Chapter Four
Michelle awoke the next morning, sore and extremely weary. Her sleep was restless, filled with disturbing possibilities and worrisome queries. It was impossible for her mind to find rest, even with Dante's comforting presence just a story above her.
She dragged herself off of the sofa. Even her body seemed unwilling to move. Her bare feet padded over Dante's wood floor, dodging empty beer bottles and pizza boxes. She paused for a moment, staring at the demon carcasses on Dante's walls.
Michelle never considered Dante particularly threatening. Then again, she didn't really have a cause to be frightened. Dante protected humans - he hunted demons for a living, yet the uneasy feeling in Michelle's stomach didn't seem fit to rest.
Finally managing to drag her mind out of its haze, she made her way to Dante's kitchenette and rummaged through his fridge.
Beer, beer, spoiled milk, rotting fruit; it was clear Dante didn't go grocery shopping. No wonder he constantly ordered in. In fact, the entire shop seemed to lack a woman's touch; Dante seemed like the permanent bachelor type. Being a demon hunter, it must have been relatively difficult to get dates, regardless of how handsome Dante is.
Michelle added grocery shopping to her list of things to do today. If she was going to stay here for a while, she wasn't going to live on pizza.
She glanced around the rest of the small kitchen. While not overly dirty, it still wasn't the environment that one wanted to cook in. The dust on the cabinets alone spoke of weeks of neglect. Michelle was fit to bet that Dante hadn't cleaned it once since he opened the shop. She would have to clean it before she cooked anything later - another note added to the list. In reality, it was the least she owed Dante for his protection and patience thus far.
Forgoing breakfast - because who knows what she'd catch - Michelle grabbed a bag of chips and walked over to Dante's desk. She made herself comfortable in his chair, crossing her legs. Still in her pajama pants and a tank top, she opened the bag of chips and started to munch of them. The clock on his wall read 8:45, yet she knew that he wouldn't roll out of bed until 9:30 at best. It gave her time to look over the books she had in her possession with her new knowledge in mind.
Naturally, her mind drifted to the aloof older brother. It was impossible to determine if Vergil would really consider her words, so she continued her perusal of the books with that in mind. The ones written in demonic text would be out of her reach for a while.
She had thought about asking Lady if she knew anyone that could read demonic text, but with all the commotion of the night before, it had slipped her mind.
Grabbing her backpack off of the floor, she searched through it until she found the book that Vergil had slid toward her yesterday. She had grabbed it when she dragged Dante out - clearly Vergil intended her to read it. And if it was something that Vergil suggested, she wasn't about to deny it. While she tuned out most of what Dante babbled about, Vergil seemed the type that always had something important to say.
The cover was falling apart, crumpling under the weight of her fingers. The spine of the book was barely staying together and much of the writing was disappearing in antiquity. Pages were falling apart; it was so unlike the other books in Vergil's library that she could only imagine that it had personal value. Vergil wasn't the most sentimental of people, so its importance wasn't lost on her. Rubbing softly at the material, she could barely make out the words on the cover.
Temen-ni-gru.
An entire volume on such a singular concept. The weight of the catastrophe that Temen-ni-gru had caused was not lost on her. Even today, people still whispered at the destruction that the tower had caused. Some parts of the city were not able to be rebuilt, and the crater that gave birth to the tower was still there today.
She opened the book cautiously, as if something was going to jump out and attack her. The book's introduction was almost indecipherable. Michelle instead jumped to the first chapter, which appeared in better shape than the introduction: the chapter called Birth.
'Temen-ni-gru, the ominous portal linking the human and demon realms, was a holy tower constructed by devil worshipers. Hoping to bridge the gaps between these domains, the worshipers sacrificed many souls of innocent virtue to open the portal initially...'
"Souls of innocent virtue being virgins, I imagine," Michelle mumbled. She grabbed a few more chips, munching on them thoughtfully.
'... Once the portal had been constructed, Mundus - the King of the Underworld, and thus the Demonic Domain - used this portal to wage war upon the human race...'
Michelle paused, letting the information sink in. Mundus was the King of the Underworld and the Demonic Domain, and Dante had fought and defeated him? It couldn't be the same Mundus that Vergil and Dante spoke of, yet there could hardly be another. "It seems like quite a feat for a human to undertake…"
'... With his best General, the Dark Knight Sparda, Mundus came very close to conquering the human race with an iron fist. Yet something happened that Mundus did not predict. His right hand, Sparda, began to sympa -'
A loud crash interrupted Michelle's reading. Bits and pieces from the ceiling fluttered down on her. Whatever it was, it had landed on the rooftop. She jumped up, knocking the book aside. It fell off the desk, forgotten. Her heart pounded in her ears; she knew by now that in Dante's world, a crash was usually something to fear.
Silence reigned. Not a second later a demon - much like the one that attacked her that first night - crashed through the front door of Devil May Cry. It carried much of the same physical features that the first demon had, although this one seemed far larger. The hole it left in Dante's doorway was immense; it was sure to annoy him, actually.
Michelle ducked behind the desk as debris came at her, destroying the many empty beer bottles lying atop the bar behind the desk. She couldn't scream, her voice caught in her throat. Her eyes darted around in panic. There were many weapons on the walls that she could potentially use to her advantage. Her knowledge of swordsmanship was lacking, however, and her knowledge of guns was even less.
"PORTUM CLAVEM!" The screech was deafening. The chill that went down Michelle's spine caused her to choke back a sob of fear.
"Yeah, yeah, we can hear you loud and clear," Dante grumbled. He walked down the staircase in only his pants, Ebony and Ivory clasped in both hands. Rebellion stayed sheathed on his back. His eyes scanned the room, a look of annoyance flashing across his face when he spied the hole in his wall. Rolling his eyes halfheartedly, he located Michelle.
He jumped into action.
The demon launched at Dante, who dodged its claws, releasing an entourage of bullets at the beast. The demon crashed into the staircase, destroying the first few steps as Dante used the added height of the stairs to jump over the demon's body. He rotated his form into a back flip, landing on the desk, causing the papers and books to fly off.
"You alright?" he asked Michelle. His eyes scanned her figure. Unable to really form words past her relief, she nodded. Dante smirked lightly. "You have to start getting used to this, darling. It ain't gonna change."
The demon screeched again, coming at Dante with renewed speed. Dante holstered Ebony and Ivory, grabbing Rebellion from his back and slashing at the demon with one hand. It feinted to the left, but Dante had guessed its intentions. The weak demon perished under Dante's sword, disappearing into dust without a final screech of outrage.
Michelle could not contain her awe of Dante's battle prowess. For all of his idiocy in everyday life, his instincts were honed to perfection. It occurred to her that Dante simply enjoyed fighting - possibly even Vergil, too. These were two men who grew up in 'kill or be killed' realities, while she had been sheltered and protected.
Dante and Vergil must have thought her very naïve.
Still, she breathed a sigh before standing up. The only reminder of the demon's presence was her racing heart and the large hole in Dante's front wall, not to mention the half-destroyed staircase. The demon hunter jumped off his desk, sheathed Rebellion, and cursed at the destruction of his shop.
"This is going to take a small fortune to fix," he complained. He kicked a piece of debris away from the destruction. It side-swiped one of his guitars, which in turn fell over and toppled his drum set.
Michelle and Dante stared at the added destruction helplessly. Michelle's eyes slanted over to Dante's figure. "Isn't this part of your job description? You're asking for it, really."
Dante sighed and stretched slightly, cracking the bones in his back. He let out a light laugh. "Yeah, the amount of times this shithole has been destroyed is more than I get jobs. Doesn't make it any less frustrating, though."
"At least you got a workout," Michelle supplied. He shrugged nonchalantly before turning towards her. His left hand was partially in the pocket of his pants while he dragged his right through his silver locks. "I was going to go grocery shopping today."
He paused. "Why?"
"Well," Michelle began with a roll of her eyes, "if you want a breakfast that is something other than pizza, you'll need real food."
"That requires cooking," Dante complained. "I have enough on my plate - pun intended - than having to worry about cooking."
"Which I plan on doing." Michelle stared at him strangely. Surely he didn't think that she expected him to cook. "And if it comes down to it, I can always cook you breakfast pizza."
Dante stared at her, wide-eyed. "That exists?"
"Yes, it does." As she spoke, she grabbed her duffel bag, intending on changing in the bathroom. "The famous pizza connoisseur doesn't know about breakfast pizza? I also need to buy new clothes. A lot of them are beyond repair."
"I have things to do today, so you'll have to wait," Dante interrupted her. "It's not really safe for you to walk around alone." She dropped the duffel in annoyance, turning towards the demon hunter with crossed arms. Seeing her stance, Dante smirked lightly.
"I can't sit here all day doing nothing. What do you have to do today?"
"Work," Dante said vaguely. He never gave up much information on his jobs, probably to not worry her - or maybe because she didn't need to know. Either way, for a man as picky as he was about the jobs he took, he was oddly serious about the ones he did.
"With Lady, I assume?"
Dante nodded. "This time, yeah. It shouldn't take more than two hours, so you'll have to sit tight."
Michelle's eyes scanned the hole in his entrance before focusing back on him. He caught her gaze and knew what she was going to say. "Not for nothing, Dante, but your shop isn't impenetrable."
"I know," he drawled, "which is why I'm going to bring you to Vergil."
Her heart skipped a beat curiously. The thought of seeing Vergil again so soon had her nervous, but it was more from excitement. Michelle couldn't lie to herself when she realized that the older brother interested her - if not romantically, then academically.
Dante smiled at her mysteriously. It was a different sort of smile; not the boyish grin or the mischievous smirk he usually wore. This one was small, almost unnoticeable, yet it carried knowledge that made him seem older.
Before she could reply and ignore the sensation, another familiar screech wrenched through the air. Dante's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to shout at her, unable to react quick enough. She turned, only to be picked up and gripped by claws that tore through her shirt and into the skin of her stomach. The pain almost made her vomit.
Blood dripped down her side, dropping on the floor, making her dizzy. A groan of agony escaped her lips as she pulled at the claws imbedded in her stomach. A gunshot rang through the air and the creature howled in pain as Ivory's bullet penetrated its skull. The demon released her immediately. She was certain that Dante had yelled her name when she went crashing to the floor.
Two more of the same demon appeared. Dante seemed to be having a difficult time fighting them off only because he was attempting to see if Michelle was all right. He kept constantly looking back to make sure that she was still alive. It was not the sort of conditions Dante could fight in.
Ignoring the blood flowing from her stomach, she ran towards the hole in the entrance, determined to separate herself from the situation so Dante could defeat the demons without worrying about her. Her bare foot caught on a piece of glass from the blown out windows and she winced in pain, but refused to stop.
Dante called out to her again. She shouted back, "Don't worry about me!"
Unfortunately, her shout caught the other demon's attention. It started to pursue her. Michelle could barely breathe through the panic, memories of the first night coming back to her. She was positive that the more her heart beat in anticipation, the more blood she lost, but she couldn't focus on anything other than escaping. She refused to focus on anything other than escaping.
These demons seemed to be unaware that she had to be taken alive for her blood to work, which didn't bode well for her situation as they were very careless. She ran through the streets, not caring who saw the monster chasing her, yet knowing that she should get away from the innocents. Screams of terror from other citizens had her zigzagging down different streets in an attempt to lose the demon trailing her.
She skidded down an alleyway to an abandoned outer road, nearly tripping over potholes but refusing to go down like she did the first night. Her feet ached and the shard of glass had gone so far into the sole of her foot that she could no longer feel it. The blood made her steps slippery, but she refused to allow that to hinder her process.
Michelle couldn't fight demons, but she could fight fate.
She stopped abruptly, turning and flinging her uninjured foot out, catching the demon in one of its legs. It tumbled to the ground, bringing her with it. Barely feeling the pain of her injuries, she struggled to crawl away from it. Her hands, drenched in the blood from her stomach, slid through the asphalt like hot tar.
The demon released a screech of discontent. Michelle didn't get far before the demon caught up to her again. In her peripheral vision, she saw it reach one of its long arms toward her, claws preparing to strike. She prepared herself for another inevitable bout of pain when the arm of the demon severed, landing beside her.
She paused in shock as the devil howled in pain. A pair of brown boots clouded her vision as her savior landed in her view. She saw the tail ends of a blue coat and sagged in relief as Vergil took a defensive stance above her when the demon got to its feet.
She desperately reached forward, grabbing his boot. The blood from her hands tarnished the brown leather, yet she couldn't find the words to apologize. Her relief made it almost impossible to speak.
She glanced up cautiously, expecting Vergil to be glaring down at her for ruining his boots. A part of her was terrified that such an innocuous thing would have him leaving her to die at the hands of the devil.
Instead, his steel eyes stared straight into hers, observing her state. Although his gaze briefly flitted across her hand on his boot, he didn't remark or even acknowledge it. She smiled up at him hesitantly and he returned his gaze to the impending threat. Darkness began to cloud the edges of her vision when Vergil's voice sliced through the darkness.
"If you close your eyes, you will die," he spoke simply. His voice was low and dark, but the threatening tone behind it was aimed more at the demon than herself.
"I - I'm too relieved to do either," she breathed out harshly. Vergil, eyes never straying from the demon, simply raised an eyebrow in response before smirking slightly. The smirk was something she had never seen on his face, and it comforted her immensely. He looked more like Dante's older brother now.
She laid her head down on the ground, breathing out slowly and trying to stay awake. Her hand dropped from Vergil's boot and he stepped around her slowly. She watched his retreating steps in fascination, curious to see the older brother in action.
It didn't last long - barely worth mentioning, really. One second Vergil stood before her, the next he disappeared. Boy, he was fast. Even Dante couldn't compare to Vergil's speed. He moved like lightning, quick and efficient. The demon was dead before Michelle could really make sense of what she was seeing. The demon disintegrated into dust, blowing away in the light breeze.
Michelle had barely noticed the chill in the air before, so thick was her panic. Now with peace of mind, she began aware of her state of attire. While not immodest, it still felt strange to have the older brother seeing her so... disrobed. Her pajamas were stained with blood - probably beyond repair.
Vergil sheathed his sword, walking back over to Michelle. A flicker of annoyance passed through his expression, but it was more at Dante's inability to handle these situations. He got down on one knee, nudging her face toward him with a finger. Grasping her chin when she refused, he forced her eyes to his.
Hazel eyes stared into cold steel as the two assessed each other. Michelle attempted to smile and ended up coughing lightly, blood spattering the pavement.
"I don't think I'm in any danger of dying," Michelle managed sheepishly. Vergil released her face, sitting back on his haunches.
"If you continue as you are, you will." His gaze traveled to her mangled foot. "Can you stand?"
"Uh, actually, no." Michelle grimaced as the pain set in. "Now that the adrenaline has worn off, I can actually feel every shard of glass in my foot - and this gash in my stomach hurts something terrible."
Vergil scowled. "Where is Dante?"
"Not sure. Possibly still fighting demons at his shop."
"Useless," Vergil spat. He stood up to his full height, looking down the road, possibly for a way out of this situation.
"Don't worry about helping me," Michelle breathed, "you've done more than enough saving my life. I can crawl home. I'm actually getting rather good at it, seeing as every battle I'm in ends up with me on the ground."
Vergil sighed, smirking. The fact that she could bring amusement to him had her flushing slightly in pleasure. The flush had the added effect of making her light-headed due to her blood loss.
"Rise," Vergil demanded. He grabbed her arm gently, hefting her to her feet. She hobbled on one foot, unwilling to take the pain of her other. Vergil reached under her legs and picked her up bridal style. "I won't have you delaying my schedule further, girl."
Michelle shrugged helplessly and allowed the older twin to manhandle her. The warmth and safety of his arms had her drifting off into unconsciousness, vaguely aware of his command to keep her eyes open.
He scowled down at her lightly before beginning the trek back to Dante's shop.
Vergil sensed the demons long before they appeared. It was a sixth sense that had been continuously honed from his constant proximity to them. Having engulfed himself completely in demonic energy, he was fairly familiar with the low-class devils hovering about Devil May Cry. He wasn't surprised that Dante didn't have the same sense of demonic presence; he could only sense them when they already crossed to the human realm. Another weakness brought upon by humanity.
When he heard the first screech, he knew that they had come for the woman. It was inevitable, really. And true to Dante's form, he didn't worry about these necessary risks until they happened. So he wasn't surprised when he found the demon chasing after her.
What had surprised him was her determination to not perish by its hands. Albeit a weak fight in reality, he had to admire her tenacity. Even bleeding from the stomach and having a wounded foot did not deter her from attempting to fight back, however futile that fight might have been.
It was those thoughts that had him jumping to her rescue.
She clung to his coat like a lifeline while he walked back, avoiding the main roads. It made him uncomfortable, though he kept his expression level. Instead his eyes focused on the trail of dried blood the girl had left in her wake. Any demon would be able to track her from the blood alone - even he could smell the difference. A Port Key's blood carried a tinge of something... alluring within it. It called to demons on a different level than normal human blood. Even Vergil's devil stirred from the scent of it.
When Devil May Cry came into view, he released a small breath. The more the girl bled, the stronger her scent became. He didn't like his reaction to it and quickened his pace. He walked through the hole in the entrance to Dante's shop. Dante was sitting down at his desk with his boots atop it. Apparently unworried, the younger brother had changed into a shirt and was reading a gun magazine.
Dante sniffed lightly and pulled his gaze upwards. The slightest dilation in Dante's eyes told Vergil that he was experiencing much the same sensation as he.
Vergil scowled, breaking her magnetic pull. "I am not your errand boy."
"I knew you would save her. Come on, bro - I know you better than that. You wouldn't have left her there to die. I wasn't worried." Dante smirked before jumping up when he saw Michelle's state in Vergil's arms. "Ah, damn it - she looks like shit. And what the hell is up with her scent?"
"If we do not tend to the girl's wounds, she will pass," Vergil informed him. "As for her smell... a Port Key's blood is a dangerous substance.
In a rare show of brotherly cooperation, the twins managed to bandage Michelle up and preserve her modesty at the same time. When she awoke, she found herself in Dante's bed with Vergil and Dante arguing in relatively hushed voices at the entrance to the room. Her eyes scanned the space, having never stepped in Dante's room. It smelled relatively clean, but Michelle didn't trust her nose too much. Vergil's raised voice grasped her attention.
"I will not engage in this ridiculous feat of heroism," Vergil snarled at Dante. Vergil's fists clenched at his side while Dante stood with his arms crossed.
"Didn't you come here to lend us a hand?" Dante shot back.
"Perhaps," Vergil began, "but seeing the state of disarray your planning has caused, I would rather sit this one out."
"This is Michelle's life and the fate of a world we're talking about," Dante insisted.
"A life is a life, regardless of whose it is. This earth will not stop spinning if one life ends." Vergil fixed Dante with a cold stare. "And I hardly care for the fate of a world I have not seen or been to."
His words were cold and cruel, but oddly enough, Michelle understood his reasoning - even the one for her life. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more it made sense: ending her life would end the demon lords' plans to invade another world. She had to be alive for the portal to open, and if she were dead, their plans would be laid to rest.
She struggled to sit up in the bed and the twins looked over when they realized she was awake. Dante looked contrite, staring at her sheepishly. His hand rubbed the back of his head nervously, eyes shifting between her and Vergil.
Vergil merely looked pensive.
"Would it be better," Michelle asked rhetorically, "if I just ended my life?" Her words were barely a whisper, yet carried through the room resolutely.
Dante scoffed, "Are you kidding me?" He looked at her angrily before shooting an even more hostile look at Vergil. He clearly blamed Vergil for Michelle's sudden trail of thought.
Vergil's eyes narrowed slightly, assessing Michelle even more closely.
"I'm serious," Michelle responded. Her eyes traveled to Vergil's own. "You said it yourself, and I'm only asking in response. Would it be easier if I just ended this my way, instead of being torn apart by demons once I've reached the end of my use?"
Vergil sighed lightly. "It would hardly be worth considering." Dante swore and started to say something when Vergil slammed the bedroom door in his face. Vergil stepped in front of it so Dante couldn't barge back in. His eyes scanned her figure. "Should you die, they will simply go after another. Do you think the next in line would handle this situation as well?"
"I would hardly say I'm handling it well," Michelle whispered. The banging on the door ceased as Dante listened in. His strange super-hearing seemed to have kicked in.
"You are not dead," Vergil stated. "One could only hope to handle it better." It almost seemed like he was complimenting her, and she flushed in embarrassment.
"I'm only alive because of you and Dante," she insisted.
"I don't know," Dante spoke through the door. "If you hadn't high-tailed it out of there, you probably wouldn't be alive."
Vergil opened the door harshly and Dante stumbled through. "Are you not supposed to be a protector?"
"I can't do everything at once!" Dante insisted, hand reaching for Rebellion. Vergil only raised an eyebrow scathingly before putting his hand on Yamato.
"Could you two stop fighting for a moment? Vergil, I have a question about Port Keys," Michelle interrupted. The twins looked at her, both awaiting to see what she inquired about. Having both sets of eyes on her made her uncomfortable, but she was determined not to show it. "You said that Port Keys worked due to being 'pure.'"
"I did," Vergil confirmed.
"Well… what if I'm not… exactly… 'pure' myself?" Her face heated when Dante started to laugh. Her embarrassment this time was impossible to hide, but she was honestly curious about the answer.
Vergil glared at Dante while he answered her question, "Through the years, demons have found it easier and easier to get their hands on those of pure body and soul - it is the main reason they go after infants."
"Yeah, innocence is relative," Dante commented. "Doesn't matter much these days."
"Port Keys do not have to be completely pure in body because their souls are pure," Vergil continued.
"So, basically, it doesn't matter who you've done the dirty with," Dante concluded. The mirth in his gaze didn't end. Michelle found that she couldn't really meet either gaze and stared down at the duvet. Dante gave a final laugh before leaving the room, content that Michelle wouldn't be ending her life in a fit of self-righteousness. Vergil shook his head slightly.
"You should rest," Vergil supplied. The blush was still on Michelle's face and he scanned it pensively. He hesitated a moment, "You may not get these moments of relaxation very often."
"I will…" Michelle leaned back against the pillows. Her ears still burned and she was certain the blush was still on her cheeks. "Thank you, you know, for saving me when you did."
"Thanks are not needed."
"But they are," she insisted. "I know you're not the type of person to do something like that."
Vergil placed a hand on the door frame, leaning against it slightly and breaking the perfect posture he normally had. It was an action more common with Dante and it surprised her to see Vergil do it so naturally. The slackened look to his jaw and the hunch to his shoulders hinted at a severe weight on his mind.
She knew that if she asked, he would never answer her.
"My father," Vergil stated calmly, staring at her from the corner of his eye, "would never have forgiven me."
I'm back! I must apologize for this HUGE delay, mostly because my laptop with all of my written chapters on it died. Instead of foresight telling me to back up my files, I ended up losing EVERYTHING. I spent months unwilling to type a single word because I had been SO many chapters in. A few days ago, however, I suddenly got my muse back after re-reading what I've already written and got this chapter typed out in two days.
I'm very proud of myself. I apologize again for the wait!
I sped this chapter up a bit from what I originally had planned because I'm desperate to get into the actual PLOT and ROMANCE. It may seem slightly rushed looking at it from a distance.
As for Michelle and Vergil, I have so many ideas running through my head and I've just fallen more in love with their chemistry. I love the camaraderie of Dante, Vergil, and Michelle - but don't worry, I have no intention of making this a love triangle. Michelle belongs to Vergil. Dante's just the nosy best friend.
R&R!