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Babling
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Warnings: UST, I guess. (Come on, everything with Verge and Dante in one room is UST!)
BETAD by Tora-Katana)
BETAD OVER by Nimlinven
'Dialogue'
"Thoughts"
TEARS! You just fuckn' asked for it there! So yeah, I quoted you! *Not sorry in the least, but very happy*
Thanx Thanx Thanx for the prompt!
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Chap 09
The personal Pea for the Princess
'They left the name as it was,' Dante pointed at the a in .45 Caliber Warks. 'Nell was one language expert.' The devil hunter opened the door, the bell rang, and the young girl in a plain purple dress and fingerless white gloves lifted her head to look at him from behind the counter. She brushed her short blonde hair back arrogantly, pursed her lips and sent a death glare at him.
Dante came in, habitually noticing there we no other people in that little room packed with guns of all ages. Except for the girl, this little space under the low ceiling was the kingdom of firearms: they were hung gracefully along the walls, lain with respect onto the stands, shielded inside the two cabinets at the back wall, hidden behind the glass. Two low tables to the left were their infirmary and revival altar, where the skilled fingers took them apart and fixed them back together. The lower part of the counter had bullets and chargers under the glass.
'Welcome,' the girl said openly unfriendly. 'You don't seem like a customer who has the money to afford decent equipment. So don't stare at the toys, just go away.'
'Baby, aren't you biased? Go tell the owner that Tony's here.'
'Tell Tony that Tony is here? Give me a break, boy, come up with a more entertaining pseudonym,' the girl snorted scornfully, but then looked up again as she sensed a strong presence in the workshop. She noticed another figure behind the new-comer. 'And who might you be, stranger?'
'None of your business,' Dante banged at the counter with his fist, 'now call To-…'
'Get out, you poor as a church mouse good-for-nothing sucker!-' the girl barked at the devil hunter.
'Who did you call-' roared Dante at her.
'Listen,' Vergil's voice sliced through the room, silencing both of them. 'Listen to what you are told, foolish girl. Now, go.'
'R-right away. We won't keep you waiting for long,' the girl ran out, glancing at the tall slender figure. 'Man, what a hotie prince.'
'Do you always have problems like this?' Vergil inquired calmly, looking at a shotgun on the wall.
'How come girls always fall for you? Ulysses is more interesting to spend the time with, than you,' Dante turned his back to his brother and was looking at custom explosive bullets.
'You read Ulysses? You don't seem like a person who would do that.'
'Did not survive longer than three lines of that boredom. What is with girls these days? You are cold and spiteful, full of yourself and a smart-ass, and you only frown and glare! What do they see in you?'
Vergil was silent. He felt disappointed and… hurt. For the first time in ages he was interested in a person and the description he got was the ugly that. And from the person who even made him lose control over his desires… "We had fun a couple of minutes ago but no, you had to ruin everything!"
'At least I have a brain and do not practice suicide,' uttered Vergil bitterly, his fists clenched tightly in his pockets.
'Why you arse!' Dante spat, losing his ability to speak, turning around abruptly to look at Vergil. He was faced only with his brother's back. "And here I thought you might be not that bad. But you just had to touch a sore spot, didn't you?"
'Hello, hello,' a young man with unruly raven-black hair, dressed in jeans, slippers and a leather apron walked into the room, a six-shooter in his hand. 'Who are you guys? And where is that bitch that said he was Tony?'
'Did you just call me a bitch, you little bastard? If Nell was here she would have taught you how to address the adults, boy,' Dante fumed. 'I got a dozen too many insults in this place today-…'
'Hands up, brat!' The owner of .45 Art Works pointed his revolver at Dante. Vergil traced a finger along the forged decorations of an old musket and did not even cast a glance where the two were arguing. The man went on: 'There is no way Tony would be so… Redgrave is one hell of a devil hunter!'
'Well I thank you sincerely for the compliment,' Dante bowed graciously the ancient way. 'Now, Tony Goldstein, be a man of business and go fetch Trish's guns and my old order. The one I asked you to make 'bout half a year ago, and don't even start telling me that it's not done because I don't take no as an answer today.'
'Oh My Lord!' the black-haired man gaped at Dante for a second, trying to comprehend that the man before him was Redgrave, then hurried inside the workshop. 'Rachel where is Snow? Ray!'
'Where is what? What are those two? Who the hell-…'
'Where is the Untouchable? Find it immediately! And be quiet and behave, we have very important guests.'
There was noise coming from inside the shop.
'I am not sure I still want to give it to you. After what you said,' admitted Dante grudgingly. 'I could give you Alastor, or Agni and Rudra, or even Nevan. But you do only katanas if I remember correctly. Apart from that, a promise is a promise, so I'll keep my word.'
Vergil looked at Dante, who was sitting now on a chair, the black case on the table beside him. The devil hunter did not look at him, apparently finding the worn-out carpet the most interesting thing on earth. Vergil felt uneasy for bringing up the devil hunter's weakness.
'He is Nell's son, you know,' Dante noted absently.
'Who is Nell?' asked Vergil to keep the conversation alive. He wanted to apologize, but he was not going to.
'She was a gunsmith who made my guns. One hell of an old woman, but she could juice up a squirt gun to be able to take out an elephant.'
'I told you already, I will not use a gun. Is that too complicated for you to get into that stupid head of yours? I only need a sword.' Vergil turned to glare at Dante to emphasize the point. "I wrecked the conversation again. Damn."
'You will be having both,' Dante simply stated, not bothering to be offended anymore. 'Tony is a blacksmith, he can make marvellous swords.'
'Here,' the owner of .45 Caliber Works came back, a long package in his hands. The object was wrapped in raw cloth and tied by leather straps. Dante stood up lazily, took the package and put it lovingly on the counter, tearing off the wrapping.
'It's the Untouchable!' shouted Rachel from the door. 'Only a demon can handle that one, don't touch it!'
Dante smiled – and the cloth fell down, leaving a thin sheathed katana in the devil hunter's hands, all pure snow-white: the leather plaited around the handle, the cords, the sheath itself.
The girl at the door rolled her eyes and folded her arms angrily, the owner of the shop snickered. Both of them observed silently as Dante was checking out the katana.
'The perfect white sword, hiding…' Dante drew the blade out of its confinement and the pitch black flash cut the air with a smooth swoosh. 'Hiding the perfectly black blade. Here, have a taste, it's very light,' the devil hunter handed the sword to his brother. 'This is the Snow, Yuki. It will be yours.'
As soon as Vergil's fingers snaked around the handle, power struck him like a bolt. Dante smirked and leaned onto the counter.
'Feel it? I melted down a couple of old demon artifacts for it. They were a thousand years old, so I hoped the sword would be a decent one. Seems like I was right.'
'You could have given it a less petty name,' Vergil complained, but his eyes were fixed on the blackness of the blade, Snow following his body like it was already a part of it, as his hands were getting accustomed to the katana.
'Don't misunderstand, Snow is just an endearing petname. The sword's name is the White Gloom.'
Meanwhile Tony Goldstein took a case from an old locker behind the counter and placed it near the one brought by the devil hunter. The owner of the shop laughed, noticing how both black leather gun-cases were similar and had the same print in the corner, even after so many years. However, letting that demon inherit the legendary arms troubled Tony Goldstein.
'I see your, erm, companion is happy with Yuki,' he addressed Dante. 'But I thought you slew demons, not armed them.'
'I do slay demons, except for those who are my family.'
The owner shook his head in disapproval.
'Now, check my Ebony and Ivory, would ya,' Dante tried to change the topic and poked the case where his guns lay.
'I'll do that,' Rachel told the devil hunter despite being unhappy with him and took the case with Ebony and Ivory.
'Wow these are rather heavy!' she immediately exclaimed and left for the back premises.
'Be careful with them you little…' warned Dante.
'Excuse me my question,' said Tony, scrutinizing every move Vergil made with Snow in his hands, 'Is this… your brother?'
The black blade of Yuki sliced through the counter a hairbreadth away from the owner of 45. Caliber Works, leaving a thin but deep cut, slashing wood, glass and metal with the same ease. Vergil was looking at the owner of the shop, stunned. "Is that possible?"
'We just share the same blood. That is the reason for the resemblance,' explained Dante, but he did not sound very confident.
'Oh.' Tony decided on letting that one pass, getting further from intimidatingly frozen Vergil. 'Will you look at Trish's guns? '
'Yeah. And they are not her guns anymore, here is the rightful heir. Verge, c'mere for a sec,' Dante called his brother. Reluctantly sheathing the white katana, Vergil walked up to Dante to find two guns on the counter – one silver, one black.
'Luce and Ombra,' introduced Date. 'These two babes were used by Sparda The Legendary Dark Knight. Since we got hold of them, they belonged to Trish. I figured, as the next Dark Knight, you might want to claim your heritage.'
'Father used this?' Vergil took the black gun, a comfortable weight in his hand. 'It reminds me…'
'Yeah, you shot only once, in a fight against Arkham.'
'How did you-?..'
'Your brother told me. Forget it, have a look at the guns.'
Vergil gave Yuki back to the devil hunter and took both silver right-hand Luce and the black left-hand Ombra.
'My own guns were modeled after these two,' admitted Dante with a portion of pride. 'Ombra has been modified for long-distance targeting, it's designed for accuracy. Luce is custom built for rapid firing."
'Using guns is unworthy of a true warrior…'
'Cut that crap already, they were your father's!'
'… but I suppose there might be exceptions. I do not excel at shooting, though.'
'Of course you do, you are the son of Sparda! So grab the guns, take the sword and we'll be leaving as soon as that brat is done with my equipment.'
'You can practice if you want, while you wait,' Tony offered and showed the Sparda twins a metal target on the wall. 'Use if you feel like it.'
'Cool! What are you waiting for, Vergil? It's show time! Or are you afraid of missing? Don't worry I'll tell you how not to miss even once,' Dante patted his brother's shoulder. 'Think of something you hate the most – and shoot.'
'Is that your advice?' Vergil looked at the devil hunter with disbelief.
'Just try it. Don't aim, don't think.'
'Fine,' the Dark Knight relaxed, then lifted his hands abruptly, holding the guns firmly, crossing the firearms; his eyes were on the target.
"I hate you, brother!" He pulled the trigger, two bullets bolted out and smashed the metal of the target right next to the black circle in the center.
'Almost bullseye,' Tony sounded amused.
'I missed,' Vergil told Dante, a note of reproach in his voice. 'How do you explain that? And don't even start mentioning my poor skills.'
'Nope, skills have nothing to do with this. The reason is, you don't really hate whatever you thought of. So you couldn't fire properly. The drawback of this trick is to be honest to yourself. Absolutely honest.'
Dante took Luce and turned. His back to the target, he easily swayed his hand towards it without looking and shot.
"I want it to disappear. Vergil's hate towards me."
The bullet hit the center and with a crack of red lightning it wrecked the target into a useless metal mess.
'Oh. My. I'll keep that as a souvenir,' Tony Goldstein muttered.
'See?' said Dante, reloading Luce.
'Done!' Rachel returned and handed Ebony and Ivory to Dante.
'Add two pairs of holsters for us. So, thanks for keeping up the good work, Tony. You are just as needed as the old witch Nell was, remember that.'
'You are welcome as long as you pay the bills,' Tony opened the door for the devil hunter.
'I'll contact you the usual way, by mail. By the way, name's Dante. '
The twins walked out of the workshop.
'I like .45 Caliber Works. Maybe he could marry a tailor, and the place would be priceless,' Dante voiced his thoughts.
'Dante!' Tony called from the doorstep. 'How have you been?'
Vergil was putting the new weapons into the boot that was already full of strange packages. He was busy and muttering something under his breath.
'You better off not knowing, Tony! ' Dante laughed and went back to talk to the owner of the workshop some more. 'But holy Schnitzel!' He whispered, 'My brother's a reckless – and thank gods so far a wreck-less - driver which makes him all the more badass, but not as badass as me… – Wait! Verge!' shouted the devil hunter as he noticed that Vergil was already in the driver's seat, and the Jaguar was slowly moving away from the .45 Caliber Works. 'Be gentle with my baby! Whai- Did you just leave me behind? Jackass! Just don't scratch the car! Uh, wait, you smartass!' Dante waved a good-buy at Tony and dashed for the Jaguar. 'Gimme my baby back, you dastardy asshole!'
Tony observed as an angry Dante jumped into the moving car over the door.
'So they are twins,' the owner of the workshop smiled. As his apprentice came out to call him back he couldn't but tell her: 'Rachel, these are the two men who save the world and make up our monthly income. '
'I like the serious one better,' the girl in the purple dress noted and took him by the elbow.
'Dante is not a simpleton you think he is, Ray. But let us see. I bet they are going to Oberon,' Tony was still looking at the road, even as the car had already left.
'Wasn't it wiped clean by demons today?'
'It was. But those devils don't care. They'll work it out.'
'Why are you so sure?' the girl tugged the owner of the .45 Caliber Works back into the workshop.
'Oh, because it is Tony Redgrave we are talking about here, for fuck's sake! They'll smash the place.'
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Vergil was driving out of the city, a fuming Dante by his side.
'You could have waited!'
'Don't be noisy.'
'Whatever.'
'Why do you insist that I use firearms?' Vergil looked at the devil hunter and an involuntary smile sneaked onto his lips.
Dante was sprawled on the seat, right elbow on the door of the car, his hand supporting his head, fingers in his white locks. The wind was combing Dante's hair back and stubbornly tearing the shirt off him, white cotton letting the bare skin be seen.
'It's better not to cut bridges, monuments and real estate in the human world. Knowing you, you won't hesitate to cut anything in your way, but among humans that will put your purse on a diet. And a hard one, believe me. Hm, I should let you drive more,' sighed the devil hunter, pleased by the speed.
'Oh, you still did not tell me about the FF gear.'
'Wait until we are out of the city and no cops around, then you can go for it, 'kay?'
'Deal,' Vergil made another turn as the car was rushing further from the downtown.
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'Show me what you got,' whispered Vergil hotly to the Jaguar as soon as he was on the highway, a lone road through the deserted never-ending sandfield, bordered only at the horizon by the low edging of the faraway mountains.
The sun was already low, painting the world the tender dark golden colour, but the air was still hot since midday, melting down the light ochreous sky as well as Dante, who was now a pathetic puddle on his seat. Every part of the car was still heated up and only the wind was of some help, which gave the devil hunter an idea.
Dante cracked an eye open, noticed his brother's elegant fingers holding the gear and immediately went searching for something in the glove box. He fished out a pair of glacier glasses with one solid orange lens and put them on.
'FF stands for Fucking Fast, Verge. It's show time!'
Vergil pressed the gas into the bottom of the car and the hand of the speedometer slowly but steadily reached 120 then 140 miles.
'Right, Vergil, let me feel it,' shouted Dante through the wind. He was standing up, his hands clutching the frame of the windscreen. 'Make me feel that the mark 200 is not just a decoration!'
'Do you want to blow your brains out?' The older Sparda laughed.
'Not that I have anything to worry about, right?' answered Dante and bent forward.
'Uh, such a kick is wasted,' fretted Vergil, eyeing the devil hunter's ass. "Or a grope for that matter."
'Don't you dare,' threatened Dante half-heartedly. 'I had enough bullying from you already; you were never nice to me, that is the common truth.'
'Maybe I know rather well how to be civilized, however at the time you were not included into my nice people list.'
'That freaking hurt,' Dante glanced at his brother and shut up, offended yet again that afternoon.
'Look, we live in different worlds, both literally and figuratively,' Vergil frowned, stepping on the gas angrily. 'It is often difficult for me to understand your way of thinking. Furthermore, I am not used to your lifestyle and… talk, even. And I still don't remember much about you, I often don't even understand what you are trying to tell me about.'
'What do you want to say, in short?'
'Sorry,' sighed Vergil.
Dante shuddered. He felt awkward and lost.
'The Vergil I know doesn't know that word.' He stated absently.
'Then pretend nothing happened.'
'Just drive,' Dante straightened up and spread his arms to the sides. 'Faster!'
'Your wish is my command,' the hand of the speedometer was at 180 already.
'This is the best feeling you can get, Verge. Nothing matters! It's awesome.'
The older Sparda looked at the devil hunter's endearingly happy face and couldn't help laughing quietly.
'Let's see how you will fall down at 200,' Vergil was sure that in a couple of minutes he himself will be all worked-up.
'Hah, if there is a force to put me down, that sure is you, Verge. Now, rock me to Heaven and back!' Shouted Dante and laughed, too. Laughing with Vergil was intoxicating. It was drowning him in the sweet delusion that everything was alright, it made the hurt of the insults fade away. It was their laughter that made him unnaturally happy and silly. 'Bring it on, man!'
'You said it,' warned Vergil and pushed the Jaguar to 200. "If he wasn't a demon he would die of suffocation. But he is a demon… and it is so much fun."
Dante was silent, as the strong wind was lashing at his face and chest.
"But he is still beaming like a crazy idiot that he is."
In about twenty minutes the devil hunter got tired and fell down onto the seat, taking the glasses off.
'Whoooh, that was fan-fucking-tastic!' Dante was beaming widely, pure happiness on his face.
'I bet it was,' Vergil couldn't help a small chuckle.
'How long before we are in Oberon?'
'A couple of hours if we don't slow down.'
'This baby has full tank of gasoline, so don't slow down if you don't feel like it.'
'You seem tired, Dante. I suggest you rest while you can.'
'Hm, a nice idea.'
'What, no complaining about getting enough rest during the night and not wasting time now?' Vergil was surprised.
'No. First, I do know what happens to my body after death. It's not the first time, and I do need rest, I have to admit. Second, I am going to Oberon tonight, not tomorrow. So I might as well sleep now, it's going to be a long night.'
'But Trish warned you it's dangerous.'
'Who cares about little things like that? We'll stop at the hotel, have dinner and go straight to that town! I am no fool to pass such a juicy invitation, and I would be a real sucker if I lost this rare opportunity to make some easy money because someone was there before me.'
'Impatient as ever.'
'Shut up and drive,' Dante jumped to the back of the car and lay down, his head on the seat and his All Stars on the door of the Jaguar, a red distraction in the corner of Vergil's vision.
'Wake me when you find a cheap hotel near Oberon.'
'Go to sleep already you crazy pain in the ass.'
'So… you decided that I am troublesome, in the end,' Dante sounded somehow desperate.
'You are trouble in the flesh, true,' Vergil looked in the rear-view mirror. The devil hunter had his hands behind his head and the older Sparda could see his elbows and a mop of white hair, shadowing Dante's face. "I could take revenge for what he told me in .45 Caliber Works. But… honestly, I have no desire whatsoever to ruin his good mood now." 'But you are just too useful to waste you.'
'I told you I am broken already. What fun do you get playing with me?'
'Maybe I consider it fun to mend the broken you, who knows. Night.'
'Night,' whispered Dante, confused, but somehow relieved.
Vergil was driving to Oberon and he thought that maybe he could escape just like that: driving an azure Jaguar at 200 miles per hour wherever the wind took him, with a strong strange stupid devil hunter Dante as his companion. Drive just like that into the sunset.
Why in the world he needed anything else? Obviously, he didn't.
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'Hey,' a soft voice called.
When Dante did not wake up, Vergil sat on the bed beside the devil hunter and carefully pulled Dante's unruly hair back, revealing his calm sleeping face. Vergil's cautious fingers caressed his cheek, stroking lightly.
'Wake up,' the older Sparda persuaded.
The rain was hitting the huge stained-glass windows that painted lilies, the thick streams snaking down. It was rather dark in the small room, but Vergil did not want to put the light on, and the small lamp on the table remained untouched. They were alone in this small hotel room: a chair for their clothes, a table for their food, a bed for their rest. Nothing more, except for the desired privacy.
'Dante, come on, you will be cold if you stay like that. And I brought dinner.'
'Wha…' murmured the devil hunter under his touch, and Vergil leaned down to have a better look at his face. Dante was lying on the side under him, a pillow in a firm grip.
'Dante,' the soft fingers were on his cheek and he opened his eyes. Everything blue and violet with light specks dancing everywhere, the dim light coming from the window. Vergil was very close, a strange expression of peace on his face.
'Morning, sleepyhead, have some dinner.' Vergil pulled back.
'How long was I asleep?' Dante sat up, rubbing his shoulder. He was on the bed, the window was to the right and to the left were two doors, one of which was probably leading the bathroom, the other – to the corridor. There was an empty old chair standing between the doors. Not much.
Vergil was sitting next to him, looking at him expectantly. On the table next to the bed was a tray with beef and potatoes and a bottle of red wine that they took from Devil Never Cry.
'It's eight p.m. already, so you are not going to Oberon tonight, it's too late.'
'You jerk, you could have waken me up!' Dante said, deeply disappointed.
'I don't want you to be killed by some low-level demons because you just rushed in without thinking. Now, eat,' Vergil cut any further complaints. He picked up the plate and held it out for the devil hunter.
Dante took the plate and started to eat. True, he was hungry, and the beef was tasty. He looked how his brother poured two glasses of wine and offered him one. The devil hunter took the glass and had a taste of the crimson liquid.
'Tis good.'
Vergil just nodded.
'What do we do, then? I see you got us a room, it's raining outside-… where is my Jaguar? Did you leave my baby under that downpour?' Dante jerked up horrified by the thought.
'No, it's in the garage,' said Vergil in a dismissive manner.
'Wooh, scared me. Then, it's late and it's raining. I have to admit that I am really going nowhere. So what?'
'Just rest here. We sleep the night and start at dawn tomorrow. It's simple,' Vergil watched the devil hunter very motherly-like.
'Okay,' Dante finished the meal, threw the plate to the tray and lay back down, slowly rocking the glass with the wine. He yawned.
'Time to go to sleep, then,' stated Vergil and went around the bed to sit at the opposite side.
'What, only one bed?' mock-complained Dante.
'This is the town to which the population of Oberon moved within the last three days. They take money not for space, but for beds,' explained Vergil, sitting motionless, savouring the feel of calm.
'I see.'
Vergil slowly started unbuttoning his shirt. "It's not even my shirt. Everything I have in this world belongs in reality to this man. I should thank him, he deserved that much…" The cloth slid from Vergil's shoulders and fell to the bed.
Dante's gaze slipped to his brother's back, the skin and muscles still new, but a captivating play of curves. Perfect, except for five dark lines marring the skin from the waistline up to the shoulder blade.
'Verge, who hurt you? Who was that son of a bitch?' Dante put the empty glass on a nightstand and faced his brother, eyes glaring, a glow of anger inside him rising to become a fire.
'Why, it was you,' laughed Vergil with ease.
'What?' Dante jumped up and strode up to his brother to look at his face, as if it could give him an explanation.
'Today in the morning,' Vergil threw the shirt to the chair and stood up in front of the devil hunter. 'You scratched me when you came.'
'What?' Dante's eyes were wide and his mind was refusing to process the thought.
'I don't mind,' his brother's long arms snaked around his waist to embrace him, pulling him close until their stomachs touched. 'You can do that all you want.'
'Verge, is it true? What happened in the morning?'
'It is, I guess. What did you think it was?' Vergil was smiling. The man who was immensely strong, who faced death on daily basis, who managed to make Trish a human, who was the Dark Knight's last resort and the most reliable person – now he was a confused child in Vergil's hands and the feeling of control over the devil hunter was exquisite and exciting.
'I thought it was a dream,' confessed Dante, still in awe. 'We shouldn't have done that. We are family and both men, that's just… It's all wrong…'
'It is not,' Vergil squeezed him in his arms. 'You know, when I was imprisoned, they raped me more times a day than I could count. So it was either die or learn to take it. At first I was proud and insulted them, I protested. Then, later I realized I did not know if I could ever leave that cell. Thus I had to stay conscious. There was at least one thought that had to stay in my mind – that they were not to open the gates. So I did everything they asked me to, apart from opening the gate. With time I learned to ignore whatever happened to my body, but that was dulling my conscience. There was a possibility of me going insane. So there was only one way for me to keep my mind clear. I had to learn to find pleasure in what they did.' Vergil looked Dante in the eye, and the light blue crystal pain scared the devil hunter. 'I found pleasure in what they did. I screamed in pleasure and came because of it. Since then, I don't care much who it is I do it with – a woman or a man, a stranger or a relative, it doesn't matter to me. But now that I am free from this small hell, I only wanted to be with someone whom I could trust. And you dare tell me that this is wrong? After I decided that it is you who is worthy of my unconditional trust?'
'Verge,' whispered Dante hoarsely, and his trembling hands were in his brother's locks, holding his head carefully but firmly, so that the devil hunter could look at him. 'I am sorry. Really, really sorry,' tears were welling in his eyes, blue sparks of raw emotion. 'I should have…' Dante pushed his brother close with his one arm, holding him tightly, his other hand tilting Vergil's head to the side.
'I should have stayed with you and protected you,' Dante whispered into the crook of his brother's neck and Vergil shuddered in shock as a hot drop fell on his cold bare shoulder. Then another one, and they kept on falling down.
'Who are you to me, Dante?' the former Dark Knight asked, shaken. 'I do not remember, so tell me. Please.'
'I am the one who promised to take care of you, but the one whom you will never want to have at your side. Listen, Verge, I know that things will be different when everything is over but I want to tell you this. After all, I might not get a chance like this ever.
I promised to protect you – however it is impossible when you are on this crusade for power. I won't ask you why you need it. I just wish I could understand and help you. But I know you don't want me and never will.
When you remember everything… if you choose to blame something on me and hate me, it's alright. I just want you to know that as I promised, I will be there for you. No matter what you choose – to hate me or to trust me.'
For once, Vergil did not know what to do or say.
'You are scary,' he said, stroking the devil hunter's head.
'Why?' Dante let out a strangled chuckle.
'You are ridiculously strong.'
'I don't see it this way. Rather, I say all those big things and look how I end up – you are here, comforting me.'
'Oh, I do not understand why you had to tell me everything like that, but now that I heard you out, I definitely feel like comforting you. In more ways than you can imagine.'
'Hey, cut me some slack, I am not some damsel in distress for you to rescue,' Dante moved away from his brother, hiding his face behind his bangs unsuccessfully.
'Then run to the bathroom, mademoiselle, and put yourself into a more respectable condition. I'll wait for you here.'
'Stop giving me orders, smartass,' Dante snorted and stormed into the bathroom.
Vergil fell back onto the bed. "That was some talk…"
There was the sound of running water. The older Sparda kicked the shoes off, crawled out of his jeans, sent them to accompany the shirt on the chair and threw the blanket over himself. When Dante came out of the bathroom, his brother was lying with the bottle in his hand, slowly sipping wine right out of it.
The devil hunter's hair was wet and it was all thrown back, making him look very much like Vergil's blood relative.
'You know, I met a lot of demons, who claimed to be a part of my family, but so far you are the first one whom I believe.'
'Shut it,' groaned Dante, getting rid of his clothes carelessly and leaving them on the floor, too lazy to bother.
'Hm,' noted Vergil when the devil hunter sat on the bed to finish taking off his jeans. Dante became instantly aware of his nudeness and hurried to crawl under the blanket, sinking into the pillow. "Thank god there is enough space and two pillows…"
'Here, want some wine?' Asked Vergil.
'No, thanks. I just want to fall asleep already,' Dante was lying with his back to him.
'Alright.'
Vergil put the bottle to the floor, pushed the blanket over his bare shoulders and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep as well.
Several minutes passed, Dante has finally calmed down, but the memories of the morning incident were hunting him.
'I've been thinking,' Vergil pondered aloud. 'Why did you assume that it was a dream? True, I left earlier, because I thought it might be inconvenient if a human like Lady found us together, entangled in the blanket and reeking of sex…'
'It wasn't sex!' Dante bolted up.
'Technically it wasn't.'
'Stop messing with my head, Vergil. This madness is already too much for me, okay? I thought it was a dream because I am kinda used to the thought that I am a monster.'
'That's ridiculous… we are just not human…'
'Right, but when every human around keeps telling you that, I bet you start to wonder.'
'Dante, calm down,' Vergil squeezed his shoulder.
'Don't touch me!' the devil hunter jerked away and buried himself in the blanket leaving only the white-haired head for Vergil to stare at.
'If you say it like that, then we both are monsters and the idiotic humans can go to Hell.'
'Verge,' Dante turned to his brother abruptly. 'I did not mean to shout at you.'
The voice that called him 'Verge' sounded painfully familiar. It had the sharp edge that reminded Vergil of old times when he had fencing training with his brother. This voice brought up the memories of sunny days, when they would lie in the grass, too exhausted to move. Then cautious fingers would try to take his hand, but he would get angry and say it was childish, he would always smile though. He knew that longing to feel loved and needed. It drove him crazy, too.
Cautious fingers touched his hand lightly, and Vergil flinched. The fingers were strong. They squeezed and a low tender voice came:
'I know you have been through a lot, too. Sorry, it's just me being selfish. So, did you want something?'
They lay opposite each other, a breath separating their bodies, looking into each other's eyes, seeing the same icy abyss. Vergil intertwined their fingers.
'You are crazy,' he chuckled. 'Are you offering?'
'Huh, offering, my ass!'
'What a surprise, are you saying you are offer-…'
'Don't even think of finishing that sentence,' Dante jerked the older twin's hand roughly. He remembered something. 'I was actually planning on going out with Nevan.'
'With the redhead?' Vergil knew that something small that seemed to be still human in his heart gave away and started to freeze in the blizzard of his life.
'She asked me out. And, well, she is a demon and doesn't care for my lifestyle or my past.'
'I bet she already decided you are hers. She talked about you as if you were her fiancé already.' Vergil informed the devil hunter angrily.
'You kidding? No way!'
'But you haven't decided yet, so it means I have a chance, right?'
'What?-'
Vergil took his other hand from under the pillow and sneaked it under Dante to pull him close until their noses were touching and bodies connected from shoulder to hip.
"Priceless," smirked the older Sparda, seeing the devil hunter's confused expression, eyes wide open in disbelief as Vergil's half-erect sex brushed against Dante's soft member. They stayed pressed together.
'Something the matter, Princess?'
'Nothing except for a certain pea in my bed,' frowned Dante in mock anger.
'And I hope you know that the only way to get rid of me is to give me what I want, right?' a predatory smile twisted Vergil's lips.
'Uh, what did I get myself into?' asked Dante rhetorically, rolling up his eyes.
The next thing Vergil knew the devil hunter was sitting on him, straddling his hips, stark naked, the blanket falling down.
'But you should also know,' panted Dante out, his palm lying flat against Vergil's stomach, the devil hunter lowering dangerously, words spilling from his lips in a painfully slow seducing whisper: 'that if I do something, I do it. Smoking. Hot.'
.......................................endo chap 09.......................................
I now feel like… Total EVIL.
sexy blue eyed devils, thanx for staying with me (and with the story)! (darn I now realize you stole the name I was trying to save for myself ~_^)
Xiang-shui, welcome to the party! Nice to see new people interested in my scribblings *^_^* (omg, Japan rules!)
ladysubaru83, just !m! ^__^ !m!
Sanguinary Tears, a monument to your eternal glory is almost finished in my back yard! *kills mundus as a sacred sacrifice to Tears*
Tora-Katana, yeah, that small idol next to your Great Golden temple is Tears' sacred monument. Hope you don't mind =P *mundus is already dead, so kills Arkham and Saviour (the damn statue is big, so brings in by pieces) as a sacred sacrifice to Tora*
Next coming: Oh, you perverted readers have the whole damn night to imagine that! Make sure not to nosebleed too much! Mwahaha. Dante tricks Vergil and leaves for… Hell!
Don't be lazy, lazy bastards, drop me a line!~
Tell me to finish that up! =P
See ya!
