Virgil and Remus’s Past [Theory]
[MANY MANY THANKS TO @stardustlogan FOR MAKING ALL THE GIFS I USE IN THIS POST. PLEASE FOLLOW SAPPHIRE BECAUSE SHE’S AMAZING AND I LOVE HER AND SHE DESERVES ALL OF THE FOLLOWS]
Alright everyone it’s time for me to talk about a theory I’m really interested in learning more about.
That being Virgil and Remus’s relationship.
Virgil is scared or at least very incredibly wary of Remus in comparison to his treatment of Deceit which is hostile and very firm.
When Deceit shows up, Virgil is cocky and definitely in charge. He cuts Deceit off multiple times in SvS during the courtroom discussion as well as cutting off Deceit’s entrance to the episode itself.
I think the reason for such a drastic difference is because of how much more Thomas is scared of his own thoughts rather than lying.
Thomas knows lying is wrong. He doesn’t sit around thinking of his next time to lie. Patton is proof of that considering how instantly Patton is against lying in any form at all from when he returns in CLBG at the end of the episode “It’s wrong!” And the entire beginning of SvS “Lying is already bad enough! Lying to a friend is out of the question!” and it continues when he calls out Roman for wanting to lie (even though that’s not what Roman meant at all…) “Roman! I thought you fought for honor! Why are you pushing Thomas to be dishonest?”
There’s a logic to lying. It’s a choice. Something Thomas (and Patton) can choose not to do. Virgil is brave against Deceit because of this.
However, as said in DwIT multiple times by Remus, “There is no rhyme or reason to what I do, I just do.”
Intrusive Thoughts are random and wild, usually having no catalyst to why they happen. If your intrusive thoughts are bad enough, as it seems Character Thomas’s are, it can make you continuously anxious to when they will get even worse or what your brain will think of next.
They also have a neat way of manipulating your train of thought. You automatically assume that the evil, twisted thoughts you have are the same as people in the world who have performed those exact twisted, evil things.
Which is what leads to this scene:
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Even though it appears that Remus and Virgil talk in unison here, Virgil is actually the first to speak (thank you audio editing) and Remus joins Virgil in asking the question about the serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Remus doesn’t even bother asking the question while looking at Logan. He asks it what still staring at Virgil because he knew Virgil was going to ask since Thomas is still afraid of Remus and what those thoughts mean at this point.
Virgil’s reaction is exactly what Remus was going for: to make him think he’s still evil for interpreting his host’s thoughts into actual evil intentions. Virgil looks down and spaces out, realizing he’s again working with and agreeing with Remus like he used to so long ago to make Thomas anxious and upset.
Which also makes the end of the episode even more interesting.
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First thing to notice is that Remus gives Virgil a kind nickname here, which is interesting. Kind nicknames are not common between any sides except for Patton and Virgil (and some of the ones from Roman after Accepting Anxiety, Part 2). On top of that fact, Virgil cracks a small smile before wiping it away. Maybe he is remembering working with Remus in that moment in Thomas’s adolescence and young adult years and maybe they were friends.
But maybe it wasn’t a real friendship.
Remus says “it was just like old times” to Virgil and says it was “good to see him again”. We know Remus doesn’t hide things or mince his words. He’s blunt and truthful, as he has no reason to hide things from anyone.
I do believe Remus and Virgil were friends at one point, working together to bring fear and anxiousness to Thomas, who at a young age, probably didn’t understand his intrusive thoughts or his anxiety. The two were a duo, randomly happening for no reason other then they could.
As Thomas says in “Taking on Anxiety” episode 3 of the series, “… sometimes it just shows up out of nowhere and ruins whatever peace I have!”
Kinda sounds like the way Remus explains what he does, right? He just does things when he wants and however he wants.
Now I may call what Remus and Virgil had a “friendship” but I am using that term pretty loosely. It was more of a friendship determined by fear.
As Virgil states at the end of DwIT, “You know what’s funny? You used to really unsettle me. I thought that you were some terrible illness. Now I can see that you’re just… a common cold. A mild inconvenience that’s gone before you know it.”
It can probably be said that Virgil was always afraid of Remus and acted the way Remus did because of that fear. After Logan’s lesson and explanation, it is more clear to Virgil that Remus never had power over him like he believed. Virgil decided he would no longer allow Remus any control over him. Remus only laughs and kids with Virgil “you tickle me, emo” because he probably does genuinely like Virgil. Especially with one other line in the episode, “Virgil, you’ve never been one to soften the truth. Why would you aspire to be so… boring?”
This hints to the idea that they have worked together to create some pretty scary things for Thomas in the past and probably enjoyed creating that chaos. After Remus points this out, Virgil goes right back to what he did in the past: He blames Thomas for the thoughts and begins to work with Remus even though he doesn’t realize it.
However, this time, Logan is here and is able to correct Virgil in saying “Actually, a ‘stable’ person, as you put it, could absolutely have those thoughts.”
Which angers Remus instantly with his response of, “Shut your mouth or I’ll rip off your nipples and shove them up your nose.”
Remus had Virgil in his grasp again and would’ve had him too if it hadn’t been for the fact that Virgil was with Logan. He able to stop the idea of Remus being right taking over Virgil.
Remus seems to like creating havoc but doesn’t seem to hate the light sides at all. He gets a genuine happiness for doing his job: controlling the evil thoughts in Thomas’s mind. If the others, or Thomas himself, finds him scary well…
“That sounds like a you problem.”