Chapter 6
It was a good thing to come back early. Dante thought grimly when he observed his opponent. If it wasn't for Morrison and his damn annoying driving. They were too late for the appointment. Morrison got a call that the job was cancelled. Dante was pissed at first, it was an interesting job offer and a beautiful sum of money... He sat back in his seat while shooting Morrison a hatefull glance now and then. But his annoyance disappeared when they came in the neighbourhood. Dante felt that something was wrong. The aura of the girl was dangerously weak. If they didn't arrive when they did that squirt would have died.
Dante readied his guns. "It's good that you're here. I was bored out of my mind. You see, I hate it when I leave home for nothing." He said cocky while smirking. "When you leave, it seems that the most interesting things happen at home... At least I'm back for the grande finale."The knight readied his trident. "At last we meet, son of Sparda. The master would be pleased if I end you now." Dante snorted. "End me, huh..." He chuckled. "Well, that's what they all say... But when it comes to it... See!" Dante struck a pose helding his arms up, showing his muscles. "I'm still standing." The knight glared hungrily at the hunter. Dante smirk grew larger and pointed at him with his guns when he felt the killer intent.
"So youre more a man of action, heh. I like that!" Dante said while the knight dashed forward, almost impaling Dante in the process. Dante simply stepped out of the way and hold his pistol at the knights head. "You have to do better than that!" Dante smirked as he shot the knight from point zero.
But the fight was not quite over. The knight shook his head and began lifting his trident. Dante smirked as he backflipped with both guns ready to shoot. The knight stepped forward again trying to stab Dante through the gut. Dante smirked and sidestepped shooting his oponent for a second time through the head. "You've got to do better than that!" He chuckled. "Besides, I've got the advantaged." Dante said, taunting his adversarry while holding up his twin pistols, showing that he doesn't have to be in close range.
The knight roared loudly in rage and started to built his energy. Dante smirked while holding up one gun. The knight would come with a stronger attack, but Dante wasn't too worried. He had tougher oponents like this, more interesting too. Bah, who would dress up like a medieval knight anyway? Doesn't this demon know that leather pants are the new fashion this decade. It certainly makes himself look cool. Dante snorred and aimed his guns. He was going to end this sucker now.
Before the knight could release his attack, Dante started to fire relentlessly making the knight stagger. Dante smirked as he pressed forward. The knight hold his arms with trident protective for his head while taking in all the hits.
Clank clank clank. Some of the bullets bounced of the hard metal armor, but most just pierced through making the now not so threatening knight bleed. Dante sighed disappointed while dashing forward. With a single movement, he replaced his twinpistols for his sword. The knight noticed the switch too late. With a swift move Dante made a slash forward. Swing...
It was silent for a moment. Dante snorted while putting his Rebellion back on his back. After a few seconds a loud bang was hurt. Dante looked back and smirked at the decapitated body which stood for another moment before collapsing on the ground. Dante walked up to the now dead knight. He bowed down and grabbed the head. He looked at the helmet and noticed strange a symbol. Dante frowned. He didn't recognise this symbol. Maybe there was a new demon lord wannabe in town or something. No matter, he now turned the helmet to take a look inside and noticed the demon's head was already decomposing. He smiled while walking towards his shop with his new trophy.
Inside Dante looked around observing before sighing annoyed. The cupboards in the kitchen were all broken up, the dishes lay scattered on the ground in pieces, large cracks in the walls on the left and right. Dante looked furter and noticed that the door behind his comfy couch was knocked down. He walked towards of his not so hidden weapon store and looked down. At a single glance he noticed that his own weapons were still where he left them. Only the weapon that he got from the Knight household was gone. Dante looked behind and noticed the large katana outside on the floor. Dante let out another annoyed sigh and held up the head in his head. He glared at the head for a moment. This weakling sure has made a large mess. Even though it wasn't a total chaos, (like the last few times when his shop was wrecked,) it was going to cost him a lot of money to replace the broken items.
He made his way back to his office and looked up to the wall behind his desk. There hung all his trophies of his other 'victims'. On one of the empty hooks he stuck the head. Dante looked at his handywork and smirked. At least he filled another space on his wall. It sure made his office looked homely.
After another moment of taking in the damage he walked outside again and grabbed the katana. It was a huge pain in the ass. Next time he would make sure that Alastor wouldn't be left alone anymore. That kid was nothing but trouble. He would make sure that Trish will stay at home when he would go out on a mission. Even if he had to glue her to the kid. She was so irresponsible sometimes.
Dante looked around and scanned his enviroment for a moment. He was alone in the alley. He closed his eyes and let his demon senses scan the entire neighborhood. Still, no demons in the area anymore. He nodded satisfied before turning to his shop. He threw the demonic katana and his Rebellion inside and pushed a large container for his entrance. That should keep the scum out for now. At least the human scum. He hoped that there wouldn't be otherworldly visitors tonight before turning around. He made his way to find Morrison.
Morrison heard Dante shoot in the distance and and sighed. He looked at the little girl in his arms. The wounds on her stomach were slowly closing. Morrison frowned and wondered what exactly he was carying in his arms. Probably another half demon or something. Why else would Dante keep a kid in his home if it wasn't for a mission. It was always impressive to see wounds heal so fast. But it wasn't as fast enough for the old man's liking.
The girl looked as white as a sheet, so Morrison hurried to his car. He gently lay the girl in the back before jumping behind the steer. As fast as he could, he drove to his humble home. Even if the wounds were deep, Morrison didn't dare to bring the girl to a hospital. Especially if she were to be a demon. It's best to keep the demon world hidden from the eyes of men.
After fifteen minutes Morrison arrived home and carried the unconcious girl inside. There he laid her on the couch and quickly gathered his first aid kit. He cleaned her up and dressed the wounds as best he could. When he was done he grabbed a blanket and covered the girl. He sat down on his comfy chair next to the couch and sighed wearily.
He closed his eyes and dozed off for a bit. After an hour he opened his eyes. He heard the door opened and grabbed for his gun. After the person walked in he sighed and put it away again. It was Dante.
"Hey." Dante greeted before taking a seat himself. Morrison nodded and glanced at the girl before looking back at the hunter. "I take it you've taken out the... trash." Morrison inquired. Dante nodded before smiling a little. "Yeah, it was just a small fry. Nothing big, the shit only made a big mess. You should have seen my shop... It's gonna cost me again to replace my shit... It's really a pain." Dante sighed tiredly while leaning further into the chair. Morrison glanced at him before chuckling. "That's because you're a big shot hunter, Dante. It's only natural that they would come after you." Dante shot a look at Morrison before turning his attention to the girl on the couch. "So... how's the litlte squirt doing?" He asked. Morrison smiled softly. "She's going to be alright. I first wanted to bring her to the hospital, but that would only get more attention to... our business. Besides her wounds already started healing, so I've give her some first aid..." Dante nodded. "I figured, she'll heal the wounds, just like I do. But it would take some more time than my healing... Anyway..." Dante stood up and stretched. Morrison also stood up and glanced from the girl to Dante.
"I suppose you take the young miss and go home then?" Dante nodded and scratched his head. "That's the plan, there isn't much to do about it. It seems that the old bat was right. Guess I need to keep an eye out for trouble... Jeez, I guess I should have asked that old witch more money." Dante complained while grabbing his ward and slung her over his shoulder. The harsh treatment didn't woke Alastor up. Morrison chuckled while shaking his head. Dante said a quick goodbye and disappeared as soon as he came. Morrison sighed and took place on the couch. It sure was an interesting night.
Back home, Dante kicked the container to the side. He walked in and threw the girl on the couch. He walked back to the door and examined it again. Luckily, only the door was messed up. When the shops are open, he will go get a new front door. He already checked his bankaccount a few days back and noticed that old dear Meribeth had paid him a great som of money. He wanted to save up some for a new jacket, but... it couldn't be helped. Next time he would go out for a job, he'd make certain that someone capable would keep an eye out on his job and the kid. Maybe it would be a good idea to learn the squirt some self defense too. It was pathetic that that brat couldn't handle a grunt like that. Especially if she was a demon hybrid like him.
Dante walked back to his desk and let himself fall in the chair. He sighed annoyed while looking around. It was going to be a pain to train that kid, he didn't even want her in the first place. It was Trish who took her in and wanted to take care of her. When Trish get's back, he would make certain that Trish would teach this brat the basics.
He grabbed a magazine from his desk and started flipping through it. He had already read through this magazine five times, but he didn't care. He wanted to get his mind off from things for now. He'd make sure that he will get another magazine when he get the new doors and dishes. He shouldn't forget that, otherwise Trish will annoy him to no end. She already nagged him more than usual, al because of that damn brat. It was no fun at all. He sighed again and waited for morning to come.
Alastor yawned and stretched. She scratched her head before slowly sitting up. She slowly opened up her eyes. She had a strange dream last night about being attacked and almost dying. It was weird. She looked around again and noticed that she still was downstairs. "That's strange, why would I sleep on the couch?" She asked herself and jumped up. "I wonder If Dante is back..." She looked and noticed some weird things. The walls left and right had cracks in them and when she walked into the kitchen to grab a glass of milk she noticed that all the glasses and other dishes were lying on the ground, broken in millions of pieces. Alastor sat down at the kitchen table and started to feel weird. She began to had a feeling that that dream she had, wasn't really a dream at all. She looked down at her clothing and noticed that they were pretty torn up... She let her hands glide over the fabric and noticed three big holes in the front. She looked over the shoulder and noticed three identical holex at the back. She shuddered and stood up. She paced through the shop and looked around. "Dante?" She called while quickly making her way to his office. Dante!" She said a little louder.
"Ouch!" She heard with some cursing following after that. She looked behind and walked towards the living room. There Dante was busy with a fixing a door in front of his weapon room. His right hand looked a bit redder than normal. It seems that he had gotten his hand between the door and the doorframe. He glared back annoyed at the girl. "Finally decided to come back to the realm of the living?" He asked sarcastically while looking back to the door. He started to putting the door back into the frame. Alastor stared at him, not really knowing how to react. After an awkward silence she decided to sit down on the chair behind him.
"So... what happened?" She asked finally after watching Dante struggling with the door for a while. Dante sighed tiredly. "You don't know what happened?... You were attacked yesterday, you almost died if we didn't return like we did." He said casually. Alastor frowned while looking around. She started to remember and nodded sadly. "That... that's right... When I think about it, I remember." She sighed while leaning back in the chair. "I was going to bed when someone started to bang on the front door. I... I panicked and started to hide... but... He f-found me...I tried to flee, but he got me... he hurted me..." Alastor said shakingly while remembering more. "I thought I was going to die... I fainted from the pain... I don't know what happened after that..." She said while trying to compose herself, but that didn't help. She remembered how helpless she was, how pathetic. She couldn't even get away...
Alastor looked up carefully observing the hunter. Dante was still facing the door, putting in the last screws. "You... You saved me, right?" Alastor asked. Dante looked at his handywork before turning back to the girl. He nodded. "That's right kid, don't have to thank me or anything..." He gave her a glance before heading off to the kitchen. Alastor sighed and brought her hands to her face. She felt miserable.
She heard Dante's footsteps coming back. Alastor looked up and saw that the hunter held two plates with leftover pizza from the day before yesterday. Alastor smiled weakly and took it from him. "I called your school. Said that you're sick and things like that." Dante said while sitting next to her, grabbing a piece from his plate. Alastor nodded and stared at her own pizza slice before grabbing it. After they were done eating Dante put the plate on the table and sighed. He leaned back in thought for a moment. Alastor kept silent, staring in front of her. After a while Dante stood up and motioned Alastor to follow him.
"Come squirt, we've got to do something about that." Alastor cocked her head. "About what?" Dante pointed at Alastor's hair. "That... Trish would throw a fit when she sees that. Come, let's fix it..." Alastor looked how the hunter walked to the kitchen and after some trashing she could hear that he found what he looked for. "Come here kid! We haven't got all day." Alastor jumped a little and ran to the kitchen seeing Dante holding up a pair of scissors. Dante looked up and gestured to the chair in fron of him. Alastor nodded and quickly hopped into the chair.
"Now let's see..." Dante said while grabbing some locks and examined it. Alastor shuffled in the chair. But after a few minutes Dante still hasn't begun to shorten it a bit. "Well..." Dante said a bit awkward. "I'm not a hairdresser... It shouldn't be too hard right..." He murmered. Alastor started to shuffle more, feeling dreaded by the minute. "Are... you certain... that you know what you're doing?" She asked a bit nervously. Dante sighed. "I've cut up more demons than you can imagine... Hair would be a piece of cake." He snapped and grabbed Alastor's hair more forcefully. After a full minute he brought the scissors to a few locks and started cutting them. Snip... Snip... snip...
Alastor saw her long locks falling on the ground. Dante was cutting her hair very... short... wasn't he... She gulped before speaking up softly again. "Dante?!" She asked panickely. "What?..." Dante snapped annoyed while cutting off a lock. Then he went silent for a bit. "Ah... Damn..." He said while taking a step back, looking at his work. "What? What?" Alastor squeeked while jumping from the chair. She wanted to look for a mirror, but was put in the chair again. "Sit still and keep quiet!... Now let's see..." Dante said while walking around her. "I guess there is no other choice... Guess it's going to be much shorter then I had in mind..." He said while walking behind Alastor again. "Brat, sit still! And don't distract me again! Otherwhise I'll give you a clean shave!" Alastor gulped again while grabbing the chair with all her strenght, making the chair crack a little. "Damn brat! Watch out for the chair! Just... sit still" Dante yelled while cutting her hair ferosioucly. Alastor closed her eyes and prayed that she still would have hair left by the time Dante was done. After five more minutes Dante stopped his trimming and started pacing around Alastor again. He nodded satisfied while kicking the girl of the chair. "All done kid, at least you look a bit... more acceptable now." Alastor noticed that her head was a lot lighter. She gulped while slowly bringing her hands to her head and let it glide through her hair.
Alastor gasped while looking at Dante in terror. Dante chuckled and nodded satisfied. She ran off to Trish and her room and stood in front for the mirror. Alastor blinked a few times before starting to realise that Dante has cut her hair almost as short as his. She choked a little slowly letting herself sit on the ground. She still held her eyes on the mirror, taking in her own reflection with horror. Hair is a women's pride... The words of her mother echoed in her mind. After another moment Alastor let's out a scream. "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
That night Alastor and Dante sat at the kitchen table in silence. Dante had ordered pizza again and was eating deliciously. Alastor was chewing slowly, not really tasting her children pizza. She still was in shock about her hair. Dante noticed the girl's apathy and sighed. "Come on, kid. It's just hair, it'll grow again in time." He grunted while taking another bite. Alastor nodded slowly while gazing at her pizza. She sighed and knew that she had to accept the things as they were. She thought back to this afternoon when she had almost recovered the shock. She had gone back down, noticing Dante's amused smile. The hunter found it hilarous to hear the girl scream in agony over some cut hair. Alastor was far from amused and threw the man her best glare. But that only resulted in Dante laughing his ass off. Alastor retreated back to her room and only came when the hunter called her for dinner.
She sighed again while taking another slice from her plate. That evening Alastor sat next to Dante while watching tv. Dante zapped through a few channels before an action movie caught his eyes. Both were sitting in silence. The next few days also went by one another, both never mentioning the attack again. It wasn't that they had forgotten, but both didn't knew how to approach the other. Trish hadn't come back making both of the residents a bit twitchy. Alastor longed for Trish to come back. At least she would have someone to talk to. Dante was grumpy and that didn't encourage Alastor to seek the older man's advice or answers on things. She had many questions but didn't dare ask. Dante didn't knew how to handle the kid as well and made certain that he had things to do around the shop.
After a week staying at home, Alastor decided that she would go back to school. Dante hadn't commented at it and let the girl follow her own mind. At school Alastor was astounded. Nobody could remember the incident of Alastor's first day. All asked how Alastor have been and if she was better now. Even the girl Alastor had scratched was smiling at Alastor with a most brilliant smile. Alastor cringed when she looked at the girls scars. She wondered why talked about it nor seem to recall it . But after the day went by she didn't linger on it too much. A part of her was glad that nobody remembered and soon she put it away from her mind. The boy she met after her first school day was sitting next to her and both had a lot of fun. Alastor came to the conclusion that school was acceptable and fun. No need to complicate things when they were finally looking up to it. Alastor smiled when she returned home. She wanted to tell Dante about it, but the hunter was too busy to be brooding again. Alastor had guessed that it had to do with Trish.
Weeks turned into months with still no Trish. Dante started to get irritating, trying to find the blonde she-devil between the jobs he took. But Trish had disappeared without a trace. Alastor also started to lose hope seeing her 'older sister'. Especially now when it was finally december. A few days and it would be Christmas. Alastor didn't look forward to spend her first Christmas alone with the grumpy hunter.