In the morning, he was gone. When she'd gone to wake him, as she always did, his bed was empty, made up neat and tidy. The white rose bud in the vase on his nightstand, the one that had never seemed to blossom or die, was withering and dropping its milky white petals. Outside, his footprints led away out into the snow, then stopped suddenly where his bike had once been. The prints led from his window; he hadn't even taken the front door.
Even though Jesse was the only one who knew that Janus, with all of his crisp white dress shirts, freshly pressed tailored jackets, and overall pristine cleanliness, was gone, there was still a feeling of emptiness in the big house. A feeling that something was missing.
Janus had stayed with the quest family for two and a half years as Jesse's Guardian, a kind of godsent mystical bodyguard. At first, she'd hated him and his near-obsessive cleaning habits, but after he'd saved her life several times, flashed her his winning smile, and given her a shoulder to cry on, she'd warmed up to him. Over time, that friendly warmth had grown hot, burning, so that Jesse could not look at him, his eyes, his body, without feeling that same heat within her. She'd hid her feelings for months behind a casual mask, avoiding his eyes, shying away from his touch, until Janus had confronted her in her room and demanded to know what was going on. And she'd told him the truth.
"I love you, Janus."
A hundred emotions flickered in his glowing blue eyes. He shook himself, and his eyes settled into a heavy, dull look of sorrow. He shook his head. "You can't."
Jesse blinked, taken aback. This wasn't supposed to happen. Janus was suppsed to express suprise, then shyly confess that he shared her feelings. *It shouldn't be like this,* she remembered thinking frantically. *Everything's wrong.*
"Wh-why?" Jesse stammered. "Why can't I?"
Janus sat on the bed, sighing. "It goes against the... The rules. Our relationship can't go beyond friendship. I'm sorry."
"Can't go beyond-- What rules?" Jesse flared.
Having returned to his incredibly annoying calm demeanor, Janus replied, "The same rules that forbid me from losing my temper with you, acting in ways that endanger you or are not in your best interest, refusing a reasonable request make by you, preventing you from--"
"Wait a minute." Jesse cut him off. "Repeat that last one?"
Janus crossed his arms over his chest. "Preventing you from aquiring a sufficient educa--"
"No, the one before that," Jesse interrupted again. "'Refusing a request'."
"Refusing a *reasonable* request made by you," Janus corrected cooly.
Jesse sat next to him on the bed. "Right! So if I asked you to do something, you can't say no, is that what it means?"
"Within reason," Janus was beginning to look pale, a sure sign he knew he was being led into a trap.
Jesse nodded. "Of course. I wouldn't want to get you in trouble. All I want you to do is break one teeny little rule."
Janus stood up, knowing right away what she was suggesting. "Don't make me do this, Jesse. It's wrong."
"But if you could, if you could make this more than friendship, would you?" Jesse looked up at him, her eyes pleading. "All I want is a chance. I'll never meet anyone like you again, I just want a chance."
Janus' eyes softened. "I--" He looked away, out the window. "I'll go and see the Judges, and ask them. If they say that it's all right, then..." He sighed again, but his eyes were smiling. "Then I'll give it a try."
Jesse leapt off the bed and threw her arms around Janus' neck. Smiling, he gently pushed her away. "Not yet. I don't know what they'll say."
Janus was gone all the next day, and Jesse contented herself by locking herself in his closet, enjoying the smell and feel of his clothes in the dark. When he returned in the evening and found her in there, he met her with a smile.
Jonny looked up from his book. "Janus is gone?"
" I think he left this morning," Jesse lied. She knew he had left just after she had fallen asleep, after he had put her in her own bed. "I don't know why." Another lie. She knew.
Returning to his book, Jonny mumbled, "That's too bad."
Jesse sighed and walked off. Janus had been everything to her, but to the rest of the Quests, he was only a scarcely seen visitor, someone who lived in the upstairs guest room down the hall from Jesse. To Jesse's father, Race, he was a silent predator, a disguised evil who was turning his daughter down all the wrong paths. When he learned that Janus had gone, he would see it as a miracle and congratulate himself on successfully driving the pest away. But the truth was, the fault was with Jesse herself.
((Huh.... Do ya like it? I fixed all the errors ^^ And I should be continuing it soon...
Ja ne!
Samalander ))
Even though Jesse was the only one who knew that Janus, with all of his crisp white dress shirts, freshly pressed tailored jackets, and overall pristine cleanliness, was gone, there was still a feeling of emptiness in the big house. A feeling that something was missing.
Janus had stayed with the quest family for two and a half years as Jesse's Guardian, a kind of godsent mystical bodyguard. At first, she'd hated him and his near-obsessive cleaning habits, but after he'd saved her life several times, flashed her his winning smile, and given her a shoulder to cry on, she'd warmed up to him. Over time, that friendly warmth had grown hot, burning, so that Jesse could not look at him, his eyes, his body, without feeling that same heat within her. She'd hid her feelings for months behind a casual mask, avoiding his eyes, shying away from his touch, until Janus had confronted her in her room and demanded to know what was going on. And she'd told him the truth.
"I love you, Janus."
A hundred emotions flickered in his glowing blue eyes. He shook himself, and his eyes settled into a heavy, dull look of sorrow. He shook his head. "You can't."
Jesse blinked, taken aback. This wasn't supposed to happen. Janus was suppsed to express suprise, then shyly confess that he shared her feelings. *It shouldn't be like this,* she remembered thinking frantically. *Everything's wrong.*
"Wh-why?" Jesse stammered. "Why can't I?"
Janus sat on the bed, sighing. "It goes against the... The rules. Our relationship can't go beyond friendship. I'm sorry."
"Can't go beyond-- What rules?" Jesse flared.
Having returned to his incredibly annoying calm demeanor, Janus replied, "The same rules that forbid me from losing my temper with you, acting in ways that endanger you or are not in your best interest, refusing a reasonable request make by you, preventing you from--"
"Wait a minute." Jesse cut him off. "Repeat that last one?"
Janus crossed his arms over his chest. "Preventing you from aquiring a sufficient educa--"
"No, the one before that," Jesse interrupted again. "'Refusing a request'."
"Refusing a *reasonable* request made by you," Janus corrected cooly.
Jesse sat next to him on the bed. "Right! So if I asked you to do something, you can't say no, is that what it means?"
"Within reason," Janus was beginning to look pale, a sure sign he knew he was being led into a trap.
Jesse nodded. "Of course. I wouldn't want to get you in trouble. All I want you to do is break one teeny little rule."
Janus stood up, knowing right away what she was suggesting. "Don't make me do this, Jesse. It's wrong."
"But if you could, if you could make this more than friendship, would you?" Jesse looked up at him, her eyes pleading. "All I want is a chance. I'll never meet anyone like you again, I just want a chance."
Janus' eyes softened. "I--" He looked away, out the window. "I'll go and see the Judges, and ask them. If they say that it's all right, then..." He sighed again, but his eyes were smiling. "Then I'll give it a try."
Jesse leapt off the bed and threw her arms around Janus' neck. Smiling, he gently pushed her away. "Not yet. I don't know what they'll say."
Janus was gone all the next day, and Jesse contented herself by locking herself in his closet, enjoying the smell and feel of his clothes in the dark. When he returned in the evening and found her in there, he met her with a smile.
Jonny looked up from his book. "Janus is gone?"
" I think he left this morning," Jesse lied. She knew he had left just after she had fallen asleep, after he had put her in her own bed. "I don't know why." Another lie. She knew.
Returning to his book, Jonny mumbled, "That's too bad."
Jesse sighed and walked off. Janus had been everything to her, but to the rest of the Quests, he was only a scarcely seen visitor, someone who lived in the upstairs guest room down the hall from Jesse. To Jesse's father, Race, he was a silent predator, a disguised evil who was turning his daughter down all the wrong paths. When he learned that Janus had gone, he would see it as a miracle and congratulate himself on successfully driving the pest away. But the truth was, the fault was with Jesse herself.
((Huh.... Do ya like it? I fixed all the errors ^^ And I should be continuing it soon...
Ja ne!
Samalander ))