Baited~ Book 2

29

The moment they walked through the door Roman froze up completely at the knife Janus had just caught midair before it could hit Roman square in the face. Roman's eyes flashed as his hand twitched only for Patton to smile happily in front of them.

"Patton?"

"You caught it." Patton beamed as Janus slowly let his hand drop. "I'm proud of you Janus. Even if you haven't dived into that part of your powers, you were still able to tap into your quick reflexes. However, Roman shouldn't have had an issue catching it on his own... considering he is a rider and they have abilities of their own."

"Patton, you threw a knife at me?" The elder prince simply kept on smiling as Roman struggled to reign in his spiraling thoughts. "Knowing what you do... ME?!"

"It's ok, Ro. I know you won't do anything. Your guilt over my eyes are an ever constant. It will keep your mind from... breaking." Roman frowned as he looked and Patton shrugged. "Had I thrown the knife at my brother he would have snapped and attacked me regardless of our tie. Every action I do has a point and has been thought of."

"I would've..." Patton frowned as Janus dropped the knife. 

"Jan, you're in a very fragile state right now. Without Kuro, your mind is split between Deceit and Janus. Right now you're at the forefront but... Deceit isn't gone... and you know that." Janus shrunk into himself as Roman glanced over in concern. "All those years of that mindset being hardwired into you doesn't just vanish because Kuro's gone. It's simply making it easy for you to... find yourself again. However, the curse is also there. Which means you don't have control right now." Roman flinched as Janus just nodded in understanding. "Deceit will come out again... many many times. The only thing we can work on from now until that curse is gone... is how you respond."

"Remus said the same thing." Janus frowned looking up at Roman who sighed and shook his head. "It isn't about stopping or repressing that other side of us. We have to accept that it will show up... even times we aren't going to be away of it... We just can't hate ourselves over it."

"Your sibling is wise considering his age. Aimon and Eve would be proud." That caught both their attention. Patton sighed happily as he gestured for the two to follow him farther in. "Your wondering about Aimon and Eve?"

"I know about Aimon... but I never heard of an Eve." Roman narrowed his eyes as Patton stopped and smirked. 

"Aimon the dragon, the first true firestarter, and Virgil's original incarnation." Janus nodded having recognized the name. He could feel Virgil shift on his shoulders and he pierced his lips in concern seeing the way Patton's attention seemed to focus on him. "Eve the Basilisk, the first true projector, and Janus's original incarnation."

"My what?" Janus faltered as he shifted back only for Virgil to rub up against him to calm him down. "You knew my... Wait, what's a basilisk?"

"It's a demon." Janus's eyes went wide as Roman's voice wrapped around his mind. "Or correctly put... it's a demon in the form of a snake." Roman frowned as he crossed his arms in thought. "They're typically ginormous in size. They possess immense curse magic... Medusa's gaze was based on them. The whole 'if you gaze into their eyes you'll turn to stone' thing."

"So I'm a..." Patton nodded and Janus deflated. "Shit."

"Hey, I know where you're head must be going." Roman pulled Janus from his thoughts as he tried to offer the man a smile. "But... Virgil's a dragon. Their demons too. Would you think Virgil's evil simply because of what he was?"

"Of course not but that's different."

"Don't pull that 'It's me this time' crap. I literally monopolize the phrase." Janus frowned as Roman shifted sadly. "You are not Deceit. You are Janus... Yes, Deceit is a part of you... Yes, you are a demon... in part... But you are not evil. Everyone deserves a second chance."

"I don't... I don't understand. Who is it that a demon... two demons were chosen as protectors?" Patton laughed as Janus frowned. "Pat..."

"Aimon saved my life and the lives of countless others after losing My mom... or Roman's original. Despite being a dragon he even fought against his own kind to protect those that hated him. Eve... Eve wasn't really... how do I explain it?" Patton frowned as he shifted his weight about in thought. "I met Eve once... before she was chosen. The only reason I know she was was because I felt her presence in her next life. She wasn't an ordinary demon."

"She wasn't?" Patton shook his head making Janus tense up about only for the older to laugh.

"She was domestic. A pet... in a literal sense." Janus's eyes went wide as Roman couldn't help but laugh. "Her owner bought her when she was just a babe. When her owners love got murdered, a demon found her and they made a deal... strength to protect her family over a body the demon could thrive in."

"What happened?" Roman frowned as Patton's aura darkened a bit. 

"Simply put the owner was not happy. The daughter cared for Eve and loved her as if she were the best in the world. Eve cared for and protected the child... Astrid. They were basically sisters even if not by blood or... the same species. The owner was very worried about her child. Demons were infamous. Hated... hunted. To protect her daughter she betrayed Eve."

"Why is it always betrayal?" The way Janus's voice shook hit everyone hard as Patton frowned and continued on.

"The owner turned Eve in to her fellow villagers and they ran her out of the place. Eve was never able to go home. She was heartbroken. That's... That's when I met her. I was this young blind man lost in the woods. She was kind. I could tell she was a soft soul, even as a demon." Janus's gaze fell slightly as Patton smiled softly at him. "She may have been demonic but she hadn't an evil bone in her. She helped me. I had gotten hurt and she healed me. She was the only being I ever met capable of curse magic and blessed magic. to be able to destroy and fix at the same time."Janus glanced down as Virgil who met his gaze with a knowing look. "After that there..." Patton paused as he sighed and shook his head. "Humans are the true monsters." 

"Patton?" Roman reached out hesitantly as Patton just shook his head. "Are you ok?"

"Life after life. I have watched so many people I care for get hurt or hunted down because of the stupidest of things. My mother died protecting her dragon... Aimon finally died protecting me. So many of Eve's lives were cut short because she was far to kind."

"Me... kind?" Roman choked back a laugh as Patton nodded. 

"Even had the softest heart out of everyone, Janus. She was the most vulnerable too. The most emotional... the easiest to damage. But she kept fighting... kept taking the beatings with a smile on her face every single life she had. Why do you think it's so easy for her to get used... to be betrayed?" Janus flinched as he shook his head. "Think about it, Janus. You are no different. It's the one thing she passed on to everyone. Her kind heart, her determination to protect things... How many times in your life did you let people walk all over you? How many times did you let them beat you instead of fighting back? How many times did you hide your tears through a smile simply because it made someone else happy... only  for them to stab you in the back?"

"That's different. Patton, you don't know what I went through." Virgil jumped down making Janus have to catch him so that he was holding him securely in his hand. "You don't know. You don't know what my life was."

"Jan... I know about your nightmares." Janus's eyes were blown wide as Roman tensed beside him in confused worry. "I'm psychic, Janus. I know more than you think. Dad wasn't the only one who used you."