Chapter 3: Interior Notions

Note: This came out better than I thought it would! Not bad for something so simple!

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As strange as it was to admit, doing completely benign and socially acceptable activities amongst the general public was something that V had lost the ability to do in the time since he'd met his extended family, if he had ever possessed any meaningful capacity to do so in the first place. He wasn't going to pretend that he had been walking up the street talking to every stranger that he had passed along the way before, but this was certainly a new level of strangely ordinary that he had neither experienced before, nor even put much consideration into. V wasn't sure if it was the prices involved or the permeance of the objects themselves self, but he would have never guessed that purchasing furniture could be so incredibly stressful.

This couldn't be how it was supposed to feel, could it?

When Sirrus had suggested that the three of them should take a moment to break away from the confines of V's home in order to look into the possibility of actually furnishing it, Nero had simply shrugged in indifference. There was no compelling reason for him to say no. At the very least, it provided something worthwhile to do, and it gave him an opportunity to actually figure out what V liked for a change. It was a winning scenario across the board.

"So… does your brother lack social skills by nature, or is there a story there that I'm not privy to?" Sirrus asked casually from his spot in the armchair next to the bed. He and Nero were in one of those mock bedrooms that were so common at furniture stores, not so much interested in the layout of the staged area as they were the comfort level of the pieces within it.

"You're gonna have to take that one up with V. Can't really say. I don't think you're wrong though. You're probably onto something." Nero said, shrugging as he stretched out and made himself comfortable. He was trying out one of the mattresses that the store had on display, strangely obsessed with how undeniably comfortable it was. He hadn't considered the bed that he shared with Kyrie back at home uncomfortable until then, but now that he had tried out this one, the idea of returning to his old one was patently horrifying to him. Although he hadn't mentioned it, this was actually his first time within the confines of a furniture store himself, and he had to say, now that he had tried it out, it made him want to grab a thing or two. Kyrie would love this place! He had to bring her some time.

"I get the impression that being around other people makes him anxious. He's not exactly conspicuous. For someone so quiet, that must be quite the annoyance. Or perhaps it is the very reason for his silence to begin with." He seemed to consider this for a moment, glancing over at the tall white-haired summoner in silence. He allowed his gaze to linger for a moment before redirecting it towards the couch that V was examining. He had been looking it over for the better part of five minutes, and from what he could tell from this distance, he was utterly enamored with it. At least they seemed to be on the right track. He had guessed correctly when he had assumed that this was what V's style might be like, it seemed.

Nero couldn't help but agree with the sentiment that his red-haired companion had just expressed. Yes, it was probably that exactly. Sirrus had nailed it. As he nodded in agreement, he decided to look over towards V and check out what he was up to. They had been through a lot lately, and it seemed that the Adjudicator had been right when he has suggested that V might need a temporary change of environment. We don't want him to get tired of his own house. After all, he just moved in recently. How right those words had been. He was glad that he had gone along with Sirrus's request to try and talk V into venturing out of the confines of his home, even if it was only for an hour or two.

This entire situation had made V rather prone to staying inside of the townhouse, the young summoner clearly finding comfort in its now familiar walls. He'd filled the majority of his time pondering projects he could do to customize the space and make it his own, imagining what a room would look like if it had a little bit of paint or some artwork on the walls. This was the first time that he had actually gone about actually procuring anything for his house, and there was a part of him that actually found that genuinely exciting despite everything else that was going on around him.

"How did you even know this place was here? Don't you live in another town or something?" Nero asked Sirrus as he finally forced himself to sit up and stop laying on the bed. If he didn't stop sitting there, then they would have one hell of a time getting him to leave with them once the time came. That bed was too comfortable for its own good! He had to escape before it was too late.

Sirrus spared Nero a passing glance as he walked towards where V was, now more curious than ever to see what had so thoroughly captured his attention. They were all used to the young descendant of Sparda being quiet, but this was another thing entirely. He was utterly awe-struck in regards to this specific piece of upholstery, and Sirrus had to know what was so special about it. "You're correct, I do live outside of town. The area in which I live actually has one of these boutiques. They are few and far between, and if you've been inside of one before, you can't miss them."

But he didn't have to wonder for very long. As soon as he came close enough to it, everything suddenly made perfect sense. Sitting on a raised platform in front of both of them was a dark green couch, so dark in fact that it almost seemed black if viewed from a certain angle. The velvet-like texture, total lack of legs, and tufted design gave it a look somewhere smack dab in the middle of contemporary and gothic, and it was most certainly a show-stopping centerpiece whichever way you looked at it.

For a moment, Sirrus considered acquiring it from himself, but he decided to exercise restraint. That wouldn't be very polite of him. He had come here to do something nice with V and Nero, not to start a resent-fueled rivalry that would no doubt devolve into infighting over a piece of furniture that he didn't even need… perhaps he was projecting. That was something his side of the family would do. Nero and V probably were not that petty. Dante probably wasn't, either. Vergil though…

"Wow… that's fancy looking." Nero said with a playful whistle as he walked over, literally giving the luxury couch a sideways look. He didn't dare touch it, though. There was no way in hell that he would be stuck paying for something that expensive if he accidentally scratched it or put a hole in it or something. No, Kyrie would die of shock if he had to buy this thing, and the children would certainly starve. Nico would be the only survivor.

"And of course it happens to be in my favorite color. I believe this couch may be taunting me." V said with a solemn, almost resentful head shake. As if he could purchase something like this. He had savings, and he technically could pay for this and walk out with it (perhaps not literally, but still) but doing so would leave him without the ability to buy anything else of any note, and he was sure that it would not go over well in the future if he didn't have a dining room table to eat at, but possessed a couch that cost more than some people paid in several months for their mortgage.

"If I might ask, why don't you just sit on it and see if you like it, then?" Sirrus asked, somewhat sure he already knew the answer to that question. But woe betide him should he ever allude to that fact. No, he liked to get into the heads of those he spent time around. This was a learning experience.

V shook his head, clearly hesitant. It was best to not get his hopes up. He didn't like to set himself up for failure, and this would certainly count as doing that. To put it franky, there was simply now way that he could afford something like this. Why torture himself? "I don't think that would be wise."

"Live a little." Sirrus said playfully, gesturing towards the apulstured work of art. "Don't deprive yourself of the simple pleasures in life. You're not going to harm it, after all. None of your little helpers are around to do anything unseemly."

Sighing heavily, V reluctantly took Sirrus's advice and approached the couch, sitting down and putting his arm up on the back of the couch. He immediately wished he hadn't. How on earth did they make this thing so soft? It was like being enveloped in a warm hug, and the serenity and comfort it brought him in that brief moment was enough to make him question just how much he needed money to actually be in his bank account. Surely he deserved this? It was so nice!

Upon viewing the price tag, Sirrus suddenly became very aware of why V had made a point of looking at the lovely piece of furniture and not sitting on it. What point was there in falling in love with something you could never have? The young man with the fiery hair knew for a fact that this entire store was probably out of V's income bracket before he'd brought him here, and that had been by design. That way he wouldn't suspect what he was up to. He had just hoped that he wouldn't pick the most expensive item in the store. But the heart wanted what it wanted. There was no stopping that.

He turned and started in the direction of the front counter, a small smile on his face. No matter. This was still a trivial issue for him. It would not dampen the depths of what he had in store. V would have to sit down once the delivery people came. He had no idea what he was in for. Sirrus prided himself on being observant, and he had made a mental not of everything that V had so much as seemed excited about. It was the least he could do. Money was of little consequence to him.

"Wait, where are you going?" Nero asked casually as he attempted to catch up with him, clearly confused as to where he was headed to."

Laughing lightly, Sirrus gestured towards the counter. "To make good in regards to repaying a priceless debt. I see no issue with what has been presented to me."

He owed V, and he would make good on his desire to return the favor. This wasn't the kind of thing he was going to ask permission to do. He would simply go about this the same way he had in the past. V was a friend. Truly, this was no trouble.

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I could literally write a whole mini companion fic that just consists of V renovating his home and taking joy in the little things. It would be so wholesome! Don't test my angst reserves! Maybe I could build V's fictional house in the sims just for the fun of it…

But anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think! And as always, have an awesome day! I'm gonna go take a nap. Check in here again next friday… I might have something else.