May Flowers - Sanders Sides Fanfiction

❁Monte Casino Aster - Charm and patience❁

AU: Cinderella AU

CW: None that I know of

WC: 1401

Date: 5/27/2021

Getting access to the palace library had been a lot easier than Janus expected. Everyone was so focused on the prince and his safety, that slipping out of the ballroom and into the hall had been child's play; especially for someone who was used to the 'be neither seen nor heard' adage. Once he was in the hallway it was as simple as finding the right door. To make his search easier, many of the doors were locked, but when he got to the fourth door, it opened up to a large library. He had never seen anything so vast in his life. True he had worked for nobles, but no one as rich as a king.

There were times that Janus begrudged royalty, having so many nice things and not sharing their wealth, but he decided not to focus on such petty complaints. He was in a library.

He made his way through the different shelves, trying to figure out if there was some kind of organization system until he found the section he wanted.

Philosophy.

Janus had few friends, and that was partially due to his work and his station, but that was also partially due to his love of philosophy. At least, that's what he told himself. Janus knew he could get a bit too into the theories. He understood that a lot of this didn't work in practicality, and that was a completely different thought experiment that he still enjoyed. It was harder to do real-life conceptualizations though when you didn't have all of the info on a situation.

This library could give him so much information though. He could learn more about the world and the people in it. He could actually understand a bit more about politics, more than he could learn from gossipping nobles. Though, if he only had a short amount of time. He wanted to learn about philosophy. He took a book from the shelf, looking around for a place to sit. He would have to be mindful not to get too lost in his own readings.

Curled up in a plush chair, Janus began to read. That was his first mistake.

He was only a few (thirty) pages into his new book when he heard someone clearing their throat.

"What are you doing in here?"

He had been caught, time to lie through his teeth.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was looking for the restroom and got distracted by the impressive collection of books."

The man who stood in front of him didn't seem to completely buy that but he indulged Janus anyway.

"So you decided to stop and read?"

"I couldn't help myself." He smiled his most charming smile, going to stand but the other male held out his hand, stopping Janus.

"What is it you chose to read?"

"'The theory of the mind', so far I understand the premise, that we are all composed of different parts and those parts can often be in conflict with one another."

"Yet, you hesitate."

"Well, I believe that this analysis is lacking in something, for example, those people who are barely surviving will not have the same internal conflict. They know and understand only survival."

"I can see your point, but what of those who are fighting to survive, yet they are also taking care of another?"

Janus had seen that too many times to count. He launched into a tirade and the man sat down in the chair next to him. Conversation between the two of them came easily as they discussed philosophy, but when things began to shift into practical applications, Janus began to falter a bit. He did his best to keep up an air of calm charm, but he knew this was out of his depth.