Chapter 3 – The Divine Purgatory.
Nico swore as the freshly lit cigarette fell from her hand and landed on the filthy ground at her feet. It wasn't every day she saw Dante and Nero engaged in friendly banter, Dante's arm draped across the younger devil hunter's shoulders as they walked into the garage side by side as though they were best buddies coming back from a lovely afternoon stroll together! It was such an uncommon sight that Nico found herself staring at the approaching hunters with open-mouthed astonishment.
"Damn! I just lit that there cigarette less than a second ago…" Nico mumbled absently, her eyes flitting from Dante to Nero and back again curiously. "What's going on here? You two look unusually chummy for a couple of guys who just fought off a demon…"
Nero stopped in his tracks abruptly, the smile melting from his face as he suddenly looked quite embarrassed. "Idiot! What was I thinking?!" He scolded himself silently, a telltale blush creeping across his cheeks as he shrugged off Dante's arm and tried to change the subject before Nico could mock him further.
"Where's Lady? Is she alright?" He demanded without making eye-contact with either Nico or his smirking uncle.
"Duh! What do you think, tough guy? She was in my care!" Nico scoffed sarcastically. Her brown eyes were softly teasing as she watched the young hunter shuffling his feet uncomfortably, his gaze fixed to the floor evasively. Nico shook her head and waved her arm in the direction of the van dismissively. "Why don't you go see for yourself?"
Nero gave a small sigh of relief, keeping his head down as he shouldered his way past his uncle and headed for the partially open door on the side of the van. His face was burning and he could hear his own heartbeat in his ears as he quickly climbed the steps that jutted out from the doorway and entered the dimly lit interior. Nero took a deep breath and tried to regain his composure before Lady had a chance to notice his embarrassment. He found the wounded huntress sitting on the well-worn couch behind the van's passenger seat with an old blanket draped over her shoulders. She appeared to be wearing one of Nico's spare work shirts while her bloodied blouse had been washed and hung out to dry from a makeshift clothesline Nico had set up in one corner of the van.
Nico had indeed cleaned and dressed the deep cut above Lady's left hip with some bandages from her first aid kit and Nero was relieved to see that she didn't appear to be in much pain anymore. She was holding a steaming mug of something that smelled a little strange to Nero and when she looked up at him, the keen-eyed hunter noticed that she had been chewing on something prior to his arrival and quickly attempted to swallow whatever it was as though she was trying to hide it from him…
"Are you okay?" Nero asked with concern, his blue eyes searching her face closely for any signs of discomfort.
Lady tried her best to look inconspicuous and nodded in confirmation. Unfortunately, she still hadn't quite finished chewing and as a result her voice came out sounding noticeably distorted. "Yeah, I'm great. Nico has been taking really good care of me…"
As Lady spoke, she shifted in her seat slightly and that's when Nero saw the corner of a familiar pink and white packet poking out through the blanket that covered the female hunter's shoulders as well as part of the couch. A look of realization dawned on Nero's face and before he could control his emotions, he unintentionally raised his voice at Lady in accusation. "Hey! Have you been eating my marshmallows?!"
Nero remembered he'd left the packet of marshmallows Dante gave him in the van just before he'd gone outside in the belief that they'd be safe there. But apparently that wasn't the case! First Dante had "helped himself" to three quarters of the packet and now Lady was stuffing her face with the remainder of his snacks?! This was an outrage!
Lady offered Nero her most apologetic look upon seeing the corner of his mouth turn up in an angry sneer. "Sorry, Nero. I only meant to have one or two of your marshmallows. The problem is, they are just so addictive…"
Nero opened his mouth to protest. But before he could say anything, Nico appeared in the doorway and shoved him roughly in the back with her fist. "Now hold it right there, asshole! Lady risked her life to help you and has a hell of a scar to prove it! You should be thanking her, not whining like a little brat because she ate your stupid marshmallows!"
Nico's voice sounded so scornful that Nero actually flinched as he turned to look at her apprehensively. Her arms were crossed and she stared back at him imposingly. The young hunter had seen Nico look at Empusas the exact same way she was looking at him now and he found that deeply unsettling…
"Hey, I nearly got impaled out there too you know!" Nero countered defensively. His voice came out sounding a lot whinier than he would have liked and he cursed himself silently. But he couldn't help it! He didn't like being told off for something that he felt wasn't even his fault!
Nico's expression turned sour as she looked Nero up and down unconvincingly. "Really? As far as I can tell, there's barely a scratch on you…"
"Of course there isn't. He had a knight in a shining red coat by his side out there." Dante announced from behind Nico, causing the mechanic to jump a little at the unexpectedness of his appearance. Nico blushed and looked down shyly as Dante stepped into the van beside her, giving first herself then Lady a radiant smile before he carried on speaking. "It's okay, Lady. You go ahead and finish off the rest of those marshmallows. We wouldn't want Nero to ruin his teeth with all that sugar."
"Oh! You can talk, smartass! You've already ruined your teeth and god knows what else with all those strawberry sundaes and pizzas you've shoveled down your throat over the years!" Nero rebuked tartly. The young hunter ignored the smug expression his uncle aimed his way and stomped over to the small kitchen at the rear of the van to fix himself a cup of coffee. He could use a warm, relaxing drink to lift his mood and soothe his aching body after all the stress he'd been through this afternoon!
Nico was still blushing as she turned to look at Dante. Her hands were clasped together at her waist and she felt her heart fluttering inside her chest as she chuckled nervously. "So did you kill that demon? I hear those Hell Judecca thingies can be a royal pain in the ass to deal with!"
"Ah, it was a piece of cake. That walking pile of demon guts never stood a chance!" Dante boasted, giving Nico a confident wink as he bragged.
"Oh please! You're going to make me puke here!" Nero commented humorlessly from the kitchen, rolling his eyes as he settled down at the counter with a steaming cup of coffee and some stale biscuits he'd found in one of the cabinets. According to the expiry date on the packet, they had expired over a month ago and Nero hoped that he wouldn't get sick by eating them. But he was hungry and since he had been denied of his marshmallows, he was stuck with these moldy old biscuits instead...
"I think I might stay here and get some rest if you guys don't mind." Lady piped up from the couch. She didn't know why, but her head felt a little groggy all of a sudden and her words sounded slightly slurred when she spoke. "I'm feeling kind of woozy. What did you put in this coffee, Nico?"
Nico grinned at her friend proudly. "Oh, nothing special. Just a touch of some good ol' fashioned moonshine! It's a traditional remedy that's been passed down in my family for generations. Trust me girl, you'll be feelin' like a million bucks in no time!"
"Gee, thanks…" Lady mumbled drowsily. Her eyes were half-closed and her head was spinning slightly as she raised the mug to her lips and took another sip of Nico's "traditional remedy."
Dante glanced from Nero to Lady and shrugged dismissively. "Well it's been a long day and you both look like you need a rest." He turned his attention back to Nico and smiled at her invitingly. "On the other hand, the night is still young and I'm buzzing from the excitement of that battle! Nothing makes me feel more alive than fighting demons! Or hungry for that matter…"
Nico felt her heart pounding with excitement as Dante turned towards the door and winked at her irresistibly. "I think I might go grab a bite to eat. Anyone care to join me?"
The shyness Nico normally felt when she was in Dante's presence melted away and she nodded enthusiastically. "Now that you mention it Dante, I am feeling a little peckish myself…"
"Well in that case, follow me Sweetcake. I know the perfect place where all your culinary dreams can come true!" Dante bowed theatrically and extended an arm towards Nico gallantly. Nico took hold of his arm with both hands eagerly. In her enthusiasm, she ended up squeezing his arm a little too tightly and made Dante grimace in discomfort. "Damn! That's a pretty strong grip you've got there, girl! I'm glad you're not an itsy bitsy spider, because I doubt that even I could escape from that web!"
"Oh you'd better believe it, mister! If something gets caught in my web, it will stay there until this spider decides when or if she's ready to let it go!" Nico laughed giddily, her fingers instinctively squeezing Dante's well-toned arm even more tightly as though to prove her point.
Nero pulled a disgusted face as he walked past Nico and went to join Lady on the couch. His stomach already felt a bit queasy from the stale biscuits he'd just eaten and the unmistakable whiff of alcohol he detected on Nico's breath on his way past threatened to make him puke right then and there. "Pew, Nico! It smells like you treated yourself with some of your own moonshine remedy when you were taking care of Lady. Come to think of it, that would explain your unusual boost in confidence all of a sudden!"
Nero gave his uncle a sympathetic look, his expression laced with a tinge of sarcasm as he added, "I was initially worried about what Dante might do to you this evening. But perhaps I should be more concerned about what you're going to do to him…"
"Ha, ha." Nico snarked back in a slightly slurred tone. "My lips are sealed. A girl is entitled to a secret or two, isn't she?"
Dante listened to the brief exchange of insults between his nephew and Nico with a combination of bemusement and boredom. "Right then, Sweetcake. Are we ready to go?"
"Are you kidding? I was born ready, mister!" Nico exclaimed overeagerly, all thoughts of arguing with Nero instantly forgotten as she gazed up at Dante's handsome features admirably.
"Then I promise you won't be disappointed, babe! It's time I introduce you to the Divine Purgatory." Dante declared with a proud smile, only to have his announcement met with a blank look from Nico.
"What the heck is a Divine Purgatory?" The baffled mechanic thought to herself with mounting apprehension. She glanced over at Nero and Lady for answers and felt her confusion deepen when she noticed the two of them smirking at her in amusement.
"They definitely know something I don't. What the hell am I getting myself into here?!" Nico wondered with a nervous gulp.
"Come on you guys! Enlighten me! What's the deal with this Divine Purgatory?" Nico demanded, the frustration evident in her voice as she looked at Nero and Lady expectantly.
Nero pinched his thumb and index finger together and slid them across his mouth in the classic "my lips are sealed" gesture. Lady had a blissful expression on her face, her eyes half-closed as she let out a soft sigh of pleasure. "Oh don't you worry about a thing, Nico. You are in for a wonderful treat…"
Nico felt the gears inside her head working overtime as she pondered over what Lady had said. "Okay. Maybe she meant that Dante will show me his office later…" Nico suddenly felt a twinge of jealously seep into her thoughts and she furrowed her brow at Dante questioningly. "Dante, you dirty devil! It sounds like you've already treated Lady to this fucking Divine Purgatory before!"
Nico struggled to push the jealous thoughts aside and sighed in resignation. "Oh well. I would have liked to have been his first choice. But I guess beggars can't be choosers…" When Nico glanced at Dante again, she couldn't help noticing that he looked extremely pleased with himself. The devil hunter saw her looking at him unsurely, so he gave her an encouraging smile and took her by the hand gently. "I'm ready whenever you are, babe. Let's rock!"
Nico grinned like an idiot before looking away hesitantly. "I just hope wherever we're going isn't too far." She waved her arm in Nero and Lady's direction indicatively before adding, "As you can see, these two have turned my van into a mobile sick bay and I don't fancy going for a long walk through those streets after dark."
"Walk? Who said anything about walking?" Dante laughed, a flicker of pride flashing through his piercing blue eyes as he gazed at Nico inquisitively. "How do you feel about going for a spin on my devil ride; Cavaliere?"
"Are you for real?!" Nico's voice came out in a high-pitched squeal of excitement, her eyes wide with wonder at the prospect of going for a ride on Dante's demonic motorcycle, an engineering masterpiece she'd heard about, but hadn't actually seen up close till now! "You brought Cavaliere with you?!"
"Of course he did." Nero commented from the couch sarcastically. "Did you really think he walked all the way here with those old, arthritic knees of his? Give me a break!"
Dante made a strangled noise in the back of his throat and shot Nero a look of stubborn defiance. "Well be that as it may my boy, these old knees had no trouble keeping up with that Judecca demon that was giving you such a hard time before I showed up."
"Just get out of here already!" Nero snapped irritably, waving his arm at his uncle in a dramatic shooing gesture. "I've got a bad case of indigestion from listening to your bullshit all afternoon!" Truth be told, Nero knew that it was probably those goddamn stale biscuits he'd eaten that had upset his stomach, but putting up with Dante for the past few hours certainly wasn't helping his current situation…
Nico cleared her throat and pulled at Dante's arm eagerly, interrupting the veteran devil hunter's thoughts and causing him to look at her curiously. "Come on, Dante! I can't wait to get on that badass Cavaliere motorcycle!"
"In that case, follow me right this way, Sweetcake." Dante smiled to himself proudly as he led the excited mechanic out of the garage and over to the imposing demon bike he'd parked in a nearby alleyway.
"Hold on and enjoy the ride, babe. Dante is about to show you a real good time…"
A/N: Once again, I want to give my deepest thanks to all of you who have been reading this story and especially to those who showed their support by reviewing, favoriting or following so far :)
After a lot of hiccups, the hot date is finally on! But if you think you've got it all figured out from here on, I've got two words for you: "think again…"