A/N: Before you get on my ass, I'm more than aware that I shouldn't be starting another fanfic when I have enough on my plate as is. And yes, to answer your question I'm still working on the others, I just needed to get this out because it would not leave me alone. I swear I thought this up last month, figured out the plot, and already knew the way I wanted to end it. Once I got the title down however, it. Would. Not. Leave. Me. Alone. I've tried writing more one-shots since a lot of you really enjoyed my last one (Thanx for the reviews and favorites btw) but it didn't work out for me because it. Wouldn't. Leave-
Dante: You. Alone. Yeah, we got that. *sexily flips sexy hair out of sexy eyes* Can we get this show on the road already?
RiMI: Oh. Right. *clears throat* Anyway, major AU ahead. And when I say major, I mean no demons. At all. Well, not in the literal sense anyway. I'm trying for something serious this time so there's also a major lack of humor. Well, I hope this chapter isn't as slow as I think it to be, things will pick up in the next one so I hope everyone sticks with me until then. Any spelling or grammar errors, I apologize in advance. Well, that's all for now. EnJOY!
Warnings: All Human! AU. Rated M for language and *cough, cough* future lemons. That's right. I've finally crossed over to the dark side.
Disclaimer: You've read right, I don't own DMC, have no affiliation with CAPCOM whatsoever, and make no profit from this…although it would be great if I did *grumbles under breath*. Oh! And before I forget, this goes for the story overall, I'm not writing a warning/disclaimer for every chapter.
Heal
By: RimZtheNonForgiveR
Chapter I
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~O*O*O~
The child was beautiful.
Smiling a little, she brought up a shaky hand, tracing a path down a plump and flushed cheek with a single finger. Giving off a small sigh, the dark-haired woman dropped her hand to cradle the white bundle closer to her chest.
With another sigh, she let her bi-colored orbs rove over the white washed walls of the hospital room she was placed in half an hour ago, swallowing down the knot of bitterness and anger that gathered at the back of her throat when her eyes swept over the bright crimson numbers of the digital clock on the opposite wall from her.
They were late.
But it wasn't like it was their fault, she tried to reason with herself. How were they supposed to know she would go into labor this early? According to the multiple ultrasounds and hospital visits, she wasn't due for another three weeks, and yet, the second she hung up the phone after her mother called to assure her that both she and her husband made it to the business conference in Los Angeles in one piece, her water broke.
Although, that was just the tip of the iceberg.
The fact that she had to give birth in a roomful of strangers-people she only shared a patient/doctor, patient/nurse bond with-alone, with no familiar face around while she went through four hours of excruciating pain as she exhausted muscles she didn't even know she had, the fear of not knowing if her child would be alright, and everything else that came along with childbirth was what made her livid.
The fact that it was herself alone that welcomed her baby girl into the world, heard her first cries, watched as the nurses cleaned her off, weighed her, took her height, and wrapped her up so she could meet her mother face-to-face for the first time…
that she was the onlyone to witness that small, barely there smile in response to her mother's voice when she spoke the name she would use for the rest of her life for the first time…
that she alone had to endure the strained silence as she gave information for that birth certificate, refusing to acknowledge the blank space that-for any other couple- would've been filled with the father's signature…was what left her feeling bitter.
Her daughter didn't deserve this.
Unable to quell her rage any longer- it was unfortunate that it would take more than a few hours to get her hormones back in balance- she let her eyes once more rest on her daughter as she seemed to be the only one to calm her.
Blinking away tears and fighting back the aching tightness constricting her air passage, she took in the infant's features. Sure, there wasn't much that was definite as her face would come in as she got older, but she could already tell by the flush that was already starting to recede from the tiny hand that clutched her finger that her skin tone would become alabaster like her own.
Unfortunately, she wasn't so sure when it came to her eyes. They were open for a time, she knew, she was just too far away to make anything out. By the time she got ahold of her, her eyes had already been closed and it had only taken the sound of mother's voice to relax her enough so she could fall asleep. Actually, now that she thought about it, she'd been asleep throughout the cleanup and while they were rolled to their new room. Were all newborns supposed to sleep this long? Weren't they supposed to be all fussy and hungry?
Smiling to herself as she decided to not think too much into a good thing, she let her eyes drift lower to where her mouth would be were it not concealed by the teal colored pacifier the hospital provided. Deciding to play it safe and not disturb the pacifier, since it was what was probably keeping the baby quiet, she let her gaze trace the smoothness of her cheeks, up to the feathery lashes fluttering about as she dreamt peacefully and over the scarcely discernable eyebrows to come to a rest at her forehead.
As she took in the dark strands of hair, familiar to her own, peeking out from beneath the pink cap residing on her newborn's head, she felt her smile become less strained. She couldn't help to be thankful that-amongst other things- her child inherited her hair.
She didn't know what she would do if it turned out to be blonde…
Hurriedly brushing that thought out of mind, she shifted on the stiff mattress until she found a comfortable enough position, the stuffy white sheets covering her lower body shifting with the movement. Leaning back against the pillows her upper half was propped up on, she turned to look outside.
Through the large glass window she watched as the clouds rolled by almost lazily in the early morning sky. If she were to take a guess, she would say it was going on about 10am, a quick glance at the clock telling her she was correct in her assumption.
Tired irises squinted as the bright rays of the sun peeked out from its place in the sky, its golden warmth caressing her pale flesh made cool by sweat dampened skin coming in contact with the chilly air in the room. Closing herself off from her surroundings, she relaxed into the cushion the pillows provided her with, a peace filled sigh escaping rose tinted lips. She hoped this nice morning would shape up to be a beautiful day.
A beautiful day to welcome a beautiful girl.
In the back of her mind, she idly wondered if this was what all newly made mothers experienced. If they all experienced that sense of loss and disbelief that she didn't expect to feel.
Or maybe these feelings were normal. After all, it wasn't like you could have another being grow inside you for nine months-eight and a half for her- and not feel that emptiness just because that being was tucked away safe in your arms. And that, she guessed, was where the disbelief stemmed from.
If it wasn't for the dull ache in her body that came as a result from refusing an epidural-the whole experience scared her enough, she didn't need long needles and medicine that would do who-knew-what to her body besides numbing to worsen things- and the fatigue, she wouldn't believe this child was hers. But she could feel the heat radiating from the little body cradled in her arms, feel the rapid beating of the equally little heart through the thin layers that separated them, hear the soft intakes and exhales of breath as she slumbered. And she could see her, that fact alone made all of this the more real.
It was a wonderful feeling.
Brought out of her thoughts by three gentle knocks accompanied by the low squeak of the faux wooden door to her room being pushed opened, the bed ridden woman snapped to attention, mismatched orbs opening quick enough to see a woman in her mid-forties peek her head through the crack. Spotting the two occupants of the room, the older female stepped in with a grin, the door quietly clicking shut so as not to disturb the youngest, and approached the bed, her heels clicking softly against the floor.
"Mother." The younger of the two nodded in greeting, shifting the bundle in her arms as the woman came closer.
"Mary." the woman greeted back, her cream colored fabric of her business suit creasing as she leaned forward, gently brushing onyx bangs aside to press a kiss to her daughter's temple. Straightening up, eyes the color of ochre crinkled at the edges as she took in the first sight of her new granddaughter. Pulling up a chair to the bed, she unbuttoned the stiff jacket from her slender form, setting the piece of clothing on the back of it so she could roll up the long sleeves of her black collared shirt to her elbows.
"How're you feeling?" she asked her daughter, taking a seat on the hard chair the room provided.
Mary took in a breath, the familiar scent of ambers and something soft that always accompanied this woman soothing her ragged nerves. "I'm fine. A little tired,"-she gave of tired quirk of the lips in response to this statement-"but fine." Watching as her mother reached up to push her equally dark straight locks over her shoulder, she frowned, eyes glancing at the door before settling back on her questioningly. "Where's…"
"Your father?" she finished, as if already knowing the inquiry. She waved a pale hand about carelessly, as if trying to brush the thought off, before returning it to its tightly clasped position in her lap, "He's still downstairs. You know how he is."
Shoulders slumping at the response, she sighed almost admonishingly, watching as her mother fidgeted in her seat with no small amount of amusement, this was a rare sight after all. "You should've stayed down there with him, he's probably bought the whole gift shop by now…" her voice trailed off into a mumble as she said the last part.
Giving a soft "Hn." in absentminded agreement, the newly made grandmother took her bottom lip between two rows of perfect white teeth, amber orbs flickering between daughter and granddaughter in rapid succession before she thrust her arms out readily. "May I?" she inquired.
"Huh…?" brow furrowed in confusion, her eyes widened in realization at the request. "Oh! Of course." So that was why she was fidgety, she wanted to hold the baby. Made sense.
Leaning forward a bit, she maneuvered the infant into new arms, the movement disturbing said infant enough that she let out a muffled protest from around the pacifier in her mouth, calming only when the older woman cooed her into sleep once more.
"She's beautiful. And healthy for a premature baby." She admitted after a moment's silence of just looking the child over. John would be pleased. "Looks just like you did when you were a baby." And it was true. If she thought back to two decades ago, she could pretend it was her daughter in her arms. It was almost an exact replica; there was no trace of…
Deciding to distract her current thoughts, Kalina cleared her throat, directing her attention to the female fiddling with the plastic bracelet adorning her wrist with a small smile. "What did you name her?"
Meeting her mother's warm gaze with her own warm one, Mary gave a small grin, pink lips stretching just enough to let slip a slither of her top row of pearly teeth, "Antoinette." She said finally, pride in her voice. "I named her 'Antoinette'."
"Antoinette," Kalina breathed out softly. Testing out the name on her tongue, she studied the baby in her embrace, putting to memory the face that would go along with it. She couldn't recall what the name meant at the moment, but she was sure the entitlement was fitting, she wouldn't expect anything less from her daughter.
She felt the smile slip from her features as she observed Mary bathe in the sun's warm rays with a peaceful smile playing about her lips, and felt a twinge of regret at what she was about to do. As much as she wanted to pretend it was alright, she knew it wasn't. She still wasn't sure of the whole story of their falling out, but that was in the past now and they needed to get over their differences. There was no need for her daughter to remain a single mother when the two of them knew both parents were available.
"Mary," she started in that no nonsense tone a woman of her stature used when demanding one's undivided attention, except she was talking to her own flesh and blood and not a colleague so she had to use more than usual. Her daughter could be a bit stubborn after all. And judging by the way her body visibly stiffened from its previously tranquil position, the sun receding to the clouds as if to shy away from the upcoming storm, she knew she made the right choice. "You need to let him kno-"
"Mother, don't," she snapped suddenly, eyes glaring at the wall opposite her in a last attempt to reign in her temper. And to think, today of all days, she would be able to keep her good mood. Her mother knew this wasn't even on the list of things she didn't want to talk about and hoped she was too preoccupied with the newest addition to the Arkham family to bring the dreaded topic up. Of course she should've known it was wishful thinking. Kalina never did know when to leave well enough alone.
With a scowl, she continued. "I've already tried and you know how that turned out. I'm not doing it again."
"And why not? Unless there's something you're not telling me, this is his daughter too. He has every right to be informed."
"Not happening," this time when she spoke her tone was just as sharp-or if possible- even sharper than her mother's. Any other day, she would've minded her manners-her mother was a patient person by nature, facing her in her anger was a force to be reckoned with- but quite frankly, she didn't like what the older woman was implying. As far as anyone was concerned, she was…untouched before she got with that bastard. Not that that made anything better.
In fact, it just made everything worse. Knowing that she was nothing but a game to him, a conquest he could brag to his friends about when all was said and done…She still got that painful pang in her chest when she thought about how happy the entire relationship made her. Blinded by her own naiveté, she failed to see how phony every touch, every kiss, all the dates, the talks, the smiles-a year worth of those memories and they were all fake! She hated herself knowing that she was no better than the other girls, hated herself because she couldn't expose him for who he really was underneath that charming façade until the very end. And by that time she was already in love with him.
It brought about a heavy wave of nausea.
The only thing keeping the sickness down to a minimum was the rage brought on by her mother, of all people, trudging upon still bleeding wounds. Wrapping a firm grip around it, Mary held onto that rage. She had a better handle with anger than she did with other emotions and she was done crying over her incompetency to make better choices with her life. She had moved on months ago, if her mother didn't understand that and kept pissing her off with things she buried long ago, she could expect this to be the last time she ever held her granddaughter.
"I've already made my decision and you pushing the matter isn't going to change my mind." Scowl forming into a full-blown snarl, she faced her mother, the fire in her eyes an almost perfect match to the one currently burning in molten gold, "He will not know about my daughter because I will not be telling him, Mother. That's that. Let it go."
Of course Kalina Ann Arkham would do no such thing.
"He deserves to know!"
"He. Deserves. Nothing."
And as if sensing the growing hostility in the air, little Antoinette opened her mouth, the piece of rubber formerly residing there falling out to roll along the cold hard floor as she let out a wail.
Wincing at the noise, the elder female gently rocked the baby, red painted lips pulling into a frown when that failed as a soothing agent. Letting out a tired sigh, she straightened to a standing position, shifting the small weight to lay her in her mother's arms.
"You should feed her." She suggested, watching her daughter calm her own with a soft kiss to her chubby cheek. She felt a smile grace her feminine features as she witnessed the scene.
Pushing the earlier dispute to the furthest corner of her mind, Mary nodded absentmindedly, her focus on her child as she felt her mother undo the loose knots on the back of her hospital gown. With baited breath, she looked on intently as the newborn cracked her eyes open, blinking a few times to get accustomed to the light before settling on the woman in front of her. Straining wide eyes a bit, the infant focused on the woman she would come to know as her mother, sending a gentle smile her way.
Mary couldn't find the energy to smile back.
It was almost like staring at a miniature version of herself. Same pale skin and dark hair, same shaped lips, and identical button nose. However, through of all the similarities, there was one big difference…
"Her eyes are blue."
Taking the statement as a conformation to her fears, she swallowed thickly, her body stiffening under her mother's hand. She was disgusted to find that this bothered her more than it should have.
"I thought all babies had blue eyes when they were born." She thought out loud, her voice almost a plea that her mother was wrong somehow.
"Not all of them," shaking her head in the negative, Kalina continued to maneuver the thin gown over her daughter's slim shoulders, oblivious to the pain her words were causing the younger girl, "When you first came out, your eyes were gray."
So that settled it then. The hope that her offspring would inherit the Heterochromia she inherited from her father, or that she would somehow receive the same ochre orbs of her mother, was crushed. Breaking off the stare with soft baby blues, Mary focused her gaze forward as her left breast was exposed to frigid air, her coral nipple hardening at the contact. Sinking back into the pillows while her mother fussed about, her lips thinned into a flat line.
There was no denying it anymore,
She had his eyes.
~O*O*O~
Alone in the living room of her spacious two-bedroom condo, Mary Arkham sat curled up on the onyx colored Carrington loveseat as she scanned over the multitude of documents she needed to have ready for work the next morning.
Stifling a yawn with the back of her hand, the pale-skinned woman reached over to grab her mug from the coffee table in front of her, tipping the glass over to spill the remaining orange-flavored liquid into her awaiting mouth. With a satisfied sigh, she set the cup back in its previous place, eyes pausing on the first word of the second paragraph on the inked sheet of paper when a noise from behind her caught her attention.
Eyeing the white and sticker coated door that housed the second occupant of her humble abode, a smirk tugged at cupid-bow lips when another noise was heard before all became suspiciously silent. A soft chuckle falling from her throat, Mary set her paperwork aside for the moment, her long slender legs clad in dark gray sweatpants uncurling from beneath her equally slender form before she settled her small feet onto the cream colored carpet below.
The white tank top clothing her upper half rose a bit to show off a slither of flat, toned flesh as her body lengthened out in a languid stretch, the stiffness that settled into her muscles after two hours of immobility coming undone with the action.
Reaching up to tug a dark lock of long wavy hair behind an ear, she rounded the foam-stuffed settee, cursing under her breath when her foot caught on the plastic appendage of the fair-haired doll she didn't spot until she was upon it.
Bending over to pick it up, she tossed it onto the leather three-seater at her side, startling on her next step when four sharp raps sounded from the front door.
Brow furrowed in confusion, she glanced at her wrist watch to check the time before slowly bringing her gaze back to the door. Rolling her bi-colored orbs as she wrote it off as her neighbor coming over to try and "borrow her phone for a minute" again, she continued on to her destination.
She swore that man just couldn't take a hint. There was only so much patience she had, if he came around her place again with that same sorry excuse to use that as a chance to hit on her, she was going to hit on him literally by punching him in the throat.
Seconds away from touching the golden knob of her daughter's room, she damn near jumped out of her skin as the sharp knocking changed to banging. Concern morphing on her usually smooth features, Mary dropped her hand to her side, long legs leading her into a strut as she hurried over to the door. Figuring it must be important, lest she do something worse than knock his voice box loose, she placed her hands on the cold metal to look through the peek-hole and confirm his identity.
She recoiled instantly.
Heart thudding painfully against her ribs, she took one unsteady step away from the one thing that separated her from the person on the other side.
How the hell did he find me? Was the first thing she would've asked herself had she enough breath to do such a thing as ask herself questions. The second inquiry of Why the hell am I panicking so much? was the one that got through to her however.
Yeah, he found her, but so what? She wasn't so much as hiding from him than avoiding him anyway. And why wouldn't she? It was a mother's job to protect her child from the scum of the earth and so she performed her duty as best she could. Unfortunately, there was only so much avoiding a person could do before the past caught up to them.
Gulping down enough oxygen to make herself lightheaded, she straightened herself up, previously wide and panicked eyes returning to their normal size before they narrowed in unbridled fury. Bringing one shaky hand up to the deadbolt, she unlocked the thick metal, the sound echoing unnaturally on her side of the door before that same hand grabbed a firm hold of the knob.
It was time for her to face her demons.
With one last glance behind her and listening out for any signs that indicated the child in the next room being disturbed by the noise, she cracked the front door open, coming face-to-face with her hell personified.
"Mary…"
Regarding the man's form with cold indifference, heterochromatic eyes glared with all the hate five years apart couldn't cure.
"It's been a while."
A/N: Well, I know you're probably wondering how I'm going to bring DxM romance into the mix when you already having an idea of the past I set up for them. Though I tell you, Fear not! I have my ways. Hopefully I didn't make Kalina Ann (or anyone else for that matter) too OOC. I'm getting by on that one page in the manga and bullshit, but if you have any suggestions for me, let me know! Constructive criticism is also great, I'm a little out of my comfort zone with the romance/drama genre but I'm not giving up on this, so I could use all the help I could get meanwhile. Anyway, to anyone still hanging around, I'll 'see' you next chapter.