Baited~ Book 2

11

"I'm a demon, Roman." The whole room plunged into this chilly atmosphere as Remus slowly walked backward seeing Roman freeze up the way he did. "R-Ro..."

"You're a demon?" Remus nodded as they looked away.

"H-Half Demon actually. We, uh... The Remus part..." Roman's eyes narrowed as Remus tensed up. "After that last fight we had I had just about given up. I ran into the woods and was found by an incomplete chaos demon. They were basically just energy without a form. So I... I offered to host them."

"Why? Demons are..." Roman's expression fell as he sighed running a hand down his face. "Dragons are evil and so are their riders."

"Roman?" Roman shook his head cutting Logan off as he smiled over at Remus.

"That's what I said. I said Dragons were evil and so are their riders. If you had chosen to be a rider then you would be evil and I would have to fight you." Roman laughed as he fell back against the couch. "What irony is that?" Remus shot Roman this confused look as the prince just kept laughing. "I was so adamant. Dragons... Demons... their all monsters. They're all evil." Roman's face fell as he just stared off at nothing. "If I had kept to that thought... If I hadn't... hadn't tried... You're a demon?" Remus nodded again as Roman met his confused gaze. "I'm a rider."

"Wait..." Logan let out a shaky breath as Patton just giggled beside him. Remus was still very confused. "You can't be... You literally told us..."

"I know right?" Roman laughed again as he held his hand up imagining that small little Virgil in it again. "Virgil... the dragon who we were... talking about?" Remus smiled seeing the love that filled their brother's eyes. "He's my dragon. My fiance actually." Roman's hand dropped as his smile fell. "I have no right to judge. So what if you're a demon... The man I loved has done so much because of his insanity... yet knowing that... knowing about the acts he's committed I just can't... not love him. If I were to turn away from you because of what you are even after forgiving him for everything... what kind of a person would I be?"

'Yet you locked Deceit up for far less. He's not even a demon at all. He's nothing but a druid whose actions aren't even close to what Virgil did.' 

"Dude, I already feel guilty for that..." Roman laughed as he shook his head. "Now you just trying to hit me where it hurts."

'If that were the case I would have mentioned the fact that Virgil is with him right now.' Roman tensed up as the words echoed in his mind. Everyone could see the reaction and Remus narrowed their eyes in concern unsure if they should step in or let Roman try to handle it. 'Virgil chose him.'

"Just because he helped him escape..."

'Honey, he freed the man that had him in chains for months, torturing him so badly he tried to rip his own wings off to get free.'

"You aren't going to convince me that he chose..."

'I love you too, Janus.' The room exploded with a blast of energy as Roman started to tear up. 'Come on, Jan. You were only gone a day.' Roman knew what he was doing. He heard Virgil in his head. Virgil's soft laughter as Roman just stared out at nothing. 'It's ok, Jan. I'm ok, really. Because of you... I have something to live for now. So don't worry. I'm not leaving you. I love you.'  Roman let out a shaky breath as he wiped the tears that fell onto his cheeks. 'I'm never going to leave you, Janus. I promise.'

"Low fucking blow, Asshole." Roman growled as he shook himself from his thoughts. "You don't think I already know about that? I'm not stupid. Sure he never talked to me about it but I'm not stupid. Virgil wouldn't have been so scared about our relationship if theirs wasn't so serious."

"Roman?" Patton's voice pulled Roman out of his mind as the prince just smile. "Don't forget..."

"He chose me." Roman beamed as more tears fell. "I know that. I also know that he's always going to have that fear. It's my job to help ease it. Nothing is ever going to destroy it. So... I just have to keep showing him." Patton smiled as he nodded taking Logan's hand again with a slight blush. "I guess... I haven't really been doing that at all. Have I?" 

'Nope!'  Roman groaned as he shook his head again. 'You've been pushing him away until he literally went back to that shitty fucking serpent that hated....'

"Now you shut the hell up, you stupid no-good bully!" Patton yelled out startling everyone as a gripped Logan's hands tighter. "My brother is not a bad guy. Janus is not a darn monster. Just like Virgil, he is a product of his experiences. He needs help. In fact... He's the one that needs the MOST help right now. I suggest you stop trying to twist the good in him to make him a monster. He really did love Virgil!" 

"Patton, hun. What are you talking about?" Logan brushed Patton's hair back as the moral man shook slightly with tears falling from under his cloth.

"You can't blame Janus. You just can't. Deceit is bad. That's true but... Deceit and Janus... aren't one in the same."

"Like Virgil and his..." Patton nodded cutting Roman off who didn't think his guilt could get any worse than it was in that moment.

"Janus's been through hell. It only got worse when my father got to him. I won't say it's anything comparable to what Virgil went through but... Janus was just as manipulated. I tried..." Patton's voice shook as he collapsed onto Logan holding him tight. "I tried to help him. I tried to be there. I thought if I gave him the love he needed that I could undo the damage my father was doing to him but... Father made him snap so many times. Deceit became an entirely different person. Janus was a puppet."

'Huh... He really is no different than Virgil. They're both monsters created under someone's thumb."

"And I'm the one that used him as a damn punching bag when I couldn't hold him back." Roman got up and left before anything else could be said. Remus just stood there taking everything in with a heavy heart. 

"Looks like we have a lot to do then, huh?" Remus laughed sadly at themself as they smiled up at the ceiling. "Even still... it's nice to finally be home."