Chapter 4:
No one had expected that call from the school.
No one expected the police to be involved.
No one expected the burst of anger that came from Andorra when pressed about what she'd done.
"Doesn't matter why I threatened to beat the living daylights out of a senior." Was all she'd say at first.
She refused to elaborate any further. She was too upset and angry to explain coherently. At least, to the principal, and the police.
The cops refused to let her go until she gave an explanation, so she settled herself in her chair and made herself comfortable.
She knew these pigs. Yeah, they were pretending to be on her side. But she knew the second she showed them her reason for flying off the handle, they'd quit being her 'friend'.
More than half the student body had already. Within three days she'd become a pariah, and she hadn't known about it until now. She hadn't known!
How did a person not hear or notice the whispers and snickers and silent jeers? How had she'd been so stupid! No wonder Vergil hated her, no wonder he didn't believe her.
"Miss Darke, we can't help you unless you tell us what happened." The cops were saying.
"Yeah and once my parents get here, you can't keep me here either." She snapped at them. "I'm a minor. All I did was threaten to kick someone's teeth in. I'm not a menace to society, I've not had any other issues with the law before, I'm a good student and productive member of society... I think I'll just wait it out in here. Can I have my phone?"
"No, you cannot."
"Please, I'm bored. Besides I'm in a small glass cage right now, and you have cameras. It's not like I'll try and do anything funny or stupid, just want to browse the internet for memes-"
"No, Miss Darke."
A heavy sigh from the girl. "Fine..."
The station wasn't expecting a visitor in the form of a seventeen year old boy. Nor were they expecting him to produce the correct paperwork stating that, as Andorras fiance, they were allowed to let her into his custody.
And she wasn't happy about that.
"Your parents were busy, I am the only other one that could-" he tried to explain but all she did was hold out one of her hands, indicating she was not in the mood for his explanation.
"I do not wish to hear anything that you have to say." She stated, voice, low, calm, and dangerous. "It is partially your fault in the first place."
"Oh, please tell me how I am in any way responsible for you threatening the entire cheer squadron." He fired back, that sarcasm back again.
"I do not think I will. You did not seem to care earlier when I had something to say, why should I expect you to give any fucks now." She muttered, beginning to break off once they were well away from the police station.
"Where are you going?" He asked her.
"Home."
"By heading south? Your house is-"
"Agh, stop acting like you care!" She yelled, whirling around to face him, black hair spinning in a dark cloud around her as she focused her eyes on him.
The only thing that gave him pause was how hurt she looked.
He could see unshed tears in her eyes, her fists were balled up and her lip was trembling.
"Just go away!" She told him. "You've made it quite clear that you don't care about my innocence, you've demonized me just as much as the other students. I tried to explain to you because I thought perhaps you were just going off the rumors, but no, you actually believe them to be true, and that's why you hate me now."
And she was back on the subject of that again...
She will bring that up until the truth comes out...
Hush. You are why I do not feel comfortable believing her in the first place.
Foolish child... Listen to Sparda... Take his advice...
While he was debating internally to himself, he was quiet. And that, was enough of an answer for Andorra.
There was no denial. No trying to defend himself. No explanation, no anything.
All she wanted to hear was "I don't hate you." Or "I do believe you." But she heard nothing.
A sigh came from her, and she turned to walk away.
"Andorra, wait-" he tried to reach for her again, but recalled earlier that day and instead hoped that she would turn around.
She did not.
"Andorra!" He called again, slightly more urgently than before.
"Just leave me alone..." She muttered. Though her back was turned towards him, he could see that she used the back of her hand to wipe away the tears from her eyes.
"No, stop, listen to me!" He urged, moving to step in front of her.
She halted, though she didn't seem happy about it. Instead she glared up at him with those tear filled eyes.
"What do you want?" She asked, voice low and hoarse. "I gave you the truth and you disregarded it. Leave me alone."
He didn't say anything, he just be looked at her, figuring things out, thinking.
It was then it hit him.
"I was a fool." He stated.
"What else is new?" She asked, seeming unimpressed and nonreactive to his statement. "That all, can I go now?"
"Please... Andorra please listen to me." His tone had lost its edge, it was back to how it used to be, though now with a sense of urgency and pleading behind it.
"You expect me to change my mind about how you've been treating me in the span of one second because you finally realize you've been a fucking idiot?" She demanded. "Nuh-uh, fuck that. I don't need your help. I don't need to listen to you." And with that, she stepped around him, making sure to bump harshly into him along the way.
Ungrateful wench.
She's hurt, it's a normal response. She'll calm down.
What changed your mind, huh boy?
Shouldn't you know?
The demon chuckled and then was silent.
Vergil simply watched Andorra walk away, before deciding to follow after her.
He did not catch up fully to her, instead staying a couple feet behind. She showed no indication she knew he was there, or if she knew, she did not care.
He simply followed her through the streets until they arrived at the cul de sac that her home was situated in.
James and Elizabeth were outside, waiting for them. As were Sparda and Eva as well.
"Jeez , what a welcoming committee." The girl commented harshly when she saw all four parents.
"Andorra, what happened?" Elizabeth asked, coming forth to hug her daughter, but Andorra did not return the affection.
"Doesn't matter, you won't believe me, no one does." The girl muttered. "The 'evidence' is pretty convincing."
"Evidence?" James echoed. "What evidence, what's going on?"
"Some of the upperclassmen have been spreading rumors of Andorra throughout the school." Vergil explained. "And they have doctored photos and videos as their proof. Without an outright admission, there is no way of contradicting them. So, Andorra confronted those responsible and was met with harsh backlash, so... She threatened them with violence. Hence, the removal from the premises with the authorities."
"What sort of rumors?" Elizabeth questioned.
"That I'll spread my legs for anything remotely male looking and am quite the nasty little slut." Andorra spat the words as though they left a bad taste in her mouth.
"We'll go straight to the principal with this-" Elizabeth began to say, but Andorra simply shook her head.
"No good, his son is the main one saying all this stupid shit." The girl said. "You should have seen the way he looked at me, like I was something foul he'd stepped in. He threatened me with expulsion if I ruined his kids chance of getting that full ride he's been trying to get."
Vergil blinked and looked over at Andorra. He had not known that little tidbit. Then again, he had not been at school...
He then glanced over at his father and mother to see their reactions.
"We shall see how he likes it when we withdraw our donations then." Eva stated. "Surely losing two of his biggest benefactors will make him see fit."
Andorra snorted but didn't say anything. Instead she began to head into the house.
That prompted the parents to hold an impromptu meeting right that second as soon as she was gone.
"We cannot let that continue." Elizabeth stated. "I will not sit idly by while those cretins slander my daughter."
"What can we do, it's a 'your word versus mine' kind of situation." James replied. "And it seems numbers are not on our side. That, and there's the doctored evidence."
"Whatever they've fabricated, she has an alibi for. Aside from when she is at school, she is always with one of us, or at Eva and Spardas house."
"They are saying it happened a few days before winter break ended." Vergil replied. "At the party in the remodeled warehouse. There are no cameras there, and it is usually quite dark, from what I have been told." He continued to explain before his phone buzzed in his pocket.
A notification, from whom?
Before he could check the link that was sent to him, the sound of something crashing from inside could be heard, along with Andorra screaming in rage and anger.
Everyone ran inside to see the teen standing in the middle of the den, couch cushions tossed and strewn everywhere. She had knocked down and entire bookshelf full of books and breakable vases and figurines. But what was perhaps the most shocking, was the images that were playing on her laptop.
"Andorra, what-"
"They uploaded it!" The girl screeched and pointed at the screen. "It's gotten three hundred views and it's still climbing!"
Vergil glanced down at his phone and tapped the link he'd been sent. It opened a message that held the name of the video, as well as a shirt message that only had a winking face emoji.
"It was sent to me as well." He stated, showing the message. He didn't dare click on the link however.
The video was a series of short little shots of different guys taking their turn with the doctored image that showed Andorra, along with some very choice phrases. All in all it probably only lasted a minute before the video swapped to one of the main guy that was responsible. He was facing the camera and grinning from ear to ear. Although all you could see of was his mouth and chin.
"I told you I would ruin you if you tried to push the issue." Was all he said with a laugh before the video ended.
After that her phone began to ring and flash as notification after notification began to come through her phone. Through every social media platform.
The house phone begin to ring and Elizabeth went to answer it, listening for all of two seconds before telling Karen to fuck off and slamming the phone back down into it's receiver.
No one had even noticed Andorra had left until Elizabeth went to turn and speak with her. Though they knew she didn't go far as they heard the door of her bedroom slam closed.
"I want that source tracked down." Elizabeth stated. Her tone was low and monotone and even the atmosphere began to change. A slight wind was blowing within the home, ruffling everyone's hair and clothing as she fought to keep her temper in check. "I want all those responsible..."
"Dear... We can't necessarily go after a bunch of children." James told her. "These are human kids, we have to do this properly..."
"And what is the proper way?!" The woman asked, voice raising ever so slightly, and as it did the wind inside grew slightly stronger. In addition there was now the feeling of static electricity throughout the air.
"Not what you are thinking, promise me, if we do that it will only end up worse for Andorra..."
Elizabeth was quiet for a few moments before finally calming down. The atmosphere returned to normal and the static disappeared from the air, along with the wind.
Vergil found her powers very curious and intriguing. Would Andorra have that kind of power as well? Perhaps he should take note not to anger these women in the future...
Suddenly, something in the home felt off. Vergil, Sparda, and Elizabeth all felt it first and looked back and forth between each other.
"It's not me." Elizabeth stated before Sparda cast his eyes towards the direction of Andorras bedroom.
"I think the stress may have triggered her..." He stated. Once he did Elizabeth dashed out of the room, the demon Dark Knight and Vergil not far behind her.
The closer they got to her room, the more evident it seemed that Andorra was the source of the strange fluctuations they were feeling.
"Andorra, honey?" Eliza went to open the door but found it locked. "Andorra!"
"Go away!" The girl hollered from the other side, but she sounded as though she were struggling, or in pain. Not only that, her voice had an echoing quality to it.
And the pressure in the air continued to build.
Elizabeth huffed and took a step back, ready to kick the door in. But she didn't get a chance. The pressure reached its peak and in a sudden burst of raw power, a concussive blast seemed to explode outwards from the room, blasting the door from it's hinges and barely missing the trio as they dodged out of its way.
An unearthly howl tore from inside the room as did the most brilliant and brightest golden flash of light any of them had ever seen.
Vergil's demon inwardly squirmed and cringed, not liking this in the least bit.
As soon as the peak hit, it was gone.
The pressure was gone, the scream trailed off, and the light faded, all as quickly as it had set on.
A quick look into the room showed Andorra passed out on the floor within a circle of charred and smoking carpet.
"Andorra?!" Elizabeth cried out in panic, dashing inside and carefully picking up her child and moving her to her bed, cradling her daughter in her lap.
"She'll be fine." Sparda replied, stepping I to the room as well as James and Eva came to check on what had happened. James immediately came in and knelt beside his wife and child. "Vergil did much the same thing when he awakened. He slept for about six hours he came to."
"She wasn't supposed to for another four months... She wasn't ready..."
"What do we do now?" James asked.
"It appears we'll have to move our schedule up a bit. Move the kids to the cabin and start their training right away." Sparda explained.
"What about school?" James asked. "If they leave at this point, they'll fail for the year-"
"Human highschool is the least of their worries now." Sparda stated. "If this war happens, what they've been taught there will not help them, nor us. They need to hone their skills and work on their parts in the ceremony. It's crucial they be in perfect sync with each other for this to work. Besides, this will serve as a way to get Andorra away from the stress that caused her transformation in the first place. If she goes back now, she'll end up seriously injuring someone, or even worse. And she'll be no good to anyone if she is incarcerated."
"And putting her under stress from training will help?" James asked. "Our daughter just had two of the most traumatic life changing experiences back to back in one day, you want us to immediately start acting as a drill sergeant?"
"No, actually. We will not be the ones training them. We will over see it from another location nearby during the day. They need to work together, and that means being alone, by themselves for as long as possible. It's extreme but in this case we don't have the luxury of time like we would like. We have fix to six years worth of training and skill honing to squeeze into just barely two years. The process needs to be expedited."
"What about Andorra, she doesn't know anything about tapping into her powers." Elizabeth replied. "What if she goes crazy?"
"Vergil is more than capable of handling her, forgive the wording. You've described to me the process of tapping into your powers, it is not that much different for us demons. Vergil can teach her. He's already been informed of the possibility anyways."
Uh.. actually no, Vergil was not made aware of this... But he guessed he didn't have that much of a choice in the matter and better roll along with it.
James and Elizabeth glanced over at each other before silently agreeing.
"All right, when we do start?"