Virgil dodged to the left as the figure threw another attack his way. He was desperately trying to regain control of himself, gasping as he slightly did for a moment before being yanked back out.

"Give it up, Virgil!!" he cackled, looking and gesturing toward the sky. "It's too late! Even if you manage to get back in control, he's still coming!"

The dark prince was thrown against a wall, gasping in pain and he fell to his knees. He didn't know what to do. The figure's influence on him was so strong it made his whole body shake.

Come on, Virgil, he thought, looking at his real self across the room. He closed his eyes, focusing on his energy, and who he was. The dark prince's eyes fluttered open for real.

The magic he was performing stopped almost immediately. Virgil felt a sharp pain in his chest as he was dragged back in to the astral plane.

It was then that Roman showed up.

"Virgil?!" he yelled, seeing only the real Virgil. He had crackling purple energy radiating off of him, and his eyes were glossed over purple as he looked at the prince. "Virgil?"

"Roman!! Get away! I'm not in control!" he tried to warn, running toward himself in an attempt to use physical contact to gain control. The figure lunged, holding him back with an arm around his throat. "Roman!! STAY AWAY!!"

"Kill him!" the figure told the real one.

Virgil nodded, looking at the prince with a wicked smile. "No, no, no!!" he screamed. He managed to get free, grabbing his hand and focusing on the energy.

He gasped, staggering backwards as his eyes fluttered open. Roman watched in confusion and fear at the sudden change in demeanor. He noticed the purple had disappeared from his gaze as he looked up fearfully. "Virgil!"

"Get a-away! I don't know how long I-I can be in control-"

He was yanked back painfully, yelling out as he stumbled back into the astral plane. The figure looked furious, throwing a hand toward him. The action made Virgil's body feel as though it was being crushed, making him scream in agony. The real Virgil had returned to his old demeanor, stalking toward Roman with lightning crackling from his fingertips as he laughed deeply.

"Virgil! Snap out of it!" Roman tried, fear creeping into his voice as he backed away. He was being backed toward the balcony, though he was sure how he got there. As his steps got closer and closer to the railing, he began to panic. "Virgil!"

The dark prince gasped, eyes snapping open to see Roman. He dropped his hands, almost collapsing under the pain he still felt. When the prince rushed toward him to try and help, he waved him away. "No! I don't have long," he managed, clutching his chest in pain. When Virgil met his eyes, he could see all the pain and fear shimmering in those dark brown pools. "I-I can't do this on my own, y-you have to get him out, Roman."

He was suddenly flush against the wall, stumbling from the force of a blow from the figure. He whimpered in pain as he fought to stay in control. "He's- if I'm not in c-control, I'll t-try to k-kill you," he stammered out, meeting Roman's scared eyes as he shook his head. "You h-have to get him out, Roman, p-please!"

Virgil gasped again, being yanked back to the astral plane. "You really can't take a hint, can you?" the figure cackled as he fell to the floor. He managed to get to his feet, raising a shaky hand toward him and shooting a blast of lightning. The figure dodged it with easy, laughing. "You can't beat me, Virgil."

"Virgil, if you can hear me, you can beat him," Roman said loudly as he backed away from the real Virgil, who was approaching him with purple and black magic glowing from his hands. He was grinning and his eyes were glossed purple. The prince was terrified, not even recognizing the boy in front of him. "Please, keep fighting him!"

The dark prince exhaled, feeling calmer by his words. He faced the figure again, swallowing as he raised his hand.

"Oh, so he helps calm you down," he said, chuckling deeply. "I can counteract that, monster."

The word made Virgil freeze up, icy panic washing over him. "Oh, that's right, you've forgotten what you are," the figure said. "You're the monster who's hurt people, who's going to kill the people he's close to. You're worthless for anything but hurting others."

The dark prince shook, backing away. Roman noticed the purple in his real gaze grow brighter, eyes widening. "No, Virgil, whatever he's telling you isn't true!" he said, making him look toward him in the astral plane as tears shimmered in his eyes. "You're not a monster, or worthless, or any of things he want you to believe."

"He's just lying to you," the figure snapped, but Virgil didn't take his gaze from Roman. The prince was crying but there was a smile on his face. He took a step toward the real one, despite him still being under his control.

"You're my Virgil," he said, shaking his head. The dark prince's heart clenched as he continued. "You're the boy who'd draw all over the walls of the castle when we were kids. You're the boy who was too scared to play hide and seek because you thought no one would look for you, but I always found you. You're the boy who doesn't need magic to amaze me, you've been doing that since the day I met you. You're the boy who feels more comfortable in black than any other color, but secretly loves purple just as much. You're the boy that made me a crown out of flowers whenever I was sad. You're not a monster. You're not worthless. You're my Virgil..."

The speech caused the real Virgil to stop because the figure and the dark prince in the astral plane were both staring in shock. The eyes of the Virgil Roman could see were flickering brown. In the astral plane, he reached up to touch the necklace. Tears dripped down his cheeks as a smile started to form on his lips. The figure growled, throwing him across the room and resuming the real Virgil's attack on the prince. Roman's eyes widened as he realized it hadn't been enough, the eyes turning purple again.

"C-Come on, Virgil," he stammered, backing away. The dark prince was trying to get to his feet, but he was dizzy and his head was spinning from trying to gain control.

As Roman was pinned to the wall, he panicked, not knowing what else he could do. He had one more thing he could try. He grabbed Virgil's face and pulled him close, pressing their lips together forcefully.