Virgil hesitated a minute before knocking on the door. Even if he and Janus weren't on good terms, he still deserved to know that the king had changed his mind. He just had to make sure Janus knew this wasn't because he cared about the stupid snake. He waited a moment, but there was no response from inside. He tested the handle, and saw that it was unlocked. He pushed it open, and it creaked softly. "Janus?" he called out. There was no answer. Virgil started to panic. What if Romulus had gotten to him first? What if he was already gone? He forced himself to take a deep breath. Panicking wasn't going to help anything. Besides, Janus wasn't worth it. He stepped into the hallway, and saw that the rest of the room was pitch black. He pushed in deeper, and soon saw that one room was lit faintly. It was the living room. There was a single candle burning on the coffee table. Next to it was an empty glass of wine. Janus was sprawled out on the couch. Virgil sighed and tapped his shoulder. Janus swatted at him. "Go away, Virgil. Leave me alone. Again. I don't want to talk to traitors like you." "You really think I want to talk to a lying snake like you?" Janus snorted. "Then why are you here? Finally get bored of being that little upstart's servant?" he sneered "I am not his servant! I'm just trying to protect you guys." "Oh, yeah? How's that working out for you?" Virgil gritted his teeth and didn't respond. "You know, if you actually cared about us, you wouldn't have left." "If you actually cared about me, I wouldn't have needed to leave!" "Oh, that's right, play the victim card, just like always." "That's right, pretend you're the innocent little lamb just like always!" Virgil shook his head. "You know, you may have all the others fooled, but I can still see right through you. You're going to betray them the second it's convenient for you." "I'm different. I've changed. You can trust me." "Oh, I believe you think you've changed. I believe we can trust you for now. But in a week? A month? You'll ditch us the moment it's convenient." "Oh, like you ditched us?" Virgil didn't bother to respond. Janus sat up, and looked him in the eyes. "Tell me, how is that any different? Because you decided to be a good guy? Because you renounced your evil ways? That's all we are isn't it? Evil? We're the villains of the story after all." Virgil didn't know how to respond. "That's all we'll ever be to you light sides. But as hard as you try, you'll never be able to escape your past. You'll always be a dark side. Face it. You never left. You just pretended you had a new family. And you abandoned them the minute it was convenient for you." Virgil opened his mouth to protest, but for once was at a loss for words. Janus was right. He should have gone after Logan, or looked for a way to fix Patton. Instead he had just sat by and twiddled his thumbs. Janus stretched out and pulled his hat over his eyes. "I don't need anything from a traitor like you. And you've made it clear you don't want anything from me." The words stung, but he refused to back down. He had come to warn Janus. If the snake didn't want to be saved, then it was his own fault. But he had to at least try. "I need-" "Get out." "But-" "Get out. You're a light side now." He spat out the word. "Your kind aren't welcome here." "Janus-" "I said get out!" he hissed. Virgil took a step back, but steeled his nerves. He wasn't going to lose anyone else. "I'm trying to save you, damn it!" "Oh yeah? And what could I possibly need saving from? Someone else stabbing me in the back? Not everyone's like you, you know." "I'm trying to save you from Romulus!" "He already 'spared' me. What else could he possibly do?" "He changed his mind. He still wants his revenge." "What can he possibly do to me.? I still have all of my powers." Virgil wanted to smack him. How did he not get how serious this was? "He has full control of the mindscape! He could wipe you out with a single thought." "Well he hasn't yet. I think I'm good." He glanced at Virgil. "Why do you care anyways?" "Because I'm not going to just sit by and lose the last person I care about!" Virgil yelled. He clapped his hands over his mouth. He couldn't believe he had just said that out loud. To Janus. "You actually care about me?" Janus did his best to hide his expression and dismiss the words, but Virgil could see him trying to process it. "Sure, I'll believe it when I see it." Virgil sighed, and sat down on the armchair. "I do care, Janus. I just don't want to admit it. That's why leaving you and Remus was one of the hardest things I ever did. Because you guys felt like my family. But I know you never cared about me." He buried his face in his hands. "I hated leaving, but I thought maybe if I got in with the light sides, even if they hated me, I could at least know that everything they said was the truth." Slowly Janus sat up. "I did care about you, Virgil. I just didn't know how to tell you. And I saw how happy you were with the light sides, and I wanted to give you that more than anything, but I didn't know how. That's why it destroyed me when you left. Because I knew it was my fault. And I didn't know how to fix it." "So you lashed out instead." They sat in silence for a moment. "I'm sorry," they both said at the same time. "I should have tried harder," Janus said. "And I should have given you a second chance," Virgil responded. They smiled tentatively. "What a touching reunion. I hate to break it up." The two leapt to their feet and spun around to find Romulus lounging in the doorway. "Leave," Virgil said. "You're not welcome here anymore." "That sounds an awful lot like treason. Or did you forget that I'm your king? You don't order me around, Paranoia." Janus held him back before he could lunge at the king. "Not worth it, Virge." "I'm not Paranoia anymore," Virgil growled. "Right, you're something stupid like Anxiety." Romulus waved his hand in dismissal. "You really should have stuck with the Dark Sides. I liked you better when you were quiet." "I am not a Dark Side anymore." "If you insist," Romulus said with a wave of his hand. "But you're certainly still a traitor." "What are you talking about?" "I am your king. You have chosen to side with the enemy." "I never agreed to be your dumb servant thing. Besides, I didn't have a choice. I'm not a traitor." "Oh, but you are, Virgil. Besides, you led me to Janus." Virgil whirled around, and for the first time realized that Romulus must have followed him. He kicked himself. He should have been more careful. In his rush to warn Janus about the impending doom, he had led it straight to the snake's door.