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Virgil stumbled as he appeared into the halls of the Mind Palace. He could taste the metallic tang of blood dripping from the cut on his lip as he chanted, “Roman’s room, Roman’s room,” under his breath, willing for the creative side to let him in.
The mind palace was dark at night, while Thomas was asleep. Although, even if he was awake, Virgil wouldn’t have been able to see much through his swollen eye. He could feel himself growing weaker by the second as blood soaked through his hoodie.
Can a side die? He found himself wondering hopelessly as the darkness seemed to close in.
But suddenly the walls seemed to recede a bit. His head spun as Roman came into sight and looked at him in—confusion? fear? concern? And opened his mouth to speak.
“I didn’t know where else to go,” Virgil said weakly, just before the floor came flying towards his face.
“Virgil?” Roman asked softly as Virgil feebly rubbed his—now less swollen—eyes.
It must have been day, now. Outside, in the real world. Sunlight was streaming into Roman’s room through slanted blinds, dusting everything in warm gold.
Virgil propped himself up on his arms, although he still struggled as he sank into the impossibly plush bed. Across from where he lay hung a shield and a katana next to a display of various Playbills and theatre paraphernalia. An ornate vanity was placed on an angle in the corner. Virgil tried to avoid his reflection, not wanting to see how bruised he probably was. The bed itself was a four-poster, of course, Roman wouldn’t want anything less, and the royal red canopy was drawn on the other side. Roman being Roman, it was no surprise his room was so grand.
As for Princey himself, he was sitting uncomfortably on the edge of the bed, looking at Virgil with that same mix of emotions he had been when Virgil rose up into his room—however long ago that had been.
“Yeah?” Virgil said. His voice was hoarse, so it was barely above a whisper.
Obvious relief filled Roman’s face. “How do you feel?” he asked.
“Uh… not dead? So, better than last I can remember; I guess.”
“You really scared me.”
Virgil was surprised Roman was being so open. Feeling uncomfortable, he tried for a joke, “Yeah, I must’ve been an actual emo nightmare, huh?”
“Yeah, you were.” Roman didn’t quite laugh, but his voice caught and his face relaxed a bit.
There was an awkward pause before Roman spoke again, “So… can I ask what happened?”
Virgil shrugged, he didn’t really want to talk about what happened, but he also owed Roman an explanation for showing up in the middle of the night bloody and about to die. He didn’t have much of a choice.
“Ja—” Virgil started to say Janus’s name, but it stuck in his throat like peanut butter. Dammit, he must be silencing me. Guess I have to come up with a new name for him, he thought. “ Deceit decided that since you guys accepted me, I’m no longer welcome as a Dark Side. Apparently, his words can do actual, physical damage. But your brother was responsible for most of what happened.”
Roman tensed up at that. “ Remus did that?” He asked, gingerly.
“Well… you know how violent he can get.”
“I didn’t know he could hurt another side like that. Even Logan didn’t know what had happened.”
There it was again: that concern. Virgil didn’t really understand why Roman was being so nice to him. Even when they were in Virgil’s room, he was still acting self-centered and egotistical and, well, like himself. But now, Roman wasn’t making jokes or calling him nicknames.
“Hey, Virgil.”
“Yes, Roman?”
Roman took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, for how badly I’ve treated you. I don’t know why you chose to come to me; you said you didn’t know where else to go, when you showed up. And it really made me think. Because you could’ve gone to Patton or Logan, but you chose me . You chose me, and all I’ve done is call you names. I wasn’t even worried when you ducked out. I’ve barely been better than my brother. I meant what I said in your room: You make us better. And I’ll—I’ll work to be better.”
Virgil blinked at Roman. Did he actually just apologize? Janus was so wrong. “Thank you, Roman, that means a lot.”
“I mean it. Do you want to see the others?” Roman quickly changed the subject.
“And be subjected to Patton tackling me? I don’t think I’m quite ready for that much excitement yet.” Virgil said, smirking despite how it stung his lip. “I think I’ll lie here for a bit, Princey.”
Roman actually laughed that time. “Would you like company? Or do you want to be left alone,” he asked.
“Actually, I would. Like company, I mean.”
Roman sat next to Virgil, close but not touching him, thankfully. “So, J. D-lightful, Tangled or Brave?”