scales of justice (janus + virgil)

chapter no. 3

 Late into the night, Janus awoke to find Remus fast asleep next to him. There was an eerie silence in the house. His hat had been knocked to the floor, and he was covered in a light layer of sweat. He removed his cloak and folded it up, setting it on Remus' dresser along with his hat. He slipped out into the hallway and went into the bathroom with the intention of taking a shower, but a sudden sensation of sickness and dizziness washed over him, and he had to grip the counter to steady himself. He heard the faint whispers of a voice that wasn't his in the back of his mind, but they were all incoherent and overwhelming. A few seconds later, his head cleared, and he could stand on his own again. He splashed cold water on his face before removing his clothes and stepping into the shower, heating it up to a higher temperature than anyone else would have been able to tolerate.

When he got out, however, he didn't feel much better. He carried his clothes upstairs to his room (also retrieving the cloak and hat from Remus' room) and gently shut the door behind him. Even though his skin was warm at the moment, Janus knew he was going to lose the heat very quickly, so he put on a hoodie and some pajama pants and placed a fleece blanket over his shoulders. Then he ventured back out of his room and stepped outside, inhaling the cool night air.

"Good evening, Janus," said a smooth voice beside him.

Janus startled and looked over, only to find a figure wearing a black cloak that obscured their face. "Who are you?"

"I don't think I need to tell you," said the figure. "You already know."

"Are you the thing that's been plaguing us?" he accused, a note of hostility creeping into his voice.

All the person did was chuckle. "I'm sure I don't need to answer that either. You've noticed the effect I've had on you all lately, and so have the two others. You and the creative one have sided with each other, I notice, yet..." He paused. "There's a broken link between you and the stormy one. I can see it. And broken things never do you any good... unless you can conceal them with untruths. But lying doesn't always get you out of trouble, and even lands you in bigger trouble sometimes."

"What is your point?" snapped Janus. "You're ruining my peaceful night."

"Peaceful? Ha! As if." The figure shifted so that he was facing Janus, but the latter could not see his face, for it was disguised in shadow. "Your time is running out, serpent boy. It's time to open your eyes and take in the light of the situation--or, rather, the darkness of it. My power has been kindled by yours over Thomas, but unless you face your problems head on, nothing will ever save you..."

Janus shut his eyes, being hit with another dizzy spell suddenly. When he opened his eyes again, having recovered, he turned to glare up at the figure, hissing, "You won't get away with anything."

But he was gone, leaving Janus kneeling on the chilly pavement, shivering.

-

Janus hadn't fallen asleep until the sun came up, unable to calm his mind down. He only slept for two hours before he found himself wide awake again. Despite being fucking exhausted, he was repusled by the idea of sleep, so he left the comfort of his room and sat at the empty kitchen table, placing his head down into his folded arms and staring at the wall. Normally he maintained an even composure (except for when some of the sides made him lose his shit), no matter what the situation was, because he often was able to solve the problems within it, even it meant lying his way out of them or using lying to put the issue to rest. But this new situation he was faced with gave him a horrible feeling deep in his gut that he couldn't seem to shake, no matter how he tried to reassure himself everything was okay.