Devil May Cry- The Weeknd
A/N: My interpretation of how Sweet Pea earned his Serpent stripes.
It won't be in vain
To swallow all your pain
And learn to love what burns
and gather courage to return to
Fourteen years old. That is the age Sweet Pea made his way into the Southside Serpents. All he needed to do was earn his stripes. Prove himself.
FP Jones was the closest thing Sweet Pea had to a father figure, and lord knows he's not going to let this man down. Even though he's only the ripe age of fourteen, the leader of the Serpents didn't make it any easier on the boy and treated him the same way he would an adult.
Sweet Pea glanced at the clock that hung above the bar at the Whyte Wyrm. Eleven on the nose. So, it was time. Tonight is the night.
He had been a part of many fights before, but never one that had determined his place in a gang.
"Boy, it's time. Let's go." FP had patted Sweet Pea on the back as the boy rose to his feet, sliding off the barstool. He followed the older man out the door, and realized some of the other members were in tow behind them. Hopefully backup in case shit got real.
Sweet Pea was set up to fight the newest member of the Ghoulies, who was also supposed to earn his stripes by fighting and becoming victorious over Sweet Pea.
The boy was led to a dimly lit parking lot beside an old abandoned warehouse building. The skies opened up and it started to pour, setting the mood. Sweet Pea stared into the distance and his gaze fell upon a group of men and boys his age in the form of a semi circle, sauntering to come face to face with the Serpents. FP grabbed Sweet Pea's shoulders and put him at the head of the Serpents, the older men a few feet behind him coming up on either side. It seemed as though the Ghoulies has the same idea.
Faces in the crowd
Faces in the crowd will smile again
And the devil may cry
The devil may cry at the end of the night
The ghoulies pushed a younger boy towards Sweet Pea, matching his height. He noticed the boy smiled a sickly grin, missing teeth and already sporting a black eye. He had long, straggly blond hair that was uneven and greasy as sin. The rain made Sweet Pea pull his hood up as he glared daggers at the Ghoulie initiate.
FP came to stand between the two boys. "Boys, Fair fight. No weapons. Just this weapons of men. Your fists. First one to tap is the shit-eating loser."
The older ghoulies who stood behind the initiate snarled as FP took his place feet behind Sweet Pea. All Sweet Pea heard was the sound of the rain. He flexed and cracked his right hand, which he made sure to slip on a few rings to leave a deeper scar on this pathetic Ghoulie's face.
Before he realized it was a mistake, Sweet Pea turned to make sure the other Serpents were still behind him. He caught a glimpse of them when a sudden blow to the chest took the breath out of him.
Cheers erupted from the Ghoulies and Sweet Pea quickly gathered himself, retaliating with a right hand upper cut to the other boy's chin, resulting in him stumbling backwards. He was pushed back into the fight by his Ghoulie mentors.
Sweet Pea used this opportunity to come back with a knee to the gut, but before he could do so the initiate grabbed Sweet Pea's knee and twisted him around, throwing him on the pavement. Sweet Pea scraped his hands across the pavement top with a hiss, the older Serpents shouting words of encouragement as the jumped back.
"Come on boy!"
"Get the hell up!"
"Behind you!"
The last shout caught Sweet Pea's attention. He whipped himself to the side before the initiate's boot could come down on his back.
He peeled himself off the pavement and came at the boy from the side, grabbing him by the shirt and sending a rippling, bruising punch into the Ghoulie's shoulder, followed by pushing him down and meeting his chest with his knee.
The light will shine through the rain
And heaven will hear them call your name
And home will feel like home again
Corruption will find your brain
The rain still poured as the Sweet Pea pushed what he assumed was the finished initiate's body to the pavement, landing with a thump.
"Had enough, Ghoulie trash?" shouted Sweet Pea, adrenaline pulsing through him.
"Like Hell." the kid muttered, spitting blood onto the wet pavement.
Sweet Pea pushed his hand through his soaked hair, watching as the Ghoulie got back to his feet with a stagger.
Faces in the crowd
Faces in the crowd will smile again
And the devil may cry
The devil may cry at the end of the night
The blond scum came at Sweet Pea with a shout and his fists extended, and he managed to get one hit into the Serpent initiate's cheek before Sweet Pea caught his other skinny wrist and twisted it until the boy was screaming in pain. He twisted it behind his back and shoved him down to the ground, coming to kneel on the Ghoulie initiate's side and the other arm pinned down by Sweet Pea's other hand.
"You may want to re-think your answer." Sweet Pea twisted harder, gritting his teeth as the scrawny Ghoulie boy fought with all he could before shouting. "I'm done! I'm fucking done!"
With a shove, Sweet Pea pushed him into the pavement once more before FP and Tall Boy ripped him from his place atop the Ghoulie boy.
"You fucking did it kid!" The shouted over the rain and the sounds of the angry Ghoulies. Before Sweet Pea could celebrate, he watched as the older Ghoulies looked down upon their initiate, as though he failed them. Even though that was the case. He wrestled his arms free from the Serpent men's grasp before taking a step towards the Ghoulie initiate who was sitting up now, blood coming from his nose and mouth. He was nursing his right arm and Sweet Pea extended his own hand for the other boy to grab on to. The blond stared at his out stretched hand for a moment before accepting it and Sweet Pea pulled him to his feet, and the Ghoulie initiate looked grateful for the help. Even with his dark, hollow eyes. That was all he could do before the Serpents erupted in hollars and claps.
They will parade upon your victory
They will parade upon your victory
You'll put a smile upon the faces
The world will be yours for the taking
The story you birth will be ageless
Just learn to love pain and be patient
He did it. He finally earned his place in the setting of the only people who felt like family.
Sweet Pea was celebrated all night at the Whyte Wyrm, cans of beer and shots of whisky being served until three in the morning. Even though he spent most of the night with frozen vegetable packs on his left eye and shoulder, he got drunk as fuck and finally felt happy. He found a place in the world.
He felt as though the older Serpents had a soft spot for him now, they knew where he came from and what his mother did to him. The bruises, the concussions, the broken bones. She was gone now though. Sweet Pea's new place was right here, with his brother and sister Serpents. A family.
The newest Serpent would never forget the face of the Ghoulie that he beat that night, and he would always be grateful.
"In unity, there is strength!" was shouted over and over again, glasses of alcohol in the air.
He was going to like it here.
Faces in the crowd
Faces in the crowd will smile again
And the devil may cry
The devil may cry at the end of the night