Vandel

I totally cheated in that coin flip. I had put a spell on that coin years ago to land whichever way I willed it and it still always seemed to do the trick. Ridley didn’t need to know that, of course.

I dramatically dipped him, so low that his head nearly smacked the ground. I could feel his grip tighten on my back.

“What the hell, Vandel?”

I snickered under my breath. “Sorry.” I looked over Ridley’s outfit now. “You didn’t dress up much, did you?”

“I dressed up enough for a ball filled with demons,” he retorted.

“Well, this weird grey color you’re wearing doesn’t really suit you. I feel like light blue would complement your complexion better. Ooooh...or maybe black and gold would be more fitting-”

“My wardrobe is fine as it is, thank you very much.”

“Fine if your personal goal in life is to dress like a rock.”

“Please stop talking.”

“Make me- OW! What the fuck?!” Ridley had suddenly (and very purposely) stomped on my foot.

Ridley gave me a thin smile. “Sorry, my dancing is a little out of practice. I’m not used to not leading.”

I stuck my forked tongue out at him. Suddenly I noticed a figure standing a little further back from the dance floor, a glass of wine in hand. It was none other than my own mother. I was sure none of the humans knew she was really the demon queen, hardly anyone ever saw my mother in her materialized form. Out of the corner of my eye I saw her mouth the words ‘it’s time’ before pointing towards a spot in the woods. I grinned and gave her a wink to convey that I got the message.

A small crease appeared between Ridley’s brows. “Did you just...wink?” 

“Nope.”

“Yes, you did. I saw you.”

“Did not.”

“Yes, I did. You definitely winked!”

“Did not.”

“Did too...dammit why am I even arguing about this? I’m an adult.”

As the dance finished, I took a step back from Ridley, offering him a little bow.

“This has been lovely, Sir Ridley... but I think it’s about time we both go about our night. Hopefully I won’t see you around.”

“The feelings mutual.”

And with that, we parted.

I walked away from the dance floor and was about to turn when I nearly bumped into someone. I looked up to see one of the last people on earth I wanted to run into at this event.

I stiffened.

He gave me a small nod. “Vandel.”

“Stefan.”

“It’s good to see you again.”

“Is it?” I smiled thinly at him. “I don’t think your parents would be too happy hearing you speak so familiarly with a demon. Weren’t you away studying in Pecore or something?”

“I wanted to come back for the haunting ball. I was actually hoping to see you.”

I proceeded to stare blankly back at the prince in my best attempt to make sure he couldn’t read a single thing on my face.

“I actually have some business for mother to attend to right now. Perhaps we could catch up later.”

Stefan nodded slowly. “Yeah...I’m sure it must be important. Sorry for interrupting.”

“It’s fine.”

Once I was far enough away from him, I let out a low, shaky breath, roughly running a hand through my hair. I needed to pull myself together. I had a job to do.

I let out a low exhale. 

It was show time.

I slipped away from the gathering a little ways into the forest. My mother’s plan was simple. She had a knack for sensing weakness and insecurity in humans. She would find one we knew we could easily influence, then I would complete the plan. I was far enough away from the main clearing that I could only hear the distant thrum of music in the background. There, sitting beneath a tree, was a young man, his face buried in his hands. This had to be the one.

I approached him.

“Hey, the music hurting your ears?”

He looked up, startled. With a start, I abruptly realized something...I knew this human. He had come with Ridley when he had first tried to invade my castle.

The man paled when he saw me. “Y-You’re the Evil Demon Prince of Darkness Vandel.”

I grinned at him, proceeding to give him an extravagant bow. “The one and only. Don’t look so scared. You know the rules of the Haunting ball. I’m not going to hurt you.”

He scowled at me. “What are you even doing here?”

I shrugged. “Same thing as you, I suppose. I'm getting away from the crowd...or was there another reason you came out here?”

The young man shook his head quickly...too quickly...enough for me to know he was totally lying.

“What’s your name?” I asked suddenly.

“Percival…” the man answered hesitantly.

I leaned against the tree he was sitting under, crossing my arms. “That’s a nice name. You know, Percival...you can tell me what’s wrong. I’m a demon, you’re never going to see me again after tonight. If you have any pent up ranting you need to get out to someone who will never tell, you might as well do it.”

“I would never tell anything to a demon.”

I shrugged. “You never know, it could be therapeutic. Getting out the emotions now might help you so you don’t blow up about it later.”

Percival hesitantly looked to me. I attempted to smile at him in a way that was more like a comforting friend than a monster about to eat someone's flesh (which is what I’ve been told my smile is normally like).

Finally, Percival let out a shaky breath. “I guess...there isn’t actually much harm in it. Uh..yeah I came out here to get away from two people I’m extremely close to.”

I arched a dark brow. “Oh really?”

“Yeah...uh...one is my best friend, and one is the girl I’m madly in love with.”

“So then why would you want to escape them, Percy?”

“Don’t call me that.”

Wow...rude. I would have snapped at him if I wasn’t trying to win him over. I simply forced a smile.

“Sorry. Please continue.”

“So, um...the big issue is that the girl I’m in love with is in love with my best friend. I think he’s still too blockheaded to realize she loves him, but once he does...my biggest fear is that he’ll fall for her too. Since the minute we got to the ball she’s been watching him. I knew it was only a matter of time till she asked him to dance tonight and I didn’t want to be there when she did.” He buried his face in his hands again. “It’s pathetic, isn’t it?” I nodded. He sighed heavily. “You were right...I think I really did need to get this out.”

“See,” I said softly, “us demons aren’t all bad.”

Percival swallowed hard. “It’s just difficult for me, you know? I want to be happy for my friend. Hell, I’m always proud of him. It’s just...he’s so perfect, he doesn’t seem to be able to do a single thing wrong. He gets everything. He gets the praise and the glory and the girl, and what do I get? To sit under a tree and rant to a fucking demon. I just...god, I wish it was me. I worked just as hard as he did when we were in training, but no matter what I did I couldn’t keep up. It’s just...so...unfair. I know I must sound like a baby.”

I smiled thinly. “Nah, you sound completely in the right to me.” I pretended to think for a moment. “You know...I might be able to help you.”

“How the hell could you help me?” Percival said coldly. “You’re a demon.”

“Well...I could give you the glory you want...just maybe not from your fellow humans.”

Percival paled. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“As you probably know, our kingdoms have been at war for thousands of years. We would love to bring an end to everything peacefully. Having an informant from the human side might just give us the extra push we need.”

“A-Are you asking me to betray my kingdom? Are you insane?”

“If you did, you would be a hero to the demons. We would give you all the riches you could ever want. You would have helped us end a war that has killed gods know how many of both our people. Imagine how many lives you would save. There would be parades through the streets in your honor. Percival, the bringer of peace!”

Percival shook his head. “No...no, I would never betray my kingdom.”

I chuckled. “Well, if you change your mind, just come to the demon palace. When you get to the gates, tell them I sent you and you’ll be brought straight to me.”

Percival quickly scrambled to his feet. “I’m not a traitor.”

I shrugged as he took off running back towards the party. Despite his words, I could tell something deep inside of him still wanted my offer, it was all just a matter of time before he would be back at the demon castle gates.