Disclaimer: Nope don't own Devil May Cry, it belongs to Capcom.
AN
Okay here's the next chapter, I wanted to get this out as quickly as possible so I could answer some of your questions that were in the reviews. Good news is I only have one more week of college then I'm free. Well sort of. So anyway I'll get onto the reviewers.
Sasha - Yay first reviewer again! Thank you sooo much!
McFlurry...login screen? - Oh your guest names do make me laugh. Anyways what a review! I really look forward to yours, mainly because it makes me look at my work in a different perspective and I like to answer questions. I hope you feel better though, it's never good to feel ill. I can see exactly what you meant by the shower scene thing being too long, when I was reading through I really felt as if it needed making a bit smaller, sadly my time ran out and it was either submit the chapter or make you all wait another day or two. I guess I was using it as a sort of break from all the danger and such, I don't like fics that are just constantly...uhh what's the word...damn me and my terrible memory. Well yes it was a kind of interlude between the action and angst stuff. The kissing scene thing was sort of my panicked attempt at writing a bit of romance. I was reading through and it suddenly clicked: hang on a minute this is a romance fic so where the hell is it? Heh heh well yeah that's the explanation for that random moment between them. I'm so relieved to here that the action stuff wasn't too crappy, I find it quite hard because when he fights, especially with the sword he is always so quick and it's hard to get enough description in without slowing down the pace too much. Hmm I hope that made sense. The little girl has a very important part in the fic, or at least in the beginning, I'm not sure as of yet how long this is going to go on for, but it'll be quite a few chapters I should think. I just hope I can keep improving. Thanks again for your review!
Cassandra - Yes, have to please the fan girls, oh and myself whilst I'm at it. Writing that part was so much fun. Thanks for your review!
Obsidian Ideals - Yay questions. Firstly I'll thank you for your review, it was really well rounded and you don't often get too many of those now a days. Okay so now I'll get answering the things you asked...if I can. 1. There were a few reasons why I've made Lady maintain her fiery nature, the first reason is I sort of forgot what she was like at the end of the game - until a couple of days when I completed it again. The other reason is that I just personally like her when she was all mouthy and stuff, she reminds me a lot of myself when she's like that. Also I think it helps create tension between the two and I'm not quite sure how their friendship would continue outside the game myself. Would they become good friends or would it be laced with tension as I have done? I do intend to mellow out her personality in these coming chapters though so it will fit in. 2. Ahh now onto the devil trigger part. I suppose I always felt that move was a last resort. I really only used to use it on bosses myself so I guess I'm just not using it as of yet. He will be using it very soon however when he gets to fight the more intimidating demons but yes I can see your point I probably should have at least mentioned it or something. Thanks for highlighting these things for me.
Kiki0303 - Thanks for your review and here is the update, Lady probably won't suffer too much longer…I hope.
Censes - Yes I can agree with the shyness around the romance area definitely, I think Lady seems to have spent most of her time alone, especially since those family issues with her dad wanting to become a demon and all. And yes, Dante is sooo cool! I haven't come across a character like him in a while, so stylish and yet an idiot at the same time, strangely enough it works! Anyways thanks for your review, tis much appreciated.
Andy - thanks for your review, hope you enjoy this chapter just as much.
Sakura - Yes so close! Don't worry things will look up for them…I hope. Well thanks for your review and I hope you like this chapter just as much.
Aoi senshi - Here's the update and thanks for your review, hopefully this one will be happier. You also got review 33 which is my lucky number!
Jaded Rose - Thanks for your review. Here I am with the next chapter, hope I didn't make you wait too long. -feels loved-
Silentsurrender - Thanks for your review, I hope I didn't make you wait too long and I'm glad you are liking everything so far.
Chapter 4
The stair creaked underfoot as the child tiptoed down from her bedroom. She could tell it was late due to the thickening shadows that gathered at the corners of the room, reminding her it was well past bedtime. The dwindling light from a candle was beginning to lose the battle against the dark and the girl knew it wouldn't be long before she was consumed by the night, cloaked in a sheath of darkness to hide her from prying eyes. Her hands trembled as she reached out, one palm pressed to the wall so she could feel her way down the slight curve of the steps. Her breath was shaky and harsh and the only other sound was the ticking of the clock, the bronze pendulum swinging from side to side so that it caught a flicker of candlelight and guided her down the rickety staircase.
What had awoken her at such an hour? She paused once more, bare feet making hardly a sound as she tilted her head to try and peer around into the hallway. Nothing. Feeling a little scared she continued down the last few steps, feet meeting with the much warmer carpet. She paused here once more, wriggling her toes to try and regain the feeling in them as she listened out for any signs she hadn't been dreaming.
'Please' she thought helplessly, 'please let this all be a dream.'
She jolted to awareness at the sound of voices, a harsh whisper that seemed to want to transform into a shout. The girl trembled and backed up to press herself against the nearest wall, clapping one hand over her mouth as she tried to hold in a whimper of fear. So she hadn't imagined it.
The sound of a vase being knocked over caused her to jump and tears beaded in her eyes, who was it? Was there someone trying to get into her house? Was it Papa? Her knees trembled and swallowing back the fear which was making her throat thick and painful, she reached out and grabbed an umbrella from the stand, holding it in her quivering hands. It would serve as her protection not just from the rain but from whoever was making that racket on the other side of the door.
The child summoned a brazen quality and with small steps she drew closer to the door that led into the kitchen. It was closed, the whispering voice muffled by its thick wood as she knelt down to peer through the keyhole. The house was a rather old one, and nearly all the doors inside were able to be locked with a heavy set of metal keys that her parents had always told her not to touch. It wouldn't do to lock yourself in or out and then lose them.
At first she saw nothing but darkness and she wondered if perhaps someone had left the key in the door, but then she heard movement and the kitchen was revealed to her. Something…or someone had been standing in the way, blocking her view. Who was it? Her heart leapt up into her throat as she leaned her forehead against the wood and waited.
"You must understand why this must be done." She recognised the voice instantly and her eyes widened in disbelief. Papa? What was he doing up and what was he talking about? She shivered and shuffled even closer against the door.
"P-please don't." A choked voice replied, it was familiar and yet foreign at the same time.
"This is the end for you and the beginning for me. It will be glorious." The voice hissed angrily and another pot was sent crashing to the ground, a scream piercing the silence and ringing in the girl's ears. She would never forget that cry of anguish. A sudden, brilliant flash of light erupted in the room, so blinding that the girl had to briefly avert her gaze, strange words filling her ears. Those of a spell perhaps?
What happened next the girl was too horrified to ever repeat, the sight of death ringing a cold tune in her heart and knocking her almost senseless. The child had been protected and sheltered her entire life from such events as these, from the ways of death and pain. She wanted to cry but the tears never came, she wanted to run in and help but her feet seemed stuck to the floor.
"I'll never forget you...my beloved." Papa spoke in a strained and almost psychotic voice, and then he left the room. His dark clothed form sweeping out of the back door, leaving it hanging open on its hinges. The cold of night began to creep in through the entrance, flowing over everything with its frosty touch and the girl spotted the figure of the woman she knew all too well. She was slumped on the floor, her breath misting before her face showing that life still remained within her. Perhaps it wasn't too late!
She pushed strands of dark hair behind her ears and setting down the umbrella she reached up and turned the handle, pushing it open into the kitchen as she stumbled into the room. Her eyes fell instantly onto the limp form of her mother, body lying draped across the cold floor, head turned slightly up so that her shining eyes could look upon those of her daughter. It didn't take long for the girl to realise the shine in her mother's eyes were from the tears gathering inside of them.
"M-mama." She whispered, bottom lip trembling as she held back the tears that were fighting to make themselves known in her own eyes as she moved to kneel beside the woman. Reaching out with one small hand she stroked back the hair from her mother's face and sniffed quietly.
"Darling, you should be...asleep."
"I heard shouting, are y-you okay?"
The woman smiled softly and nodded her head a little, eyes closing for a brief moment causing a few tears to fall loose and trail down her face. "I'm okay, but darling...I can't be with you anymore."
"Why not mama? Did I d-do something w-wrong?"
"No...it's just the way things are..." She sighed, her face creasing with pain. "You're a clever girl...you'll be...okay."
"Mama, no please don't leave me. Please! Take me with you!" The girl's voice was filled with desperation and she tugged at her mother's sleeve, tears finally trembling down her own face. "Please, I don't want to be alone!"
"I'll be watching...over you." This time the woman's voice sounded strained, her breath ragged in the cool air of the kitchen.
"Where's papa? He can make you stay."
"He has gone, but you...don't need him..."
"Did he do this to you mama? Did he? Why? I-I don't understand." Too many questions and not enough time for them to be answered. The girl moved closer to her mother, a sob racking her body as she tried to understand. Why was her mother leaving? What had her father done to her, was it...her fault? Had she done something to split them apart, make them go away?
"I love you...Mary." This time the words were nothing more than a whisper, the memory of them echoing around the room long after the woman had taken her last breath. The child closed her mismatched eyes and curled up on the floor beside her, falling asleep from sheer exhaustion of what had happened. Nothing would ever be the same again.
"She's what?" Dante snapped, glancing down at the woman in his arms. Her eyelids flickered and every so often a word would flutter unconsciously from her parted lips. Was she having some sort of bad dream?
"She is dying." The girl repeated emotionlessly.
"Hey listen kid, are you a doctor? I don't think so! Just keep your thoughts to yourself." His eyes darkened with irritation and he ignored the sinking feeling that the child was probably right. How she knew such a thing however was beyond him, strange little kid. He turned and made his way back across the now empty street, moving quickly towards the building where he lived, the name of the business flickering above the entrance: 'Devil May Cry.'
It was Lady who had helped him finally decide on a name, she who had shown such a brave outlook on life despite the situations she had been in. She might act tough but he knew she was really rather sensitive at heart. She had shown him a kinder side only briefly once before, in the time when he had returned from fighting his brother and he had handed her back the Kalina Ann. Did she even realise that they had left the weapon behind during the fight she had been wounded in? She'd most likely kill him - or try to - once she realised it was gone.
If she survived long enough to notice...
"Does it hurt?"
"What?" The silver-haired demon swung around once more, lowering his head to glance at the child. She had followed silently behind him, dry blood splattered across her pale face and wide eyes staring up at him, unblinking in their gaze.
"To lose someone you care for." She continued, her eyes falling upon Lady who was still lying cradled in his arms.
Dante shrugged and remained silent for a moment longer, mulling over the question in his mind ,then finally he came up with an answer simple enough for a child to understand. "I wouldn't know." He turned once more and continued to the door of his home, shouldering it open as he once again carried the woman inside. This was starting to become a habit, did she really expect him to carry her everywhere?
The child paused by the door as if hesitating whether to go in, rolling the bottle between her palms as she peered inside, and then a moment later she entered and pushed the door closed with a low thud. The sound echoed around the bleak looking room as the devil leant over and placed the woman once again on the couch. She looked even worse than before, her face violently flushed, eyelids flickering and her muscles twitching. It seemed the venom was beginning to have an effect on her, slowly breaking her apart from the inside. How much longer did she have, and what would he feel when she was no more?
He slammed a fist against the floor, wood splintering and cutting into the side of his hand as he emitted his fury, he had never felt so helpless in his entire life. What could he do against such an enemy as poison? He watched the blood drip from the wounds on his hand, pattering softly against the floor and staining it.
"You're in pain." The child spoke from her place near the door, dark locks of hair falling into her face as she stared intently at him.
"Listen kid, you're really starting to get on my nerves. Okay so you might have just been terribly traumatised by what's happened to you, but that doesn't give you a right to--"
"I don't remember." The child interrupted as if she hadn't even heard him speak.
"Don't remember what?" He arched a brow in questioning, shaking his hand to rid it of the dull ache that continued even after the small wounds had healed up.
"Anything."
"That's part of the trauma kid, get used to it." Dante grunted, pausing only to give the child a softer look. He wasn't great at dealing with people in general, let alone with the younger ones. So what exactly was he supposed to say to her? She sort of creeped him out, maybe in the way she stared at him with those lifeless eyes or the way she spoke; so dull and cold. "Listen, I guess you can stay here until you remember where you live." He sighed, "I'm not about to throw you outside or anything, just don't piss me off."
"I can help her you know." The child spoke, her words slow and purposeful.
"What?"
"Here." The child took a small step forwards, her feet moving soundlessly over the usually creaky floorboards, hands outstretched in offering. Dante's eyes fell upon the strange bottle held out in her palms, the strange curve of its neck almost like that of a bird. Inside there was some sort of strange fluid that seemed to be emanating a faint glow.
"It will help." The girl urged, raising her hands higher.
"How do you know?"
"I have no answers to that. Trust me or she will die." The girl repeated and dropped the bottle into the devil's extended hand. How had she known that the bottle was a cure? Somewhere inside her she grew troubled. Had she really just forgotten everything or was there something else going on that no one was yet aware of?
"Alright I'll let this slide for now, but I'm going to want answers later." Dante replied thoughtfully, holding up the bottle to examine the strange liquid in the light. It seemed to glitter vibrantly before his very eyes, the bottle growing warm to the touch, would this really help Lady? Could he take the risk?
Yes...
No...
He didn't really have a choice in the matter.
He tugged the cork out of the neck of the bottle, wrinkling his nose as he caught a whiff of the strange and extremely strong scent that flowed from it.
"You would do best to wake her up." The child said before taking a few steps back, arms crossed in front of her chest as if protecting herself from something. She fell silent then, her dark eyes flickering between the tall man and the woman lying on the couch, her head leaning back against a faded cushion whilst she moved in her fitful sleep.
"You think she will?" Dante sounded a little uncertain as he moved to kneel beside Lady again, sliding one hand beneath her head to tilt it up a little. "She looks completely out of it to me."
"The bottle, perhaps the scent will wake her."
"Your theories are starting to worry me. Now shh, no talking." He waved her away with a hand before bringing up the bottle to hover just beneath the woman's nose. He had never smelt anything quite like it, an almost metallic scent mixed with something much softer. It created a strange contrast and sure enough the woman stirred, her eyes closing tightly before fluttering open, unfocused gaze settling onto the ceiling above them.
"Welcome back." Dante grinned.
"What?" The woman shifted slightly, trying to sit up bit failing miserably, her body crumpling back against the cushion. She felt weak, terribly weak and her mind was consumed with flashbacks and memories of the past and the present. What had happened to her? She felt like that ten year old girl once more, lost and confused with no one to turn to except for...a demon.
She turned her attention to him now, taking in the weak grin that was spread across his face and the nervousness in his eyes. That look didn't seem right worn on him, he never got scared or worried about anything so what was the reason for it being there? It made her nervous too. She coughed and spluttered suddenly when she caught the strengthening scent that was flowing up from the neck of the bottle and tried to push it away.
"Look wait a minute, I'm trying to help you here. The kid says you should take this and it'll cure you."
"Cure me?" She hissed angrily, eyeing the bottle with suspicion. "You take medical advice from a child?" The hint of a shaky smile actually played on her lips as she glanced between thedevil and girl, was this some sort of cruel joke?
"Trust me Lady, that bite wound is poisoned, it needs to be cleaned properly."
So he did care after all. She blinked and her eyes met with his once more. Why was it that Dante was the only guy ever to make her heart flip in her chest and cause a fluttering in her stomach like she had swallowed butterflies? She shook her head slowly in disbelief and she reached up to press a hand over her heart, trying to slow it's frantic beating. It wasn't possible! She couldn't be...in love with him, could she? No, she couldn't feel anything like that for a demon, perhaps she was just getting things confused. She had to admit she had learned to like him after spending more time with him but thinking that their relationship went beyond that was folly.
Her face heated up suddenly, flaring with embarrassment at the thoughts that whirled through her head and then suddenly the small bottle was being placed in her hands. She allowed her attention to focus on the bottle and narrowed her eyes at the horrid smell. What was this stuff anyway?
"Drink it." Dante urged from where he was knelt beside the couch.
"I bet it tastes disgusting." Lady muttered before raising the bottle to her lips, holding her breath as she tipped up the container and emptied the contents into her mouth. It seemed to burn her throat as she swallowed it, the strange concoction warming her from the inside and leaving her feeling slightly giddy. Her first thought was that perhaps she had just foolishly accepted some sort of strong alcohol but again her eyelids felt heavy. She didn't want to sleep, she wanted to ask questions and get some answers. She didn't want to dream about the past anymore.
She swung her legs from the side of the couch and struggled to stand, the silver-haired youth rising to aid her if she accepted it. She pushed away his advances and turned to glance at the child, so what was up with her just standing there and doing nothing? Those eyes seemed empty of emotion and there was something that didn't seem quite right about her appearance. "You said she helped you?" She asked Dante.
"Yeah, she was the one who gave me that bottle." He shrugged.
"Dante, you accept strange bottles from kids and believe everything they say to you and you wonder why I think you're such an idiot?" She rolled her eyes and reached out to lean against the arm of the couch.
"Oh yeah, sorry for trying to save your life!" He snapped, grabbing her wrist to keep her from getting away from him. "Can you tell me why that's so wrong?" His eyes darkened as he gazed down at her, eyes boring into her own startled ones. Could it be...he felt the same way? No! She shook her head and her face twisted into a frown as she regarded him sternly.
"It's not wrong, I just wish sometimes you'd think things through instead of rushing into everything." Her anger flared at the grin that appeared on his face and she gritted her teeth angrily, fingers twitching as she fought the urge to hit him.
"Come on babe, rescuing young damsels in distress is my speciality." His eyes glittered with mischief and he raised his free hand, catching her balled fist in his palm and enveloping it with his fingers. "Glad to see you're back to your normal feisty self." The shocked expression that flickered over her face caused him to laugh suddenly and she tried to tug away from his grip once more, a wave of fatigueflowing overher.
"Dante, let me go." She demanded wearily. There was a moment of hesitation before he released his grip on her, eyes darting quickly back to the child who remained standing silently near the door, large brown eyes focused on them.
"She will need rest before the cure can heal her fully." The child spoke.
"Who are you really?" Lady asked as she turned round to glance at the child.
"I...don't remember."
The woman opened her mouth to question further when Dante shoved her sideways lightly. "let's talk about this later, I don't know about you guys but I'm starving." He reached up and ran fingers through strands of his silver hair before grasping Lady by the shoulders and directing her back to the couch. "And you need rest."
Lady tried to argue back but after a moments thought decided against it, allowing herself to sit back down, fatigue weighing heavily on her eyes, dragging her back down into a deep sleep.
None of them noticed the pair of glowing eyes spying in at them from between the broken shutters...
to be continued...
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT:
Okay so in the next chapter I'm going to bring in the romance and I want to know whether you would prefer either:
option 1: Keep this a fluffy romance with adult situations implied but not described. This is my preference since I haven't had much experience with writing anything heavier, but I'd be willing to write a few scenes if that is what you would like.
option 2: Up the rating to a Mature audience and make the romance a little heavier on the explicit side.
The choice is up to you!
AA