if one of a bonded pair died, the other was almost sure to follow.

That wasn’t even getting into the more exotic species. Janus was still hanging on to the slim hope that they wouldn’t be anything too wild, and thus much easier to rehome and rehabilitate without breaking any laws.

Well. Any more laws.

The door’s lock finally twisted under his lock picks, and Janus swung the door open smoothly, appreciating the silent glide of well-maintained, squeak-free hinges. Ah, rich people.

He made sure to close the door quickly behind himself, both for appearances and noise concealment. There was a good chance that whatever birds these two were, they would kick up a fuss at the entrance of a stranger, especially considering the fact that ‘frequent disturbances’ from the animals was the alleged reason Logan’s veterinary clinic had been contacted in the first place.

All living creatures made noise and had needs; even a preschooler could grasp that much. The fact that this grown man had been asking about the costs of invasive and debilitating surgical procedures before considering any alternatives or even telling them anything about the situation was sickening, and more than enough for Janus to agree to a heist riskier than their usual fare.

The room remained shockingly quiet as he crept forward, enough so that he began to wonder if their information wasn’t accurate after all, or if the birds had been very recently moved. Janus could only hope that nothing unspeakable had been done to them in the few days since the call.

Then, finally— a sound. The barest ruffle of feathers against each other, small in a way that meant they likely were dealing with something passerine-sized, which made things easier in a lot of ways.

Janus turned towards the sound, scouring the shadows of the unlit room with narrowed eyes until he found the silhouette of a birdcage. Finally.

He slipped a few trinkets off the shelves as he approached, despite knowing it would earn him Logan’s disapproval. The more they took, the longer they’d be pursued, after all. Still, he couldn’t resist.

The cage was still extremely quiet as he got closer, though he thought he could almost make out tiny, rapid breathing. He carefully checked the angle of the nearby window before pulling a small portable lantern from his belt and flicking its bulb on.

“Let’s see what we’re working with this time,” he mused lowly to himself, and lifted the lantern up to illuminate the inside of the enclosure.

The first thing he noticed was that calling it an enclosure was an insult to properly maintained terrariums everywhere. He’d seen children’s goldfish bowls with better enrichment in them than the nearly barren space within the birdcage. No perches, no chewable toys, no well-sheltered places to hide away…

No places to hide at all, really, which meant that he spotted the bundle of feathers fluffed up on the cage floor in the very next second.

The shape of it was odd, a pair of mantled wings displayed from the back, with odd shadows and disheveled feathers making it difficult to tell where the wings ended and the bird’s body began. They were trembling with strain, so he at least knew that the little creature was still alive.

“Hey there, little guy,” he crooned, setting the lantern next to the cage on the high display table and inspecting the thin wire door. “Give me just a moment, and we’ll get you somewhere much more comfortable, alright?”

For such a simple birdcage. there were a shocking number of locks worked into the latch and surrounding bars of the door. Janus felt a little impressed despite himself, poking at each extra layer of security curiously. “A bit of an escape artist, are you? Quiet or not, I’m sure you’ll be quite a handful.”

The sound of a very small, shuddering inhale split the air, and Janus’s hands went still.

Slowly, he shifted his gaze back to the bundle of feathers, which had grown even pricklier.

He’d heard parrots, ravens, and cockatoos alike imitate human voices, sometimes uncannily well, but he’d never heard them imitate a sob before. Was he imagining things?

There were different colored feathers mixed in, he realized, looking closer. Almost as though one bird had crowded in and attempted to completely cover the other with its wings.

And there was still something about that tangled silhouette that was wrong, for a bird…

More hurriedly now, he twisted the locking mechanisms open one after the other, and finally swung the cage door open. The gap was wide enough for a bird with a wingspan that size to dart through if they were quick about it, but it didn’t seem to be enough to tempt the little guy into moving.

In fact, the only sign that his presence had been noted at all were the progressively more and more ruffled feathers of the wings before him. The birds didn’t seem particularly reactive to a clear intrusion, which was honestly a bit worrying.

Making sure his gloves were concealing every bit of skin— it wouldn’t do to leave even a shred of evidence behind, after all— Janus slid an arm inside the cage and reached for the bird.

With a guttural hiss, the wings flared wider, and the very-much-not-a-bird twisted around to screech at him, lunging forward.

Only years of experience kept Janus from yanking his arm back out the door roughly with a plethora of swears, and even with that experience, he couldn’t stop his automatic jolt and the subsequent rushing of blood in his ears. The sudden flush of adrenaline made him feel a bit faint.

Or maybe he felt a bit faint because the creature before him was absolutely, positively, most certainly not a bird.

Illuminated shallowly by the lantern’s sickly greenish glow, a miniature person stood like an undersized angel, wings spread out in the air behind them in implied threat.

“Get any closer and I’ll scoop your eyes out with a rusty spoon!” the tiny being called out in a nasally tone, adding a very blatant threat to match the implied one. A threat Janus suspected was a complete bluff, seeing as they didn’t seem to even have a way to reach his eyes at the moment, let alone a spoon to execute the promised attack with.

Still, that was no reason to frighten the creature any further. He’d read far too much about small animals and the risks that shock from improper human handling could cause, and the last thing he wanted was to accidentally make anyone keel over. If he could offer such courtesy to birds, he would certainly offer it to the impossibly small person standing rigidly before him.

(He felt a bit like descending into shock, himself, but he was far too professional to succumb in the middle of a high-stakes operation such as this one. No matter how tempting it was.)

He eased back a step, slowly withdrawing his hand until it could rest more casually on the doorway of the cage. “Well, there’s no need for that. I’ve found I rather like my eyes where they are.”

“Great!” The winged person bared tiny teeth at him, not relaxing an inch even as Janus did what he could to keep from looming. “Leave us the fuck alone, and I won’t tear ‘em out and stuff them up your—!”

There was a nervous keen from behind the winged person, and they cut off mid-vulgarity to shift to the side slightly, angling their wings to keep covering whatever was behind them.

Or, if Janus was correct, whoever was behind them. ‘Leave us alone,’ they’d said.

“Is your friend alright?” he asked, earning himself both a glare and the sort of high-pitched warning whistle he normally heard just before a bird started biting hard enough to draw blood. “Please. If I wanted to hurt you, don’t you think I’d have done so by now?”

The winged person scoffed, teeth still bared in a snarl that curled up at the edges, almost resembling a manic grin. “I don’t pretend to know when humans next want to hurt us or why,” they replied, words sharp as razor wire. “If you’re really feeling all kind-hearted and generous, howsabout leaving that door open and ditching this place without any living, breathing prizes? We’ll take care of the rest.”

Their tone was scornful, disbelieving that Janus could be here to do anything except take advantage of them, and looking at their current situation, he couldn’t even begin to blame them. Living in a featureless cage would have been detrimental enough for an actual bird. For a person? It was dehumanizing, isolating, tantamount to torture.

He had his suspicions, however, about the condition of the other one in there with them. They would be easy enough to confirm or deny by simply reaching in and moving the vicious one aside, but that sort of maneuver wouldn’t get him anywhere in terms of earning their trust.

Instead, he withdrew his hand completely, leaving a blank square of empty space in the doorway, ripe for escaping through. “Of course. If that’s all you need, I’m happy to oblige.”

Upping the stakes on this little gamble, Janus moved to the nearby window and shifted the window sash up along its frame, allowing cool air to billow into the room. Luckily, it seemed this one didn’t have a screen on the outside, so their theoretical way out was entirely unimpeded— so long as they were both in fit condition to fly.

The silence in the room stretched, thick with tension, and then a different voice piped up, just as small and considerably less harsh.

“If it isn’t too much trouble, could you also cut through the restraint?” the new voice asked, polite and friendly enough that Janus almost missed the tremulous note to it. “Two heads may be better than one, but four wings tend to get tangled up!”

“Patton—!” the first person hissed, only to fall quiet when Janus crossed the room to return to the cage.

They were still trying to conceal the existence of the other winged person, but it was mostly unsuccessful now that ‘Patton’ wasn’t cooperating.

Janus could make out the two different forms, now, and the thin, durable cord that connected the cuffs on their ankles. One cuff per person, chaining the two of them together.

He was surprised that they’d chosen to reveal the vulnerability— surely in such desperate times, they could manage to coordinate well enough to get away?— but obviously didn’t begrudge them the request.

Except the moment he shifted forward with a pair of wirecutters in hand, the first one puffed up even more aggressively, blocking the way.

“Nope, actually, that’s not happening,” they spat, faux-glib.

“Remus,” Patton protested, only to get lightly buffeted by a wing before they could complete the rest of their complaint.

‘Remus’ shrugged, an attempt at casual when they still looked ready to start mauling him at any moment. “Sorry, Sunshine! It turns out that where you go, I go! That includes abductions by random, well-dressed thieves, so sad, what can you do!”

“You can get out,” Patton retorted. “I’ll be fine, okay, so just let the human cut—,”

“SO SAD, NOTHING TO BE DONE,” Remus repeated over them loudly, before twisting to face Janus fully and finally letting their wings draw back in slightly from their overextended posture. The relaxation looked forced, a lesser of two evils. “Whatever you want us for, looks like you got a two-for-one deal, Jack and the Beanstalker! Better act fast before time runs out!”

Janus blinked, shifting his gaze between the two of them contemplatively, and then decided that whatever misconceptions they were inventing for him would take far too long to unravel at the moment.

Though his wings were tucked too tightly against their back to tell exactly how, Patton was clearly injured in some way, unable to fly, and Remus was equally clearly unwilling to abandon them. Just like actual songbirds, they would be in serious danger from wild animals if left grounded, so even if the injury wasn't debilitating, he couldn’t simply release them and be on his way. They needed help, which was exactly what Janus had come to offer.

And truth be told, he was still deeply curious about these two. Might as well kill two birds with one— hm. Better not to use that particular metaphor for this situation, now that he thought about it.

“If you insist,” he said, and reached for the collapsible bird transport container at his side before pausing. They weren’t actual birds, but he didn’t exactly have the luxury of a less humiliating method of travel on hand.

He was also running out of time. As unfortunate as it was, this would have to do. There would be plenty of time for explanations later.

”Excuse my reach,” he muttered out of habit as he leaned against the cage and held his hand out.

The two had automatically flinched back from a human hand in a way that made him feel ill and furious in equal measures, so he carefully reached forward and scooped the closer of the two into his gloved grasp the way he would have with an actual bird, gentle but firm.

It was Remus, and their body twitched in a way that made Janus suspect they were barely resisting the urge to inflict bodily harm on him, but they managed to limit themself to a narrow-eyed glare and an unhappy churr from deep in their chest.

He’d worried about the restraint connecting the two— he could only fit one arm through the cage door at a time, so he couldn’t exactly grab both of them— but the issue was neatly resolved by Patton immediately clambering onto his hand after Remus, reaching out and clinging to their friend’s arm like they feared they’d be torn away from each other at any minute.

Making sure to move slowly and not unbalance them, Janus withdrew his arm and two passengers from the cage, lowering them down to the display table where the carrying case waited. The two went tense in his grasp, but he made no move other than to relax his fingers into a flat surface, releasing the majority of his grip.

“I would offer to hold you all the way out, but I’m afraid I’ll need my hands free,” he said after a still moment, and this was enough to prompt them into motion.

Patton tugged at Remus’s shoulder, whispering rapidly at them about things Janus pretended not to hear, but the effort went nowhere. Remus marched into the transport case with only the ruffled feathers on their back giving away any sense of unease, and despite the agonized glance they sent toward the open window, Patton was only a half-step behind them. They huddled down in the far corner of the case, digging their fingers into the mesh like they expected it to be a harsh ride.

Discomfited, Janus zipped the entry up only most of the way and left the zippers unlocked. For someone who had been breaking through all those locks on the cage, the barrier was less than nothing, but it still didn’t feel like enough.

He knew why: Whatever attachment was keeping the two of them trapped in place now was far less tangible than any physical lock, and far more binding. Janus may not have been the one to create the trap, but he was utilizing it now, whether he liked it or not.

"Alright. I'm moving now." With careful hands, he lifted the case into the crook of one arm and strapped the lantern back onto his belt, turning towards their exit and wanting nothing more than to leave this stagnant room behind.

Hopefully, once he proved his intentions weren’t malicious, they would let him and Logan help. Hopefully, they would be able to fix whatever that monster had done.

For now, he would at least do what he knew he could, and get them far, far away from that miserable cage.

[oliviaischillin1204]

to defeat a dragon (tickletober day 14- "lose")

word count: 1,667 words

this was an old wip that i repurposed for tickletober! it also ended up being in the same verse as day 7 for no reason other than the vibes. wahoo!

"Had enough, puny knight?"

The Knight of Gold looked up from his position kneeling in the dirt. "By the love of my sword, you shall never defeat me!"

"It looks like I already have," the Dragon Snake hissed in return. The vile creature was crouching on the edge of the cliff just above the knight, glaring down with his deadly gaze. "It's only a matter of time before my partner has defeated your fellow knight--"

"I'm not dead yet!" the Knight of Hearts chirped from across the battlefield, although admittedly his prospects looked grim: he was perched atop the Wheel of Safety, standing tall with his sword raised in defense against the Dragon Beast, who was circling the wheel and occasionally attacking with his own weapon among his villainous cackles of laughter.

The Knight of Gold grimaced. Not dead yet, but stuck. Which meant it was up to him to rescue the dragons' treasure.

He must've given away his train of thought, eyes flicking to the high tower for just a moment, but it was enough to make the Dragon Snake give a cocky laugh.

"Oh, yes, you shriveling fool," he said. "It looks like the poor princes will have to stay here forever!"

On cue, the Dark Prince clanged his own weapon against the slats of his cage. The Wise Prince was silent-- probably reading his book again, which was kinda annoying since the Knights were literally fighting to the death to save him from the Dragons, and the least he could do was pay attention to the battle, but whatever. The Knight of Gold was too busy being an awesome hero to worry about spoilsport Princes.

He flinched as the Dragon Snake slammed his stick-- sword, or, uh, maybe it was a staff, he couldn't remember-- against the ground.

"Enough talk!" he yelled. "Rise and fight!"

Right! Fight! The Knight of Gold rose and rolled his shoulders once before lunging forward. He took a swipe at the Dragon Snake, making him stumble back with a yelp. Step, retreat, step, step, retreat-- he landed a few good blows, but the Dragon Snake was fast, and eventually the two of them were nearly face to face as they pressed their swords against each other.

"Any... last... words?" the Knight of Gold grunted. The Dragon Snake hissed.

"You haven't won yet, puny knight!"

"Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do about it?"

This was it. The Knight of Gold knew the battle was soon to be over. He'd beat the Dragon Snake, then he'd help slay the Dragon Beast, and save the princes, and-

Suddenly the Dragon Snake shot a claw out towards the Knight of Gold's stomach. He gasped, bracing for impact... but he wasn't prepared for a flurry of scratches all along his midsection instead.

The Knight of Golden yelped, then squeaked, the fell unceremoniously onto his butt in the dirt.

"Ha!" said the Dragon Snake, standing tall above the fallen knight. "Is that all it takes to be a knight?"

"Janus!" Roman whined, color rushing to his cheeks. "Stop cheating!"

From behind them, the noise from the battle between the Knight of Hearts and the Dragon Prince came to an abrupt halt.

"How's he cheating?" Patton asked, hopping off the tire swing and letting the end of his pool noodle sword fall to the ground. Remus continued to harmlessly whack at it with his own pool noodle, but he, too, had halted the game to watch the interaction between his brother and Janus.

"I'm not cheating," Janus replied. "I beat Roman, and he's being a baby about it."

"I'm not a baby!" Roman protested, crossing his arms as he glowered up at Janus. "You're just a cheater."

"So every time I win, it's cheating?"

"No, only when you cheat, duh."

"How did he cheat, dummy?" Remus asked again. From above them, he could see Virgil and even Logan peeking between the wooden slats of their tree house to investigate what was going on. Roman clamped his mouth shut.

"Doesn't matter," he mumbled, staring at the dirt and hoping his cheeks weren't too dark. "Just... don't do it again."

Janus replied with a smile that made Roman's stomach flip-flop with... some weird feeling, he'll think about it later. Instead, he needed to focus on what was happening right now-- like how Janus was suddenly taking another step towards him.

"Wait!" he blurted, scrambling to his feet. "Wait, wait, we're not playing like that--"

"Why not?" Janus asked. Roman stepped to his right, and Janus mirrored him. He stepped do his left, and again he was blocked.

Janus' smile was bright and a little bit sharp. "Better run, puny knight, or I'll sink my claws into you!"

With that, he lunged forward, tackling Roman back to the ground, and Roman barely had a second to register that his shirt definitely was gonna get mud stained again before Janus' hands were digging into his stomach.

His laughter exploded out of him-- that loud, squawky laugh that made him feel hot all over-- but it was hard to think about being embarrassed when Janus was freaking tickling him!

"Nohohoho!" he begged-- no, commanded, because Knights didn't beg. "Stohohohop!"

He could hear Remus and Patton laughing somewhere behind them, and even though he couldn't see or hear Virgil or Logan, he knew they were probably laughing too. He wanted to be angry, but he couldn't find it in himself to yell at them when Janus haphazardly shoved his hands directly under Roman's arms.

"Na-hahahaha!" he gasped as he shuffled backwards on the ground. "Hehehehelp! Come on, Janus, ahahaha! You jerk-- help mehehe!"

Remus cackled louder. "No, this is great! Let's torture him to death, Janny!"

"Wait!"

Remus looked back at Patton, confused by his outburst. "What?"

"I think..." Patton whispered loudly, his hand on his chest. "The Knight of Hearts... is getting a second wind!"

And with that, he lunged at Remus with a wide smile, grabbing him around the waist and immediately digging into his sides.

"Ah-hahahaha!" Remus squawked. He tried to fall to his knees, but Patton only followed him down. "Patton!"

"There is no Patton here, there is only the Knight of Hearts!" Patton cheered. "Tickle tickle, evil dragon!"

The backyard was taken over by Remus' screams and squawks, but Roman could only barely hear them over his own laughter. He tried to wrestle Janus off of him but there was nothing he could do, especially when Janus shoved his thumbs under Roman's arms and wiggled them mercilessly.

"Na-ahahahahahaha!" Roman wailed. He was giggling and laughing and squealing and he couldn't stop for anything. This was not how the game was supposed to go! He was meant to be a brave knight, not a dork getting tickled to death!

"Hehehehelp!"

But no help was coming. Patton was too caught up with tickling Remus, and Janus wasn't showing mercy anytime soon. This is it. The Knight of Hearts was about to be slain on the battlefield.

Until suddenly Janus's face disappeared from above Roman; he blinked up at the sudden sunlight that blinded his vision, but all he could hear was Janus' "oof", a flurry of fabric, a lot of weird hissing noises, and finally-- Janus' laughter.

"You ssssssssstupidhead!"

Roman, catching his breath, pushed himself up from the dirt and looked to the side. There was Janus, lying on his back just like Roman had been-- only now, there was someone sitting on top of him, holding onto Janus' sides for dear life as the older boy screamed and kicked.

"Dark Prince!" Roman gasped. "What are you doing out of your tower?"

Virgil glared at him. "Saving your life, dummy." He punctuated this with another scrabble at Janus' sides, no matter how loud his older brother screamed.

"Virgil! I'm gonnahahaha-- gonna tell Mom! Stohohohohop!"

"Surrender!" Virgil-- the Dark Prince-- yelled in defiance at the Dragon Snake. Roman watched, unable to do anything to help as he skillfully took down the evil enemy. "Say mercy!"

He pressed his thumbs into Janus' ribs, and Janus squealed, scrabbling against the ground desperately.

"Okayokayokayokahahahay! I give up! We give uhuhuhup!"

And just like that, it was over-- Janus taking heaving breaths, his hands clenched onto Virgil's wrists. Virgil didn't move yet, though, continuing to crouch over Janus with his hands pressed against his sides.

"Do you swear you're not gonna get me back?" he said. "Or Roman?"

Janus huffed. "I said I give up, jerkface."

Virgil tazed his sides again, sending Janus back into gasping laughter. "Swear it!"

"I swear! I swear, I give uhuhup! Stop I swear I won't get you back plehehehease!"

Finally Virgil relented, rolling off his brother and landing in the dirt next to Roman.

"Are you okay?" he asked, eyeing the child still laying on the ground. "Are you dead?"

Roman flushed a little and pushed himself onto his knees. "I'm okay.

"I'm not," Janus snapped, shooting his brother a masterful scowl. Virgil gave him an identical look.

"You baby," he said. "I barely even tickled you! Roman lasted way longer than you!"

"So did I!" The three of them looked up to see Remus and Patton standing above them, arms around each other's shoulders like they hadn't just been enemies locked in fearsome battle. "You're really ticklish, Janny."

"Shut up!" he hissed. "Everyone's a jerkface today."

"What did Logan do?" Patton asked. All five of them looked up to the jungle gym, where their friend's face was still buried in his book.

He must've sensed them looking at him, because he suddenly looked up. "Oh. Are you finally done?"

No one spoke. Roman and Virgil looked at each other. Patton giggled. Janus stood up, and Remus cracked his knuckles.

Bless Logan's heart; he put the pieces together just a bit too slowly.

"Wait-- wait! Not all at once, not all at ohohohohonce!"

Well, if Logan wasn't paying attention to the game before, he certainly was now. Looks like the Wise Prince wasn't so wise after all.

[reterols]

Devotion, but violent.

Trails of blood that turn into puddles at alters. Silky cloth with stains of crimson. Some poor soul getting sacrificed, but no, it's just an unknown name, a blank face, Janus doesn't care for them. Stained and bruised, wounded and damaged, yet always sticking to the routine. Get up, pray, get dressed, hope, leave, meet, listen and kill, come back, pray.

It's violent, it's bloody, it's fucking messed up.

Oh, oh it is, so so messed up, but the feeling? The rush of excitement and thrill whenever Zane walks in on a praying Janus, It makes Zane's mouth water

The alter is fine, with miniscule details, a silky cloth, pictures, everywhere, a beautiful ceramic bowl, everyday it is filled to the brim with offerings, for Zane to take as he walks by.

Zane is no deity, but for fucks sake, Janus makes him feel like one with every damn word the warrior says.

It's an addiction, it's so so unhealthy.

Yet it's rapture, it's undeniable, with each sacrifice, with each prayer, with each offering, whisper, worship.

Janus is his most devoted follower, in more ways than just one, and it's fucking thrilling.

[pattons-second-cookie-v2]

Can’t sleep so here’s another headcanon

Virgil and Logan are both well-versed in chemistry, but only Virgil knows anything about brain chemistry.

There’s actually evidence to back this up!

Selfishness v. Selflessness

(19:47) Janus ask Virgil for insight for Thomas’ norepinephrine levels

Norepinephrine can cause depression if received too little, and anxiety if received too much

Can Plushies Improve Our Health?

(5:01) Virgil describes how petting an animal reduces the stress hormone Cortisol

Later in the video when Logan has his segment, he explains other impacts of plushies, but mainly mentions the physical benefits

What Makes The Perfect Gift?

(0:30) Virgil appears to be summoned unprompted and notes a sudden rush of adrenaline

Adrenaline can be brought on by both positive excitement and negative anxiety. Patton’s exclamation of Christmas joy was enough to summon Virge and he identified the adrenaline in the air immediately.

I like the idea of Logan being all over Thomas for abandoning all the chemistry he’s learned whilst Virgil actually held onto the information that applies to him and uses it to better identify his own stress symptoms.

[part-time-zombie]

So is noone else going to point out that janus is the only one who got the whole day right?

Like patton had the right ideas in mind, but he was too excited and rushed logan through them with no time to enjoy it. Virgil made an effort to make sure roman enjoyed his day, but couldn't help but put his own spin on most of it in such a way that roman was often more unnerved than anything.

Janus not only knew exactly what remus wanted to do, but he also knew for how long he should do each one and to which end. He didnt move on to the next activity until remus was thoroughly finished with the current one, and it was clear that remus enjoyed the whole experience, even if janus was more or less indifferent.

For a side that so heavily emphasizes selfishness and deceit, janus sure knows how to make remus happy

[emoprincey]

Omg I love this sooooo much this is so good!!!!!!!

My @sanderssidesgiftxchange gift for @emoprincey. Unfortunately I had some technical dificulties on my part (unplanned flu that knocked me out for two weeks) so I only have a short drabble for you. I do have a longer - soulmate anxceit one, that I do plan to finish, but I did not want to leave you without a gift :D! Hopefully you will like the replacement gift!

Fuck fuck fuck.

This was supposed to be an easy mission. He wasn't supposed to be caught in a crossfire as he built the last of the amplifier. Janus scrambled to secure the last of his equipment as the fight outside raged on. Of course some D-grade villain would decide to wreak havoc outside his little base just as Janus' little team was ready for a takeover of their own.

He stumbled as the ground shook. The little antenna he was holding slipped from his grasp and he fumbled to catch it. Marginally avoiding shattering hours of work on the dirty wooden floor. He could feel his phone buzzing in his back pocket. Remus and Virgil no doubt wanting to inquire about his progress, but Janus didn’t have time, he needed to finish this and get out before-

A loud crack nearly shattered Janus eardrums. Fuck. Their fight was getting closer. He rushed back to the table. Securing all the screws for the last time. Turning the machine on and stepping back to admire his work.

He got about three seconds of pure glory out of staring at the Dark Sides Engineering masterpiece before a body got flung through one of the warehouse's cracked windows and landed right in the middle of three months worth of work. Destroying all of it on impact.

Perhaps he should have run. It’s not like he could salvage anything at this point, and scrap metal wasn’t worth risking his life for. But Janus was never one to listen to reason when fury boiled in his veins.

“Is destroying people’s property the hobby of all heroes or am I just particularly lucky?” He snapped at the man, regretting it immediately when the hero turned his gaze towards Janus.

Well, at least he assumed the hero did. The cracked Visor hid his eyes, while perfectly reflecting Janus’ own.

Shit

Of course out of all the heroes Janus had to have literally crushed his plans was Logic himself.

“What are you doing here?” The hero demanded and Janus considered running for it. Surely the hero had better things to do than chase him when there was a villain to fight outside.

A villain that Janus wasn’t sure was D-grade if Logic just got his ass handed to him.

No. Better to stay inside until the hero distracted them again.

“I could ask you the same question.” Janus raised his eyebrow, slipping into defense. “Weren’t you fighting some guy in a spandex a minute ago.” And far away from Janus' precious equipment. That the hero was still very much crushing with his ass. He wasn’t sure if it was a blessing or a curse so he decided not to bring his villain costume with him. How likely would it be for a civilian to lurk around an abandoned warehouse? He certainly couldn’t pass as a teenager.

Maybe he could pretend to be some kind of construction worker. Or a freelance photographer. Nevermind he didn’t have a camera on hand.

Just act as if he was meant to be here. That leads to the fewest questions. And the hero has better things to do anyway.

“I’d offer you to stay, but I think you have a rendezvous with a villain in skin tight clothes. And frankly I don’t exactly feel like being caught in the crossfire.”

That seemed to finally snap the hero out of his stupor as he scrambled to his feet. And Janus prayed he wouldn’t pay too much mind as to what exactly he crushed. All he wanted now was for the hero to go back to stopping his competition and forget all about their little run-in.

But of course fate never wanted to abide by his wishes.

“Right. I need to get you to safety.” He reached out for Janus, but the blond took a step back and sent him a glare.

“I can leave on my own, thank you very much.”

“There isn’t time-”

“For you to argue. Good thing we agree on that.” Janus gave him a smug grin. “So how about you-”

The ground shook again and the hero stumbled forward, nearly knocking Janus over, but the blond raised his hands just in time, steading them both.

Janus expected the hero to use the opportunity to tug him away. Throw him over the shoulder like a sack of potatoes and save another ‘innocent civilian’. But the hero did none of these things. Instead he stayed perfectly still, his expression completely unreadable under the visor. He took a step back but the hero’s hand shot forward, grabbing his wrist.

“What?” Janus hissed, trying to yank his hand free, but the hold around his wrist only tightened. “Will you let go of me?”

That seemed to snap the hero back to reality. He moved his palm from Janus' wrist to his hand, tugging the shorter man behind himself.

“We need to evacuate.”

“I’m perfectly capable of doing that on my own.” Janus sneered as he fought to find his steps again. Curse tall people and their ridiculously long strides.

“Is that why you haven’t evacuated yet?”

“I was busy.”

“Busy with what?” The hero looked over his shoulder.

“And since when is that any of your business?”

“Since I protect this city.”

“Oh really? Are you employed by the government?” Logic glanced over his shoulders to no doubt shoot him a dirty look. Janus couldn’t keep himself from smirking. “I won’t tell anyone you bend the law if you don’t.”

“I don’t-” He began but promptly shut his mouth, deciding against it. Janus felt his smirk widen. He allowed the silence to stretch for a while longer, basking in his small victory before he spoke up again.

“Speaking of bending the law, I need you to let me go, I don’t exactly care for being kidnapped.”

“What?”

“Kidnapping, four eyes.” Janus drawled out. “Unfortunately for you, my mama warned me about stranger danger.”

“Stranger- You don’t know who I am?”

“Ah classic, kidnapper makes you believe you know them.

“I’m not- I’m not trying to kidnap you!”

“Could have fooled me.” Janus purred. “Why are you dragging me someplace without my consent then?”

The hero stopped abruptly, making Janus slam into his back.

“I’m trying to evacuate you from a danger zone.”

“Is that what you criminals call it these days?” Janus mused “I must say, it does have a professional ring to it. Do you-”

There was a cry of pain coming from the outside that sounded suspiciously like Remus’. No. No he wouldn’t. He was at his post unless- Janus felt all color drain from his face.

Unless he got worried when Janus didn’t answer his phone.

Shit

He twisted his hand out of the hero’s grip and ran towards the exit. His thoughts racing towards his friend. He managed to throw the door to the warehouse open and throw himself out into the light. The sun blinded him momentarily, making him stumble. He blinked rapidly, trying to get a sense of the surroundings.

There was a figure laying on the ground just a few feet from him and Janus threw himself towards it, Remus name already forming on his lips when he felt himself floating up.

He scrambled, trying to get his footing to no avail. He heard a cruel laugh above him and Janus snapped his head towards the sound. His blood ran cold. 

It was easy to make fun of all the other villains in their town. How clearly all of them relied on their superpowers rather than a thought out plan when they were held deep inside the prison.

But coming eye to eye with Tremorstrike had a terrifying effect. 

He watched as the villain's grin widened under his flimsy mask and Janus closed his eyes, preparing for the worst.

****

Janus held the belief that Logic was one of the smartest heroes Janus had the misfortune of meeting. And the opinion only strengthened itself after their last encounter. Despite the situation Janus may or may not have… complicated Logic managed to save both himself, Prince, who he wrongly assumed was Remus at first, and Janus from seemingly unavoidable doom. So at least some of the space under his hood and visor must have been taken up by a decently sized brain. Maybe the reason he called himself Logic wasn't just hubris.

Or at least that’s the belief he held until the man decided to show up to the coffee shop Janus worked at and announce they needed to talk in front of about a dozen customers and two of Janus coworkers while dressed in all his fancy hero gear.

He had half a mind to tell him that he was welcome to talk, Janus wasn’t stopping him. But he wasn’t exactly planning on listening either.

But there was something about how awkwardly the man held himself that gave Janus pause.

“I’m taking a break.” He announced to no one in particular as he walked around the counter to grab the hero’s wrist. The gesture was so familiar to the events from about a fortnight ago that it made Janus' mind dizzy. He was more than ready to put that unfortunate evening behind them. What did even Logic need him for? It's not like Janus was any significant part-... or at least not a helpful part of the fight.

Deciding not to come up to his own conclusions when he had the hero here, he dragged Logic to the staff’s area. He wasn’t exactly supposed to do that, but fortunately no one was dumb enough to stop Janus from breaking a few insignificant laws. At least not when he was out of costume.

He pushed Logan into their little changing room, glaring at the new hire until he scrambled away, eyes wide, and slammed the door behind him.

“What?” He spat, not bothering to conceal the distaste in his voice. “Was that about?”

The hero shrank in on himself at the tone and Janus felt a strange mix of pride and regret swirling in his stomach. It was probably hunger. He skipped breakfast.

“Well?” He asked again, softer this time. 

“I understand the circumstances are not… ideal, but I assure you I have stumbled upon your workplace by accident and well, since we figured it out while I was in costume, I thought it was best for me not to approach you in my civilian form.”

Janus felt himself pale, but he fought to keep his voice calm. It’s not an accusation. He reminded himself. Figure out what he knows before you incriminate yourself any further.

“And what exactly did ‘we’ figure out?” His voice came out a little harsher than intended. 

“That we’re soulmates.”

Janus wasn’t sure what he expected to hear, but those were the last thing he would have thought of.

“Pardon me?”

“You wanted me to ask you out.” Scratch that, this was even more absurd. Janus decided to ignore that particular plan in favor of addressing the first anomaly.

“Soulmates.” He tested the word out on his tongue, scanning the man in front of him for, well, anything, really. “You think we’re soulmates.”

“I’m quite certain, unless… unless you have a tattoo on your wrist.”

Janus stared at him blankly.

Soulmates.

He was soulmates with a fucking S-grade superhero.

It sure will do wonders for Janus' career.

Just his goddamn luck.

But then again… surely knowing a little more about an important superhero could be… beneficial to him.

"Janus?" The blond snapped his eyes to the figure in front of him.

"How the fuck do you know my name." Shit, he couldn't read minds, could he? Did he just reveal himself as a villain too?

"You have a name tag on."

Janus just blinked at him.

"You were… you weren't aware I was your soulmate."

"Not until now."

"Oh." 

They let the silence stretch out between them before the hero cursed loudly, definitely not causing janus to jump at the sudden sound.

"Goddamnit" he grumbled. "I should have thought this out."

"Clearly." Janus smirked. "But that's alright. At least you have a smart soulmate."

He couldn't see Logic's eyes, but he was certain the look he earned was decidedly unimpressed. The thought of having riled him up made Janus grin.

Maybe this could be fun.

No, focus.

"I want you show me your soul mark."

The hero hid his wrist behind his back.

"No."

"You've seen mine, haven't you?"

"It's different. You don't have a secret identity to protect." Oh he doesn't now, does he?

Janus crossed his arms, staring at his soulmate. His soulmate. This wouldn't bring any good.

"Oh no, we're not doing that. I'm not revealing anything about myself until I get a good look at your wrist."

"Janus, I cannot reveal my identity to you."

"All the more reason I deserve to know this secret." He held out his hand.

The hero signed before finally giving in and planting his wrist in Janus' outstretched arm. The villain made quick work of pulling the cuff up.

Sure enough they were there, nine golden letters that wrapped around bronze skin.

"Allright." He grumbled, releasing the wrist. He took a look around the room, locating a pen and a notebook and quickly wrote down his phone number. He held it out towards the hero but when the man moved to grab it he leaned away. "And try being inconspicuous about future meetings." Janus narrowed his eyes. 

"I wasn't sure how to… approach you otherwise."

"Wear a disguise."

"I'm-"

"I mean other than your hero costume." Janus rolled his eyes but handed him the number none the less. This was surreal. "Call me." Very very surreal. “I need to get back to work.” That at least was familiar. Not pleasant but familiar. “Some of us have jobs.”

“I do have a job as well.”

“Running around the city in skin tight clothes does not count.” Janus grinned.

The hero opened his mouth as if to say something before promptly shutting it, his lips curving into a grimace.

This Janus could get used to.

***

I did originally plan to write a vampire fic for you, and later an anxceit soulmate one. But both are half done (sitting at about 7k combined) so I decided to write something short, and when I'll have the time polish and post the anxceit fic as well :D bonus sketches I did for the vampire au, that never evolved much further than doodles:

[piliiiiiconfusionf]

Night of Furby's Revenge~ Sanders Sides Fic

Wc: 5,074

Characters: Creativity, Roman "Princey" Sanders| Deceit , Janus Sanders| Anxiety, Virgil Sanders| Morality, Patton Sanders | Dark Creativity , Remus "The Duke" Sanders | Logic, Logan Sanders

Inspired and based by: Imagi-cation Getaway by Fandombead (MorningMist) (heavily recommended, love that story so much)

Summary: In Roman's mind, this was yet another activity he had planned with his brother, Remus, to take their family for their long-deserved ''Imagi-cation Getaway''!! And what was better than a Haunted House, for Halloween?

Roman was so excited, that he didn't once doubt giving Remus full liberty with the details on it, maybe too much that the plans his twin had told him didn't quite surprise him... to the point that he dared call them ''not too creative''... now the line weightening with regret on the back of his memory at the thought of possibly ruining what they had going on now after later events...

With no one but himself to blame after Remus' mysterious disappearence, followed by Janus getting separated by the cursed house the Sides were inside of, Roman rushed to keep the others safe while looking for Janus... Even when some not really charming creatures that started appearing weren't going to make his task any easier.

.....

-----

HAPPY SPOOKY MONTH !! have a writing that has been on my docs for a while and finally decided to post it here too XD I hope you enjoy it!

Ao3 Link to read the fic!