Hero Vs Villain (BoyxBoy)

More Than Allies

Vandel

My heart felt like it was ready to jump into my throat. I simply stared at him, an expression of disbelief plastered to my face. "You can't do that," I said slowly.

Ridley glared at me. "You have no control over what I can or can't do Vandel," he said, his tone unnervingly sharp. He went to take a step forward but I moved in front of him, blocking his path.

"You'll die," I snapped.

Ridley was breathing heavily. "I rather die than turn a blind eye to the fact that my people are trapped here, suffering." He ripped the collar from his throat, throwing it to the floor. "God," he muttered under his breath, 'I can't believe I was starting to think you were actually different."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I growled, eyes narrowed. "You think humans haven't committed the same kind of monstrosities as demons at one point or another in this god awful war."

Ridley's shoulders trembled. "It doesn't matter what each race did or didn't do to the other. What matters is that there are innocent humans we both know are suffering right now and you're doing nothing."

When he said that I felt something in my chest that I wasn't sure I had ever experienced before. It felt like a prick. I felt disgusted...but at who? Myself? My breathing quickened. Is this what guilt felt like?

Ridley met my gaze now. "I think I've made my point," he said slowly, "so please step aside and let me help them Vandel. Prove to me you're not really a monster."

"I'm not going to do that Ridley." I swallowed hard. "You can't expect me to simply step aside and let you go through with a suicide mission you're ridiculously unprepared for." Something dark flickered across Ridley's gaze when I said that, his expression turning colder than I had ever seen it. I tried to calm my breathing. "That's why I... I'm going to..." I fought myself to even get the words out, 'I'm...I'm coming with you."

Ridley's eyes widened. "What?" He breathed.

I nodded stiffly. "You heard me. I'm going to help you free them."

Ridley's expression, which had grown so harsh moments before, immediately softened. "You don't have to do that," he said, his gaze darting to the floor. "It's one thing for me to recklessly risk my own life. I don't want you to put yourself in danger at my expense. This is my fight. Besides, if you come with me to help save them you'll be committing treason against your own people. I can't ask you to do that."

I crossed my arms. "You never asked me to do anything. Pretty bold of you to assume I would actually do anything you asked in the first place. Any decision I make is done on my own accord."

Ridley shook his head, a worried expression slipping over his features. "There's no need for you to get dragged into this," he said slowly.

I bit my lip. "That's not true. You're not dragging me into this. I've always detested the idea of pets. I just...I never did anything to try and stop it." And for obvious reasons. By trying to free the pets I would be standing up against not only the rest of the demon nobility but my mother as well. I hadn't done anything all these years because I was scared. Hell, I was still scared. I was fucking terrified. I took a deep breath. "I think for once I'm going to try and follow my..." it was a struggle to even say it, "conscience." I grimaced the moment the word left my lips. "Eww, I can't believe I even just said that."

"You're absolutely sure you want to do this?" Ridley said softly.

I hoped Ridley couldn't tell that my hands were trembling. Come on Vandel, I thought to myself, pull yourself together. Don't let him see how frightened you are. Keep acting like the suave cool guy you always pretend to be.

I forced a smile. "Obviously. Danger is practically my middle name. I live for this shit. Come on. Let's go rescue some pets!"

Ridley

I had never seen Vandel this scared before, yet here he was, matching my step as we made out way outside. The music could still be heard coming from the castle as Vandel and I slipped through the shadows into the inky night.

"The aviary is behind the palace," Vandel said quietly. "There's going to be a ton of guards there. I'll do my best to distract them while you break in and release the pets into the woods. Once there I'll meet them and help guide them out of demon territory. " He gnawed on his lower lip. "The one thing working in our favor is the ball, it should keep most of the demons distracted and they'll be slower to realize the pets are missing."

I could see the aviary through the trees now. Just the sight alone was enough to tie my stomach to knots. The aviary was large and made of glass, shaped almost like a giant bird cage. Inside were crammed at least 40 pets with hardly enough space to move. Three guards were stationed outside. They walked back and forth along the length of the cage, hands behind their backs, their pupilless black eyes peering out into the night.

Vandel looked to me now. "You have to promise me you're not going kill anyone, okay?" He said, his voice a little more than a whisper. "That's the only way I can go along with this. I want to help you save these pets but I can't do it if I'll be sacrificing the lives of my own people in the process."

I looked to him, meeting his gaze. "You have my word, I'll make sure not a single demon is harmed."

Vandel gave me a stiff nod, flashing me a grin. "Okay then, let's go do this thing." Despite his expression I could tell his smile was painfully forced. This must be terrifying for him. Doing the right thing is almost always hard, that's why so few people do it. The Vandel I had known all those months ago would never have done a selfless act like this. I didn't know what had caused him to change but I found myself unbelievably thankful to have this version of him standing before me now.

My gaze fell to his hands and I realized with a start that they were trembling. The moment he saw I had noticed he immediately attempted to hide them behind his back. Before he could do it I quickly reached forward, grabbing for his hands and taking them up in mine.

Vandel's pitch black eyes widened slightly. "What are you doing?" He breathed.

To be honest, I wasn't entirely sure myself. Just...in this moment I wanted nothing more than to simply hold his hand.

I swallowed hard. "Thank you," I whispered softly. "Even if this fails...even if I die...thank you for this."

Vandel arched a dark brow. "For what?"

I thought back to everyone else I knew in my life. Would my friends...would Percival or even the other knights ever do something like this? When Annette had been kidnapped by demons everyone I thought I could rely on simply abandoned me. Yet here was Vandel, still by my side, risking his life for his own enemy all because he knew it was the right thing to do.

"For being here," I finally said.

Vandel's gaze darted to the ground and I could see a slight quiver in his lower lip. "Don't get all sentimental on me Ridley," he muttered under his breath. "We're not friends...we're enemies...so don't say stuff like that...okay..."

"Maybe we aren't friends," I said, still clutching his hands tightly in mine, "but we're at least allies. I just want you to know before we do this how thankful I am to have someone like you by my side."

I might have been imagining it but I could have sworn in the darkness Vandel's cheeks turned a slight shade of pink.

"Just stop talking," he mumbled, "are you ready?"

I gave him a small nod, finally letting his hands slip from mine.

It was time to save these poor pets once and for all and I was determined to do it, even if it cost me my life.