Disclaimer: I know I haven't been adding a disclaimer to every chapter. I
figured disclaiming at the beginning of the story was enough... But
anyway... Y'all know I do not own Dante or any of the DMC characters.
Nikki, Alma, Fulton, Psi, etc. are my fictional characters. Which by the
way, Psi is pronounced 'sigh'. Just in case y'all didn't know...
Chapter 5 -
"But, Psi, why did we save her? She wasn't suppose to be there," Fulton says with a concerned look.
"I had no choice. It was either bring attention from the human world or wait for another. I prefer not to wait for another," Psi says matter-of- factly.
"But she had a friend with her. What's to become of that?"
"But, but, but... You always seem to question everything I do. Can't you just trust me on this?" Psi retorts back a little irritated.
"Her friend knows she's missing."
"I know that. She'll return..."
Fulton interrupts, "But her clothes. She doesn't have her clothes."
Psi scratches his head pretending he doesn't know the answer just to tease Fulton, "Hmmm... Well, I guess I'll have to make sure when she returns she has her clothes back on."
"And how do you propose to do that?"
"What did I say? Just trust me, Fulton."
"I do have one more question, Psi."
"Yes."
"What was that blood you placed in her?"
"Demon's blood."
"What? Why?"
"I thought you were only going to ask one question?"
"It warranted another question." Fulton says shuffling his feet.
Psi looks at Fulton and smiles, "Demon's blood is powerful. That was the only way to bring her back to life. I'm no God you know."
"I'm still confused." Fulton shuffles more.
"About what? There's nothing complicated about it." Psi responds.
"Why'd you bond her to Sparda's son?" Fulton asks confused.
"I have my reasons. Don't worry about it. She's alive and going to be back in the human world. No one would suspect anything from someone like her."
Still baffled, Fulton slowly replies with, "But she's part demon now. She'll never be the same," he pauses, "she should have just been the sacrifice, and we should have just killed the son of Sparda. We had him. We could have killed him."
"Why are you so worried? You're not the one who has to explain himself to Mundus," he eyes Fulton and continues on, "I couldn't touch him anyway. He's protected. We were lucky to have caught him like we did. If he would have awakened while we were doing the ceremony, we would be dead."
Fulton starts to look very nervous.
"Don't worry, I've got it all under control." Psi adds in hoping to calm Fulton down.
Fulton just nods his head in compliance. Fulton knows the only reason why Psi did what he did. Psi wanted to show Mundus that he could do just about anything, even bring a human back to life. Fulton just looks at Psi thinking, he'll pay for his conceit.
**********
I ease my way out of the room and start walking in the direction of the silhouette, which is now out of sight.
I slowly walk along the corridor, my hand following the designs on the wall. I walk for a few minutes. A few feet ahead, I see double doors and hurry to them.
I bite my bottom lip, place my hand on the knob and slowly turn. The door opens slightly. I peek through the crack and feel a slight breeze. The air smells of roses. I slowly push open the door.
The room isn't very big and is lined with bookshelves. It looks like a library. The door slams shut behind me, "Gasp."
I'm about to grab for the door when I realize the breeze rushing by my skin. I look ahead. Double glass doors are wide-open letting in a breeze. I walk over to the balcony and look down.
There is a yard a couple of stories down. A stone wall surrounds the yard as if to keep strangers out. I look beneath the balcony, but don't see anything that is pertinent.
Where are the roses? I can smell roses, but I don't see them. I look far off into the distance. I sense something and turn around. I walk back into the library.
"Someone here?" I say. Though I think I said it only loud enough for me to hear.
To the left of me are a couple of busts (no one who looks familiar) and a very large mirror. It is about 8 feet tall and about as wide as double doors. I approach it.
I have an uneasy feeling. I don't like this, I think to myself.
I touch the mirror with the tip of my finger. It ripples like water. I gasp and jerk my hand away.
It's inviting me in. I can't resist...
I place my hand through the mirror and watch it disappear. Finally, I enter and in a split second, I am standing in the lobby of the museum. I turn around, but there is nothing but a wall and a couple of goat statues staring me in the face.
"Aah." I turn back around.
"Alma!"
I see Nikki walking hurriedly my way. I look down at my clothes. I'm back to normal.
Nikki screams at me, "Alma, where have you been?! I've been looking all over for you!"
"I've been here all the time." I say trying to sound convincing.
"Yeah, right. Come on. Let's get out of here before you get lost again." She yanks at my arm and pulls me away.
I laugh, "okay, okay..." But then I stop her and become serious, "Nikki, do you think I'm weird?"
"Huh?" She blinks. "What are you talking about?" She says all confused.
I repeat myself, "Do you think I'm weird?"
"Why would you ask me a stupid question like that?"
"Just answer me."
She looks at me all dumbfounded and then pops me on the head, "You're always weird." She walks away.
I smile and follow, but something still doesn't feel right. I stop and turn around, but see nothing.
"Alma, come on... I think someone needs to take a nap?" Nikki says sarcastically.
I roll my eyes.
A few yards away a white haired man is watching us.
**********
Walking towards the bus station, I start a conversation.
"So, how long was I lost?" I ask Nikki, a tone of sarcasm in my voice.
"Long enough for me to worry," she says eyeing me kind of funny. "Especially since the area you supposedly entered disappeared. I had to talk to one of the natives, luckily she knew English, and she looked at me like I was crazy."
"What area? I don't remember entering any area."
"Quit patronizing me. You know exactly what area I'm talking about. You picked it."
I give her this I-don't-know look and shrug my shoulders, "I'm okay, aren't I? Why are you so mad at me?" I pause, "Wait. Is someone following us?"
"Huh?" Nikki looks behind us, "I don't see anyone." She looks at me and punches my arm.
"Ow. What was that for?"
Nikki pokes at my arm with her finger, "Quit trying to change the subject."
I just look at her. An eyebrow lifts, "Are you sure no one's following us?"
"Okay, Alma, I don't know what you're on, but you need to quit," she says rolling her eyes, "I know we're in a foreign country and stuff, but your paranoia is getting ridiculous."
My eyes narrow, "I'm not paranoid." I say a little irritated.
She looks at me annoyed.
"Whatever." I say walking away.
**********
The white haired man sees us walking towards the bus station. He follows trying not to be detected.
By this time, I'm standing outside the bus station and Nikki's inside looking at the tour schedules. I exhale, a little frustrated.
What is this feeling? I still feel like someone's watching me. I look around the station trying to find any suspicious looking people, and I catch a glimpse of the white haired man. I freeze, "Oh, my, God." I strain to look, but he's no longer there.
That isn't who I think it is, is it? No, it can't be. I shake my head. I must be seeing things, I think to myself.
All of a sudden, I feel a hand on my shoulder. I jump.
"Gee, a little jumpy aren't we?" Nikki says eyeing me suspiciously.
"Heh, just a little confusing here that's all..." I say jokingly.
"Anyway, there's a little café a couple of blocks from here. We can take a little rest and drink some coffee before the next tour. Not that you need any caffeine." Nikki says, shoving me in the direction of the café.
We sit down at the coffee shop and Nikki starts chatting about going to some castle up on a hill. My mind starts to wander and her voice starts to fade. With my elbows on the table, I rest my head in the palms of my hands and look into space.
As if on cue, someone walks up to the table and places their hand on my shoulder.
"Hey, why are you being such a stranger?" A man's voice pipes up.
I see Nikki's eyes move over in my direction and she smiles.
I quickly turn my head. My eyes widen, "You?"
He sits down in the vacant chair as if invited, looks at me and smiles.
"What..." Nikki puts her hand on mine and interrupts me.
"Who's your friend, Alma? Are you trying to hide him from me?" Nikki says completely ignoring me.
"..." I stare at him then look at Nikki, "It's..." I'm interrupted again.
"Yeah, Alma, you told me you were going to be back. What happened to you?" The white haired man says while looking at Nikki, "Hi, I'm Dante."
I stare in awe.
"Heeey! Who the hell do you think you are?" I say looking at Dante.
Nikki smacks my arm, "Alma! That's rude."
Nikki turns to look at Dante and starts talking to him.
"But... I don't even know him!" I yell.
They both look at me and so does everyone else at the coffee shop. I sit back embarrassed.
What's he doing here? Why is he here? Did I dream that incident? The castle? Him? I'm so confused!
I sit forward and try to interrupt, "Ummm... excuse me, Dante? Can I talk to you for a sec? Alone."
Nikki pauses to look at me then interrupts again, "Hey, Dante, do you want to come with us to the castle tour?"
I roll my eyes and sigh. I can't even get a word in this.
"Wouldn't that be cool?" Nikki says to me all excited.
I answer back, "He hasn't even said yes or no and you're all ready..."
"Sure," Dante says looking at me then smiles at Nikki.
I sit there quietly and blink a few times. Great, I say to myself sarcastically.
Nikki looks at me as if trying to get permission for our "new" friend to join.
I start biting the inside of my mouth and shake my head slowly, "I guess...(rolling eyes)... That's fine."
What am I doing? I'm letting a complete stranger hang out with us. Not only is he a complete stranger, but he's also someone that makes my skin crawl. I must be insane.
They continue talking. Once in awhile I see Dante look in my direction as if trying to keep an eye on me, but my mind is working at a hundred miles an hour that I think nothing of it.
Chapter 5 -
"But, Psi, why did we save her? She wasn't suppose to be there," Fulton says with a concerned look.
"I had no choice. It was either bring attention from the human world or wait for another. I prefer not to wait for another," Psi says matter-of- factly.
"But she had a friend with her. What's to become of that?"
"But, but, but... You always seem to question everything I do. Can't you just trust me on this?" Psi retorts back a little irritated.
"Her friend knows she's missing."
"I know that. She'll return..."
Fulton interrupts, "But her clothes. She doesn't have her clothes."
Psi scratches his head pretending he doesn't know the answer just to tease Fulton, "Hmmm... Well, I guess I'll have to make sure when she returns she has her clothes back on."
"And how do you propose to do that?"
"What did I say? Just trust me, Fulton."
"I do have one more question, Psi."
"Yes."
"What was that blood you placed in her?"
"Demon's blood."
"What? Why?"
"I thought you were only going to ask one question?"
"It warranted another question." Fulton says shuffling his feet.
Psi looks at Fulton and smiles, "Demon's blood is powerful. That was the only way to bring her back to life. I'm no God you know."
"I'm still confused." Fulton shuffles more.
"About what? There's nothing complicated about it." Psi responds.
"Why'd you bond her to Sparda's son?" Fulton asks confused.
"I have my reasons. Don't worry about it. She's alive and going to be back in the human world. No one would suspect anything from someone like her."
Still baffled, Fulton slowly replies with, "But she's part demon now. She'll never be the same," he pauses, "she should have just been the sacrifice, and we should have just killed the son of Sparda. We had him. We could have killed him."
"Why are you so worried? You're not the one who has to explain himself to Mundus," he eyes Fulton and continues on, "I couldn't touch him anyway. He's protected. We were lucky to have caught him like we did. If he would have awakened while we were doing the ceremony, we would be dead."
Fulton starts to look very nervous.
"Don't worry, I've got it all under control." Psi adds in hoping to calm Fulton down.
Fulton just nods his head in compliance. Fulton knows the only reason why Psi did what he did. Psi wanted to show Mundus that he could do just about anything, even bring a human back to life. Fulton just looks at Psi thinking, he'll pay for his conceit.
**********
I ease my way out of the room and start walking in the direction of the silhouette, which is now out of sight.
I slowly walk along the corridor, my hand following the designs on the wall. I walk for a few minutes. A few feet ahead, I see double doors and hurry to them.
I bite my bottom lip, place my hand on the knob and slowly turn. The door opens slightly. I peek through the crack and feel a slight breeze. The air smells of roses. I slowly push open the door.
The room isn't very big and is lined with bookshelves. It looks like a library. The door slams shut behind me, "Gasp."
I'm about to grab for the door when I realize the breeze rushing by my skin. I look ahead. Double glass doors are wide-open letting in a breeze. I walk over to the balcony and look down.
There is a yard a couple of stories down. A stone wall surrounds the yard as if to keep strangers out. I look beneath the balcony, but don't see anything that is pertinent.
Where are the roses? I can smell roses, but I don't see them. I look far off into the distance. I sense something and turn around. I walk back into the library.
"Someone here?" I say. Though I think I said it only loud enough for me to hear.
To the left of me are a couple of busts (no one who looks familiar) and a very large mirror. It is about 8 feet tall and about as wide as double doors. I approach it.
I have an uneasy feeling. I don't like this, I think to myself.
I touch the mirror with the tip of my finger. It ripples like water. I gasp and jerk my hand away.
It's inviting me in. I can't resist...
I place my hand through the mirror and watch it disappear. Finally, I enter and in a split second, I am standing in the lobby of the museum. I turn around, but there is nothing but a wall and a couple of goat statues staring me in the face.
"Aah." I turn back around.
"Alma!"
I see Nikki walking hurriedly my way. I look down at my clothes. I'm back to normal.
Nikki screams at me, "Alma, where have you been?! I've been looking all over for you!"
"I've been here all the time." I say trying to sound convincing.
"Yeah, right. Come on. Let's get out of here before you get lost again." She yanks at my arm and pulls me away.
I laugh, "okay, okay..." But then I stop her and become serious, "Nikki, do you think I'm weird?"
"Huh?" She blinks. "What are you talking about?" She says all confused.
I repeat myself, "Do you think I'm weird?"
"Why would you ask me a stupid question like that?"
"Just answer me."
She looks at me all dumbfounded and then pops me on the head, "You're always weird." She walks away.
I smile and follow, but something still doesn't feel right. I stop and turn around, but see nothing.
"Alma, come on... I think someone needs to take a nap?" Nikki says sarcastically.
I roll my eyes.
A few yards away a white haired man is watching us.
**********
Walking towards the bus station, I start a conversation.
"So, how long was I lost?" I ask Nikki, a tone of sarcasm in my voice.
"Long enough for me to worry," she says eyeing me kind of funny. "Especially since the area you supposedly entered disappeared. I had to talk to one of the natives, luckily she knew English, and she looked at me like I was crazy."
"What area? I don't remember entering any area."
"Quit patronizing me. You know exactly what area I'm talking about. You picked it."
I give her this I-don't-know look and shrug my shoulders, "I'm okay, aren't I? Why are you so mad at me?" I pause, "Wait. Is someone following us?"
"Huh?" Nikki looks behind us, "I don't see anyone." She looks at me and punches my arm.
"Ow. What was that for?"
Nikki pokes at my arm with her finger, "Quit trying to change the subject."
I just look at her. An eyebrow lifts, "Are you sure no one's following us?"
"Okay, Alma, I don't know what you're on, but you need to quit," she says rolling her eyes, "I know we're in a foreign country and stuff, but your paranoia is getting ridiculous."
My eyes narrow, "I'm not paranoid." I say a little irritated.
She looks at me annoyed.
"Whatever." I say walking away.
**********
The white haired man sees us walking towards the bus station. He follows trying not to be detected.
By this time, I'm standing outside the bus station and Nikki's inside looking at the tour schedules. I exhale, a little frustrated.
What is this feeling? I still feel like someone's watching me. I look around the station trying to find any suspicious looking people, and I catch a glimpse of the white haired man. I freeze, "Oh, my, God." I strain to look, but he's no longer there.
That isn't who I think it is, is it? No, it can't be. I shake my head. I must be seeing things, I think to myself.
All of a sudden, I feel a hand on my shoulder. I jump.
"Gee, a little jumpy aren't we?" Nikki says eyeing me suspiciously.
"Heh, just a little confusing here that's all..." I say jokingly.
"Anyway, there's a little café a couple of blocks from here. We can take a little rest and drink some coffee before the next tour. Not that you need any caffeine." Nikki says, shoving me in the direction of the café.
We sit down at the coffee shop and Nikki starts chatting about going to some castle up on a hill. My mind starts to wander and her voice starts to fade. With my elbows on the table, I rest my head in the palms of my hands and look into space.
As if on cue, someone walks up to the table and places their hand on my shoulder.
"Hey, why are you being such a stranger?" A man's voice pipes up.
I see Nikki's eyes move over in my direction and she smiles.
I quickly turn my head. My eyes widen, "You?"
He sits down in the vacant chair as if invited, looks at me and smiles.
"What..." Nikki puts her hand on mine and interrupts me.
"Who's your friend, Alma? Are you trying to hide him from me?" Nikki says completely ignoring me.
"..." I stare at him then look at Nikki, "It's..." I'm interrupted again.
"Yeah, Alma, you told me you were going to be back. What happened to you?" The white haired man says while looking at Nikki, "Hi, I'm Dante."
I stare in awe.
"Heeey! Who the hell do you think you are?" I say looking at Dante.
Nikki smacks my arm, "Alma! That's rude."
Nikki turns to look at Dante and starts talking to him.
"But... I don't even know him!" I yell.
They both look at me and so does everyone else at the coffee shop. I sit back embarrassed.
What's he doing here? Why is he here? Did I dream that incident? The castle? Him? I'm so confused!
I sit forward and try to interrupt, "Ummm... excuse me, Dante? Can I talk to you for a sec? Alone."
Nikki pauses to look at me then interrupts again, "Hey, Dante, do you want to come with us to the castle tour?"
I roll my eyes and sigh. I can't even get a word in this.
"Wouldn't that be cool?" Nikki says to me all excited.
I answer back, "He hasn't even said yes or no and you're all ready..."
"Sure," Dante says looking at me then smiles at Nikki.
I sit there quietly and blink a few times. Great, I say to myself sarcastically.
Nikki looks at me as if trying to get permission for our "new" friend to join.
I start biting the inside of my mouth and shake my head slowly, "I guess...(rolling eyes)... That's fine."
What am I doing? I'm letting a complete stranger hang out with us. Not only is he a complete stranger, but he's also someone that makes my skin crawl. I must be insane.
They continue talking. Once in awhile I see Dante look in my direction as if trying to keep an eye on me, but my mind is working at a hundred miles an hour that I think nothing of it.