Hero Vs Villain (BoyxBoy)

Knights Don't Cry

I shook my head. "On the contrary, if anything I want to make sure that I do my best so-" I was cut off for the third time that day as Percival turned to princess Annette.

"I'm surprised your father is making you study. It's a big day for you isn't it?"

Annette giggled. "I suppose you could say that."

Percival chuckled in return. "It's not every day your little sister gets married. Is it weird having her get hitched before you?"

The princess simply shrugged. "The prince of Bevery was smitten with her ever since he came to visit. It's a perfect match really, Bevery is a small country but it will be a good trading partner. If she was the crown princess like me my father would have never allowed it." She turned to me suddenly, batting her eyelashes. "Are you curious to what I'll be wearing to the wedding Ridley?" The answer to that question was not really but obviously I couldn't say that.

"I'm sure it will be perfectly lovely princess."

Annette suddenly tore up a handful of grass and chucked it at me, smiling playfully. "The wedding will be fun Ridley. Maybe you'll finally loosen up a bit."

"It will be dangerous. This would be a perfect time for the demons to attack-" Percival gave me a little shove rolling his eyes.

"Damn Ridley, stop worrying about it. Everything will be fine."

---------

Princess Annette wore a dress of a deep sapphire, the thick fabric clinging tightly to her frame. I attempted to ignore the fact that Percival's gaze was currently glued to the dip in her neck line. Percival and I stood on one side of the doors of the large cathedral where the wedding was to take place. There were two other knights on the other side, all prepared for if something was to go wrong. The cathedral was beautifully decorated. Chains of flowers hung from the ceiling and jeweled roses had been placed in practically every corner of the church. Almost everyone of noble birth was seated, waiting for the ceremony to begin in heated anticipation. Despite all the lovely decorations around us Percival's gaze was still intently focused to Annette's neckline and I looked to him now.

"You shouldn't stare at her like that. It's impolite."

Percival only laughed, rolling his dark eyes. "She won't notice if I'm discreet."

"Trust me you're already far past that."

Percival sighed suddenly, his mood seeming to shift. "She's really beautiful isn't she? You're lucky."

I blinked, confused as to what he was talking about. "What do you mean?"

Percival laughed now though there was no real emotion behind it, running his hand along the stubbled line of his jaw. "You're joking right?"

I shook my head. "No."

Percival leaned over now, giving me a hearty slap on the back. "Ridley she's totally in love with you." I stared at him in disbelief, he must have been joking. She was the crown princess and I was her knight. She had the eyes of every man, prince to pauper, in the kingdom. There was no way she would be in love with me.

I simply smiled at Percival. "That really is funny but we need to be alert, this isn't a time for jokes."

Percival let out a snort of laughter. "You think I'm joking? Ridley have you seen the way she looks at you, the way she tries to get your attention whenever she's with you? Hell, she specifically requests you to accompany her almost everywhere-" now it was Percival's turn to be cut off as a hush fell over the Cathedral and the string quartet that stood in a semi circle around the altar began to play a sweet, soft melody. Annette sat at her father's elbow at the front and I saw her quickly turn towards me right as it began to shoot me a small smile. Percival gave me a little nudge.

"See," he hissed.

I still only shook my head. "She's just being nice."

The bride and the groom had begun to make their way down the aisle. Princess Nora, Annette's little sister, looked beautiful. Her dark hair was braided around her head with glimmering strands of pearls weaved through it. Pearls hung from her neck and dripped from her ears as well. A long white gown of lace trailed behind her, her veil falling almost to the floor. Beside her was her husband to be, the prince Bevery. He was significantly shorter than her, startling orange hair sticking up every which way. They approached the altar, each going to their knees as custom to take their marriage vows. Suddenly my gaze was ripped away from the couple when I noticed a figure standing near the far most left side of the church. He wore all black and had the build of a spider, a large collar made of what looked like raven's feathers rose up around his neck which glistened almost purple in the candle lit cathedral. A black velvet cape cascaded off one shoulder and intricate gold lacing crept up his collar and sleeves. His face was pale, and his cheeks were hollow, pitch black hair falling into sunken eyes. Despite this he had some kind of sickening beauty about him. He turned suddenly and our eyes met for a beat. He didn't turn away, continuing to hold my gaze. Then his mouth twisted into a cold smile as if he was mocking me. All of a sudden his eyes turned completely black as if his pupils had absorbed the entirety of his eyes. And then...in that moment with a horrible start I realized who he was.

"DEMONS," I screamed as loud as I could. "Everyone get out now, the demons are here!" There was a sudden sound of shattering glass and suddenly chaos broke loose. People shrieked and princess Nora cried, hiding under the altar as the ghost like, black eyed, figures of the demons swept into the room. I grabbed for my sword, removing it quickly from its sheath in one singular motion. Then I lunged at the closest demon to me. Percival did the same. Fighting demons can be tricky business, they're weaker than humans but far more cunning and harder to kill. We would often have attacks from them now and again but there hadn't been one this big in at least ten years when I was a child. I hated demons, I hated them more then anything in the world. I lunged my sword forward impaling the demon I was fighting directly in the heart, their weakest spot. The demon toppled over and I moved over to the next one. I tried to scan through the commotion for the man I had seen who could only have been prince Vandel but I couldn't see him. Another demon lunged at me and I moved quickly to the side before running it through. And then suddenly it stopped. The demons simply froze, much to the shock to the humans fighting them. As suddenly as they had appeared they slipped back through the window disappearing into the night like smoke. I was breathing heavily and I ran a hand through my hair pushing my bangs out of my face which were now damp with sweat. People began to rise slowly, the sound of one woman sobbing still echoed through the Cathedral.

Percival made his way over to me, patting me on the back. "Good thing you spotted them, even more people could have been hurt if you hadn't."

"There's no need to thank me. Now come on, we should check and get medical assistance to anyone that might be hurt."

Percival's mouth drew into a thin line. "Right, yeah..."

Suddenly there was a screech from the queen. I spun around, running as quickly as I could to reach the royal family. The queen was in tears and the king's face had turned ashen.

"The princess..." the queen shrieked. "The crown princess Annette has been kidnapped by the demons!" A hush fell over the crowd. I felt like my heart had skipped a beat. How stupid had I been? Trying to keep Annette safe should have been my number one responsibility and I ignored it. I should have realized that the demons must have been after something, it should have been obvious that it was the princess. My mouth felt dry and I felt like crying but I knew I couldn't. Knights don't cry.

Suddenly the king approached me, resting a large hand on my shoulder. "Sir Ridley, you have only been a knight of my realm a short time but even then you have showed more promise than almost any hero I have known in my lifetime. As a knight of my realm I beseech you...travel to the kingdom of the demons and rescue my daughter from prince Vandel."

I sunk to one knee now, bowing before my king. "Yes, I will find her and return her safely to you from that monster your majesty."