Sorry it's late this time, but my last four days have been busy at Alcon (yaoi panel was fantastic!) and it was a load of fun! But I'm back now!
Kendecia: Thanks for the review! Glad you enjoyed Dante and his naughtiness (there will be more!)
VioletIsInPain: Thank you for reviewing, glad you liked the use of Doppelganger there! Dante is the alpha of alphas XD
Lt. Sarcasm: Thanks for reviewing! Yeah, Nero is just a demon magnet!
SirenaLoreley: Thanks for the review! Glad I surprised you with Doppelganger, I love seeing him in elder form and he definitely knows Dante's feelings! XP – and you're so right about Dante!
Bitbyboth: Thank you for reviewing! It's always fun to get Dante into embarrassing situations and yeah, Nero is still the clueless uke! XD
TheRealAkuRoku: Thanks for the review, glad you haven't disappeared yet! *hugs back*
BattleGoddess126: Thanks for reviewing, that was an image I just couldn't resist! Dante is a poser lol XD
Honeyberries: Thank you for the review and yeah, Doppelganger is very hot!
KawaiiYue: Thanks for reviewing, glad you're enjoying it! Car man is a lucky man :3 – and I just love using Doppelganger, so much fun!
Semjaza: Thank you for the review! I'm glad you're enjoying all aspects of it, especially plot and writing style. I do prefer writing Dante as openly gay, it's good to hear that's okay! Always good to know I'm keeping the character's in character too (especially with my insecure/clueless Nero fetish lol)
Loads of reviews, you people are awesome! *hands out cookies* - No real warnings here, except for men being idiots! Enjoy!
Chapter 11 – Grave Misunderstandings
Dante never said word to him on the drive back to Devil May Cry, which only heightened Nero's worries about him. He hated the small part of himself that had actually been afraid of the older man when he'd seen his eyes like that, as though he were going to Trigger violently. But what confused him the most was the way his devil side had reacted; it welcomed Dante's advances and had even been aroused by them. Nero shivered inwardly, glancing down at the red armour plating on his demonic arm as he recalled the elder's gentle touch. That had been the first time Dante had acted strange around him and it was surely no coincidence that it happened after an attempted attack on the Shadow Stalker.
When the red convertible pulled up in front of the office, Dante was quick to head in through the double doors, still without saying anything to Nero. The teen sat in the passenger seat, puzzled at the man's actions and getting the distinct feeling that he was trying to avoid him. Sighing deeply, part in worry and part in frustration, he got out of the car and entered the office, instantly spying the elder hunter sitting at his old oak desk with his feet up. Nero was cautious as he approached him, trying to shake off his demon half as it whispered to him, telling him to forget about the shadow demon and jump the man he lusted after. The kid stopped on that thought; do I really lust after Dante?
"You should get cleaned up," the older part devil told him. "I can still smell its blood on you."
Nero raised an eyebrow. "You can?" he asked, not being able to smell it himself.
"Yeah, so hurry up."
"But maybe if it does come back, we can get rid of it."
"I told you already, the one to get rid of it will be me... and by 'get rid' I mean kill."
Dante didn't look at Nero once while he spoke to him, his eyes glued to the cover of one of his tasteless Playboy magazine. The teen curled up the talons of his devil arm, a bright azure glow emanating from it as he felt jealousy boil in his blood.
"There is seriously something wrong with you, Dante," he grumbled.
"I guess I'm just a little overworked," the elder replied.
"Damn it old man, you know there's something wrong! Why the hell can't you just admit that to me and tell me why you react so strongly to that Shadow Stalker. The fucking thing is after me, not you!"
"I'd really go and get cleaned up if I were you, kid."
Nero felt the jealousy instantly replaced with rage, his teeth grinding together behind his lips. The bastard could be so infuriating at times. Glaring harshly, the younger man swiped the magazine off the surface of the desk with his right hand, his claws tearing into the shiny pages. He looked at it with disgust before turning the glare on Dante, who was still refusing to look at him. He wanted answers and he wanted them now.
"I wish you wouldn't keep things from me!" he exclaimed.
Dante sighed. "And I wish you'd listen to me sometimes."
"I will go and get cleaned up, but I want answers first. You were going to explain to Trish why your devil side kept reacting to the Shadow Stalker, but you were interrupted and didn't get the chance to finish. Tell me now old man, what's wrong?"
"I can't answer that right now."
"Why not? Why can't I know what's wrong?"
"Because I don't think you'll like the answer."
Nero stared at him for a moment. "You think that's important? Whether I like it or not, I still need to know!"
He watched as Dante turned his head to look at him, azure meeting ice blue for the first time during the conversation. He felt his breath hitch as he saw a seductive smirk curl its way to the elder's lips, the copper ring returning to his pupil. Nero blushed as he heard his own demon side purring again at the scent rising from the other male's body. Arousal. He jumped slightly as Dante pushed back in his chair, the wooden legs scraping across the hardwood floor. Before he knew it, he had completely reduced the distance between them and crushed their lips together. Nero's eyes widened at the sensation, his sharp hearing picking up the deep growls rumbling in his throat as he ran his tongue along the seam of his lips.
He managed to stop himself from groaning as he felt the other man's arousal rub against him through their trousers, his mind questioning why Dante was hard for him. The teen gasped as he felt one of the elder's hands drop and trail down his back to grope his ass, his fingers rubbing teasingly. He shoved the larger male away from the shock, his inner demon growling at him furiously and demanding he let Dante have his way with him. The elder breathed heavily, his eyes closed and fingers pinching the bridge of his nose as he leaned back against the old oak desk. Nero stared at him, his eyes still wide from the suddenness of his advances.
"Sorry Nero," Dante murmured. "Guess I am dangerously close."
The kid continued to stare for a moment, taking in what the elder had said. "W-What do you..." he began, but he was still confused. "Is all this to do with your reaction to the Shadow Stalker? The reason why you want to Trigger?"
"I am half demon, after all."
"Could you please just... tell me out straight?"
Dante sighed. "That shadow demon isn't the only guy that wants to mate with you right now and because of that, it sees me as competition, the same way I see it as competition. When I react to it, I want to fight it in order to claim you as my mate; that's why I need to Trigger."
Nero's jaw nearly hit the floor. "S-Seriously?"
"That's why I suggest you clean up. I can smell that devil on you and it makes me... it makes me angry that it tried to mark you. If you go somewhere I can't smell you, then maybe I'll be able to kill this thing before I lose all my control around you."
Nero released a shaky breath, closing his eyes at Dante's sudden confession. At least that explained why his devil side kept acting up, but it still didn't answer all his questions. Was it all of Dante that felt this way? Or was he still hoping for the impossible?
"How long?" he asked, quietly. "How long have you felt that way?"
Dante was silent for a few moments. "It's just my devil side, kid; and only since the night when I saw it outside the office, not before then."
The teen felt a horrible ache in his chest, not wanting to hear that it was just because of another demon. He shouldn't have expected anything else. After all, they were just good friends and nothing else; not lovers. Though Nero felt an array of different emotions for the elder, there had never really been any chance that those feelings would be returned.
"That's it then, huh?" he whispered.
Dante glanced at him. "What do you mean?"
"It's only to do with this shadow demon then? In other words, once it leaves me alone, you'll have no more reactions to me, right?"
The elder blinked. "Nero, I..."
"Forget it Dante! I should have figured that it would be this way, regardless to how close our relationship seemed to grow. After all, I could never really get a good feeling about you and perhaps I had high hopes and read too much into things. Damn it, why the hell do you have to be so annoying? Why do you have to tease me so much?"
"What are you talking about kid? I don't..."
"First it was the gay porn channels, then you flirt with some woman who called us out for a demon problem. You have gay magazines hidden in your drawers upstairs, but here you are staring at some topless chick like some stupid..."
"Damn it kid, will you listen to me!"
"Fuck you Dante!" Nero couldn't control his own voice anymore, or the tears that welled up in his eyes. "You've just been playing with me all along!"
"Kid!" he shouted after the younger hunter, but he had already ran out of the heavy double doors. "Nero!"
But he was already out of ear shot and had no intention of answering him anyway. Dante closed his eyes and hid his face in his hands, realising that he'd misunderstood Nero's question. Initially, he had thought he was asking how long his devil side had been reacting to the Shadow Stalker, not about his own feelings. However, it was pretty much his own fault; if he had actually told Nero he was gay in the first place, the teen wouldn't have ran away from him. He should have known he'd screw up somehow. The only consolation he had was that he knew the younger hunter had feelings for him. Damn it I'm so fucking stupid!
"Shit!" Dante cursed, slamming his fist against his desk.
Nero didn't really know where he was running to, especially with his weapons still in place. All he knew was that he had no intention of returning to Devil May Cry. Even though he had been so comfortable with Dante, he should have expected things to end like this. The illusion of feeling at home with the guy had been shattered by heartbreak in an instant, leaving nothing but a hollow shell of the emotions he felt before. Though I'll need to go back for my stuff before I move on, Nero thought as he finally stopped running and leaned against the closest brick wall. He closed his eyes and tried to slow his breathing, tears still trickling down his cheeks. Damn it, here I am crying like a girl when some demon's after me...
"Nero?" asked a woman's voice.
The teen jumped at that, his eyes opening and his left hand instantly reaching for Blue Rose. However, his gaze eventually fell upon one of the women he'd met at the office. The brunette frowned at him, titling down her shades to stare intently at him with mismatched eyes.
"Has it been raining?" she enquired. "Or have you been..."
"Crying; yeah, whatever," Nero grumbled. "What are you doing out here?"
"Hmm, be fortunate that you seem upset about something or else I'd be a bit unhappy with you for using that tone of voice," Lady tapped the barrel of one of her many guns. "I'll ignore it in favour of asking you what happened, though I already know Dante has to be involved. Only he could make a guy like you cry."
The kid glared at her. "It's nothing I make a habit of, you know."
"You have some guts snapping at me like that... what does Dante call you? Kid, isn't it?"
"If you start calling me that I'll kick your ass after I've done with him!"
She smirked. "Now I see why he likes you; you're exactly his type."
"What do you mean he likes me?"
"Figures," Lady sighed. "I take it he hasn't told you?"
"Told me what? All he's told me is that the Shadow Stalker makes his devil side horny!"
The devil huntress blinked at him for a moment before laughing. "Oh you really are as naive as you look, aren't you? Trish said you were a cute little thing and she really meant it! That selfish bastard really got himself a good catch for a change."
"Is this some kind of in-joke, because I don't get it?"
"Okay, I'll get back to that later. So why did you run away in this state?"
"Why should I tell you?"
"Because it can't simply be because Dante was being his usual self; he always acts like an asshole, so you should be used to it by now... therefore it must be something personal."
Nero blushed slightly, deciding to give in and talk. "I only wanted to ask him why he was acting strange; it was about the Shadow Stalker, so I felt I needed to know. When he said his demon side considered it as competition, I asked him how long he'd felt like wanting... like wanting me as a mate. He said it was only because of the demon, so naturally I..."
"You're in love with him, aren't you?"
His blush deepened in response to her interruption. "Is it that obvious?"
"Yes, considering him telling you that hurt you."
"It's stupid, isn't it? Having a crush on a guy like him... it's just..."
"Natural, Nero. It's just natural..." she trailed off and shook her head, lightly patting him on the shoulder. "He maybe an conceited asshole but, at the end of the day, it's people like that who are most liked. Nobody's perfect, especially Dante, but we'd all hate him if he were someone different. You just can't not like him."
"But... the first time we met, I tried to kill him!"
The brunette chuckled. "That's how the best loves start, by trying to kill someone."
Nero stared at her for a moment. "Are you trying to make me feel better or something?"
"No, I just know what it feels like. I tried to kill Trish when we first met, but now..." she chuckled again. "There's more than one reason why she moved out of Devil May Cry, other than the fact living with Dante drove her crazy."
"Really? You and Trish?"
"Is it that hard to believe?"
"Well... I originally thought you were Dante's..."
She laughed, beginning to enjoy the conversation more than she expected. "You really are clueless, aren't you? You think that Dante likes us in that way? For starters, he's just a good friend to me and Trish sees him almost like a son. That and we're completely the wrong gender."
"But..."
"Nero, I'm sure you've had plenty of inner arguments with yourself regarding your feelings for him and if he has them for you but... come on, he's about as gay as they come. I knew he was like that the first time I met him and that was about ten years ago when he was a stuck up, miserable little kid!"
Nero looked down at his feet, beginning to feel even more like an idiot. "Then why does he act so flirty with women?"
"He doesn't; they flirt with him and he just plays along until he can get out of it and find a pizza place or some cute guy to take home. It's just the way he is, Nero. That and he thinks being gay is bad for his business and, knowing this place, he's probably right. Thinking about it though, I have won my bet with Trish now."
The teen raised a silvery eyebrow. "Bet?"
"I told her that Dante would screw up when it came down to you and I was right!"
"You've been making bets with that kind of stuff?"
"Oh yeah, we do that all the time! Trish and I constantly have bets on the number of men Dante would bring home in a night, or what the guy would look like, or..." she trailed off, smiling at the look of irritation in Nero's azure eyes. "Don't get jealous okay. The guy's a man whore, he openly admits that after half a dozen cans of beer! He'd also openly admit that he'd never met a guy like you before and from him, that's deep."
Nero rubbed the side of his nose. "Did he honestly say that?"
"He barely stopped talking about you when he came back from Fortuna, not that he would admit that whilst sober mind you."
"Damn it!" he slammed his fist into the wall behind him, the force from his demonic arm knocking off a few chips of masonry. "I just... I think he even tried to explain something, but I... I refused to listen to him! Fuck I'm such an idiot!"
"You both are. Guess that's why you're perfect for each other."
The younger hunter snorted, wiping some of the standing tears away from his eyes. "You know, I always thought you'd be some tight bitch when Dante said you always take his money. But you really are pretty thoughtful."
"Thoughtful enough not to shoot you for that, yes."
He blushed again. "Heh, sorry. I was always taught to be honest."
"Anyway, what else did Dante say about me?"
"Err..." Nero paused, trying to think over his words. "I don't think..."
"Never mind, I don't need an excuse to shoot him in the foot anyway."
"Trigger happy, huh?"
"You bet I am and I assure you, I won't go easy on you in the future."
Nero smiled. "Thanks, Lady. I kind of expected to be on my own with all this, you're a big help. I really should have known more about Dante before I shouted my ass off at him."
"You were right to do so Nero, don't blame it on yourself. It was his fault for not telling you everything from the start. The bastard probably just wanted to have a bit of fun with you and it just got out of hand. That's his problem; he's fine with men he just wants to fuck, but when it comes to something serious he can't deal with it."
"Does that mean I..." his cheeks heated up again. "Am I the first guy he's really been serious about?"
"Well, he does get around a lot, but I don't know if I can say that for certain. From when I met him, he's never had a lover, but I don't know about before then because he doesn't say much. If you want to know stuff like that, you have to ask him, not me."
Nero sighed. "I hope I didn't piss him off."
"I doubt it," Lady smirked and pushed her shades back into place. "But I have to run; I had a mission and I'm due a healthy pay check! Plus I have someone to get back to... like you do."
"What should I say to him?"
She shook her head. "Sorry, but I'm not gonna help with that. You're on your own there."
On that note, she walked past the teen and down the street to where her black motorbike was parked. Nero watched her leave, feeling very relieved after their conversation. He smiled to himself, glancing down at his Devil Bringer that pulsed a faint blue. With this arm, he'd never had any friends and those who weren't scared of him hated him. He had often thought that Dante was the only one who'd ever really care for him, but that wasn't the case at all. The feeling of knowing he had friends who would be there for him was unknown to him and, because of that, there had been some misunderstandings. He still had a lot to learn.
"Guess we both screwed up, Dante," Nero murmured to himself.
Sighing, Nero pushed away from the wall and headed back home, but he stopped by the entrance to an alleyway as he heard a loud metallic bang. He stared into the narrow passageway, just about managing to make out the shapes of a few metal trash cans. He raised his Devil Bringer to shine a little bit of azure light into the darkness, but he almost lost his footing as a black and white cat flashed by with a yowl. Nero closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, his human hand resting on his chest as he fought to catch his breath.
However, he soon opened his eyes again when he heard another crash, only to see one of the trash cans sail past him. He reached for the hilt of Red Queen with his human hand as he stood ready, glaring into the dimly lit passageway. He backed off slightly as something black floated towards him, wondering whether it was the shadow demon again. His suspicions were thankfully wrong as Nero saw the wavy black cloak belonging to a Mephisto and its slender talons come into view. The teen grinned broadly, flexing the claws of his demonic arm and realising he'd been doing that a lot recently. Maybe he really was finally comfortable with it.
"You picked the wrong time to come out and play, pal," he taunted.
The Mephisto turned its head to look at him, floating over to him and aiming its longer claw in his direction. Nero dodged the extended finger as it shot towards him, managing to chip off a piece of brick work with the end of his sword. He started snatching at the demon's cloak, slowly stripping away the strange mist before it managed to hide inside the nearest building. It's frail body fell to the ground and Nero instantly jumped in for the kill, slicing it in half easily with his signature blade. He smirked, feeling satisfied at how easily he could deal with lesser devils now.
"Anyone else?" he asked the darkness, hoping for a decent fight to come his way.
His wish was soon granted as he saw further movement in the alleyway, a larger object slowly gliding into view. Nero chuckled to himself, waiting with anticipation as the Faust hovered above the remains of its fallen comrade. Without wasting any time, the demon instantly pointed its long fingers at the teen, extending many of them towards him at once. The young hunter easily dodged all of them, almost as though it were just a game for him.
"I think I'm getting too good!" he smirked, wishing that Dante was around so he could show him up. "I'd show that ass a thing or two..."
He trailed off on that note, a pang of guilt hitting him in the chest as he recalled the argument he'd had with older slayer. He was out here having a good time fighting a few stray demons, while Dante was probably hurt by the things he'd said. Unfortunately, the kid had chosen an inappropriate time to drift off into his thoughts. A sharp stab of pain coursed through his human arm and he looked down at it, seeing that an extended red talon of the Faust had sliced straight through the muscle of his forearm, narrowly missing the bone.
"Crap," he groaned.
He tripped over as the devil's claw withdrew itself from his flesh, the hand of his devil arm immediately applying pressure to the wound as it healed. Nero glanced up at the Faust as it slowly made its way towards him, preparing to attack him again. Cursing, he rolled away to the side and dodged a few more attacks, having to leave Red Queen behind. However, before the demon could attack him again, the air suddenly became a lot colder and the streetlamps gradually dimmed. Nero felt his heart begin to race, the feeling all too familiar as his eyes focused on the dark alleyway behind his foe.
Unexpectedly, the Faust also turned away from Nero to gaze into the foreboding darkness creeping along the narrow passage. Completely ignoring the young hybrid, it floated towards the advancing shadow, its talons flexing as though it wanted to attack. Nero took the opportunity to scramble to his feet and retrieve Red Queen, his concentration still on the darkness in front of him. With a flash of red, the Faust shot its extendable fingers into the pitch black shadow, the dull crunch suggesting it had missed its target and found concrete. As quickly as it had attacked, the Faust found itself engulfed by the darkness that spread out of the alleyway, thin strips of shadow streaking across the brick walls. Nero took several steps back, watching as the brief shape of a strong body pulled the Faust into its shadow and disappeared.
Shit, guess it healed pretty quickly, Nero thought, watching for any sign of the Faust returning out of the shadow. However, as the tendrils of darkness edged their way towards his feet, the teen knew it was dead. Strapping his sword to his back, he quickly ran off into the night, noticing that the orange glow from the streetlamps became steadily brighter the further he travelled from the alleyway. He had expected that the Shadow Stalker would show up again, but he certainly hadn't expected it to kill another demon. Guess it wanted to protect me... though the thought wasn't overly appealing, it did fit with his situation. After its run in with Dante and Doppelganger, the shadow demon was clearly no longer intent on playing fair. You'd better be able to deal with it old man, because if it mates with me, I'll take great pleasure in killing you!
Nero got his ass saved by a random demon... snicker... more on the way, updates will be quicker! (only two chappies left)