I had pulled Dante into a corner, away from Dartan. "What are you,
crazy?!"
"Why?"
"He's my goddamn instructor!"
"What the hell is that supposed to do, change my mind? You heard him, Zoe, and I think he's right."
"But..." He had cut me off again.
"Listen to me. If Dartan had wanted to take you away, he could've done that. If he wanted your father to come and kill all of us, he could've done that, too. But he's still here."
"What the fuck has gotten into you?" Dante was seriously starting to worry me. First of all, he didn't kill me and I was sent there to kill him. Second, he had admitted to needing help the night before. And now he was letting another demon help. Something was happening with him and that was something I didn't understand, or like, a bit.
"Apparently... you have." Without any explanation at all, he left me.
I turned around, shocked, and saw that he was now talking to Dartan. Not wanting to know what they were talking about, I walked upstairs in a fury. In a sudden recollection, I reached down and grabbed my sketchbook. Pulling out the note, I saw that the two pages it was in between were ones of a lightning demon and a fire demon. I had no idea what that meant. But, as I sat there on his bed with the book upon my thighs and the note in my hand, I heard the door quietly close. Dante walked in slowly, as if it wasn't his room at all.
"Note?" He asked, coming over and sitting on the edge of the mattress.
"Yeah." I couldn't look up, no matter how much I wanted to. "And don't even try to manage one of your 'I'm-not-apologizing-but-this-is-my- apology' tricks. I don't deserve it."
"I guess I'm the transparent one now, huh?"
"No. Because if you were then I would know why you're acting like this."
"Honey, you should know." He gave me, yet another, pity look. I was getting so tired of that.
"I don't, so just tell me."
"Over the past week I've finally been able to swallow some pride and admit a few things. We can't win this without help, Zoe. We're not Batman and Robin, here. We can be stopped. So that's why I confessed the help thing. And I can also admit that... I have been a little..." He really didn't want to say this. It was more clear than a car in the middle of the Sahara. "Asshole-ish. Actually, more than a little because I knew you were a demon; I could sense it on you."
My jaw dropped. "You knew?" He nodded. "Then why the fuck did you scare me half to death?"
"Because I wanted to make sure of a few things first."
"Right. And you had to do it at my sanity's expense?"
Dante laughed softly. "Yeah. I mean, after all-"
"Do not even try that one on me. From the moment you opened that goddamn door I dropped my instructions. Okay? I could never have done it, even then. Wait..." Some stray thought had just passed into my mind. "You gave me that note so I'd stay, right?"
"Yeah. Your point?" He looked completely bored.
"Well, I told you that, if I stayed, Dartan would find you and kill you. Clearly, you understood that but why did you take that chance?"
Dante smiled broadly and moved so he was lying down next to me on his side. "Because I knew Dartan, from a long time ago. He was one of my fathers companions. And, actually, after mom died, Dartan took care of me and Vergil."
"So, you two are like... friends? Oh, aren't you just full of surprises?" I swear, I almost fainted.
"Absolutely. Which is why you got that note and that's also why we just might beat the Underworld."
"Huh?"
"Since I knew Dartan when I was a kid, he's been getting me all of the information that the Hunters need. So, by the way, they're comin' this weekend. That's when we're goin' in."
"Underworld?"
"Yep. And I need you to do me a favor."
"What is it?"
"Before they come you need to go back down there and cause a distraction. And you need to do it soon." Honestly, I was afraid of what would happen if I went. My father surely wouldn't welcome me after everything that I'd done against him. And there was one more thing that was nagging at the back of my mind...
"Why?"
"He's my goddamn instructor!"
"What the hell is that supposed to do, change my mind? You heard him, Zoe, and I think he's right."
"But..." He had cut me off again.
"Listen to me. If Dartan had wanted to take you away, he could've done that. If he wanted your father to come and kill all of us, he could've done that, too. But he's still here."
"What the fuck has gotten into you?" Dante was seriously starting to worry me. First of all, he didn't kill me and I was sent there to kill him. Second, he had admitted to needing help the night before. And now he was letting another demon help. Something was happening with him and that was something I didn't understand, or like, a bit.
"Apparently... you have." Without any explanation at all, he left me.
I turned around, shocked, and saw that he was now talking to Dartan. Not wanting to know what they were talking about, I walked upstairs in a fury. In a sudden recollection, I reached down and grabbed my sketchbook. Pulling out the note, I saw that the two pages it was in between were ones of a lightning demon and a fire demon. I had no idea what that meant. But, as I sat there on his bed with the book upon my thighs and the note in my hand, I heard the door quietly close. Dante walked in slowly, as if it wasn't his room at all.
"Note?" He asked, coming over and sitting on the edge of the mattress.
"Yeah." I couldn't look up, no matter how much I wanted to. "And don't even try to manage one of your 'I'm-not-apologizing-but-this-is-my- apology' tricks. I don't deserve it."
"I guess I'm the transparent one now, huh?"
"No. Because if you were then I would know why you're acting like this."
"Honey, you should know." He gave me, yet another, pity look. I was getting so tired of that.
"I don't, so just tell me."
"Over the past week I've finally been able to swallow some pride and admit a few things. We can't win this without help, Zoe. We're not Batman and Robin, here. We can be stopped. So that's why I confessed the help thing. And I can also admit that... I have been a little..." He really didn't want to say this. It was more clear than a car in the middle of the Sahara. "Asshole-ish. Actually, more than a little because I knew you were a demon; I could sense it on you."
My jaw dropped. "You knew?" He nodded. "Then why the fuck did you scare me half to death?"
"Because I wanted to make sure of a few things first."
"Right. And you had to do it at my sanity's expense?"
Dante laughed softly. "Yeah. I mean, after all-"
"Do not even try that one on me. From the moment you opened that goddamn door I dropped my instructions. Okay? I could never have done it, even then. Wait..." Some stray thought had just passed into my mind. "You gave me that note so I'd stay, right?"
"Yeah. Your point?" He looked completely bored.
"Well, I told you that, if I stayed, Dartan would find you and kill you. Clearly, you understood that but why did you take that chance?"
Dante smiled broadly and moved so he was lying down next to me on his side. "Because I knew Dartan, from a long time ago. He was one of my fathers companions. And, actually, after mom died, Dartan took care of me and Vergil."
"So, you two are like... friends? Oh, aren't you just full of surprises?" I swear, I almost fainted.
"Absolutely. Which is why you got that note and that's also why we just might beat the Underworld."
"Huh?"
"Since I knew Dartan when I was a kid, he's been getting me all of the information that the Hunters need. So, by the way, they're comin' this weekend. That's when we're goin' in."
"Underworld?"
"Yep. And I need you to do me a favor."
"What is it?"
"Before they come you need to go back down there and cause a distraction. And you need to do it soon." Honestly, I was afraid of what would happen if I went. My father surely wouldn't welcome me after everything that I'd done against him. And there was one more thing that was nagging at the back of my mind...